I arrived in Cologne on Sunday evening. The riverside was bustling with people—bands were playing, there was laughter in the air, and people from all over the world seemed to be enjoying life. The Rhine runs through Cologne, and its riverbanks are natural meeting spots for the city’s population. And it is a big city—the fourth largest in Germany, with over a million people living here altogether.

That said, the city itself can be a bit disappointing. Cologne was heavily bombed during the war, and today it’s hard to find many buildings that predate that time. So why travel to Cologne? Of course, for the Cathedral—and the museums.

But what’s even more convincing is the diversity of Cologne’s neighborhoods. The most striking one is called Ehrenfeld. It was built in the second half of the 19th century as housing for factory workers—tenement buildings and poor living conditions shaped life here. Then, in the 1960s, workers from abroad came as Germany’s booming industry needed labor. Many of them, especially from Southern Europe, settled in Ehrenfeld. And in the 1990s, students and artists moved in, drawn by the low rents, adding to the mix of workers and cultures from all over the world.

The result is a neighborhood that’s very diverse, very creative, and somewhat ordinary at the same time. There are murals everywhere, Turkish fast food places next to hipster cafés, and little shops selling beautiful things no one really needs. Don’t get me wrong—this is not a fancy place. It’s an honest place, a diverse place, and an exciting one.

Of course, there’s a downside. As Ehrenfeld has become known as the place to be—of course it has—rents have gone up quickly. And that leads to gentrification: people who can afford it move in, and others have to leave. And often, the creative people who make a place special aren’t the ones with a lot of money. Once they move out, neighborhoods like Ehrenfeld can turn into rather boring places, full of single-child families who can afford to live there.

So Ehrenfeld is walking a thin line. I truly hope the neighborhood takes its time and develops peacefully.

location