Crossing Germany’s river Rhine is the Hohenzollernbrücke Bridge, which connects the Western side of Cologne with the Eastern city center. This colossal structure originally served as both a railway and vehicle bridge but after it’s destruction in 1945, and subsequent rebuild a few years later, it now stands as a rail and pedestrian crossing across the river.
The history of this bridge is great and it’s even managed to survive the daily bombings and air strikes of the second world war despite taking a beating along the way. After many improvements to the bridge’s structure and occasional expansion, the Hohenzollernbrücke Bridge now carries approximately 1,200 trains per day and is the main access point between Cologne and much of Europe.
Although this bridge is incredible in it’s own right, we understand that some readers might need more to find it fascinating enough to visit for themselves. So, here’s a little bit about the culture surrounding the bridge that makes it out favourite in Cologne.
For many years, it has been tradition for couples to walk out onto the bridge with a padlock decorated with their initials. They use the bridge as an enormous canvas by locking their ‘Love Padlock’ – a symbol of their undying love – to the railings of the bridge before sealing it with a kiss and throwing their keys to the padlock into the river Rhine below.
As far as traditions go, this one is particularly new as people only started devoting a padlock to the bridge in 2008. In true Romeo and Juliet style, couples from the city and visiting cities wouldn’t let anything stand in the way of their love and rebelled against opposition by covering the majority of the bridge once again.
The bridge now remains a canvas for locals and visitors to declare their love for their partners. We probably should have saved this post for valentines day but we just couldn’t wait, how romantic!
If you’ve been here and devoted your love to someone with a padlock we’d love to see the photo’s, upload them to our Facebook page or tweet them to us on Twitter! Also, check out Abigail King’s experience of Love Padlocks from when she visited.
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please can you advise how and where u can by the padlocks? many thanks
Hi Naomi,
I can’t recommend a particular store but there’s a few shops within the area that sell the padlocks so you’re bound to bump into one along the way. If not then any locals would be able to point you in the right direction!
Thanks!
Tom
You can even “Declare Your Love” in the USA!! Lovelocks are showing up all over the USA . You can purchase a lock at http://www.lovelocksonline.com. There are “Lovescapes” all over southern Utah and one great one at Zion Canyon Village just outside the entrance to Zion Nation Park.