If you really love me, you'll lock it on the Rhine

At least, that's the going theme on the Deutzer Brücke in Cologne - Ein Schloss am Rhein (a lock on the Rhine)

All along the famous bridge that crosses the Rhine River in the heart of Cologne, you will find locks of all shapes and sizes locked to the fence separating the train tracks from the sidewalk. 

"Finally. After 40 years a lock on the Rhine"

If you take a closer look at these locks, you'll see that the people of Cologne don't just have a collective habit of locking locks on the same fence and losing the key. Most engraved, others just written or decorated, some even bedazzled, each lock is supposed to be a symbol of love. It's the carving your initials in a heart on a tree for the environmentally conscious 21st century. 


Also, the cuteness increases tenfold with a little German lesson. Schloss means lock, but it also means castle. So I like to think of having a Schloss am Rhein, not just as a little memento for the couples, but as an adorable way of getting your own little castle on the Rhine. 

And I have to be honest, I love it! I could easily spend an hour just walking across the bridge reading the locks. Most of them just have initials or names, some have nothing, others have poems or sayings. Each one unique. So instead of going on about how awesome this bridge of locks is, I thought I'd post pics of some of my favorites. 

"Will you marry me?" 

"forever"