Postcards to Ponder: Stories from a Station

Postcards to Ponder are an opportunity for Warren to share one photo from our lives and provide a bit more background on why he took it and what the image means to him. Today we explore the Cologne train station and the lesson of slowing down.

We love trains, which turns out this is a very good thing because for the last few months we’ve spent over 10,000km traveling on them from China to Brussels, Belgium. Trains provide us an opportunity to slow down and appreciate the journey without the hassles of planes. Arriving at every station we gather excitement from the bustling crowds, the sound of the trains, and the knowledge that everyone is going somewhere.

When we pulled into the station in Cologne I was immediate struck by the architecture. We only had a few minutes to change to our next train, I couldn’t resist snapping a few shots to capture the feeling. This was the very first image I captured and turned out to be my favorite. It shows off the old style architecture (the station was almost completely rebuilt after being destroyed in the Second World War) but also captures the movement and stories of the people as they head to new places.

A businessman heading to his office, but taking a moment to notice an attractive woman.
Two girlfriends arriving in Europe for a 2 week holiday, looking forward to the sights and tastes of Cologne.
An older French gentleman arriving in Cologne for a conference of doctors.
A younger man looking anxiously to see if this is the right train to take him on to Paris for his first visit.
The man in the background wondering how in the hell to check-in to Four Square

Train stations are an opportunity to appreciate the stories that surround us. With our trusty Eurail pass (thanks to the great people at Eurail.com) we’re looking forward to a couple months of exploring Europe. We’re anxious to not only create new stories for ourselves but to take the time to slow down and appreciate those of the people around us.

This photo reminds me that everyone has a story to tell and I need to slow down and take time to appreciate them.