Outside Up North is pleased to welcome Marcos Netto aboard as our Southern Hemisphere Correspondent and Photographer. You may remember seeing Marcos’ byline here before when he wrote about cycling rough roads in southern Brazil, and when he showed off his new old commuter bike, which he’s restoring with loving care. If you enjoyed his earlier contributions, you’ll be pleased to learn that Marcos will be writing more frequently in the months to come. And we’re sure you’ll be as amused and enchanted with what he has to say about a certain bridge he discovered on a recent trip to Germany. Read on…

 
In October I spent a couple weeks in Germany in a professional capacity at the 2009 Anuga Trade Fair in Cologne (or Köln, as they pronounce it in German). The Anuga Fair is a huge event with more than 150,000 visitors, an event where 6,500 exhibitors from 140 countries show off their food and drink products. But what makes the city so famous is the Dom Cathedral right across from the trade pavilion overlooking the Rhine River.

 

 
When I got tired of seeing food and drinks at the fair I decided to take a break and walk across the Dom bridge to enjoy a closer look at the 300-foot high towers of the cathedral. The weather wasn’t very nice but I decided to take a 15-minute walk to enjoy the scenery of the Rhine.

 

 

 

 
Once I got to the bridge I saw something that drew my attention immediately. Thousands of padlocks were placed at the fence that separates the pedestrian walkway from the subway line.

 

 
First I thought they were there to secure unattended bicycles. Then I noticed many of them had names and dates written on the locks:

 

 

 
With my curiosity bothering me, I approached two young girls who were placing a padlock in the fence.

 

 
I introduced myself as “the most curious person from Brazil on that bridge” and asked, “What are all those padlocks about?” They enthusiastically replied, “Sure! We’ll tell you,” and then they explained.

 

 
Only here at the Dom bridge is this ritual done. One brings a padlock, writes the name of the boy- or girlfriend or of the beloved spouse on the lock, then secures it onto the bridge fence before throwing the key away into the river. That means no one else will ever be able to open that padlock again, ensuring they will be together forever in eternal love.

 

 
Wow! I thanked the girls very much for the explanation. I continued on my way to the cathedral, wondering what a simple way to show faith in a wish one has.

 

 
The fact is, though, that I was already thinking about a business opportunity. What a great place to start a scuba diving rescue team specialized in deep water key recovery!

 

 
Regards from home in sunny Brazil! Marcos

 
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