With 1,000 police officers, 180 public order employees and more than 1,000 private security guards, the city of Cologne wants to deal with the expected rush at the start of the carnival on November 11th. steer into regulated channels. Since the day falls on a Saturday this time, a mass rush of party tourists is expected. According to the city, the number of people celebrating has “increased exponentially” in recent years.
The focus of the celebrations is no longer the old town as it used to be, but most visitors head for the area around Zülpicher Straße, the so-called “Kwartier Latäng”. With its many bars and pubs, the student district has long been considered a mega hotspot, which attracts many party tourists from out of town even on normal weekends.
At carnival, in conjunction with excessive alcohol consumption, there are regularly enormous crowds and unpleasant side effects that annoy the residents. This time there are penalties of up to 200 euros for wild peeing.
A special challenge this year arises from the fact that Cologne’s largest synagogue is also located in the district. In view of the many anti-Semitic crimes since the terrorist attacks on Israel, it is cordoned off with bars and specially secured. The police appeal to all celebrants to adapt their costumes to the current crisis situation and, for example, to avoid real-looking dummy weapons.
Pro-Palestinian demonstration in Düsseldorf
The carnival will also start in Düsseldorf on November 11th. The police are expected to be busier than usual. Not only because the start of the session falls on a Saturday this year, but because another pro-Palestinian demonstration has been registered for the state capital.
Last weekend, at least 17,000 people responded to such a call. “The cooperation discussions are still ongoing in order to smooth this out as much as possible,” said a police spokesman. The demonstration has been registered for the early afternoon; the carnivalists are known to start at 11:11 a.m.
