Hohe Strasse was already in existence during ancient Roman times. The street’s northern section begins at Cologne Cathedral and runs parallel to the Rhine. Today, with over 11,000 pedestrians every hour, it’s one of the busiest shopping streets in Germany. The 683m stretch, which sees regular closures due to overcrowding, features exclusive boutiques, perfumeries and jewellers, as well as souvenir shops en masse. Further on, Mittelstrasse is Cologne’s high-end mile, with over 70 luxury boutiques. Among them are Apropos, with designers like Saint Laurent, Valentino and Gucci, and the Shoe Salon, which devotes 250sqm of space to high heels alone.