The Wuppertal Schwebebahn Is Real And It Is My Friend

WUPPERTAL, Germany — When my friend in Cologne asked me if I might want to take a day trip, thanks to Cologne's proximity to various other notable cities (Dortmund, Düsseldorf, Bonn, among others), I said that I would like to go to Wuppertal to ride the Schwebebahn. To which they said, "I knew that's what you were going to say." My brand is strong. Before my trip to Germany, I declared this desire to ride the Wuppertal Schwebebahn to many of my close friends, and also several strangers. Some people thought it sounded pretty cool. Others said they were happy for me. More than once I was accused of making up words. Nothing about the glorious feat that is the Wuppertal Schwebebahn is made up. Schwebebahn means suspended railway, or, literally, "floating train," which is an apt way to describe a dangling monorail. It was the design of German engineer Eugen Langen and opened along and above the river Wupper in 1901, connecting several towns that would eventually merge to form the city of Wuppertal, or, literally, "Wupper valley." Both the early look of the train and its surroundings are captured in footage shot from the front of the Schwebebahn in 1902. Behold, "The Flying Train."

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