The trip up was fast, since we rode the ICE train. It took a little over 5 hours. We use the car frequently here, but when planning travel in the winter, I always try to use the train. That way, should a snow storm hit us, we don't have to worry about driving in it. When we pulled into the Hamburg train station, we took the metro to our hotel, and checked in. The room was by far the most spacious we'd ever stayed in in Europe. It was about the size of a small apartment, and when you walked in there was classical music playing through a giant surround sound system. The speakers were in the living room, the kitchen, the bedroom, and bathroom. The bathroom even came with a Rubber Ducky!
Once we got settled in, we decided to walk down to the water front to find something to eat. Since most food in Germany is fresh, that also means it's mostly regional. So if you live in farm country, you get fresh meat, but seafood can be hard to come by. That's the way it is in Stuttgart. But up in Hamburg, it's the opposite. Their harbor runs directly to the North Sea, which in turns connects with the Atlantic Ocean. So seafood is EVERYWHERE up there. After a short stroll to the harbor, we found a big red boat that was both a restaurant and hotel. At first the idea of sleeping on the boat seemed quaint...until we stepped inside. The rocking back & forth would have bothered Shanna and the fact that I had to duck most of the time would have bothered me.
The food, though, was outstanding. We both ordered seafood dishes and were not disappointed. They even had an amber style beer that was delicious. After dinner, it was freezing outside with the cold wind blowing in off the harbor, and it'd been a long day, so we decided to head back to the hotel and call it a night.
The next morning we headed back down to the harbor area. We'd seen a sign for a hop on/hop off bus tour, and wanted to follow up on that. Most of the time we prefer a walking guide instead of a bus, but it was SO cold that we wanted to see the city from a warm bus. The tour took about 2 hours, and took us all over the city. We got to see the churches, harbor, and other parts of Hamburg. We even drove across Kennedy Bridge.
Once the tour was over, we got off in the Fish Market area. We grabbed lunch there, then walked back to the dock area for the harbor tour. This wasn't nearly as exciting as we thought it would be because the tour was all in German, it was a gloomy, rainy day, and to be honest, there just wasn't much to see in the harbor. It was all shipping boats, barges and containers sitting on docks. The highlight of the tour was seeing a rabbit along the side of the harbor. After the tour we walked around the Reeperbahn area for a bit. It's partly famous because it's the area the Beatles played in after leaving Liverpool but before breaking it big. It's mostly famous, though, because it's the center of Hamburg's large Red Light district.
One of the nice things about taking an extended trip somewhere is you don't always have to be on the go. It was evening time by now, so we grabbed dinner at the hotel. I can now say I ordered a Hamburger in Hamburg!
After dinner we settled in for the evening and watched movies on the SKY Movie Channel.
The next morning we got up and headed down to the harbor for the weekly Fish Market. There were fishermen everywhere selling their morning catch. If you like fresh seafood, it doesn't get any fresher than right off the boat. We strolled through it, and ended up at the big fish auction hall. On Sunday mornings they use it to host brunch. It's two stories, with the top level being a traditional sit down brunch area. But the main floor was set up more like Oktoberfest, with long bench seats and a band playing on stage. At one point, the band even came out and played a few songs standing on the tables!
After breakfast, the plan had been to take a train up to the northern town of Lübeck. Shanna felt like she was coming down with something, though, and was not feeling good at all. She went back to the hotel to sleep, so I decided to take the train myself.
It took about 45 minutes to get there, then it was a short bus ride to the old town area. It was a quaint little town, and tons of old buildings. One neat thing was that all the historical buildings that had signs in front, explaining their past both in English and German. On the pictures page, I took a picture of the plaques first, then the building itself. The first plaque describes a chapel that was destroyed, so the next picture just shows the outline of where it used to stand.
After walking around for a bit, I found a restaurant that had been there since 1535. That definitely sounded like a place I wanted to eat! I wasn't too hungry, though, so I just got some shrimp and beer. It wasn't bad. Not as good as I'd hoped, but not bad. It was getting late in the afternoon, and Shanna had texted me that she was awake and feeling better, so I took the next train back to Hamburg.
We don't normally go to a Hard Rock when we visit a city, but we both were kind of in the mood for it. We did dinner there that night, then on the way back to the hotel, stopped into a local brewery to get some great beer.
The next morning we went across the street to a little cafe/bakery for breakfast. We ordered our food in German, and answered the lady behind the counter in German whenever she asked us something. One thing we found in Hamburg that we really liked was that if you spoke English, they spoke English back to you. But if you attempted German, even if you stumbled over a word or mispronounced something, they would continue to speak German to you. That's one thing that's made learning German more difficult in Stuttgart...whenever you mess up a word, or don't know a word and pause, they immediately switch to English. The people in Hamburg would not switch unless you did.
This was the day of the concert so we didn't have too much planned. We headed up to the Rathaus, which was decorated beautifully, and walked around the platz in front of it. They even had a large column dedicated to the Hamburg soldiers killed in WWI.
From there we walked around the shopping district, then back to St. Michael's church. When we walked in there was a service going on, so we couldn't go into the main part, but we could head down into the crypt area. It was used as a bomb shelter during WWII, and it was amazing seeing some of the pictures they had showing the church in 1932 and 1945. The difference was astounding. In 1932 it looked like a vibrant city area. In 1945, everything around the church was rubble. There were all kinds of amazing artifacts down in the crypt area. When we headed back up to the surface, the church area was open. As typical in European, it was beautiful inside, with all kinds of intricate carvings and gold.
Since I was going to be up late that night, and was already starting to drag a bit, we headed back to hotel so I could take a nap. At 6pm, I was out the door, headed to the concert. Shanna stayed behind since she's not a fan. I got to the club about 6:15, and the doors weren't open yet. There was a line already forming, though. It was a sold out show, so I knew there'd be a LOT more people coming. There was a guy standing relatively close to the front wearing a Deftones jacket, and I'd heard him speak to someone in English with an American accent. At that point, I thought he was a roadie based on the way the jacket looked. I asked him if there was a line, or if it was a free for all. He said he wasn't sure, then asked where I was from. We started talking, and I guess people around him just assumed I was with him. He was living and working in Zürich, but took the train up just for the show. We continued to chat until the doors opened.
Once the doors opened, I made straight for the stage. Over the past few years, I've pretty much stopped going to large arena shows. With the groups I listen to playing smaller clubs, I can always get a great spot for a fraction of the cost. With every ticket being "General Admission", I got there early enough that I was able to get right to the front stage with no problems. The downside is that without someone else there with you, you can't leave that spot to get a drink or use the bathroom. But being right up front for the show is worth it!
The show was fantastic. One unusual thing that happened during the break between the opening act and The Deftones was a security guy came walking through the small divide area between the barrier and the stage. He handed out cups and filled them with bottled water for anyone who wanted some. I didn't even realize I was thirst until he poured me a cup. I've never been to a concert where they did that. At one point I turned around and was glad that I'd gotten there early. It was PACKED. Not only the main level, but the upper level too.
It was a great show, I had a lot of fun and afterwards I took the train back to the hotel. Normally, the post would end here. The next morning we slept in, had breakfast, checked out, and headed to the train station. But as the train was pulling away and reached into my bag, I realized I'd left my headphones in the hotel room. If they were just any headphones, it wouldn't have been that big of a deal. But these were Bose Noise Cancelling headphones that are not cheap. I immediately called the hotel and told them what was going on. The receptionist said she'd check with housekeeping and get back to me. The next morning I get a phone call from the hotel saying they'd found the headphones, and just wanted to confirm my address before they mailed it back. A few days later they arrived at the house, along with a great letter. I won't spoil the letter, though...I scanned it, and included it in the pictures section.
That's it for a few weeks. Our next trip is Cairo, Egypt, at the end of the month. Until then, you can see the pictures here or by clicking any picture above.
