Hamburg: Day 2

Hamburg is not like most German cities, and it seems to pride itself on its mariner expertise and history. Being the largest port in the country and one of the biggest in the world (second in Europe only to Rotterdam and 11th in the world), it's no wonder it feels different from other German cities I've visited. Quite the jewel city of the north.

We did our very best to see as much of the city as we could on our one full day there, though there's so much to see in this city that only the most interesting and nearby sites were doable that day. We began by walking around the center of the city and admiring the old Gothic spires and city hall buildings along and near the Alster, a tributary of the River Elbe on which Hamburg is built around.

We then hopped on an Alster boat tour to see the town from the water and try to absorb as much interesting information about Hamburg as possible. We learned that there are tons of rowing clubs and embassies in town, and that the Cherry Blossom Festival the city holds each year is in such high demand along the Alster waterfront that you have to book years in advance for the prime spots. One fact of particular interest to me was that one of the fanciest hotels in Hamburg--The Atlantic--was used in one of the many exciting stunt scenes in the Bond film, Tomorrow Never Dies. You can imagine the look on my face when I learned this little nugget of information.

After the cruise was over, we headed to St Nicolas Church, which serves as a sobering memorial against war and offers fantastic views of the city. It struck me quite significantly to visit this place, and to consider some of the statistics from World War II: 35,000 dead; over 120,000 injured; nearly a million lost all of their belongings; and over 255,000 lost property in the crippling air raids executed by the British and American militaries. It was hard to think of winners and losers in the war when adding up these overwhelming numbers. I guess it's safe to say the message of the memorial was received loud and clear.

The sun was still shining, so I decided to explore a bit more of Hamburg by wandering into it's most up and coming neighborhood, HafenCity. Turns out, this is the largest rebuilding project currently being undertaken in all of Europe. A magnificent concert hall is being completed right on the old harbor, albeit later than originally planned, but its projected final form (particularly its interior) looks quite impressive.

As I reluctantly bid HafenCity farewell, I couldn't help but think of what it might be like to live here. Seemed to be a cultural gold mine of a neighborhood, with great potential to be equally as charming. But I still don't see how it can compare to the weather back home, so perhaps I won't be changing my address anytime soon. For now at least, I'll look forward to a return visit when more progress has been made in this part of Hamburg.

That night, a group of us went out to celebrate Joanie's 26th birthday in fine fashion. We had reservations at IndoChine Ice Bar, where we bundled up to try several different flavored vodkas in a freezer-like environment where shot glasses were made completely out of ice and statues and artwork alike were encased in blocks of the stuff. It was a spectacular start to the evening; everyone especially enjoyed having the bar to ourselves (it was a Monday night after all).

After the undeniably cool experience at the Ice Bar, we decided to heat things up a bit by heading over the Reeperbahn, Hamburg's Red Light District. There, we went from ice cold to flaming hot by getting a round of infamous B-52 shots. Yes, those shots are literally on fire; if you've never tried it, you're missing out!

We certainly threw one of the better birthday parties I've ever been a part of on a Monday night! Just as a teaser, I'll leave the rest of the evening's excitement to be told in more detail in person. In short, good times were had by all and we'll all remember (however vaguely) that fantastically fun Monday night birthday celebration in Hamburg.