Eins, zwei, drei ……….. Hamburg! Elegant and Cosmopolitan Hanseatic City of Hamburg!
Early afternoon we cruised into scenic Hamburg, and saw lots of cool Hanseatic-era architecture along the waterfront before we docked at the Cruise Terminal in Hafen City. I was incredibly excited welcoming my cousin Uschi and her husband Karl Heinz onboard the Prinsendam for dinner, and afterwards a night on the town.
Because the Reeperbahn is Hamburg and Hamburg is the Reeperbahn, we enjoyed what it’s famous for, the legendary red-light district of St. Pauli, one of the biggest in the world. That wicked part of town is full of strip clubs and prostitutes are on display wherever you go. I have to say that the hookers were some of the most stunning attractive woman I’ve ever seen. Just in case Dickie was looking for a little spice, I didn’t let him off the leash for a moment, as the willing hands of the hookers would have happily emptied his wallet. (Just kidding).
Nowadays the Reeperbahn also boasts of many night clubs, restaurants, pubs, Broadway Musical Theaters, cabarets, museums and a casino. It’s similar to Pigalle in Paris, except a bit wilder and safer.
……..not to forget…. the Beatles began their career here at a strip joint called the Grosse Freiheit in 1962.
Just off the main street lies “Herbertstrasse.” This short street is closed at both ends by big red walls, in order to curb the amount of prostitutes plying their trade. I didn’t see any “normal” women entering the street, but was told that the hookers who occupy the windows would happily throw condoms at any woman who dared to enter their territory.
Full of laughter and song Karl Heinz brought us back to the ship and I’m glad we explored this seedy spot called the Reeperbahn, where I saw more prostitutes than you can shake a stick at. All in all, I’ve seen commercialized sex flourishing in many towns, but hardworking, entrepreneurial Hamburg has succeeded better than anywhere else to transform it into a tourist attraction. It was certainly not a place for the faint-hearted and certainly not somewhere you want to take the little ones for ice cream but we had fun on this Crazy Night in Town.
Next day, Karl Heinz and Uschi picked us up at the dock and the sightseeing began. Oh Hamburg! It’s more than a heap of stones, roofs, streets, bridges and streetlights. It’s more than factory chimneys and cars blowing their horns – more than the screeching of seagulls, noise from the streetcars and the thundering of the railway – it’s more than ship sirens and dancing music – oh, it is so much more.
Hamburg is a major seaport town, and some – only some – old seaport towns have that certain flair about them. Everything here is brilliant. The countless parks and gardens, the River Elbe and Alster twin lakes, the non-stop maritime hustle-and-bustle, the lively shopping streets, the hospitality, the magnificent promenades, and the extravagant shopping malls; the impressive City Hall and the Gothic ruins of St. Nicolai Church. It was bombed during WW2 and shows what is no more - it serves as a sad reminder of the many tragedies of the war. And yeah, it’s a really visually appealing city – all the different neighborhoods really “Feel like Neighborhoods.” As to mountains, okay, it’s lacking ………….you want mountains, head south. Hamburg got water – lots of it – more canals than Venice, I was told. Yes Hamburg has an air about it. On the one-hand, it’s the epitome of a metropolis and on the other hand, it has a coziness and elegance about it. It is idyllic, mundane, hectic and serene all at the same time, but never boring.
…..thanks Uschi and Karl Heinz, you made Hamburg very special for us.
We cruised out of Hamburg at 11:00PM, and entered the Kiel Canal at 5:30 AM. To our biggest surprise an 18-man oompah band came onboard and Chef Martin served a traditional German meal on the Lido Deck; complete with 4 suckling pigs on a spit, every sausage imaginable and of course Holstein draft beer. WOW! The boat rocked all day long, and EVERYBODY felt German for one day. The weather was glorious and people on shore waved at us as we sailed the beautiful 27-mile channel. The brass band got off at 6:00PM, shortly before we entered the Baltic Sea. With the moon glistening and the quiet sound of waves lapping on the haul, the old fatherland made me a bit homesick.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AncnvF-N0xw
Click on the above YouTube link to see the pictures.