Sol: 250 now…a look at our trip to Hamburg….
Rathaus of Hamburg
What my children say I say much of the time.
We left Denmark and traveled by train and ferry to Germany for a couple days as a birthday trip for Kelvin. We were on our way to visit friends in Belgium and we decided that a little foray into Germany would be a nice way to celebrate Kelvin’s day.
We arrived in Hamburg in the evening and clunked our way across several cobblestone streets to our hotel. We have been very economical and had not stayed at a hotel for the four of us in nearly six weeks.
It was a colorful neighborhood and on this brisk, cold night several of the natives offered us companionship (well, more Kelvin than the rest of us) and they looked cold too! At least not very well dressed for the weather. Perhaps the welcome crew?
Oakley in one of his favorite spaces.
Anyway, after Oakley spent the night in a closet (hey, who says kids have to have their reasons for being unique) we found our way to the City Hall and central part of the city. We took part in a walking tour of the city. It was one of those ‘free’ tours that you ‘tip’ at the end what you think it was worth.
Our guide, originally from Pakistan, gave us an outstanding tour. His perspective as a non-native was illuminating. 
I learned things I never knew before or at the least expanded on my limited knowledge about Hamburg.
Did you know…
- that Hamburg as one of the largest ports in Europe and has been for centuries,
- Hamburg is the second largest city in Germany
- that there is a long thriving Red Light District in Hamburg (hence the welcoming committees)
- Hamburg is situated on the Elbe River (a common crossword clue for you Monday puzzlers)
- that you can get the best sausages with a hunk of bread and a big dallop of mustard in nearly every neighborhood
- that the Beatles played here over a two year period in 1960-1962 and did eight hour shows every night for weeks on end…..All this among other things we pondered.
What remains of St. Nicholas Church.
As we wandered around with our walking guide we learned another extraordinary fact was that Hamburg was bombed relentlessly during the 2nd world war. So much so that bombing raids in July 1943 by the Royal Air Force killed over 43,000 civilians and injuring 37,000 more with another million having been evacuated after the raids. It virtually destroyed the city.
Hamburg is also home to Tesch and Stabenow, the company that invented and produced the gas Zyklon B used in the concentration camps. The owner of the company (Bruno Tesch) was arrested a war criminal, tried and executed after the war in the city. The building of his company has a memorial to acknowledge their role in the war. Bruno tried to deny responsibility for his role but, it came out that he is the one that suggested it to the Hitler and his team.
Anyway, like the rest of us…Hamburg is much more than it’s worst story and we did find this city to be delightful. Even though many buildings were destroyed there were a lot of unique structures to explore.
Walking around Hamburg one can’t help but notice the enormous port still very much in place and very active. The river Elbe is broad and from a vantage point above you get the idea of how vast it really can be.
The Elbphilharmonie
A new building opened in January of 2017 called the Elbphilharmonie. This building which is one of the largest and acoustically advanced concert halls in the world, came with a pretty price tag that cost more than the budget allocated (don’t they all) so, it is free to visit for all Germans since their taxes covered all the extra cost.
The beginning budget was 241 million Euros and it ended up being 789 million Euros (that is nearly a billion US dollars for anyone keeping track. It is a marvel to visit and gaze out over the Elbe River.
View from the Elbphilharmonie
We spent a scant 48 hours here before heading to visit friends in Belgium. It was delightful and rewarding. Happy Belated Birthday Kelvin! We made sure he got some German beer while he was conducting his own German pretzel tastings around the city.
Again, thanks for reading and following along.
One of the love bridges.
The Chilihaus – Expressionistic Architecture from the 1920s.
The farm was the home to a couple who taught us a lot about Danish Hygge. One who worked part-time as a butcher and the other a foot and physical therapy (not to be mixed!). 
Their farm-house was nearly 140 years old, had two floors and easily six bedrooms. Wonderous views from each direction through windows and skylights showed us the ever-changing sky.
dozen chickens including five roosters, three of which became dinner…more on that later. 
After months of being in tropical weather and convinced we would not have a ‘regular’ winter we were treated to several winter storms, snow flurries and downright blizzards. We were overjoyed to make snowmen, slide on some ice and have snowball fights. I was more an observer but, we all very much enjoyed it.
We consumed cup after cup of coffee or tea several times a day and often pared them with Danish baked goods found in neighboring villages. We had farm fresh eggs (up to 12 a day!) as well as dark, thick bread that after toasted only needed a smear of butter to become a slice of heaven.
We had been away from a fully supplied kitchen and we relished in having the ability to make breakfast, lunch and dinner on site, warm ourselves by the fireside while wearing the handmade wooly socks made by our host. Can you say Hygge? Ib and Ann offered up all their coats, boots, gloves, hats, scarves (even a Gryffindor one much to Oakley’s delight) and overalls as well as their car to supply us with the tools to journey around the property and the Island of Fyn.
Our experience with the Danes as a people was also warming. They won’t walk up to you to introduce themselves in grocery store, however, once introduced they proved to be some of the warmest, friendliest people I’ve ever met.
