Hamburg Cityguide

Hamburg's 1,7 million people make it the second largest city in Germany after Berlin, but it has nothing in common with the new capital city which still bears the marks of its Prussian past. Hamburg is an affluent, magnificent, and elegant metropolis with a bohemian downtown. Even though an icy wind often blows in from the sea, once you have spent some time, there, you will have a warm feeling about the city. Its people are very proud of being Hamburg residents. When two people from Hamburg run into each other anywhere in the world, they identify each other as "Hummels". This refers to their beloved hero, a water seller, a kind of storyteller, who was known as Hummel - or bee in German - They even erected a statue in honour of him which is also a tribute to their own "Hamburgerness", that still stands in central Hamburg.

Since 1189, its official name has been Hamburg Free and Hanseatic City. In that year Hamburg received its freedom from Frederick I, or Barbarossa, the red bearded emperor. Today, Hamburg constitutes one of the 16 provinces of the German Federal Republic and has its own parliament and senate.

Hamburg's existence and atmosphere is determined by water. The River Elbe cuts through it, it has two lakes - the Inner and the Outer Alster - and of course the wild North Sea. Even though open sea is 60 miles away from the city limits, Hamburg is still Germany's largest port. Because of the almost constant wind - which is sometimes pleasant and sometimes less so - and the frequent clouds moving above the city, you can't ignore the presence of the North Sea.

All cities have things that you simply shouldn't miss. In Hamburg, it is the boat trip on the Alster and the tour at the port. Of course, you should leave some time to see the fine collections at the Museum of Fine and Applied Arts and the Art Gallery. The collections of Dutch paintings are particularly good.

Hamburg's number one attraction is, however, an artificial lake, the Alster. The little Alster river, which enters the Elbe in the city itself, was originally dammed up to drive the wheels of water mills. But the water started invading grater and greater areas of the city, so that the people of Hamburg ended up creating a lake right in the middle of their city. In fact two: the Alster actually consists of two basins with a relatively narrow canal running between them. The two famous bridges here are the old Lombard Bridge and the new Kennedy Bridge. Along the shore of the Inner Alster, a square-shaped lake a third of a mile across, there is a row of elegant buildings, luxury hotels, fancy villas, and expensive shops. This famous promenade is known as the Jungfernstieg and is justly compared to the Champs-Elysées in Paris. Not far from here you will find the State Opera House in Dammtorstrasse. Opened in 1677, it was the first opera house in Germany. But this is not surprising given that the people of Hamburg have always loved music. Prominent composers such as Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy and Johannes Brahms were both born here. The Outer Alster, which is at least ten times the size of the inner lake, is an excellent boating and sailing area with nice parks - a real recreational district.

South of the Alster is Altstadt or old town with its Rathaus or city hall, the seat of the federal government and parliament. It is topped by an immense tower. This relatively new building, it is only a hundred-and-something years old, is decorated with a profusion of statues. It was to glorify the new empire of St. Michael's Cathedral. It was built in the middle of the 18th century, was burnt down more than once, and suffered greatly during WWII. But Mike was swiftly renovated as his silhouette became the symbol of the city and is a must on the cover of all publications on Hamburg. You can take a lift to the top of the tower and enjoy the wonderful panorama over Mike's city.

A more secular attraction of Hamburg is St. Pauli, the red-light district. In the bars along its main street, the Reeperbahn, the decadence of the Pigalle mingles with more earthy entertainment. But then St. Pauli's bars used to be rough sea-faring pubs...

From St. Pauli's Landungsbrücke on the Elbe the boats leave for the port tour. Out in Hamburs's 30 square-mile harbour you almost feel like you are out at sea. Around 15 thousand ships use the port and its cranes unload 60 million tons (54 million metric tonnes) of goods each year. The boat tour guides will enthusiastically explain even the tiniest ship-building details as well as point out work going on in the harbour. If you want more, you can continue the tour on land, on the Hafenrandpromenad (the sea side promenade) and taste some seafood and visit the obligatory pubs. Even if your German is good, be prepared for a shock when you encounter "Plattdeutch", the local dialect. You probably won't understand a single word. But then even Germans from other parts of Germany - Bavarians, Swabians, Saxonians - have a hard time understanding these friendly but incomprehensible Hamburgers.

Nemes János