[vb-saan]

November and December were pretty busy months for me with work travels to Japan and Germany. Two weeks in Tokyo was pretty intense, but the trip to Hamburg, Germany (end Nov – early Dec) was a bit more relaxed. All my previous visits to Europe were in Summer, and this was the first time I got to experience European winter and the famed Christmas markets. This is more of a photolog compilation of a weekend walk around in Hamburg, and the nearby town of Lüneburg.

Landed in Hamburg around late morning. It was a 13 hour long flight from Singapore to Frankfurt and another one hour from Frankfurt to Hamburg (with two two-hour layover).

The airport taxi was a Tesla Model Y. I do understand that EVs are the future, but was a bit sad to see even Germany getting Musk-ed!




Hamburg is known to be temperamental when it comes to the weather. And the scene outside the hotel was just that. The temperature was around 6°C




After checking in, soon stepped out of the hotel for a short stroll, and to get some lunch. The gloomy sky theme continued




Got back to the hotel, attended a couple of meetings (over Teams), and then stepped out again around early evening. It was already dark by then. Tokyo in the previous weeks was cold but Hamburg winter was on a different level.

The nearest train station had this steep stairway




First sight of Christmas decorations








The Rathaus (Hamburg City Hall) at a distance




I stopped by a small Christmas market next to Saint Peter’s church, spent some time savouring some delicious bratwurst, and chit chat with some local Hamburgers. The community spirit and camaraderie in Europe is pretty awesome. You just share a table with a bunch of strangers, and have some nice conversations on food, culture and everything.












More Christmas decorations






Brick/Brown is the shade of the city




The next day was a Friday, it was my first time in our Hamburg office, and the day was full of meetings. One of my colleagues (and a good friend) managed to get a ticket for a Bundesliga game. He’s a staunch supporter of FC St. Pauli. Though the team sits in the bottom half of the table, the atmosphere was just electric. Absolutely enjoyed my first time watching a football game live in the stadium.

And guess I brought some luck for the team – St. Pauli won comfortably and it was the first time they scored a Bundesliga goal at home this season.

[vb-saan]

The next day morning started late, went to meet one of my team members for a late morning coffee. And that was the start of a long day of walking

Luckily the sun was out on the weekend, but the temperature was hovering around -1° to 2° C.

Nice and crisp morning








In the café




After spending around 45 minutes in the café started walking again




India showcased




Street art, more churches, and great architecture all around










And soon reached the waterfront – the Außenalster (or Outer Alster Lake)








After that, I took the U-Bahn metro to the HafenCity quarter. The Elbe Philharmonic Hall (Elbphilharmonie) was one structure I remembered from some of the travel videos I watched on Hamburg.

Off the train




Elbphilharmonie at a distance




The warehouses (Speicherstadt), a UNESCO World Heritage Site








Went up to the viewing deck of the concert hall. The ticket cost was 3 Euros. And the escalator ride was almost 3 minutes long!




It is truly a water city




Counting the church towers




Selfie attempt




Spent around 45 minutes there, and then got down and started walking back to the station




One more shot of the Elphi




Station at a distance




And it was a short 10 minute walk






It was a long day of walking (my watch said 18 kms), and so decided to head back to the hotel and rest up in the evening.

Fish sandwich and a coffee before heading back.

[vb-saan]

Germans take their Sundays very seriously. It’s a complete rest day with most of the shops and establishments closed. If you need to buy some essentials, the best bet will be to try the shops and petrol stations and train stations. Stepped out to see how the city looked on a Sunday morning.

At the train station



Rathaus (City Hall)




Another beautiful morning










The City Hall from a distance




Stopped for a coffee




While at the café I messaged my friend to get some snippets on what to do on the day, and he suggested taking a train after lunch and getting to his town, which is like 45 minutes from Hamburg.

And so a couple of train rides and I was at Lüneburg. My friend was waiting at the train station to pick me up.

Beautiful residential streets




Walking towards the town centre






Christmas market






Quaint streets with beautiful architecture






My host for the evening. He sacrificed his quiet Sunday afternoon to show me around



Another Christmas market




Beautiful decorations all around






Centuries old crane in the Lüneburg harbour




Another piece of history – this house has a cannonball stuck in, apparently fired by Napoleon’s army






Walking back to the train station




Back in Hamburg, walked around the Christmas market, watched the Flying Santa, and closed the evening.










It's always good when you get a chance to step out in between a work trip and get to know some snippets of the city, and the people around. Hamburg is very different from the other German cities I visited, and hope to go back soon on a proper vacation. Thank you for reading

[Rudra Sen]

Moved it to Travelogues. Lovely picture and I would rather label this as Photologues

[Axe77]

Lovely Photolog VB. Transports one to the city.

I have been to Hamburg only once, exactly 20 years ago, back in the summer of 2004. It was a trip during a short 6 month work stint in London, which stint also happened to be the first time I had ever stepped out of our country, at the ripe old age of 27!!

[sreekanth1987]

Lovely pictures and pleasant narration. Looks like you had the best time.

[Kkumar]

It seems like you had a wonderful Christmas. Beautiful photographs and lucid narration. I think Europe has a completely different vibe during Christmas. Nice to see that Germans strictly follow the concept "Work hard and party harder" unlike us Indians. Thank you for sharing and keep on munching miles.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by Axe77

Lovely Photolog VB. Transports one to the city.

I have been to Hamburg only once, exactly 20 years ago, back in the summer of 2004.

Thank you Axe. It’s a lovely city and I am looking forward to do a longer trip in the future; driving to Netherlands or Denmark also can be an option with Hamburg as a starting point.

Originally Posted by Axe77

It was a trip during a short 6 month work stint in London, which stint also happened to be the first time I had ever stepped out of our country, at the ripe old age of 27!!

27 is not bad at all! My first time out of the country was at the age of 23, and since then I have been out

Originally Posted by sreekanth1987

Lovely pictures and pleasant narration. Looks like you had the best time.

Thank you

Originally Posted by Kkumar

It seems like you had a wonderful Christmas. Beautiful photographs and lucid narration. I think Europe has a completely different vibe during Christmas.
Thank you for sharing and keep on munching miles.

Thank you! I had read / watched videos about the famed Christmas markets, but this was the first time experiencing it. Summer has its own advantage with long days, but in the winter sun goes down by 4pm and the from then the Christmas vibe is on.