I went and did not regret it. If Paris was worth a mass (this famous phrase belongs to the French king Henry IV of Navarre, who sacrificed his faith for the royal crown), then Hamburg is clearly worth spending money and time to get to know this, without exaggeration, noble city.
If only we lived like that
The first impression is admiration. Admiration for the Germans' ability to be proud of their history, learn from the mistakes of the past, and apply the lessons learned to today's realities. That perfect order reigns on the streets, I think, need not be mentioned again - Germans have always prided themselves on their cleanliness, organization, and meticulous attitude to order and discipline.
And over the centuries they have become accustomed to the fact that you can take people at their word, that you don't need to put a supervisor over everyone to ensure that a piece of paper or any other rubbish is dropped not on the sidewalk or roadway, but into the designated bins. German discipline simply amazed me. If the schedule says that a bus (by the way, there are no problems with transport in Hamburg) should arrive at the stop at 5:02 in the morning, it will be standing there at that time. Neither earlier, nor, God forbid, later!
Indeed, they will be waiting for us in the European Union for not just a year, or two, or even a decade. The difference in the general cultural level of Germans and Ukrainians is akin to the difference between the knowledge of a first-grader and a graduate.
We can afford to ride public transport with an expired ticket. It's enough for controllers to show it from afar (the ticket's validity is printed in small print) and say the name out loud to be left alone. How can naive Germans guess that we have been riding for three days on a ticket that allows us to do so for only 24 hours? They went through that, perhaps, even before World War II. We (including me) almost boast that we managed to cheat the state. In Germany, there is a fully mutually beneficial symbiosis between the people and the state. We have a struggle for survival.
Is it any wonder that Hamburg, which because of the importance of its seaport, the second in Europe in terms of cargo turnover, was almost completely destroyed during World War II, can now outshine those cities that the war spared? The British and other allies in '43 thoroughly swept through Hamburg like a tornado. They say the bombing did not stop for hours: it was counted in days! And after that, just from the tourism business, the city earns so much money that one can only envy the shrewdness of the Hamburgers in particular and all Germans in general.
A bit of history
The year 1943 is written in black letters in the city's chronicle. In addition to the terrible force of systematic air raids, the Hamburgers bow their heads in mourning for three more events that brought them major troubles. These are the occupation of the city by Napoleon in 1814, when the capricious French emperor destroyed almost half of Hamburg. And the great fire of 1842, which destroyed a third of the city. Also the flood of 1962, during which Northern Germany and Hamburg as its integral part were thoroughly flooded. In addition, the cholera epidemic that raged in the middle of the century before last has forever remained in the memory of the townspeople.
But there are also many cheerful dates in the history of Hamburg. By the way, this seaport (the largest in Germany and the second in Europe) is located not at all on the North Sea, but on the Elbe River. And the first settlements appeared at the confluence of the Elbe and its tributary, the Alster River. And that is about 80 kilometers from the sea. The city of Hammaburg is believed to have appeared in 950, and in this area Saxon tribes lived alongside Slavic ones. In 1189, Emperor Barbarossa granted Hamburg the right to levy a toll on trade on the Elbe, which allowed it to become economically independent and very strong. True, they say that in fact there was no charter from Barbarossa, and the city's rulers independently appropriated this right, for which the neighbors rose up against them. But such were the mores in the Middle Ages: the one who is stronger is right.
A little later, Hamburg joined a coalition of similar independent trading cities from different countries. This union was named Hansa, and the city subsequently became known as Hansa Stadt Hamburg and has retained this name to this day. As well as self-government and direct dependence on the all-German leadership.
Until the end of the 19th century, the city was relatively small, and its borders did not extend to areas such as, for example, Altona and St. Pauli. Only at the turn of the century did the population reach a million, and in 1937 a special law 'On Greater Hamburg' was issued, outlining the borders in its current version.
By the way, the brief history of Hamburg in pictures is depicted on the wall in one of its courtyards - near the Cathedral of St. Nicholas (Mikkel, as the Hamburgers call it, considering it one of the symbols of the city, despite the relative youth of the structure), on the side that is to the right of the entrance (to the left is a monument to Martin Luther). This courtyard, located a little further than one of the two souvenir shops, is famous for preserving a part of medieval Hamburg with all its charms. Tour guides usually do not pass by. So, in this courtyard, on one of the walls, the entire history of the city is drawn - from the moment of the granting (or not granting) of the charter by Barbarossa for the right to levy a trade toll to episodes of modernity - the arrival of famous German film actors. There is also a mention of the fight against pirates (with the corresponding legend), about the famous 'red-light district', about the well-known zoo and other sights of Hamburg.
City of contrasts
Hamburg is not a poor city. Moreover, having a villa there is considered a special chic and proof of high social standing. Around Lake Alster, which appeared after the construction of a dam on the river of the same name, are the homes of the wealthiest citizens and not only. It is known that the city has more than seven thousand millionaires. But that is just the count, since not all of them permanently reside on the banks of the Alster. They simply have housing here.
At the same time, Hamburg, to use a cliché, is a city of contrasts. If in the elite neighborhoods (which, by the way, house most of the consulates of friendly states: in this respect Hamburg is also one of the leaders in Germany) you may simply not be let in, then in the port areas you will be asked without much trouble to share the contents of your wallet. And there is nothing surprising about that - where big money circulates, there are always those who like to profit at someone else's expense.
Hamburg also has homeless people. I myself saw guys who wait for shops to close in order to settle more comfortably at their doors (apparently, these are the most elite places). In short, although the Germans are ahead of us in terms of development, they cannot completely eradicate all the negative aspects of life either.
But in Eppendorf, where one should organize demonstrative excursions on the theme "What to strive for in capitalism," one can clearly understand that knowledge and skills are paid here according to their worth. The owners of chic mansions and expensive cars are by no means oil sheikhs or representatives of the mafia. If you believe the plaques on the gates, children's doctors, dentists, lawyers live there...
Pride and glory
Despite the fact that Hamburg cannot be classified among cities that have old German architecture (for the already mentioned reason of thorough bombing in 1943), there is something to see in it. Especially since there are practically no high-rise buildings, and everything is built up with houses of three to seven stories.
First, on the city center with the Town Hall and a multitude of Gothic cathedrals. If you decide to take photos against their background, you will have to either move away, thus losing details of the buildings, or take several shots and then stitch together a general picture from the photographs. The Town Hall, for example, is difficult to capture in the lens at full width, even if you stand at the opposite end of the square. And, naturally, the spire never fits into the frame. If you take a vertical plan, the horizontal part narrows. In short, problem upon problem.
A separate item of pride for Hamburgers is bridges. In terms of the number of these structures, Hamburg surpasses Venice, London, and Amsterdam combined! And the numerous canals, with which the city especially abounds as it approaches the Elbe and the port, create a special spirit. By the way, the famous port warehouses, the so-called Speicherstadt, are completely surrounded by water and are connected to the land and to each other only by bridges.
On the Elbe are also located other attractions of Hamburg - the renowned fish market, the open-air Museum of Ship History, as well as a couple of tunnels (they are, however, under the river) that connect the two banks in the port part of the city instead of bridges.
By the way, about museums. If you believe the tour guide, Hamburg has several hundred of the most diverse museums. Moreover, they are so varied (for example, there is a Museum of Municipal Sewage or a Museum-Bomb Shelter) that just by visiting these establishments you can fill almost the entire cultural program, supplementing it with visits to cathedrals and the Town Hall. And even then, impressions of the city will be more than enough.
But going around them will require considerable time. And if you consider that cultural life is simply seething (constant exhibitions, concerts with world-famous pop stars, theater tours), a tourist in Northern Venice will have something to occupy themselves for more than one week.
But who would refuse a closer acquaintance with local color - sitting over a mug of beer (Hamburg produces the world-famous beer Holstein) or a cup of coffee, trying the local hamburger - Deutsch Bifsteak - after all?
Or spend a night in the most famous "red-light district" in Germany on Reeperbahn Street, where you can brighten up your leisure by going to strip clubs, stores selling erotic products, specialized video salons, and even entire cinemas, attending a musical, a super-fashionable (or not so) disco. After all, you can find a companion for the next few hours (provided you have the requested sum, of course), the choice of which in this area is practically unlimited. In short, have a blast!
Don't Look Down on the Beauties
However, all this charm is charming only for visitors. Local residents, of course, are infinitely proud of the sights and are ready to talk at length about each of them, but they react to the sight of the same Town Hall quite calmly. Incidentally, I noticed that when I myself was on the square in front of the main building of Hamburg for the seventh or eighth time, the initial delight was replaced by ordinary research interest. A couple more days, and I would probably stop paying attention to this beauty altogether.
But honestly speaking, I would visit Northern Venice once more with great pleasure. I would study the city more thoroughly (fortunately, at almost every intersection or stop there is a detailed map with the exact location), in order to have the opportunity to share impressions of what I saw again.
And Hamburg, it seems, will not cease to amaze. Businesslike and calmly balanced in a workmanlike way. And at the same time - festive, cheerful, and carefree. A city that is truly worth visiting at least once in a lifetime.