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First
off, outside the city centre, take the train out
to my old 'hood, Suldorf. Right by the train station
is your traditional German ice cream parlour.
There is nothing else at all in Suldorf apart
from pensioners.
Altona
is a nice little town that was originally independent
from Hamburg, like Salford and Manchester, Birkenhead
and Liverpool, Birmingham and Walsall. Its more
down market than Hamburg so ideal if you want
cheap accommodation, and it has a nightlife of
its own worth checking out once.
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 Suldorf.
Pic:
D. Ellison |
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A
lot of gigs happen in Altona. They also have a
British Indie night once a month and its likely
to be the only place you'll hear Happy Mondays
or Stone Roses.
In
the city centre
In
the city centre start sight seeing from Dammtor
station, which is by the congress centre. North
of this area is the University campus, with some
great record stores, cinemas and memorials to
the synagogues in the area burnt during Krystalnacht.
Also in the area is an Ethiopian restaurant, and
the store where I bought Germany's only Half Man
Half Biscuit CD (Voyage to the Bottom of the Road).
If
you come out the station heading north, go left
and you come to an Australian bar where you can
see Neighbours and also get all you can eat chicken
wings. The Cumbrian chicken wings have jam on,
a classic example of the German sense of humour.
Walking south from Dammtor towards Ganzmarkt takes
you towards the city centre. Going right by the
station takes you to a very traditional German
pub, litres of beer and bratwurst menus and all,
and also towards the press offices of Das Bild.
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| Alster
Lake. Pic:
D. Ellison |
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The
smiley face graffiti tag
Going left, takes you towards the town centre,
with the Rathaus (Which has a nice cafe in the
basement) and towards the Alster. From here you
can take a ferry cruise and also visit the many
canals of Hamburg. It’s famous for them
apparently but I never saw one.
Of
course I should mention, while doing all this
you should keep an eye of for the smiley face
graffiti tag. There are hundreds and no one knows
anything about them it seems.
Anyway,
from the town hall I'd head down towards the cathedral,
one which has a history of burning down. You can
take tours and go up the bell tower, and a famous
composer is buried there, I just forget which
one.
Out
at 5am? Banana Fred
From
here head down to the waterfront, take a right.
You'll be walking past the scene of Hamburg’s
largest squatters protest. All the houses where
taken over and the place was like a war zone for
some time. In the end I think they got to keep
their properties, they just had to start paying
rates and tax on them. This is also where the
Sunday morning Fischmarkt takes place, which,
should you still be out at 5 AM Sunday morning
IS A MUST SEE!!
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| Construction.
Pic:
D. Ellison |
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It
is a place for people to congregate waiting for
the trains to start again, and also the prime
place to catch Hamburg legend Banana Fred in action
at his fruit auction. Don't try to take him on
with jokes, he'll tear you apart, the man is a
legend.
As
you head up you come to a small pub by a bridge,
bottom of a flight of stairs. This is Hamburg’s
oldest pub and a fantastic place to try that first
bottle of Astra. It’s a great place of a
weekend, with local electronica experiments taking
place, but doesn’t get going 'til late.
Reeperbahn
- on your own
Up
the stairs takes you to the Reeperbahn. From here
on you are on your own, it’s how you'll
get the most memorable experience.
If
you make you way all across the Reeperbahn my
favourite pub is Roschinsksy. Take the left by
the KFC, and head down the road (there’s
also a good 99c bar) to find it.
At
the bottom of the Reeperbahn is Grosse Freiheit
Strasse, on which is the site of The Star Club.
The pubs in this area are quite expensive and
are the more tourist friendly end of the Reeperbahn,
but there is another 99c bar, and Dolly’s
Dinner do a nice litre of beer, and even a litre
and a half.
Remember
that on Sundays almost everything in Germany is
closed. Not the case in Hamburg of course, because
by the train station you get off at for the airport
you'll find the world's second largest graveyard.
It has a museum open on Sundays.
Festivals
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| Airwolf
ride. Pic:
D. Ellison |
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As
for festive events I'd recommend going in Nov
/ Dec to catch the massive Dom, a giant carnival
with a weekly firework shows. It’s great,
and the sell an excellent Hamburg. The Airwolf
ride here is where I lost my passport.
Hamburg
is also the closest town to the Wacken festival,
for all you metalhead readers out there.
Another
great venue in Hamburg is Kunst, not far from
The Reeperbahn. It's where I saw, and sang on
stage with, The Misfits.
By
Dean
Ellison
for Extrageographic, January 2007.
Links:
See
also: Insider guide to Luxor - Extrageographic
Official
Hamburg tourism website:
www.hamburg-tourismus.de
Hamburg
at Wikipedia
Thanks
to Phill Huxley.
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