#735 Hamburg Architecture

We're struck again by Hamburg's creative architecture - so many beautiful contrasts.

The city sits on a sheltered natural harbor which has brought us back for a third visit.  With so many rivers and canals, Hamburg has more bridges (~2,500) within its city limits than any other city in the world.

The new concert hall, Elbphilharmonie, is an architectural statement that opened last year, mirroring an ocean wave on the Elbe River.  Tickets were impossible to get during our stay, but we admire the view from all angles.    

 

And from the observation deck on the 8th floor between the original brick warehouse below and the new glass concert hall above, we appreciate the view of church spires in the background and a mix of the old and new.

The city keeps coming back from disasters such as the 1842 Hamburg fire, World War 2 bombing runs, and coastal flooding.  This 1888 building continues to thrive.   

And the tower of St. Nicholas' church continues to stand despite being a focus of World War 2 bombers.

The Ubersee Quartier subway station near our hotel has an underwater theme with darker blue tiles at the bottom. 

And the fabulous design continues indoors as well.  At the Hamburg arts and crafts museum, we admire and are mesmerized by the Spiegel Canteen designed by Verner Panton.

From the Altona cruise terminal, we will board the MV World Odyssey later today. 

Today, the view from our 25Hours hotel room shows another huge harbor project underway.

Yours in appreciating Hamburg all the way around,
Mary Jo

#734 Getting there

Getting there is half the fun!

When you travel from North America to another continent, you have two options for travel: flying on an airplane or sailing on a ship. 

We choose sailing for lots of reasons.

1) Since we don't leave the surface of the Earth when sailing, we have the opportunity to understand better where we are by slowly approaching a new destination at 20 mph rather than zooming overhead at 500 mph and dropping in from the heavens.

2) The ocean is beautiful. The sun on the ocean is beautiful. The moon on the ocean is beautiful.  

3) The ship has a library! And the Queen Mary 2 library, the largest at sea, has just the right books to get our attention: Dear Mrs. Bird and Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society for me and The Art of Cartographics for Kelly.  The librarians even check them out for reading on the deck.

4) And then, there's the people factor.  Those who make the deliberate choice to travel at 20 mph are not in a hurry.  They like to promenade around the deck, read in the deck chair, take time for a conversation.  These are my people.  On our recent Atlantic crossing, we were overjoyed to be joined by two lifetime friends. And when those friends introduce us to their two friends, we form immediate connections and the crossing (and life) become even sweeter.      

Yours in sticking to the surface of the planet whenever possible,
Mary Jo

P.S. I haven't even mentioned the dancers.