Sunday, December 20, 2015

Home for the Holidays

I've been back in the U.S. for a week now. Although I'm a bit sad to miss the full impact of the holidays in Hamburg, nothing beats spending time with my family.

I came back early to participate in Wreaths Across America at Arlington National Cemetery, then spent the week with my sister before heading south to stay with my parents in southern Virginia.

I'm looking forward to another week or so of rest and relaxation (and a birthday!) before heading back to Hamburg for more adventures.

Happy Holidays!








Earlier this week Angela and I went to the National Harbor.
We saw ICE!--an incredible ice sculpture extravaganza
that told the story of "Santa Claus is Coming to Town."
We were given these blue parkas to wear because the
temperature inside was 9 degrees Fahrenheit
In addition to amazing ice sculpture displays
like these, there were ice slides.
(Yes, we played on the slides).


After the journey through ICE we warmed up back inside with the Gingerbread Man!


A visit to my parents always includes
a breakfast at the Waffle House

It took Angela and me some time
to decorate the family tree.
Merry Christmas to you and your family!

Sunday, December 6, 2015

Around Town: Christmas in Hamburg

I am crazy about Christmas. It truly is the most wonderful time of the year. (As a Christmas Eve baby I feel can say corny things like that without being judged too harshly.)

Christmastime is also one of my favorite memories of living in Germany as a kid, because it was so magical. There were—and still are, judging by displays at some local convenience stores—people who decorate their trees with real candles (something that is on my list to try with a second, smaller tree. Don’t tell Larry!).

Weihnachtsmarkt at the Rathaus
A lot of our Christmas customs in the U.S. come from Germany, so of course I was super excited to be at the source when the holiday season hit. And yes, there is an official holiday season here. 

Although stores had Christmas stuff out on display starting in late October, Weihnachtsmärkte (Christmas markets) aren’t allowed to operate before the week preceding Advent.

I had to give up the dream of traveling to other cities all over Germany for their famed markets--too costly on our current budget. Thankfully I found a website for Hamburg’s many local Christmas markets. I counted 18 markets on the list and made a plan to visit them all.

Larger-than-life Weihnachtspyramid
at a downtown market
The markets officially opened on Monday, November 23. I hit six markets that first day; five of them before my German class in the afternoon. I hit an equal number of markets over the next couple of days but noticed two things: 1) as I visited markets I’d sometimes stumble across smaller markets not on the list and 2) with the exception of a few larger sites, most of the markets on the list were clearly social spots for their particular neighborhoods, concentrating solely on food, drink, and a carousel for the kids.

Stalls at the larger markets included fresh food,
jewelry, clothing, Christmas decorations...
I finally hit the wall on a dreary Sunday morning after traveling 35 minutes by bus to get to a market on the fringes of town. I spent only 30 seconds walking through the market itself, then crossed the street to hop on an approaching train back into town.

The remaining targets on my list were equally far out if not further. I had visited 19 markets at this point and, since I already had the gifts I wanted and did not look forward to more long trips for disappointing cold and rainy tours of still more wurstschmalzkuchen (similar to beignets) or glühwein (warm mulled wine) stalls, I decided to call it a done deal.
...and novelty items, like tools
made out of chocolate

 But I did check out the parade downtown (see video and photos below). And my goal for next year will be to hit the out-of-town markets on my wish list to see how folks in the east and south do the holidays.



The parade started with a xylophone band playing Wham's "Last Christmas." 
(They played more traditional fare as the parade went on.





Wednesday, December 2, 2015

Hamburg: Around Town

A picture is worth a thousand words, so periodically I’ll share images of things I see on my excursions around Hamburg. I’ve included some rooftop photos here, but you can check out more of my rooftop obsession on Pinterest.

Celebrating German Unification Day on the beach of the Elbe!


A view of the Speicherstadt--the historic center of Hamburg's
800+-year-old trade economy
The Elbphilarmonie building, promising a
state-of-the-art performance hall and luxury hotel.
Not yet open and already 100x over budget
(yes, not 100% over, 100 times over budget).
There are constant parades of children out getting  fresh air and exercise. My favorites are these two-tier carts for the little ones.
Hamburg version of up on blocks?

Hamburg Rathaus (city hall)




The backside of the street where the Great Fire of 1842 began. Apparently the canal was just as low then.
Yes, that is a statue of Popeye and Olive Oyl

Street art is everywhere, ranging from the truly expressionistic...
...to the simply expressed.


Hamburg Hauptbahnhof (main train station). Those hundreds of people on the overpass were part of a pro-refugee rally.




It's like this house popped out of one of the Grimm Brothers' fairy tales
A lot of the buildings around town
(business as well as residential)
have some impressive statues
In November we attended the Winter Dom (carnival) which, as you can see, sits in the shadow of a
massive WW2 bunker. The bunker goes by the name Uebel und Gefaehrlich (evil and dangerous)
and is home to a nightclub and periodic shows and concerts.

A view out over the Hamburg port