Germany Trip, Dusseldorf

I have some hours to walk around Hamburg before departure. The weather is miraculously changed for better today. No rain and some sun! I think, it is a distinctive feature of any city on the sea, to have a changeable weather.

Some short promenade along the nearby canal, and I am heading to the old town, where the city hall is located.

The Hamburg Rathaus is one of Germany’s most impressive city halls, with Neo-Renaissance architectural style, built between 1886 and 1897, which has a central tower of 112 metres height. Despite WWII bombings, the Rathaus survived almost undamaged, which makes it rare among other German city halls.

I would say, that the area around the Rathaus is one of Hamburg’s most architecturally rich and visually impressive places. The styles range here from Neo-Renaissance (the Rathaus itself) to classicism, modern glass buildings and historic arcades. In other parts of the city you can also meet Brick Expressionism, Functionalism or 19th-century Eclectic styles.

The interesting fact is that Hamburg has more bridges than Venice, and many are clustered around the Rathaus area. I can imagine sitting in the summer cafes with the view to a canal and drinking morning coffee or evening cocktail.

It is a port city, so there must be some fresh and delicious fish here. I think, herring must be very popular here, because I have seen it in so many street food places. So, I have tried one. And it was very good. Absolutely recommended!

I am at the central railway station and waiting for my Flixbus train. It is delayed already for one hour. I feel so stressed, because less time is remaining for observing my next city Dusseldorf.

Safely, we arrived to the Rhine Metropolis (this is actually the nickname of Dusseldorf). It is already dark outside. And I am not sure if I am willing to explore city right now. But definitely, I would like to have a dinner.

The hotel, Premier Inn (again, the same hotel chain), is conveniently located right to the railway station. So, there must be many restaurants around.

Nearby I found some main street with lots of Japanese restaurants. Honestly, for the first time I have met so many Japanese restaurants in one place. And after checking the google reviews I have stayed in one of them. People working there looked like real Japanese. And it was the best bento box in my life!  

Happy and satisfied I decided to walk around the city. And it looked quite empty at that hour. No wonder, because it is a Monday night.

I have passed through the new part of the city with modern buildings and big malls, until the old town with cozy and traditional houses, where nowadays placed the bars and restaurants. And I even reached the river embankment, where the big Ferris wheel is placed. Should be a nice experience to see the city from that height.

Anyways, tomorrow, before moving to another place, I will try to see some of the city at daylight. 

Germany Trip, Hamburg

Next destination point is Hamburg, Germany’s second-largest city and one of Europe’s busiest port hubs. It lies in northern Germany, not far from the North Sea, close to Denmark, with the Elbe River running straight through the city.

I did not know that Flixbus also has trains. Probably, it is specifically for Germany. Anyways, it is much cheaper than the regular trains, that is why I decided to travel from Berlin to Hamburg with Flixbus.

The main train station looks impressive, and it is quite in the city centre. So, I do not need to use public transport here to reach my hotel.

It is the same Premier Inn hotel, with simple look outside and modern amenities inside.

It is raining and very windy outside. But I am not going to stay at hotel for sure, because I am here only for one night, and I want to learn about the city not from the pictures.

The Premier Inn City Zentrum is very close to the Speicherstadt, which is Hamburg’s historic warehouse district, famous for its red-brick buildings, canals and bridges. It was built in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and is the largest warehouse district in the world.

After observing the surroundings I was eager to find some place to eat. Eating a hamburger in Hamburg should be the right thing! Luckily, there was a free table for me at Brooklyn Burger Bar. Good quality food and atmospheric place indeed. 

Nearby I surprisingly found a prominent tower building, which was St. Nicholas’ Church (Nikolaikirche). Built in the 19th century in a neo-Gothic style, St. Nicholas’ Church was once one of the tallest buildings in the world, with its spire reaching 147.4 meters. It was heavily damaged during Allied bombing raids in 1943, but later its ruins were preserved as a memorial rather than fully rebuilt.

When returning to the hotel I have noticed interesting detail on my table. And I came up with some nice idea.

I hurried to the lobby bar.

And ordered some local beer there.

Tomorrow, I hope, I will have time to observe the old city in Hamburg.

Germany Trip, Berlin

Today starts my short trip around Germany with visiting several cities in different parts of the country. The first stop is in Berlin, the city which keeps surprising me every time when I come to this untypical city. And at this time I am planning to see something new.

As usual, I travel from Prague by train. Actually, there are no direct flights. Maybe, they calculated somehow that it is not profitable to organize flights, or maybe they care about climate etc.

The ride was smooth, and I am on the main railway station. I exited some new way and discovered the new views, including the modern glassy architecture and the Spree river.

But my real intention was seeing the building of Reichstag, where now the federal parliament of Germany (Bundestag) sits. Bundestag represents the German people, passes federal laws and oversees the federal government.

So, the building is famous for its glass dome. It is open to the public for viewing the plenary chamber and panoramic views of Berlin. Somehow, the glass dome symbolizes transparency and accessibility of government.

Very close to the Reichstag, only in 400 metres, it is located the Brandenburg Gate (Brandenburger Tor).

Selfie from the other side of the Brandenburg Gate may look even better than from the front. 

I had another hour before I could check-in to the hotel. So, I decided to walk through the Tiergarten, the large central park of Berlin with small lakes, ponds, canals and monuments scattered throughout.

In the middle of Tiergarten, at a large roundabout where several avenues meet, I saw the prominent monument called The Victory Column. With the height of 67 meters it was built between 1863-1873 to commemorate Prussia’s military victories in the wars against Denmark (1864), Austria (1866) and France (1870–1871).

At the top of the columns stands "Goldelse", a 8.3-meter-tall gilded statue of Victoria, the Roman goddess of victory. She holds a laurel wreath in one hand and a Prussian flag in the other.

Visitors can climb the spiral staircase (with 285 steps) inside of the column to reach the viewing platform

Finally, I am at the hotel Premier Inn. Outside it looks simple, but the interiors and rooms are clean and modern. I have chosen this hotel, because of its great location and affordable prices.

My dinner was at Frittenwerk. So badly I wanted to try the currywurst, and they had it on the menu. Honestly, I was very disappointed, because the taste was not the same as I remembered it from the previous trip.

Next time I will not experiment with such places as Frittenwerk. I will go straightly to the simple kiosk on the street like this, even if it is raining or winding.

Later I have had several beers in local bars. Once I have had recommendation from one girl to try the famous German beer Pilsner Urquell. She was really surprised to know from me that Pilsner Urquell is originated from Czechia.