  Port Tour Michel |
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Our port route begins high above the port, at the metro station Stadthausbrücke. We walk toward the Ludwig Erhardt street to our first target of the route - the Michel. If you climb the tower, you will have a marvelous view over the port and the upcomming tour. Subsequently, we visit the Krameramtswohnungen built in 1676, at the base of the Michel, at the Krayenkamp. Now we go comfortably downhill, past the gigantic publishing house of "Gruner and Jahr" down to the Elbe. Overseas bridge We arrive at the "overseas bridge", a passenger-loading stairs, at which cruise ships, sailing vessels, aircraft carriers and other warships from many countries moor. While the soldiers in sailor uniform leave, ordinary people may visit the ships. Here the museum ship "Cap San Diego" is situated. It was built in 1962 by the "German shipyard" lying at that time on the bank of the opposite side of the Elbe. The ship sailed with machines and cars for South America and returned with coffee, tea, tobacco, meat and fruits. Jetties A few hundred meters further we come to the "Landungsbrücken" (jetties). Here the former sailing vessel "Rickmer Rickmers" which was used for educational purposes can be visited as a museum ship now. The St. Pauli jetties are swimming pontoons, which are fastened to the bank with mobile bridges, in order to adjust to the changing water-levels of high and low tide occurring twice a day. If you would still like to see more of the port, you can join one of the many port tours offered here. In 1910 a representative ship station was built for the arriving overseas travelers, an elongated terminal building made of gross limestones, stubborn like a fortress with two towers at its sides. The twin domes at the center of the building have a correspondence in the dome of the elevator building of the old Elbe tunnel, which should enable port and shipyard workers to reach their workplaces on the other side of the Elbe when the weather was bad. Before we look into the old Elbe tunnel, we climb the many stairway to the Stintfang, which is situated over the station "Landungsbrücken". From this point you will have a marvelous far view over the whole port. If it is already late in the evening, you can finish the evening in the bar of the hotel "Hafen Hamburg" diagonally opposite and enjoy the sunset over the port. Hafenstraße If the day is still young we may continue to follow the Elbe river downwards to the famous "Hafenstraße" (port street). This part of the slope with a view over the port was called the "tenderloin of the port's border" by real estate dealers. Since 1981 however young people occupied the houses and demonstrated with banners and large murals against housing speculation. Fish market Our last station is the fish market. On Sunday morning from 5 o'clock till 9.30 (in the winter starting from 7 o'clock) everythings is sold here, from pets, plants and fruit to used cartoons and much more. Opposite to the market there are several nice cocktail bars which are always very well visited in the evening. We now head to the metro station Reeperbahn and we have to go uphill a little bit. Do not think you can have a quick look at the Reeperbahn now, this famous street offers so much that you should reserve a whole evening or night for this tour. |
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