Hamburg - St. Michael's Church

One of the things I had on my list to see while I was in Hamburg was St. Michael's Church. I've always loved seeing old architecture, particularly churches. I'm not sure why other than the elaborateness and the attention to details is so impressive. And with St. Michael's it was a place that I kept seeing while wandering around Hamburg. Its steeple and clock tower seemed to pop up everywhere, no matter which part of the city I happened to be exploring. 

I tried to get a photo of the whole outside of the church but couldn't really get a good angle on it because it's so big and so close to other buildings. It's the largest church in Hamburg, with seating for approximately 2500 people. It's a Lutheran church, and an interesting bit of history is that it was purpose built as a Protestant church, unlike many of Europe's older churches that began as Roman Catholic places of worship. 

This is the third church to stand on this site. The first built in the 1600s, followed by a second church in the 1700s. Unfortunately, that buildiing was destroyed by fire in 1906. The present church opened in 1912, although it has since undergone repair and restoration, including work to address damage sustained during the Second World War. 

The church is built in the Baroque style, and the exterior is impressive enough, but the interior is beautiful, with incredible attention to detail, ornate carvings and decorative features throughout. Not to mention the pipe organs which I love! There is so much to look at that it's worth taking some time just to wander, take in the details, and appreciate the skill that went into it. 

But the real highlight for me was climbing the tower. At 132 meters tall, the steeple has long been an important landmark. In years past, it served as a navigation aid for ships travelling along the Elbe River, helping sailors find their way into the harbour. 

There are 452 steps to the observation platform, which sites 106 meters above the ground. I decided to tackle them on foot rather than take the elevator. The climb seemed to go on forever, and I was definitely huffing and puffing by the time I made it to the top!

Much of the climb takes you through the tower's interior, with narrow metal stairways and wooden boards underfoot, taking you past the huge bells and further upwards. It was rather dark in places and, with the wind whistling through the structure, it was a little unnerving with not another soul in sight. 

But the effort was absolutely worth it. Once I reached the observation deck, I was rewarded with an incredible panoramic view of Hamburg. You see the harbour, the Elbe River, the rooftops, more church steeples, historic buildings and the many neighborhoods stretching out in every direction. It was also interesting to pick out some of the places I'd already visited or planned to visit, such as the distinctive  Elbphilharmonie concert hall. 

Despite the wind, I took my time enjoying the vide before heading down all those stairs again. Given that it was probably the most exercise I got in Hamburg (other than all the walking!), I was glad I hadn't taken the easy way up! 

Hamburg - Hagenback Tropical Aquarium

While the kids had a birthday party to attend, I decided to take advantage of having some free time and visit the Haganback Tropical Aquarium on my own. Right beside the zoo, it was just a five-minute walk from my Airbnb. It turned out to be another highlight of my time in Hamburg!

What made this zoo particularly interesting was how different it was from many of the zoos and aquariums I've visited. Rather than the usual modern-looking displays, plain tanks and concrete surroundings, the experience started with what felt like stepping straight into a tropical jungle. There were lush plants everywhere, along with lemurs, colourful birds, reptiles, crocodiles and all sorts of other creatures.

As you continued through the exhibits, the whole atmosphere changed. Suddenly, it felt as though you were entering a submarine, with portholes providing views into the underwater world. 

This display was explaining the colors of coral.

Eventually, you came around to a huge feature tank, where you could actually see the submarine structure from the outside. It was a really clever way of designing the exhibits and made the whole experience much more immersive.

Even the cafeteria carried on the jungle theme, with plenty of tropical plants, wooden tables and chairs. And, surprisingly for a zoo or aquarium, it looked like a reasonably appealing café rather than the usual selection of somewhat uninspiring zoo food!

One thing they certainly don't take lightly is their crocodile safety precautions! Some of the warning signs were humorous but, at the time time, serious. 

It was a really enjoyable way to spend a few hours!

Hamburg - Elbe Tunnel and the Bunker

We took a walk under the Elbe River! 

The Old Elbe Tunnel runs for 426 metres beneath the river, with the tunnel floor about 24 metres below the surface. Thankfully, I wasn't thinking about how much water was on top of us as we went through it! 

The tunnel first opened in 1911, built to provide a much-needed connection between the city and the busy harbour on the south side of the Elbe. It is has had plenty of upgrades and improvements since then, but the original structure is still very much part of the experience. 

Today, the tunnel is open to pedestrians and cyclists. Vehicles used to use it too but that is no longer the case with the building of more bridges. 

Getting down to the tunnel was, for me, more interesting than the tunnel itself. At either end, you can take one of several elevators or the stairs. These aren't just ordinary stairwells. The staircases are beautiful structures that zigzag back and forth down the shaft. I counted 132 steps. There is also some detailed woodwork around the outside of the shaft. 

The elevators are equally impressive. They are enormous because they were originally designed to carry vehicles down into and back out of the tunnel. These days they carry pedestrians (I'm sure mostly tourists like us) but also lots of bicycle commuters. 

Once you're down at tunnel level, the two parallel tunnels stretch ahead beneath the river. The walls are lined with information about the tunnel's original construction, the engineering challenges involved, and the many projects and improvements that have taken place over the years. 

There are some fun decorative details. Set into the walls are ceramic plaques depicting creatures associated with the Elbe such as fish, rats, crabs and other animals or sea life. 

I would have liked to spend more time reading the information panels and learning more about how the tunnel was constructed but the kids were moving through the tunnel at considerably greater speed than the adults! So I took quick photos of the information to read later but took some time to admire the architecture. 

The tunnel has appeared in several movies, a music video, and is often used for art exhibitions and musical concerts. Perhaps most surprisingly, it hosts a marathon! Participants in the Hamburg Tunnel Marathon run 48 laps of the two parallel tunnels to reach the full marathon distance. 

Once we emerged on the other side of the river, we had great views of the Elbphilharmonie Concert Hall, St. Michael's Church and many other distinctive buildings as well a boats moving along the Elbe. 

After heading back through the tunnel, we headed to the Hamburg Bunker, a massive concrete World War II air-raid shelter and flak tower. It was built in 1942, the walls are up to 3.8 m thick and thousands of people could shelter inside during air raids. 

Today, the bunker houses a hotel, cultural space and urban garden. It's been added on at the top and is now 58 m high and covered with greenery, including thousands of trees, shrubs and other plants. 

We climbed the stairs that wind around and around the outside of the building, gradually making our way to the top. The main thing that kept the kids going was the promise of a playground somewhere along the way. Sadly, that never materialized! Thankfully, there was a big open green space on the roof where they could run around for a while. 

We stopped at one of the coffee shops part way down for drinks and pastries which was a very welcome break after all those stairs! 

The views from all around the bunker were fantastic, giving us yet another perspective of Hamburg. It was all a very interesting and historic way to spend the day!