We were off to Hamburg and we had high hopes given how much we loved our experiences of Germany so far, but our previous trips had been to Berlin and we didn’t really know what was in store for us with Hamburg. The trip did not get off to the best start as the plane was delayed for over 3 hours, the only good news was we would get compensation which would pay for the entire trip and then some!
When we arrived in the city, as it was later than expected and already early afternoon, we headed straight in the direction of the hotel. We were staying at Hotel Michaelis Hof, but more about that shortly. It was time for a beer (of course) and hopefully somewhere to charge our phones up. We stumbled across a place called Gaststätte Dreyer. I think I’d describe it as cosy and very very smoky – Mum and Dad would need to air me out afterwards to get the smoky smell out off my fur! The walls were full of interesting things to look at like old clocks and artwork. I don’t think anything had changed in there in the last 50 years! We spent pretty much all afternoon there, I have no idea what the humans were drinking, but it wasn’t expensive and they drunk a lot of it. As usual they were drunk! Hiccup!
So off to the hotel and what Dad had missed when he made the booking was its full name was The Michaelis Hof in der Katholischen Akademie… yes, that’s right… we were staying in a religious establishment and chose to get steaming drunk before checking in… and we were drunk enough at this point to have spent a long time trying to find the hotel and could not follow basic instructions on how to complete the self-check in. Will they learn? I’ve known these humans long enough now to realise there is zero chance of them learning! Anyway, the plan was to have a little power nap and then go exploring. Of course, the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry, as in this case when they woke up the next day. Whoops!
The next day we explored the city including the infamous Reeperbahn. We found lots of street art in Hamburg, which you can read about by following the link. All in all though, I don’t think we were particularly impressed with the city and maybe the damp and cold weather didn’t help too much and we’d be better coming again when it was slightly warmer so we could soak up the sunshine by the port. Be warned though, we found it very difficult to find a decent place to drink, especially during the day. We did find a reasonable enough place near the main station called NAGEL. We enjoyed a few tasty home-brewed beers and some nice traditional German food there. If you’re looking for somewhere authentic, then this is a comfortable place with a nice atmosphere, good food, good beer and good prices.
In the evening, we thankfully found another decent place, not authentic this time but definitely right up our street. You can read about the Barley & Malt Craft Beer Bar by clicking on the link. You really must check this place out if you’re in Hamburg. Our time in Hamburg was nearly up and as you can see, we didn’t do a massive amount whilst we were here. There is plenty of stuff to see and do, like the museum mile and the city’s canals (Hamburg has more canals than Amsterdam and Venice combined), it just bypassed us I’m afraid. We even missed the Miniatur Wunderland, which I’m sad about as it has largest model railway in the world (at 50,000 feet) and would have been the perfect size for me!