During our visit to Hamburg we took a boat tour of their harbor and river. This was very appropriate as the city is built on sea trade. Our guide, George, told us a lot of interesting information about the city of Hamburg. The city made its money by trading many goods from countries including electronics from Asia and produce from South America. In addition to trading, Hamburg was also a popular stop for immigration to the United States. Over 5 million people went through Hamburg on their way. We went through the warehouse district where many brick buildings line the river.
These buildings used to be used for storage but now have many shops and the world’s largest miniature train setup. In the picture you may also see where the water line goes up to. George said that the water rises another 2 meters during high tide. We also passed by a new concert hall that was built two years ago and has brought many tourists to the city. As shown in the picture, the architecture of the concert hall is modeled after a wave.
We then went through a lock that is not an up and down lock but just two gates that opened and closed. This was to prevent a lot of sand and mud from getting into the harbor from the ships that come in from the ocean. The city had to spend a lot money on dredging the harbor, so this was the solution to that problem. We saw all kinds of ships on our tour from tug boats and cruise ships to giant freight ships.
We learned a lot on our tour and it was the perfect way to spend our short time in Hamburg.