Pick-A-Day

November 2013
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Last Weekend I escaped to Hamburg…

BallinStadt

The BallinStadt Auswanderermuseum in Hamburg.

When I realized that my BahnCard was expiring (I’d cancelled it), I decided to take one more trip using it… and it was off to Hamburg I went.

I wanted a quiet weekend with interesting things, and a quiet weekend with interesting things I got.

Friday evening I did meet up with PapaScott and his son – we toured the Schokoversum – a chocolate museum that details how chocolate is made, complete with a mix your own chocolate bar portion. Yum. The tour, auf Deutsch, was mostly understandable, although our tour guide gain an unfortunate chocolate stain on her shirt during the mix your own chocolate bar part of the tour, thus leaving her looking a bit odd for the next 20 minutes. After we headed to dinner to a steakhouse – although I suggested we go to a vegetarian stake house, which confused his son—perhaps a bit too advanced word play.

Pathetically, but not unsurprisingly, I crashed shortly after dinner, and I crashed hard. Last week was a busy week at work and I’d been working a lot in an effort to get caught up before my trip to Hamburg – I didn’t, but I also didn’t bring work with me to Hamburg – it was a designated weekend off.

Saturday I made it to the two stops I wanted to make: the Auswanderermuseum at BallinStadt and the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe. The Auswanderermusuem – a museum about emigration out of Germany to foreign lands (most often the USA, but not always) was… errr… sort of adequate. If you only have time to visit one museum about emigration, go with the one in Bremerhaven –which I visited during a totally moist Whiney Expatriate Blogger Meet-Up in 2008.

The Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe was out of this world – I managed to get there in time to see an exhibition of photographs by Steve McCurry, one of the most amazing photographers out there today. Beyond that, the museum houses the old Spiegel Canteen, an amazing place for their employees to gather – perhaps a bit overwhelming.

Spiegel Canteen at MKG /Hamburg

Imagine going here every day to eat your lunch.

Other than that, I had a very quiet weekend in Hamburg – read some books, took some walks, ate some meals, and took some naps. I returned to Berlin feeling much refreshed.

2 comments to Last Weekend I escaped to Hamburg…

  • Diese alte Spiegel – Kantine, es sieht ja aus, als wäre man in den späten 60gern frühen 70gern gefangen genommen worden, und nun steckt man darin fest, nett, vermutlich.

  • mateo

    I can imagine having my lunch at the canteen. At least it is cheerful, unlike some of the depressing places I’ve had to eat my lunch at work over the years.