Neun Monate

Grüße!

Greetings!

It's been just over 9 months since I arrived in Hamburg, and it's been a whirlwind adventure adjusting to a new country, city, culture, and language. As I reported in my last post, I now have legal residence for the next three years, and last week I received my German Führerschein (Driver's License). The only thing left on the way to becoming fully German is citizenship, but that's several years down the road.

One of the adjustments we've had to make is getting used to all the religious holidays here in Germany, which is quite different from the US, where religious holidays are not legal observances (other than Christmas). In addition to Easter and Christmas, we have Boxing Day (the day after Christmas), Good Friday, Easter Monday, Ascension Day (the commemoration of Christ's ascension), Whit Monday (the day after Pentecost), and Reformation Day. These are all public holidays in Germany, in addition to the secular holidays - New Year's, May Day (labor day), and Unity Day (commemorating the reunification of Germany after the fall of the Wall). There are also additional religious holidays depending on which state you live in, mostly in the heavily Catholic regions. Almost all businesses are closed on these public holidays other than some restaurants and coffee shops. So we always have to check the calendar before planning any shopping or other activities.

On Whit Monday, we took advantage of the holiday and went sightseeing with our friends Claudi and Eberhardt. Our first stop was the famous St. Michael's Church (The "Michel"), the largest church in Hamburg. The church dates back to the 17th century, and is the main Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hamburg. It has been destroyed and rebuilt multiple times over the centuries, mostly from fires but also during the War. It is considered the most important Baroque church in Northern Germany, and is one of the most famous Hamburg landmarks. Here are a number of photos I took while visiting.

Exterior view of the church (photo by Clarke). It's so big that you have to stand across the street to get it all in one photo.

Interior view looking toward the altar. Even though the latest rebuild of the church was in 1952, the design remained faithful to its earlier baroque style.

The ornate pulpit is made of marble and wood and seems to resemble a ship's bow from the 17th century - a nod to the shipping industry that built Hamburg. The details of every element in the church are exquisite and quite showy for a Lutheran church. This is probably due to the fact that many of the early families were wealthy merchants and could afford such elaborate decor.

A view of the main organ in the rear of the sanctuary (there are three in the sanctuary). Unlike many organs, the organist for this one sits in another part of the sanctuary.

A second smaller organ on one side of the sanctuary.

The third organ in the sanctuary on the opposing wall.

Plaques commemorating three famous composers connected to the church. Telemann and CPE Bach were music directors of the five main Lutheran churches in Hamburg at different times, and Brahms is buried in the crypt below the sanctuary.

We visited part of the crypt but chose not pay to see the whole thing. This is a plaque (in English!) that talks about how all of the coffins were removed after the 1906 fire, due to flooding of the crypt.

We did pay to go up into the bell tower (fortunately they have an elevator!). The views of Hamburg from that vantage point are amazing (photos below). This is a view looking up at the three bells currently in service. The bell tower has been rebuilt multiple times, either due to fires or war. Each time the tower collapsed, the bell(s) were destroyed. These did go off at one point while we were on the observation deck. I can certify that they are extremely loud!

A view of the Elbphilharmonie (Hamburg's main concert hall) on the Elbe river.

Because Hamburg is so flat, on a clear day you can see far beyond the city and into the suburbs (and into the next state). The dark spire in the center is all that is left from a church that burned down. The fire was so hot that it fused the stones together, and the spire is now a memorial landmark. The tall spires on the left are the town hall, which I still need to visit. It's a beautiful landmark and one of the most famous buildings in Hamburg.

I found this building to be very interesting with its terraced roof gardens.

These are known as the "Dancing Towers". They are so fun to look at. They were built in 2012, and are supposed to resemble a couple dancing the Tango.

Hamburg's own communication tower. Not as high or as elaborate as the CN Tower in Toronto, but a significant landmark nevertheless.

You can't have the main Lutheran Church in Hamburg without a huge statue of Martin Luther! Clarke is included for perspective. 😊

I have a lot more to share about our sightseeing tour, which kicked off my birthday week, but that will need to wait for another day.

Stay safe and be blessed!

Tschüss!

Bye!

David