Ready for an energy bath? Second largest city in Germany and 3rd port in Europe after Rotterdam and Antwerp, Hamburg is a dynamic and festive city.

The German publishing and media capital is also a green city, with many parks and even an inland lake, the Aussenalster.

Destroyed by bombing during the Second World War, Hamburg was rebuilt little by little and continues to evolve with the rehabilitation of the docklands district, a pharaonic construction site with a titanic budget.

Discovery of a city and a changing port.

Huge cranes dominate the landscape. If everything is mechanized today, seeing the ballet of cargo ships and containers piling up in the port of Hamburg remains a fascinating spectacle.

A boat trip from Landungsbrücken, in the heart of the port, allows a better approach of the behemoths. Several boats are also transformed into museums, such as Cape San Diego.

See also, the fish market (Fischmarkt). The auction building, built in 1894, is a fine example of traditional architecture. Many revelers go there in the early morning to find an invigorating sandwich; the rest will have to get up early (the market closes at 9:30 a.m.).

Continuing along the Elbe by ferry, we discover the bourgeois district of Övelgönne, bordered by opulent houses and beaches. Cranes are still part of the landscape but that does not prevent swimmers from enjoying the cool water. Others just enjoy an ice cream or organize a barbecue on the beach.

Lots of atmosphere here in fine weather, but some resist in winter, like the Strandperle beach bar (photo), which remains open. If you are looking for an electro atmosphere so that you can dance with your feet in the sand, prefer the Strandpauli, closer to the city center.

Like Berlin, Hamburg has an alternative fiber. At the foot of the Feldstrasse underground, where the Saturday morning flea market is held, is Uebel & Gefährlich, a bunker in which you can dance until the end of the night.

While strolling through the neighborhood, it is not uncommon to see a black flag with a skull and crossbones. It is the emblem of the local soccer club, FC Sankt Pauli, which boasts of having eliminated from its ranks all that football has sexist and homophobic racists! Good performance.

The old slaughterhouses host the most popular establishments in the city such as Bullerei , the restaurant of Tim Mälzer, star of the stoves and the small screen, the Elbgold Kafee , where they say they drink the best coffee in the city and the microbrewery Ratsherrn whose shop displays over 300 beers from around the world.

A short distance away, we discover Karoviertel (photo). A few more cafes and especially fashion boutiques, stylists and vintage stores mingle on the small Marktstrasse.

South of Sankt Pauli is Reeperbahn, arguably Hamburg’s best-known artery. Partly for its striptease bars which line up around 930 m. No port city without a girl’s bar, of course Herbertstrasse Street, a hot spot for debauchery with its ladies in the shop window, is even forbidden to women and minors.

But the district is not limited to that: Sankt Pauli is also the epicenter of the underground and alternative scene of the city with clubs like Molotow or Hafenklang, and a famous rock festival.

And it’s not new The Beatles have started to build their legend in a bar near Reeperbahn, on Grosses Freiheit. This is what we learn, among other anecdotes, Stephanie Hempel in her tour devoted to the Fab Four who were then five and had rather a rocker look!

Hafen City, the new district that enlarges the city on the banks of the Elbe river, is one of the biggest European urban development projects.

It is also the playground of great architects like Zaha Hadid who builds a promenade bridge, Rem Koolhaas and the science museum, or even the Swiss Herzog and de Meuron: their Elbphilarmornie (photo) , whose roof of the building evokes a huge wave, should be the new symbol of the city.

Not yet completely out of the ground, this latest project has already caused a lot of ink to flow. Not only has it fallen far behind, but it has also multiplied its budget by 10, from 77 to 800 million euros! Regardless, the city sticks to its emblem, and this project should be carried out at all costs. Inauguration planned for 2016.

None of these prestigious achievements have yet been completed. However, apartment buildings have already been built and inhabited for ten years. The district also includes the old brick warehouses, a very pleasant place to stroll between the canals.

The industrial architecture of the 19th century, very present in the city, should soon be protected, in particular the buildings illustrating German expressionism, including the superb Chilehaus .

Good to know: Hamburg is a very large city (750 km 2). However, the main attractions, which are in the center, are easily accessible by public transport.

In addition to the places already mentioned, here are some places or activities that are worth it:

– Hamburger Kunsthalle (Museum of Fine Arts): very rich collection from the Middle Ages to the 20 th century. With notably works by Caspar David Friedrich, Dutch masters, Holbein, Lucas Cranach the Old, German impressionists and expressionists. To be completed by a visit to the nearby Galerie der Gegenwart.

– Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe (Museum of Decorative Arts): works of art from Antiquity to the present day. To visit especially for the superb collection of Art Nouveau (Jugendstil).

– Speicherstadt (city of warehouses): beautiful collection of red brick warehouses built in the 19C. at the edge of the canals, at the southern limit of the city center. They bear witness to the richness of the port of Hamburg. Particularly attractive at night. Don’t miss the nearby Maritimes Museum.

– Sankt Pauli Museum: to complete your visit to the sulphurous district of Hamburg and discover its turbulent history.

– Altona: a little out of the way and not touristy, a very nice cosmopolitan district, with a lot of bars and restaurants. To discover a popular and mixed Hamburg.

And, of course, two particularly contrasting boat tours, that of the port for lovers of an industrial atmosphere, and that of the Alster, to discover the wealthy Hamburg of the banks of the Aussenalster.

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