Road Trip: Part One

At the end of June, me and two flatmates embarked on a road trip. We began the journey in Hamburg, where one of my friends hails. Hamburg is a huge harbour city, once part of the Hanseatic league, in the north of Germany.

The Speicherstadt district is where all the trading goods were stored.

Any visitor to Hamburg is pretty much obliged to go to the Reeperbahn: an unashamedly bold red-light district (the biggest in Europe in fact). It's wild reputation certainly is deserved, at least upon my first impression. In any case, beer is an intrinsic part of German culture, whether you are in a Bavarian beer garden or the Reeperbahn, beer should always be involved in any trip to Germany!

Relaxing with a beer after taking a boat trip through the harbour city.

Hamburg is one of the most exciting cities in Germany, rivalled only by Berlin. But unlike Berlin, I could also envisage that life in Hamburg might also be pleasantly relaxed at times too.

After a couple of nights in Hamburg, we had a quick stopover in Berlin, where another friend joined our road trip. I had already been to the city before during the winter, but it was nice to be there in temperatures above -15C! Again, as mentioned, beer has a cultural significance in Germany. A great excuse to try a Berlin speciality: Berliner Weisse.

Woodruff, blackcurrant and rhubarb flavoured beer.

The beer can actually be flavoured with fruity syrups, this makes for – to put it politely – an interestingly unique beer experience. Far too sweet for my liking, it tasted more like cider, which would've definitely tasted nicer.

After an evening in Berlin, we set off again in the morning: bound for Poland...