Hello all!
I would like to mention first that I live with a marvelous bunch of individuals. I think we all get along pretty well, and we end up traveling to towns and or Hamburg a lot of the time. Thanks for being great, guys (they're all guys, really)! Plus, we live in a pretty sweet house.
So I pulled my first all-nighter that wasn't related to school work or traveling. I took the train to Hamburg in the evening with a group of other American students. The Europa Football cup is currently taking place. What a perfect place to be! Germans are absolute football fanatics. On our way to the train station, our group got three comments about our football attire (it's about a 7 min walk). I don't think this would happen in the US at all, including a walk to the train station. On the way, the group made friends with other football fans who were going to Hamburg for a big public viewing (of around 30,000 people). I missed it this time, but I hope I can catch a public viewing at a later date!
I went on my own way after arriving in Hamburg to meet up with my friend Tricia at her apartment, since she was throwing a birthday party for her cat Fritz. Alles gut little buddy!
We watched the Germany-Portugal game at her apartment, and after some very tense moments, Germany won with a final score of 1-0. Very exciting!!
Note: the following observations are cultural observations. I'll be talking about rogue subjects and my observations about them. You've been warned!
The Hamburg Reeperbahn:
In Germany, parties and clubs don't really get started until late at night (around 12am or so). 2 am is usually a normal time to head out to the clubs and bars. This is unheard of in the US since bars are not allowed to serve alcohol after 2am. Anyway, my friend Tricia and I, along with a group of friends went to the Reeperbahn (it used to be a street designated for rope-making a long time ago. The imprint of the long avenue is still there, since ropes needed a very long area to be made in. The Reeperbahn is also near the Hamburg port, where sailors used to come in a lot and, well, i'll save this detail for later). We got there around 3 and went into a technoclub, we hung out there until around 4am or so. Our plan was to stay awake to go to the Fischmarkt, which opens around 5am.
Between 4am or so, we wandered around the St. Pauli area, which includes the Reeperbahn. There was still an unbelievable amount of foot traffic, even at 4am! There were people still partying from the German football win, but I imagine it's like this every weekend (I can just imagine if Germany wins the tournament, the Reeperbahn will be wild!) The Reeperbahn is also a red light district. I believe one of the reasons it came to develop this way was that sailors would often come from the harbor to look for "entertainment"- prostitutes, bars, brothels, etc. One thing to note, is that in Germany, prostitution is legal. The prostitues pay taxes and receive social services as well. Of course, there are strict guidelines and laws in order to keep everyone safe. The group was wandering around and we came upon some prostitutes in the Reeperbahn area. They had to be pointed out by Tricia's boyfriend (prostitues commonly approach all sorts of male clientele, i'm not emphasizing anything!!), and to be honest, I wouldn't have been able to tell they were prostitutes except for a giveaway: they wore fanny packs, for I would say their "supplies." Other than that, they wore snow boots and jackets, something...I wouldn't have expected.
When our group went to Hamburg last weekend, the group leaders pointed out that despite prostitution as a way of life that's looked down upon, prostitutes do have a place in society in Germany, albeit the strong negative connotations. Taking pictures of them or making fun of them can result in consequences. It was interesting to see something that's so taboo in the US be...not so taboo in Germany. There are streets on the Reeperbahn that strictly prohibit women, one example is Herbetstrasse, where there are big gates warning that women or guys under 18 are not allowed into the street. There have been reports that if women do decide to walk down the street, rotten fruit, spit, and in some cases urine, has been thrown at them. To be honest, I was very curious to see what was in Herbertstrasee, but I opt to not get myself involved in a big mess.
The group made it to the Fischmarkt around 5am, and got a delicious Fisch sandwich for breakfast. I unknowingly met up with the American group around 6am at the Hamburg Hauptbanhhof, and once we all got to Lüneburg, we all went to our respective residences and I slept for a very, very long time.
The Reeperbahn at night was a fun adventure. I was very tired by 6am...maybe it'll be an adventure that's continued? Oh, and The Beatles also played at a bunch of clubs along the Reeperbahn. That's where they got their first tastes of fame.
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