Another weekend with Nathanael in Hamburg

One thing that has made this semester very interesting are the train strikes. Providentially on my end, they seem to be striking mostly during the week in order to impact the most workers, but they’ve also done weekend strikes. I was therefore not expecting Nathanael to make the trip from Essen to Hamburg on Friday and arrive at 7pm. To my surprise and excitement, I got a call from him, telling me that he had caught a 5pm arrival train, and that he was only one of the few people on it, because everybody thought that the train had been canceled!

It was a cold Hamburg night, but we locked up his kit in a rentable locker and walked around again through the streets, in and out of shops, and stopped at the bakeries to try something new. We then got some ice cream and sat outside on the docks of the Alster. We also bought some postcards, which we wrote together in my room to family for Thanksgiving and Geoff and Andrea’s birthdays.

Nathanael said that he wanted to soak up daylight, so we woke up early, did some pushups/situps, and ate breakfast, taking the tram, and arriving in the city at 9am. We bought tickets for the first harbor boatride tour, and then bought postage stamps for the letters while we waited for lunch. I hadn’t fully grasped earlier Hamburg harbor’s immensity and complexity, and I furthermore found the Speicherstadt warehouse district to be fascinating. There is so much to Hamburg’s harbor that needs to be seen from a narrow, short boat! After that, we went to a market and bought some cheese, yogurt, and red beets for lunch before we then jumped on a city bus tour, one in which the entire trip lasts less than 2 hours but ticket holders can exit at a site that interests them and then reboard the next bus 30 minutes later. We did the complete circuit, and then jumped on it again to go inside the city hall and St. Michaelis church. We bought tickets and took the elevator to the top of the tower. It was a cold, foggy November day but we could glimpse the grandeur not just from the water, but now from above!

We then booked it on foot to make it to the central station to take the tram to Aunt Maria’s house. Almut was also there, and spent the evening in conversation and dinner. I learn so much during these times.

Nathanael and I got back somewhat late, and then had to plan the public transpo connections for the next day. He wanted to soak up as much as he could from Hamburg again, so we woke up at 5:15 to eat breakfast and make it to the St. Pauli Fish Market at 7am, at opening. We spent an hour there before taking the tram from the Reeperbahn to Quickborn for our 25 km race. They called it a “street run,” but I remember more mud, dirt, gravel, and manure than I do streets! No complaints though, I really enjoyed this one loop 15 mile stretch through the German farming countryside. I think I’ve become addicted to these endurance runs for two reasons. One, I am thankful for every step that I can take, especially when I think of friends, family members, athletes, and service men and women who can no longer run or even walk. Second, there is no better feeling that wanting to give up and quit, and but holding through and spitting at the finish line on that inner beast.

After the run, Nathanael and I showered and gorged on the provided apples, bananas and tea before he left in advance in order to spend as much time with Aunt Eva, since he had to depart only a couple hours later. I waited for his certificate and prizes for winning first place in his age group. When I finally made it back to Eva’s flat, we had tomato rice soup and the best combination ever that Eva gave me last time: camembert cheese and banana on a fresh bread. Once again, she praised beer (practically forcing me to drink two longnecks), telling me that it’s healthy and makes muscles. Turns out, she had asked Nathanael earlier if he wanted something to drink. He respectfully requested tea, and she told him that beer and water were only offered there! She’s such a classy German lady, who nevertheless tells it the way it is!

Nathanael dialed home, and I could sea how much Eva enjoyed speaking with my father and mother. The afternoon became the evening, and Nathanael had to go. Eva drove us nicely to the train station, and we said our quick goodbyes.

Then Nathanael had to go too. It was weird parting with him, especially because I don’t know when I will ever see him again in the near future. He’s coming home next summer from his exchange most likely after I start my officer branch training following graduation. Before I left, I told him though that it wasn’t an English goodbye, but rather a German goodbye: “see you again!”