Tour Diary: Hamburg, Altona and Blankenese

Hamburg was the day that I really went for broke with the sightseeing; Silke, the lovely German promoter, sent me a whole list of things to see in her hometown. I was really getting into the rhythm of the tour, cannily taking a shower in the venue after the gig, so I could be clean(ish) enough for a wander as soon as we arrived our next destination the following day. After a quick nibble at the catering in the dressing room, I walked over to the train station and headed to Blankese, a beautiful small town by the sea near Hamburg. It’s a dream place for a holiday, with lots of cute little houses dotted around the hills. I walked along the seafront and then treated myself to an ice cream in the sun before the ascent back into town.

Then, feeling quite proud of my intrepid-ness, I hopped back on a train and then took the bus to Neumühlen, where the Altona Fishmarket is. It’s a lovely walk, Hamburg Port is just across the water with huge freight tankers and shipping containers, while on the Altona side it’s all quaint houses and little boats. It’s the perfect place to stop and have a fish roll and glass of something in the sun.

Apart from a bus ride through the wonderfully gaudy St Pauli district -with its sex shops that I can never believe are still going, haven’t these people heard of the internet?!- I didn’t see that much of Hamburg itself but it’s definitely one of the places I’d like to return to. The Altona area where our venue was situated had lods of little cobbled streets and cute shops that demand another visit.