After taking breakfast, I walked around the palace garden. The large front garden of lawn and pansy flower circle make a very beautiful scene. The weather is cloudy and occasional shower scatters around.
We will drive autobahn and head to Mr. Klaus's old town located in the western suburbs of Hamburg.
Cars fly on the autobahn. Large pastures with cattle, harvested fields, and thick forests come in and out of my sight. Thee are many wind power generators along the autobahn.
We took a short rest on our way up to Wedel at a rest house. We gathered catalogues and maps. I bought a bottle of water without gas (ohne kohlensaure wasser.)
Many cranes came in sight. We have crossed a high bridge over Port of Hamburg.
On our way to Wedel in which I will stay, we passed through a high-class residential area along Elbe River. The houses are behind the thick forest invisible from the street. We took lunch in a restaurant in the area.
We have arrived Wedel at last. I soon checked-in and walked out on foot. Wedel is a town in which Klaus grew up. It is a quiet good town along Elbe.
In a small but clean shopping district is a cosmetic shop run by Klaus's younger sister. The shop in named their father's name. She presented me an umbrella when I said I forgot to bring it with me. She said it an essential to walk around northern Germany in this season
We bought a discount ticket that allows three days for maximum five passengers to get on any tramcars and buses. We then headed to Hamburg by a tram. S-bahn and U-bahn provide very convenient access to the downtown.
In a half hour, we arrived downtown Hamburg. We popped out of the substation just in front of the Municipal Hall. The building has blue roofs and spires. I was really fascinated with the breathtaking loveliness of the building and surrounding streets and canals. The City Hall was built in 1886 and now is used as the state congress.
In the center of the downtown is Alster Lake. Many famous hotels are on the shore, making beautiful scenery. We soon got on a sightseeing boat that cruises around the Lake by passing under many bridges.
Many luxurious mansions of riches and movie stars, and consulates are on the shore. Japanese Consulate is one of them. The right picture is USA Consulate. Klaus explained that just after the terror in NYC on September 11, the citizens of Hamburg dedicated many flowers and candles to the USA Consulate.
By looking the beautiful waterfront scenery, the boar returned back to the berth. It was a good cruising. As it is already dinnertime, we visited a restaurant with Michelin's two-star award. There are many ornaments of ships that represent the flourishing Hamburg. In the luxurious restaurant, we enjoyed a tasty dinner. We have had a very pleasant day today. Thank you very much Klaus and Kaeko who planned such a good day for us.
