Bike Tours in Hamburg
DISCOVERING HAMBURG BY BIKE
BY CAROL H .
Motivated by the Get Up & Move campaign initiated by FAWCO Representative Christine R . last year , AWCH members got on their bicycles and started exploring Hamburg this fall .
Our first Discover Hamburg bike tour was in September . Starting the tour by crossing underneath the River Elbe via the newlyrenovated , historic St . Pauli Elbtunnel ( 1911 ), we biked 25 km through Hamburg ’ s bustling port , Europe ’ s third largest . Our tour passed old port buildings and water locks , granaries and refineries , modern container terminals , drawbridges , and vacated villages . A highlight was visiting the MS Uferpark , a temporary art exhibition by
MS Artville . We ended the tour in Finkenwerder with lunch before taking a ferry back to Landungsbrücken . This is a great way to explore the “ other side ” of Hamburg . A special thanks to Carola A ., who initiated the bike tours and was instrumental in planning the route ( and reminding us to bring masks , share telephone numbers , and to bring an air pump .)
The second tour was organized by Melanie M ., who promised to give us an “ insider tour ” of the Ohlsdorf cemetery ( see Tracy Moede ’ s article below for details ). Melanie promises to repeat the tour in spring when the rhododendrons are in bloom !
Photos by Holly T . and Carol H .
PORN STAR TO CHANCELLOR , ALL ARE WELCOME
BY TRACY M .
On October 10 , under the guidance of member Melanie M ., we biked through the Ohlsdorf Cemetery , the world ’ s largest rural cemetery and the fourth-largest cemetery in the world , where 230 gardeners take care of graves and gardens . We actually only saw a small bit of the park ’ s 388 hectares , which is equal to 543,417 soccer fields .
Melanie , who lives just outside the cemetery gates , gave an enlightening and personal tour , as her family has had a plot here since 1923 . We were able to gain not only a new perspective on such an expansive green space but also learn more of the history of the cemetery and its designers and famous inhabitants . We visited ,
among others , the Garten der Frauen , memorials to Hamburg firefighters and victims of world wars , the Muslim cemetery where all graves face Mecca , and the butterfly garden .
About 40 % of all burials in Hamburg take place here , and among the notable residents are famous Hamburg actors Hans Albers , Heinz Erhardt , and Jan Fedder ; Helmut Schmidt , the chancellor of West Germany ( 1974-1982 ) and his wife , Loki Schmidt ; Carl Hagenbeck , inventor of the modern zoo ; and Carolin Wosnitza , infamous Hamburg porn actress .
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