Final Post: Time to Say Tschüss!

August 2015

A year ago I became a Hamburgerin. It’s been 12 months of ups and downs, learning about myself, and getting to know this wonderful city. 

In fact, I quickly went from thinking of Hamburg as a nice entry into our dream of spending time in Europe, to thinking of it as our European home. 

August 2016

So what’s next? I honestly don’t know, but my plan is to continue navigating the day-to-day here, while writing about what inspires me (which includes a small collection of scary stories set in Hamburg).

For those of you who have hung in there with me this far, thank you! I hope you’ve enjoyed this year as much as I’ve enjoyed sharing it with you. 

I want to leave you with this song I found during one of my random Internet searches on all things Hamburg. (And I heard it played last week during a football game [American style] in a park stadium.)

It's called "In Hamburg sagt man Tschüss." Good luck getting it out of your head! You can find the lyrics here in case you want to sing along. ;)

Tschüss! Bis zum nächsten Mal!



p.s. You can always:

• Find updates on my writing (including any new blog projects) on the What's New page of my website.
• Follow random ideas on my Twitter feed (@mpmellon) 
• See my new photos on Pinterest.
• Questions? Comments? Plans to visit or move to Hamburg? Drop me a line: michelle AT mpmellon.com

Being a Hamburger(in)

I've resisted for almost a year, but now I've devised a cheesy backronym to describe what Hamburg means to me:

Human

"Hamburg Against Nazis"

All over the city, you'll find these small
plaques in the sidewalk, giving the name
and deportation information for
former Jewish residents.
It's one way to keep those atrocities
from being shelved and forgotten. 

Artsy

How many Hamburg Hummels
can you find? In 2003, more
than 100 of these figures,
representing Hamburg's last water
carrier, were created and decorated
by artists. Most were sold,
but you can still find some
scattered around the city.  

There's definitely a funky side to Hamburg. You'll see a lot of it in the St. Pauli and Sternschanze neighborhoods, but everywhere you go you'll find ateliers for every medium imaginable, and see enough street art and counterculture fashion to balance the suits and well-heeled workers downtown.

"A" could also stand for "anarchistic," as Hamburg has had a couple of infamous areas of squatting resistance, and maintains pockets of "authority-allergic" citizens.

Maritime

In my most recent German class there was a travel lesson with a blurb about Hamburg. The book notes that Hamburg is no longer a "harbor city," but a "city with a harbor." 

It's true that Hamburg's financial base has diversified, but that river heritage runs mighty deep in the city's culture.

Beautiful

One thing most people notice first about Hamburg is how green it is. It's really rather striking. Then, of course, there's the architecture and the Elbe and the Alster and the countryside...

Urbane

Hamburg is home to high-quality living. It has Germany's highest per-capita income, and the largest number of millionaires in relation to the population.

Why yes, that is a limited edition Lamborghini with a rare
gold-chrome finish parked outside the Cartier store

Money aside, Hamburg is also home to 5 of the 6 largest German publishers, 14 of the 20 biggest German newspapers, and more than 80 museums.

We can debate whether or not 
musicals count as marks of  
sophistication, but Hamburg 
is the 3rd biggest spot 
in the world for musicals.

Resilient

Twelve hundred years of invasions, fire, flooding, epidemics, and devastating World War II bombings. Still thriving. 

German

These are stereotypes, yes. But based in reality. Instead of trying to explain, I think some of the pictures give a better indicator of what I mean/have experienced. 

Direct. "Whoever wears fur,
wears the dead."
PETA would be proud.

Efficient. Pre-packaged meals, but fresh. You''ll find
these bundles in most grocery stores. Just
grab and go to make your own soup or stew.

Punctual. From March till July we endured ever-changing
mazes like this as the main street near our apartment was torn
up and refurbished. They said it would take 4 months.
They did it in 4 months.

Intellectual. Anytime is a good time to learn something new.
So why not add a little history to a street sign so folks
will know a bit about the person for whom the street is named?

Two other examples:

Bureaucratic. My mom forwarded me some mail in a padded envelope, which apparently freaked out customs. So I dutifully went down to the harbor with my 4-page letter from customs to possibly pay a fine and pick up my package. 

The office is like the DMV; you check in, get a number, fill out a form, and wait till called. Then you go to the counter to confirm (and in my case open) your package. Thankfully I had no fine to pay, and, getting back to that whole efficiency thing, the entire process took only 20 minutes.

Logical. I'm having fun discovering new words, like, Zahnfleisch. It means gums. But its literal translation would be tooth (Zahn) flesh (fleisch). 

Or there's "to hug"--umarmen. Um is around, and Arme, are, well, arms. 

There are challenges to learning German, but you gotta love when it makes so much sense!

The Little Things: Earth Day Everyday

I’ll admit it. I was fully prepared to be an eco-snob when we moved to Hamburg from San Francisco. I even thought about donating my kitchen recycling bin in our pre-move reduction of stuff, but took a quick peek online first. 

All of the waste disposal
details were cheerily laid
out in this 48-page booklet
we received in the mail.

Turns out I should have gotten a couple more bins.

The San Francisco Bay Area is great about recycling—glass, plastic, paper, bio waste, electronics, hazardous household substances, etc. But Germany takes it to a categorical level. 

Most public trash cans have a
speech bubble on the outside.
This one says, "I don't want
chocolate, I prefer paper."

Like San Francisco, most plastic bottles can be returned for refunds, and there are recycling centers for electronics and hazardous materials.

But here glass bottles are recycled in large public bins, separated by color. And curbside (or binside, in the case of our complex), you separate your paper/cardboard, worthy/valued recycling, mixed trash/recycling, bio waste, and trash for burning.

It’s a good thing recycling is popular here, because German companies seem to love using paper. If you sign up for a service (any service) you receive a 2-3 page letter, the first page of which welcomes you and congratulates you on your wise move. I think I’d like a little more of the directness you get in verbal interactions, and save more paper upfront instead of having to recycle it.

Fresh air, fresh flowers--fantastic!

There are a couple of things that have taken/still take some adjustment. One is the run time for appliances. Saving energy is good, but waiting two hours for my laundry to dry is annoying.

Another point of departure is air flow. Coming from the land of vents and ducts and piped-in temperatures, I prefer things here, where I use open windows and fresh air as regulators instead.

That’s fine for me, I’m alone at home during the day. In, say, an open office (or small classroom) full of people, it quickly becomes a stifling issue to have no circulating air. 

The problem is easily solved when the weather is agreeable and outside noise is at a minimum. But this is Hamburg, which means there's usually construction somewhere and the weather is changing constantly, making an open window a heavily negotiated option in a group of people.

Eat local!

Speaking of options, we have a great array of fresh produce available to us. There's a lot of farmland around Hamburg, and, in fact, Hamburg and the neighboring state of Schleswig-Holstein share the largest fruit-producing region in central Europe. 

Like the Bay Area, that means a strong commitment to locally grown food. Unlike the Bay Area, availability is highly seasonal here, and import options are fewer. (Spargel Saison--asparagus season--is a cultural phenomenon. Really. There should be a movie about it.)

And that focus on local productive lands leads me to the Gartenverein / Schrebergärten/ Kleingärten (garden club) culture. The concept is similar to the community garden plots in San Francisco, but the execution is quite different. 

First off, these are plots of land big enough to place a small house on. Which makes them more like miniature estates. And together they take up significant chunks of geography around the city. 

It’s amazing to walk through the alleys of these areas to see the different approaches to gardening (traditional lawns, rock gardens, flower fields, fruit trees and veggies) and the houses, ranging from one-room weekend shacks to two-story domiciles. 

Of course, few things these days are without their political aspects, and even these garden plots are no exception. 

But I'm happy that I've been repeatedly disabused of any notion of life in Hamburg as a step back on a green path. It's one more way the city is familiar, even if the particulars are different.

I see this banner every time I ride the bus. Since me riding my bike would frustrate most "real" cyclists,
I figure using public transportation still counts as doing my earth-friendly duty.

Outdoor art installation of plants in front of a panoramic of downtown Hamburg

The Little Things: Stopping to Smell the Roses (and Drink the Beer)

Climbing wall on the outside of your house?
Sure thing!

Although a lot of people think of Germans as reserved, when it’s time to relax and have fun, they excel.

Exercise, travel, and passionate commitment to sports aside, I've also noticed a few things in the day-to-day here that remind me to enjoy life!

Why not have a little fun with directions to the bathroom?
No words needed!

Condiments are usually bottom-shelf items
in the grocery store...

...because apparently you can't have too much!

A summer sale on small barbecues. Go to most gas stations and you'll
find cheap foil versions that look like a small turkey basting pan with a flimsy
mesh top. After nice-weather weekends you see mountains of those in the
park, piled up next to the trash cans.

The U.N. should seriously 

consider karaoke as an 

ice-breaker. In the past 11 months 

we've done karaoke 

a few times in a club,

in the back room of a bar, 

and in a sound studio in 

Larry's office.

My favorite of these outings:

Listening to a German woman

sing American big band

tunes from the 1940s.

Uptight? More like outta sight! This was at the Schlagermove event
a couple of weeks ago, advertised as "a festival of love."

This one always gets me grinning. Most vendors wrap fresh flowers in paper. Great present to open!

While we're on the subject of flowers, I resolved when we moved here to actually make time to stop and smell the roses.
With so many fantastic gardens around--from sidewalk strips to garden club plots to formal garden parks--there's
no shortage of beautiful spots to feed my resolution!

Prost! Anytime is a good time to relax with a beer. 
That includes cafes in parks, museums,

other cultural attractions.

Politics Unusual

“Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible.” --Dalai Lama

Happy International Day of Friendship. Given the tone of this year's election so far, it seems unlikely our would-be national leaders will be celebrating this today.* They’re probably also not going to lead by example on “Bring Your Manners to Work Day” in September or “Do Something Nice Day” in October.

And the ever-timely “Golden Rule” seems to have long flown out the window.

Ugliness in politics is not unusual. What’s unusual for me is the fact that I’m writing this post at all. I'm passionate about individual issues. Politics in general is a science that has never held any appeal for me. But the incredibly base nature of this year’s presidential race has filled me with such a sense of disgust that I decided to say something.

I am a million miles away, in shock, and at the same time, not distanced enough. People over here mention our presidential race with sympathy. As personally embarrassing as it is to me, it affects them, too. America is a major player on the world stage. And right now it feels like we’re standing up there drunk, disheveled, and flailing about for our next line.

I have some small hope that as we move past the conventions, our official nominees will look beyond personal jabs to address the bigger picture. Unfortunately, I just don't think that's possible for the Republicans.

So here’s the part where I talk about Donald Trump. To put it mildly, I am not a fan. In fact, I haven’t felt this much shame since Arnold, the porn star, and what seemed like a third of the state ran for California governor in 2003.

Having a free election does not equate to having a free-for-all.

For me, Trump is the poster child for “prevaricate.” It’s a word that’s not used often enough, but he seems to be a master of it. And when he’s called out on his exaggerations, innuendos, or outright untruths--like any insecure and unqualified individual--he goes on the offensive.

I'll be generous and say his lack of civility is subterfuge, designed to distract us from very real problems. Like his political platform, which appears to be a celebration of subjugation and dehumanization. Rather than engaging in discourse with his detractors, he blocks their access or bullies them. No wonder he’s been compared to the most distasteful dictators of the past.

This is not to say I’m all in for Hillary Clinton. I admire her personal and professional strength, but I'm still waiting to be inspired. In light of Trump’s divisive agenda, she has a responsibility to remind everyone that America was built on the backs of diverse peoples who worked hard to make it so, not the cretins who sit back, put their feet up, and conveniently forget how it all came to be.

Speaking of forgetting history, Trump and his supporters keep talking about returning our country to greatness and oppressing, expelling, or turning away those who are different. Different than whom? Trump’s grandfather came here in 1885. There are a lot of us darker Americans--particularly Native Americans--who were here long before then. Guess we should have built a wall.

I truly believe Trump wants us to be fearful and ignorant and keep to ourselves. He’s like the abusive boyfriend trying to isolate us from the independent thinking that would liberate us. And if that weren’t enough, he’s encouraging internal unrest. What kind of leader who loves his country as much as he professes to love America, actively works to fracture it?

At least Clinton isn't courting hate-mongers to gain support so she can use America up at her own whim and then toss us in the Goodwill bin. I think Trump sees us as his personal plaything that he’ll become bored with when it doesn’t do what he wants, when he wants. Then where will we be?

The sad thing is the rhetoric isn’t even in full force yet. When it comes time for the debates, are we going to get more bombastic theatre, or an intelligent examination of the issues? Right now everything is set out in shades of black vs. white, good vs. evil, us vs. them. But life is lived in shades of gray, not absolutes.

To both parties, I ask: Is this the example of leadership you want to set? Is this the legacy you want to leave for the children of America?

This is the road to infamy, not greatness.

Ok, getting back to the kindness quoted at the beginning. It would be wonderfully kind of my fellow voters to let productive purpose, decency, and some light of humanity prevail in the November elections. Don’t embrace dogma to the exclusion of your reason and your heart. Don’t be less than who you are.

If we don’t demand respectful consideration of everyone who has contributed to make the U.S. the envy of other nations, then Trump & Co. will be returning us to “greatness” by establishing the most openly hateful, dismal period American history has seen for more than 100 years.

#AmericanUnityNotEnmity

*for the record, I am not naive enough to think that actual friendship applies to politicians opposing each other in a race. If they’re so intent on putting on a show to garner attention, however, how about modelling some friendly behavior and stop being so gauche?

Tying Up Some Loose Ends

I debated the end of this blog--whether or not to do it, when to do it, etc.--and decided to stick to my original one-year plan. Today we’re one month out from that auspicious date (!) so I thought I would go back to some things I mentioned in an early post and see where they stand:

And there are "party tacos"
for making nachos!

Food. As you might expect, street food here is bratwurst and pommes frites. I have eaten (and will continue to eat) my yummy share of those, but sometimes I crave my San Francisco Mission neighborhood favorites--tortillas filled with seasoned, meaty goodness. 

I've heard rumors of a good burrito place a short distance from our apartment, but have yet to check it out. In the meantime, I’ve found tortillas to make my own burritos and enchiladas, and I’ve learned how to make a pretty mean empanada from scratch.

Weather. I didn’t expect Hamburg to come close to San Francisco weather-wise, but I also didn’t expect it to surpass it in extremes. The Bay Area is infamous for its many microclimates. Hamburg has only one: uncertainty. 

Those dreams of leaving layers behind were just that—dreams. (Although layers here usually mean including some form of rain protection.) 

When the weather changes literally every hour, you just have to go with the flow. A lot of times people don’t even bother with umbrellas, because in the next hour it could very well be warm and sunny again.

It's been a good test of adaptability, especially for someone as fond of pre-planning as I am.

Views. I love Hamburg’s beautiful architecture and blend of urban and protected landscapes. Attractive downtown, lakes, river, beaches, fertile farmland, nature preserves and parks--I can easily see how it earned a Germany's favorite city title last year.

Craigslist. Again, as I expected from some state-side exploration, Craigslist is just not as popular here. Thankfully, given our current lack of storage, our acquisitions have been minimal, and have come easily enough through word-of-mouth, flea markets, or Amazon.de.

Yes, that is a friendly
neighborhood cigarette-
dispensing machine

Smoking. I don’t want to say I’ve gotten used to it, but I no longer whip my head around to see who’s lighting up (because in reality, there are usually more of them than me). 

And I actually find it intriguing to watch the whole cigarette-rolling process, complete with specialty pouches for supplies, and carefully timed breaks during the rhythm of a restaurant meal. 

My most memorable smoking-related moment to date? Watching a man in a three-piece suit pushing a baby carriage while smoking.

Friends. The hardest part of being overseas has been the distance from family and friends. When you’re used to your support network being a phone call, a text, a desk, or an ultimate frisbee tournament away, it’s tough when you find yourself far away with new obstacles to overcome (Internet connections, phone plans, time zone differences, etc.). 

And it's particularly distressing when things go wrong. In the past year one of my friends passed away, and two of my dearest friends have been battling breast cancer. Being closer wouldn’t have given me anymore power, but I don’t think I would have felt as powerless. 

Despite the lack of office mates and some language differences, I have found a small circle here, and continue to try new things to meet new people. I've even made some inroads cracking some of these tough northern German exteriors, because I already know from experience what incredibly funny, warm people you'll find inside.

So even though I know it’s time, it’s tough to think about bringing this virtual part of my journey to an end. I keep thinking of little things I haven't shared, because they're becoming so much part of my new normal. But over the next several weeks, I’ll do a few final observational posts on some of the differences I’ve noticed while living in Hamburg for the past year.