Hamburg and Bremen

Once again, the lure of a Botanic Garden was too great to resist. 

At least I assume it was the beautiful landscaping that was the major attraction...

... or possibly it was the intriguing statue outside the main entrance? 

The next morning saw us exploring the suburb of Blankenese followed by a walk along the banks of the Elbe and up through Jenisch Park. Spring has definitely sprung in Germany so everything was looking at its best. 

How to top that? A dash down the autobahn to Bremen with Louise and Alan seemed our best bet.

All that we knew of Bremen before we arrived was that it was the setting of a children's story, The Musicians Of Bremen, a story we had often read to our children many years ago. 

Well, it turns out that the story is a significant part of Bremen's history... 

Bremen is more than just a statue of 4 animal friends. There are other statues too... 

Walking into the old market district was rewarded by an automated glockenspiel performance. 

What was also interesting to me was the donor of the accompanying display commemorating aeronautical achievements, and the timing:

I would have thought Focke-Wulf would have been so busy building fighters for the upcoming war that there would have been little interest in sponsoring a community art installation.

Lest one forget that this has been as much a gastronomic tour as cultural, we can report that the restaurants and waffle houses of Bremen maintained the same very high standard to which we are rapidly becoming accustomed in Germany. 

Then of course there's the churches and the architecture... 

... not to mention the awesome tour guides. 

So, suburban Hamburg and central Bremen have both set a very high standard for our expectations for the rest of Germany. 

Tomorrow, we'll start exploring central Hamburg to determine how it measures up. For now, it's time to zip back down the autobahn to chill out for the evening, and to unpack my bag that has finally arrived!