OK, I admit that travelling without a plan is a bit scary, and yesterday the classic problems of such a travel style came up in spades.
Our train from Denmark got into Hamburg station at about 4:30. The station is huge and busy, but I did not let that intimidate me. I decided the first thing I should do was make some future plans, so hit the Deutsch Baun office to inquire about tickets to Berlin. All around me there were ads showing an amazing price of €29 for many cities, including Berlin. I got to the front of the line, and informed the lady I wanted to go to Berlin in 2 days. She said it was €69, that the €29 was for 3 days advanced. I had not planned on staying in Germany this long, so passed on that one. I was playing with one of the ticket machines outside that likely could not take my PINless Visa, but it did seem to indicate that the 3 day advance ticket to Amsterdam was €39 - that might be the plan.
So, where the hell am I in Hamburg? The tourist office was jammed with a huge lineup, so I pulled out my trusty Spartacus Guide map. The gay area was in the red light district, but I could not figure out if I were close by the pattern of the streets. I consulted the guide, and noticed a cluster of bars in one area, and checked their listings - all had the same Metro station. There is the solution, metro maps are easy to read, so just hit the Metro, and get to that station. I went down the escalator into the station, only to discover I was already there!
OK, so crossed the street (don't forget I am lugging my pack) and got my bearings. Headed into the area to find a hostel. No sign of any, or any backpackers for that matter. Well, maybe splurge on a hotel, people say Germany is relatively cheap.
Guess what, every roachy hotel in the area was full for the weekend. So decided to hit an internet cafe, and look for hostels. The one I could find was way outside the area, but did locate a nearby hotel with rooms available. Being the thoughtful person I am, I also took the time to upload my personal photos to previous blogs (for you, gentle readers).
Hit the hotel in question, and was told in spite of the internet, there were no rooms at the inn. I had previously checked out a gay hotel with a single room for a very high €52 (at least on my budget), so went back there.
Guess what, room gone, no rooms available. I was quite proud of myself, as I had remained calm throughout this ordeal, and continued in such a manner. Great, I thought, my first night sleeping in a park, and in the red-light area to boot. Well my First Time Around the World guide said it would happen at least once.
The proprietor suggested the Dragon steambath. Ah yes, that was my original backup plan for this trip, why did I not think of that!
Before heading over to the steambath, dashed back to the rail station to secure a ticket to Amsterdam. Again, no luck, but pleaded with the lady to keep looking. Bingo - she found me one, with a connection. I am now 3 for 3 in beating the Eurail Pass price. Also checked out lockers while at the station. There were some, and I tested squeezing my bag into the smaller/cheaper one. There is the plan for tomorrow.
Headed over to the steambath, but while checking in, realized like most baths, there were no in/out privileges. So, stopped the check in, and headed out for a nice cheap spaghetti dinner. Back to the bath about 9:30, and checked in for the maximum 10 hours. The guy at the front was real nice, he gave me a quiet room, that he said was in the warmer area.
Turns out the bath was out of some kind of fantasy world, huge, every facility you could want, a very stylish Chinese style bar in the middle of it, and imaculately clean. The floors and walls just shined. All this for €24, and I get a private room, yes, a very small one. This would definitely do.
Early evening details censored. I did get a wonderful sleep. My sarong was more than enough to keep me warm, and it was a quiet room. I fashioned a pillow by wrapping my microfleece around my rain jacket, and did just fine.
I feel like a true world traveller now.
By the way, these &%$§??&% Germain computers have keyboards with symbols in all the wrong places. And what is really weird, is the position of the y and z keys are reversed - aauuuuhhggggggg! It took me 2 minutes to find the @ key yesterday. Hope you all appreciate the effort.
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