Moved gear from Hotel Schanzenstern to Instant Sleep just up the road. Checkin not until 3pm though so I had to wait before I could pile it all onto my bed.
Took rear wheel to “Cycle Point” on Schanzenstrasse. The dude said it’s cheaper if he gets just the rim, so in the shop, I ripped the tyre, tube and rimtape off it before handing it over. He was nice and let me use the workshop to wash all the brake dust and grime off my hands. Added 15euro to my mobile phone prepay account. Had a 2.50euro salad from the bakery opposite the Teletime net cafe. Raining lightly now.
There’s a couple of techno club nights on: Kurhotel, Docks Club. Docks Club had a funny drink promo – 1euro drinks until someone has to use a toilet! 🙂 I asked the receptionist at the hostel and found more options with some slightly better magazines. The free mags don’t have as many listings as the 1euro “Prinz” (or was it “Szene”?) mag. Bear this in mind if you think nothing is on in Hamburg!
This hostel has a wicked common area where heaps of people hang out. I spotted some guys playing cards so trundled on up and asked what they were playing. “Ultimate” was the Irishman’s reply. I watched and eventually joined in. The game is mental! It’s a combo of Snap, Switch, Sandwich and probably some more. I just can’t add quick enough nor put the “snapping” rules into play quick enough to compete with the two Irish guys (Colin and his brother). We start playing “Bullshit” which is an easier game for me (speed not required).
Eventually we are joined by Kelly from Melbourne, Jess and Lauren from Sydney, a guy from Israel who’s name I forget now, Paul, a programmer, from California, Casey from the USA, a guy from Pittsburg, a guy from Spain who is living in Finland, games programming, and another chick from the States and one from Brazil! Did you get all that?!
I ran off down the street to pickup my wheel. 13euro for the true – nice! Put it back together and washed up in the shop again and rushed back to the hostel. Hey, I wasn’t going to waste valuable drinking and shit-talking time!
The dude from Pittsburg gave me an “Astra” brew so when Israel was going down the street to get wine I handed him a 10’er for some beers. Jess even had a set of UNO cards!! which also got played.
Eventually we were all nicely drunk and decided to head down to the infamous “Reeperbahn“, Germany’s equivalent of Amsterdam’s Red Light District.
The Reeperbahn similar to ‘dam with heaps of dodgy strip clubs, sex shows, sex toy stores, porno stores, etc, etc. An obvious difference is the women that line the street. Initially I didn’t twig, but once you walk passed 10 women leaning against buildings, alone, at night, ding! Oh, right! As soon as I realised they were all working girls they started approaching us (the guys in the group). “Wanna come up stairs?” “30 euro isn’t too much, is it?” “You can spare some time with me can’t you honey?” etc.. They’ll even grab you on the arse and stand in your way and stuff. Quite a bit more “in your face” than ‘dam.
We were on a mission to find the street that is blocked off at both ends with steel gates and where women (and men under 18) are banned from entering.
“Go to the street near Burger King, second on the right” we received from some strip club guy Casey had asked. The girls waited in Maccas while the guys wandered into the Reeperbahn‘s “sealed section”.
“Ahh so this is where they keep the red light windows..”
It was a relatively quiet street that was choccas with red light windows. There was no one at the gates so I figure women and kids could still get in? Maybe there’s a cop watching CCTV all night, ready to pounce on them?
The women were better, in my opinion, than the ones in Amsterdam. Some of them were positively gorgeous. I assume they have a suitably adjusted price tag, but I wasn’t going to find out!
We grabbed some more beers from some of those little convenience type stores and headed back to the hostel for some very serious rounds of… Connect Four!
The others were now busy going to bed or being sick (yeah, I saw you guys! :P) but I headed down the street to find Bar 227 which had “Vorspiel” (a techno night) on. Sounded wicked from outside and I was pumped.. until I realised that I couldn’t afford the 4euro cover charge! Four-fricking-euro and I just don’t have it! Skint! Shite! Nooooo!
I tried desperately to find a Geldautomaat (ATM) but by the time I did it was 4am and the club was going to close at 6am. I spent the money on a “Doner mit Frites” with a lovely 2005 Chateau de Fanta instead. Bed.