July 31

July 31st (sunny, windy)
We drove into the heart of Hamburg, parked and saw the 100-year-old Elbe Tunnel. It was quite fascinating to watch cars in a giant elevator being taken to a road underneath the Elbe River. We also saw where Georg and his family sailed on the “Italia” in 1956 when they immigrated to Canada. After driving through the huge warehouse district and observing some of the monstrous construction sites, we tried to get into some of the museums. Unfortunately, parking was difficult and the museum lineups were too long, therefore, we continued with our car tour of Hamburg including stops at Michael’s Church and some quaint, old houses in a secluded part of Hamburg. Our tour ended with a trip to a part of Hamburg that most tourists do not see; rows of exclusive houses and hillside homes overlooking the Elbe, after which we enjoyed a beer, coffee and snacks on top of a hill overlooking Hamburg and the river.
On the way back, we bought bratwurst and buns as part of our last dinner together. The evening was capped off with Rudolf showing us some magic tricks and interesting physics experiments. They were most enjoyable. He is truly a “gentleman and a scholar”.