16 Knots: Hamburg. March 2024.

Hamburg, Germany.

3/4/2024. Work has begun in earnest on my newest series: 16 Knots, an exploration of global maritime shipping.  To embark on this project, I started with Hamburg and Rotterdam, two of Europe’s busiest ports and hubs of international trade.

Hamburg proved to be a very agreeable place indeed.  In addition to the spectacular and easily accessible port, the city is also a charming and pleasant place to be, one I will be very eagar to visit again.

I arrived in Hamburg on a late Monday afternoon and eventually made my way down to the waterfront at dusk for my first introduction.  On a sandy beach on the banks of the Elbe River I was greeted with overcast skies with a touch of fog, and a clear view of the Port of Hamburg.  Within minutes, the waterfront revealed itself to be a very lively place and soon I was scrambling to keep my camera gear out of the waves that were sweeping up and down the sandy beach.  Having flown into Amsterdam only the day before, I was still quite tired from the red-eye flight and the numerous trains it took to get here, but the scene before me was a breath of fresh air that left me energized.  A very fine introduction.