Life in Germany - A Shonan Girl Wants to See the Sea
Hallo, Wie geht's? Hello! I'm Umi.
Yes, it's very presumptuous of me, but I wanted a catchy title, so I called myself a 'girl'.
Having grown up in the Shonan area from elementary school through university, whenever I had something bothering me or felt stressed (or even when I didn't), I would hop on my bike and head to the sea. I haven't been able to do that since moving to Tokyo, and in Germany, seeing the sea is quite a struggle too...
At first, I thought about going to Bremen by myself, but while doing some research late at night, I discovered a place called 'Bremerhaven,' which is an exclave of the state of Bremen. 'I can see the sea (the North Sea)!! I have to go!!' So, I changed my destination in the middle of the night.
What kind of city is Bremerhaven?
A port city located about 50 kilometers from Bremen, at the confluence of the Geeste and Weser rivers. The city's name means 'Bremen's port,' and it belongs to the state of Bremen as an exclave. It developed as one of Germany's most important trading ports and has recently been attracting attention as a hub for wind power generation. (Excerpt)
I hadn't checked the trains properly, so it was a slow start to the day. If you try to travel using only the D-Ticket, there is one train per hour, and if you want to take a direct train, there is only one every two hours.
I got a free coffee sample, lucky me!
I'm just praying it doesn't stop on the way.
I'm hungry.
how lovely!
I took the 502 bus to the city center.
I saw a cute church! The decorations around the clock were lovely.
I was surprised to see real fir trees being brought in, and they were huge lol
It took 4-5 people to set them up
The curve of her back had a sense of melancholy
It seems it was built in 2009, and it's lined with cutting-edge buildings
I couldn't find one... so I went to a highly-rated restaurant
The fried fish was like a slightly fancy fish and chips
You could go inside, but I've been bad with tight spaces lately, so I didn't go
I think it's amazing that it can balance underwater with this slimness
It blended in so well I had to laugh
Is it like a weather vane? It's not a chicken though
They've been recording it since the 1700s, so you can really feel the history
The sound of the waves is pleasant, but it's too cold to stay out for long...
It seems there is a sandy beach if you go to the left, but I didn't go this time
In Shonan, there are lots of black kites
aiming for America
I'm going to the German Emigration Center next!
It's cool, so I snapped a photo
It seems like there are a lot of rich people here, I thought
I think I'll write about the German Emigration Center (Deutsches Auswandererhaus) that I visited afterward in a separate article, as it seems like it will be a long one!
See you next time! Tschüss👋