[Travel Thursday] Hamburg, meine Perle

I have thought a little about blog routines. So far my blog style is more messy than anything else. But let me give this a try. In real life I'm very organized. Really...

This summer I went to Hamburg, one of my favorite German cities. A business training with pleasure leisure time... Some of the girls and me went out for an Alster boat tour. Gotta love the northern humor ;-) Some of my best friends live around Hamburg and they are the funniest people in the world. They could do a comedy show.

I haven't been there in ages... 5 years... Actually, that's not THAT long ago... I just feel like it was more.

The city is gorgeous and shopping is so much fun. It's like Venice or Geneva...

Here is the view from my hotel. There is a bar on the top level which wasn't that expensive.

My room was gorgeous too. What a great bed and bathroom... I like these American counters. There's so much space. I need something like that later in my future apartment/house.

I also went a little crazy on my shopping tour in the Adidas and Douglas store. Finally, I found Ardell lashes and NYX blushes. Uhh, and my very first high-end blush from Illamasqua named Tweak. I still haven't unpacked it because I still want to blog about it... It's probably so yesterday but I love this color...

 

Foggy outlook

I'm back since last week but I don't feel like I've arrived... Not that I have any jet lag. I'm actually surprised. It's probably really the best to start working the next day because transitions only mess with your system. I don't know what it is. Maybe it's the weather...

This is what it looks like when I get up and go to work. And it's going to look like this every day until spring starts. I'm not ready for fall yet! What a shame...

How can a place be so beautiful when the sun shines and so ugly when it doesn't?

Galletas de Ajo

This is one of my favorite salty snacks in the Dominican Republic: garlic bread chips. They are way better than German bread chips. Not as hard and also more delicious. Also this brand is better than others I've tried... It's where my boyfriend had a part-time job as a student.

 

Almost got a forbidden Souvenir

This is Taina, my boyfriend's mother's turtle pet. She is very old but still quick on her feet. Besides she loves to climb into bags and underneath the laundry.

If we weren't looking for her, I might have taken a forbidden souvenir in my hand luggage...

I can imagine how the police would have reacted...

"Oh you didn't notice the turtle in your bag? Yeah. Sure... She wanted to come by herself... Turtles climb into carry on bags all the time..."

I'm glad, I checked before we left... ;-)

 

Juan Dolio Beach

The best beach around Santo Domingo is Juan Dolio. It's even better than Boca Chica... The beach is cleaner and more quiet than Boca Chica. I even like it better than Punta Cana (Bavaro).

But see for yourself...

This is how you get to the beach, if you're in Santo Domingo. The bus stop is in La Duarte, close to the bus stop to Punta Cana:

Astrapu Bus Stop
Calle Jose Martí
10214 Santo Domingo

This is how the bus stop in Santo Domingo looks like. The last stop is San Pedro where also most of the people go. Therefore, it's important to tell the driver where you would like to go.

Go inside. This is how the ticket office looks like.

The bus is clean and has air-condition. It's also quite large and comfortable. I can highly recommend it.

Be sure to buy the ticket before you enter the bus. The ticket costs 110 Pesos, which are about 2€. Furthermore, tell the driver where you would like to go so he will stop and tell you. The trip lasts about 45-50 minutes depending on traffic. Sit on the right-hand side, if you want to enjoy the scenery. It is quite beautiful, as the route is along the coast.

This is where the bus stops. The bus to Santo Domingo stops on the other side of the road. Be careful when you cross the street! It's dangerous.

When you follow this street and turn left, there's the beach.

Enjoy your stay! There will also be an upcoming blog post about wooden figures which you can buy at the beach...