I passed through the crowds of umbrella-carrying tourists as I made my way along the promenade. The air was filled with the smell of freshly frying doughnuts and punctuated by the drawn-out notes of an accordion wheezing sea shanties into the fine mist of morning rain. It may be that I am also from a town built on the spoils of an illustrious seafaring past. It could be that with its waterfront of historic buildings perched on the edge of a wide estuary and strong connection with the Beatles, I was reminded uncannily of Liverpool.
Maybe there is just something typically British about huddling in the rain and eating chips on a seafront. The Beatles connection is one that Hamburg still clings to, although obviously not as strong as Liverpool, with small reminders of their visits scattered around the city. They began their apprenticeship playing hour shifts at the Indra Club as a backing band to strippers, sleeping in the cold concrete storeroom.
As they improved they were promoted to larger venues such as the Kaiserkeller, Top Ten and Star Club. Despite their relatively short stay in the city β it lasted just 2 years β their time there has become the stuff of legend.
It was here that they met Ringo Starr, adopted their famous Beatles haircuts and recorded their first single under the guise of the Beat Brothers. Small signs of the Beatles still remain scattered around the St. The Reeperbahn still runs through St. Pauli like a mile-long river of neon and sin. A mix of cheesy Europop, bad karaoke and football chants echo from the bars of Hans-Albers Platz. Although those days are long gone, the strip clubs and legalised prostitution remain.
Historically, this was the only area where prostitution was tolerated in Hamburg and even during the Nazi regime it continued to thrive, only now blocked with barricades to protect the sensibilities of passing pedestrians.
