Donating is totally In!

As the year 2012 is almost coming to an end, I tend to clean my apartment and see what things I can throw out. Usually I end up giving 2 bags of clothes to the Altkleidung Sammlung. There are several Altkleider Sammlung containers in Hamburg, which makes it super easy to donate your clothes to the ones that need them. This is a super opportunity, as you are not only giving your clothes away for a good cause, but you are also creating space in your closet for the next spring and summer collection. (I know… I am a little fashion monster)

Anyway… This year I have decided to organize my books and to toss out the ones that I have read and won’t read again. I have managed to fill a huge bag. However, I wasn’t sure what to do with them. One option was selling them on Amazon. But once I have checked that people offer the same books for only 1 cent, I was not motivated to put them all online and wait until someone would be interested in purchasing my books. So I kept looking for other ideas.

Another option that I have found, was giving my books to the library (Hamburger Bücherhallen). You are able to bring your used books to the central library, which is at the Hühnerposten between 07:00-14:00 (Mo-Fri). I was planning on doing this until Monday night… because on that night, I found a new little book store at Hamburger Meile. It was full of second hand books and as I love books, I of course had to go in there.

My Book Box 2012

As this store did not look like a normal Thalia or other bookstore, I’ve asked the woman what the concept of this store was. She told me that people can donate their used books and that this store sells these books. (Prices range between 2-4 Euros, depending on their thickness). The money that they receive, goes to a good cause in Hamburg. E.g. Obdachlose in Hamburg. Once I have informed myself more about this online, I brought my books to the store on Wednesday. The store owner was super happy with all the English books and I was super happy that I’ve managed to get rid of my books, knowing that they would not be thrown away etc. This so made my day. 

And thus, I would like to share this idea with you guys, as I know that lots of you probably have old things that you would like to get rid of. So if you like to donate your books, check out the second hand bookstore at Hamburger Meile or check online what other options there are. These projects are not that big yet, but I think that they are great and that we should support these kind of projects. So before you resell your books or throw them away, think about whether you would like to donate them for a good cause. :)

Xoxo

M

Weihnachtsmarkt in Hamburg

Hey peeps!

How are you doing? How was your weekend?

Did any of you go to the Weihnachtsmarkt? If yes, to which one of the many did you go to?

On Saturday, I went with a bunch of people Christmas market hopping. It was so much fun. We’ve started at the Gerhart-Hauptmann-Platz in the City Center. This year they have changed this market. They have decorated the trees with candles and the Glühweinstand is located in the middle of the market. They have rebuilt a little forest. With lots of fir trees and wood shavings on the floor, the entire area did not only looked like a forest, but it also smelled of one. They did a really good job. Also the Glühwein was amazing as it wasn’t too sweet.

Our next stop was the St. Petri Weihnachtsmarkt. All the Christmas markets huts surround the St. Petri Church and in front of the entrance there is a Weihnachtskrippe (Nativity Scene). It always portrays the same scene. Jesus Christ, with Maria, Josef and the three kings. Usually a donkey, a sheep and some other animals are also being displayed in this scene. When looking a little closer at this scene, we saw that the cow was much smaller than the donkey and that Jesus Christ was bigger than most of the presented characters. A little out of proportion …

Last but not least we ended up at the Rathausmarkt Weihnachtsmarkt and at 20.00 we even got to see Santa Claus. Unfortunately this Christmas market was the fullest one and the Glühwein was way too sweet. But then again, here you can find a very special  Glühwein, which you cannot find everywhere… You can get White Glühwein here. Yummy!

But in total I can say that the Gerhart-Hauptmann-Platz Weihnachtsmarkt wins. It was the prettiest, coziest one out of them all and the Glühwein was delicious.   

However, one thing that I have noticed this year, are the Weihnachtsmarkt cups. Every year, the Christmas market would produce special cups which say “Hamburger Weihnachtsmarkt 20XX”. This year they do not state the year. Which I find is a pity, cause it started to become a tradition, to always take one of these cups home and add to the Christmas market cup collection.

Maybe more people will mention this to the organizers, and who knows…. Maybe in 2013 we will have the real “Hamburg Weihnachtsmarkt” cups back!!!

But until then, we have to drink the yummy Glühwein out of the normal looking Christmas markets cups.

Cheers!

Xoxo M

Starting to realize that soon it is time to say goodbye

Hey guys!

As most of you know I will be leaving Hamburg in a few weeks and until a couple of days ago, I did not realize that I am actually leaving this beautiful city. Do you know that feeling? It hasn’t fully hit me yet. But I am starting to realize that I have to say goodbye soon. However, I am super excited to move and to explore Vienna. And because of this excitement I would like to share my experiences with you. This blog will still supply you guys with popular Hamburg weekend tips and insights about my favorite city Hamburg. But it will also include an entire section on my new life in Vienna and everything else that I am currently experiencing as a city hopper.

So peeps. I hope that you guys will follow and enjoy this blog.

Cause I am super excited to share all of my experiences with you.

Xoxo

M