Hamburg. It's only an hour or so away, the "jewel" of North Germany, they like to say. There's a lot of money in Hamburg. Living there is expensive, lots of folks tool around in their fancy cars on the weekend, there's lots of culture to be enjoyed in art and music and theater. Fashion is hot. Juicy parts of films are done there now and again. On the downside, their weather isn't any better than ours here in Bremen, their poorer little sister and fierce football rival. (And just to rub it in, they fell to the 2nd league the year before we did and we climbed out and they are still in the lower division! So there!!)
I don't know Hamburg as well as I would like and maybe this summer we will find a bit more time to spend there and explore the town. But today? Today was hair cut with a dose of art on the side while dodging rain and sleet and hale stones, just for fun.
In the fall of last year I seemed to have a falling out (so to speak) with my long-term hair guy. Really, that is trauma. I don't know what happened but somehow the cuts went bad, several times in a row and the last one was a deal-breaker. Words didn't seem to help. So I called DIL Rima the Hair Dresser and begged for rescue and of course she said yes. She not only repaired the disaster, she did a great job. But I still had some attachment to my old guy and went back one other time. Sad, sad, and again bad. What happened? I don't know, but Three Strikes and You're Out!! That was it. Rima is my new hair person.
So, it was time for a hair cut and she had time on Wednesday and we had time on Wednesday so we booked a day-ticket on the train and planned a trip to the art museum, too. Hamburg has a lot to offer.
Rima is the DIL but she is a professional woman, too. What good advice she gives! What good work she does! I am remiss in not having a pic of her (and me and maybe René, and maybe even Werner) in their shop. It's a going concern and has been for almost 20 years now. Am I happy with my cut? Yes. Then into the storm and wind and wet to the train to downtown Hamburg.
But lunch first. We are hungry after getting up rather early for us. Unfortunately we are unfamiliar with downtown Hamburg and had a hard time finding a suitable place and as we were short of patience, went into the Hofbräuhaus, a tourist spot if there ever was one.
But it was easy to find something uncomplicated to eat -- Bratwurst with mash and sourkraut, Wienerschnitzel with fries -- and of course, the beer is good.
Off to the show. We were so excited to leave the restaurant in the sunshine! That joy lasted approximately ONE minute before the rain started - again - along with gusts of wind. The ten-minute walk to the museum felt much longer.
The current exhibit: Femme Fatale.
The curators put together a collection of paintings (primarily), sculpture and film to show how the seductive woman has been portrayed in art. The works in this exhibit were from the 19th c. forward, but the themes were from ancient Greece and Rome and biblical times to (almost) today.
Interesting, to say the least. The lasting impression for me, when it was all looked at and done, is that women seem to be responsible for every awful thing that has ever happened in the world, mostly according to the (mostly) men who put up the images of the women. But they do love the female body as a model of all those awe-full powers that she has. The "male gaze" dominates how we perceive these sheroes.
Judith, Lilith, Pandora, Medea, Circe, Madonna. There were a couple of these ladies I had to look up after the show - Phaeda, for instance, a famous courtesan from ancient Greece, and Lilith, Adam's first wife. What? Slender all, lovely skin, young or youthful, wonderful hair -- really, the hair is incredible, especially those paintings in the Pre-Raphaelite camp.
Even Medusa is not as scary as one might think.
And it was an exhibit to make you think about not only portrayals in pigment and stone, but texts and oral history. We women have such power!
After a couple of hours, our backs and legs were talking to us so LOUDLY and it was time to go. But, first a little sustenance - a piece of chocolate cake to share and a cup of tea in the gallery café.
It's a pretty easy trip (Vegesack-Bremen-Hamburg, about 1 hour 20 minutes) and during the week, on the off hours, the train is not crowded. And oh so much easier than driving and finding parking.
We promised ourselves, once again, that we have to do this more often. Now that I've lined up Rima to do my hair, it may really happen! Thanks, Rima.
