Hamburg T2D3: Coffee with and without eyes

Hi,

Yes I know I've been keeping you waiting some three weeks to find out what happened on day 3, I've been off having important meals, getting new jobs and exploring new cities if you must know! But sort of vowing to do better in December.

Coffee without eyes: Dialog im Dunkeln

So, when I was at the Toll Museum I saw an advert for this exciting adventure-experience. Dialog im Dunkeln Hamburg is a part of a much larger international outfit (India, China, Argentina all have sites) giving visitors the opportunity to experience a variety of situations blind. In a similar way to Dans le Noir, the tables are turned and the blind guides of this social enterprise become the confident ones, visitors are entirely at the mercy of the guide and their little white stick. My experience lasted 90 mins but it felt like just 5! What an adventure, Jann our guide took us through a variety of simulated experiences based on Hamburg's tourist scene, bridge crossing, boat trips, picking fruit at the market, even crossing the road. The space is entirely devoid of natural light so even with your eyes open you are reliant on your other senses. I was surprised how quickly I adapted to the loss of sight. In the cafe I bought a cup of coffee, I was amazed at how much more important the texture of even the coffee cup became once the visual aspect of coffee had been removed. Bit pricey for a standard adult (20€) but they offer plenty of discounts. And I've never been so grateful for my eyesight.

(so trendy it hurts)

(Amazing Apfelkuchen)

 (Cute advertising...)

Coffee with eyes: Cafe Brooks

From the museum I headed East on the U-bahn out to Hasselbrook station. I was meeting a couchsurfer for coffee at Cafe Brooks. What a great cafe. It definitely fits in with that Shoreditch/ Berlin/ antipodean unique coffee vibe and the Apfelkuchen was nearly as good as May's, and that's saying something! It was great to meet Theres. She even took me to this beautiful, peaceful park (Stadtpark) near her house. I'm getting somewhat into the habit of frequenting peaceful parks before returning home on the plane. Company, the cafe and the park were all A+.

(Stadtpark)

I'm back in Germany next weekend enjoying Aachen's Christmas Market and catching up with friends...