Visit to Reinbek and Hamburg

The weekend before Christmas, Brian and I flew to Hamburg to visit the Hinrichsen family. Jens and Barbara Hinrichsen are Brian's dad's cousins who live in Reinbek (just outside Hamburg), and they graciously invited us to spend the weekend with them and 2 of their 3 children, Rebecca and Jonas (David, unfortunately, was out of town).

The Hinrichsen's beautiful home, all decorated for Christmas!

Hamburg is a beautiful harbor city with lots to see and do! And Brian and I were very lucky to see the city covered in snow, which apparently isn't very common. The snow gave us a little trouble getting in and out of the city, but the Hinrichsen's were very patient and helpful with our delayed travel schedule.

On Friday night, we spent the evening eating a delicious meal and getting to know Jens, Barbara, Rebecca, and Jonas. We had so much fun talking with them that 4am rolled around, and we didn't even realize it!

On Saturday, Jens and Jonas took us on a tour of Reinbek and Hamburg. We walked, rode trains and buses, and even took a boat tour! They also took us to the Hamburg Christmas Market, which was definitely one of my favorite markets we saw this year. On our way back to the train station, we saw the Hamburg Christmas Parade!

Our boat tour of Hamburg

Fire dance at the Hamburg Christmas Market

Gluhwein with Jonas, Jens, and Brian

After a delicious dinner on Saturday, the Hinrichsen's, Brian, and I video chatted with Brian's parents, and it was a lot of fun for everyone to catch up. Then we went out to a local bar (actually called the American Bar, haha) with Rebecca, Jonas, and some of their good friends. We had a great time hanging out and getting to know everyone.

Video chatting with the Rentsch's in Michigan

Sunday was another snowy day, so we went on a nice walk with Jens to see their neighborhood. The houses and surrounding forest areas were gorgeous.

Jens and me at the Reinbek lake

Walking through Reinbek. I loved the neighborhood!

We had an outstanding time in Reinbek, and we look forward to seeing the Hinrichsen's again!