Letter from Hamburg: Lessons from a German city on economic change

The port of Hamburg from the 5th floor of a building at Kuehne Logistic University. Notice the wind turbines in the distance. [Photo by XN Iraki]

There is something surreal about visiting Europe that contrasts sharply with crossing the Atlantic. Europe feels more homely, the pace of life is slower and the history is alluring. But Canada feels more European than America despite sharing a long border.

That is the first impression on visiting Hamburg, Germany. My earlier visits to Europe gave me the same feeling. No wonder France and Spain get lots of tourists compared with their population. In 2017, France got 89 million with a population of 67 million. Spain got 82 million while its population is 47 million. Kenya Tourist Board can now figure out the number of tourists we should target.