Blohm + Voss Tour: Classically Hamburg

Last week, for a change of pace, we were at Blohm + Voss. We thank the German Maritime Arbitration Association (GMAA) for the invitation, which came at just the right moment since we were in the midst of a stressful real estate transaction. A maritime atmosphere is always calming. On the way to Blohm + Voss, we had an additional opportunity to be a little bit unconventional:

The old Elbe tunnel is an engineering monument and still fully operational. One can traverse it in a vehicle, with a bicycle or - like we did - on foot, from one side of the Elbe to the other. The placard above provides some of the essential data points:

The old elevators are truly awe-inspiring. Here is how the old Elbe tunnel looks from the inside:

On the other side of the river, there were also interesting placards...

Blohm + Voss provided the GMAA with an excellent room, which quickly filled up.

Blohm + Voss is still involved as a subcontractor in military shipbuilding projects. Apart from this, the dockyard is the top reference for repair and maintenance of large commercial vessels. As far as it pertains to newbuildings, Blohm + Voss is chiefly occupied with the production of luxury yachts larger than approximately 80 meters for foreign customers.

We offer our heartfelt thanks to Blohm + Voss for the amazing tour of the production halls and swimming docks. Due to confidentiality agreements and on account of strict data protection rules, we were only permitted to take photographs in a few, select locations.

Above, the RMS Queen Mary 2, one of the last great ocean liners.

Periodically, Blohm + Voss provides space to the Elbjazz festival.

To conclude the great day, we got to visit the treasure vault of Blohm + Voss:

Over many years, Blohm + Voss has assembled a very cool swag collection:

Why don't you try on this Korean belt...

Finally, to conclude, here is the dock where the infamous KMS Bismarck was built: