After we got off the ship, we gathered our bags while Josh went to get the car. Once again, we had to re-pack the car with all of our belongings, plus some new treasures we bought in Norway. I am always impressed by how much stuff we seem to pack as well as Josh's skill at finagling everything into the car. I don't know how it all fits, but it does.
We left Hamburg to drive to Bremerhaven, the next stop on our German adventure. One thing my mom and I have always wanted to do is go to the area of Germany where my great-grandfather was from and "trace our roots," so to speak. The town my great-grandfather was from is small, and when I first researched this town I realized there wasn't much there - both in the way of hotels, as well as things to do. We don't necessarily know a lot of details about my great-grandfather coming to America - he didn't talk a lot about it, and now he is unfortunately unable to answer our questions. Of the slim details I know, I know he came to America through Ellis Island in New York City, and I know he left from Bremerhaven, Germany (which wasn't where he was from). When I was looking into an alternative place to stay on the northern coast, I looked into Bremerhaven and discovered it is a popular summer destinations for Germans. There are many "beach" and "ocean" activities available for tourists during the summer months. What stood out the most to me when I was researching was Bremerhaven has a German Emigration Center, which is a museum documenting the movement of people emigrating in and out of Germany. This museum seemed to be the epitome of what this part of our trip was about. It was because of this I decided for us to stay in Bremerhaven, and I knew the museum would be the focus of our time there.
The drive from Hamburg to Bremerhaven was an easy two hour drive. I found an apartment for us to rent which was right up the street from the Emigration Center. It was still the early afternoon when we arrived in Bremerhaven, and we couldn't check in to our apartment yet. We decided to go right away to the Emigration Center. The Emigration Center starts off having an area which looks like what the Bremerhaven port may have looked like many years ago on a day a ship left. There were different displays talking about reasons why people left, what sort of things they would have packed, and details of the different ships. As you moved through the center there were different replicas of the interior of different ships. It was an interesting way to try to envision what life would have been like on a ship on your way to America. My mom says my great-grandfather never talked about moving to America, and she said she was sure (given his age and background) that he traveled in steerage, and it most likely wasn't a glamorous journey. After seeing some of the accommodations on some of the ships, I think she is right. Throughout the center they highlight different people's stories about emigrating from Germany. Some stories are from the late 1800s, some from the early 1900s, and some from pre and post World War II. You would read about why someone left, and then what happened with their lives after they left Germany. A different area of the center focused on people who emigrated to Germany. This was interesting to me because it was something I hadn't put much thought into, but it makes sense that while people left Germany, there were people who were wanting to move into the country as well.
For me, the highlight of our time at the Emigration Center was having computer access. I know that sounds silly, but hear me out. There is an area with many different computers, and you have free access to Ancestry.com. I'm sure like many people, I have poked around the Ancestry website out of curiosity, but I have never gotten into it (mainly because I don't want to pay for it). However, at the center you have full access to the site to search and try to find out information about your family. I was overcome with this need to find something about my great-grandfather. Something. Anything. I knew there had to be some sort of information about him out there if I just looked hard enough. I can't quite explain the feeling I had, the closest word that comes to mind is desperation. When I simply searched his name, not much came up. I had to get a bit more creative and try to search under the year he may have come to America. This is another time when not knowing any details about his past made things more difficult. We knew the starting point of his journey, and the end point, but we really weren't sure what year he came to America, let alone what month. But. After a bit of relentless playing around... I found it. There, for us to see, was a copy of the ship passenger list. Part of why it was difficult to find a listing for him was his name is spelled wrong. The print of the passenger list is a little hard to read, so I am sure that is how the incorrect spelling of his name is listed in the database. I have half a mind to contact... someone... and tell them they have the wrong name. We confirmed the listing was for great-grandpa as he had listed his sister as his emergency contact, and his hometown was listed as Holtgast. There. I had found him. Habbo Claassen (Harbo, according to the records) arrived in New York City, New York December 19, 1923 at the age of 23 on the Yorck. I wanted to cry.
After our emotional journey through the Emigration Center we wandered around the harbor area. I thought it was a cute, picturesque area. The harbor has undergone many different reconstructions since the time my great-grandfather was there, but I liked looking at the area and trying to imagine what it must have looked like to him when he were there so many years ago. What would it have felt like to know you were leaving, and you weren't sure when you would return? It brought chills to me then, and as I write this I have goosebumps covering my arms.
We had lunch at a cafe at the harbor, we went to check in at our apartment. It was interesting to lug big, heavy suitcases up three flights of stairs to our apartment. I say it was interesting... I didn't carry anything heavy, but I did have enough of a conscious to feel slightly bad and guilty watching my dad and Josh who were huffing and puffing their way up the stairs with our endless parade of luggage. The apartment was cute - I could see how Bremerhaven could be a nice summer vacation spot.
Once we were settled, we were looking for something to kill the time. It was a Sunday, and like many things throughout Germany and Europe, many things were closed. We went to the zoo mainly as something to do. The zoo was quite small, but they did have seals, sea lions, and a mama and baby polar bear. I don't care who you are or how old you are, zoos are fun and can be entertaining to anyone and everyone. After the zoo we wandered around the area near the harbor. It was a quiet Sunday, and not much was open, but it was peaceful to wander around and see everything at our leisure.
We spent the rest of the evening relaxing at the apartment. Although Bremerhaven is a cute destination, we had already exhausted all there was to do. I think we were all happy to have an evening to just sit after our non-stop touring through Norway. I was exhausted, but that evening I couldn't seem to fall asleep and spent a good part of the night tossing and turning because I knew what the morning had in store...
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