The first version of the efoto app co-produced by the Kulturbehörde and German Department of Hamburg University, which contains numerous historical and recent photos of different quarters, their inhabitants, and buildings in Hamburg, was tested by Life on Earth students during the ‘Projektwoche’. (The app will be publically accessible in October 2016.)
Of the three available guided tours through Ottensen, we chose the one on urban development and protest movements since the 1970s. For about 90 minutes it guided us through the quarter and provided information on different buildings and people that were involved in past as well as more recent events connected to the development of this part of our city.
Did you know that, had it not been for the bold protests of the quarter’s inhabitants, Ottensen would have been turned into a ‘City West’, with skyscrapers and office buildings quite like the ones we can find in today’s ‘City Nord’. Fortunately, many of the historical buildings have been preserved with the help of the ‘Denkmalschutz’ regulations. Although this also resulted in turning Ottensen into an ‘in’ quarter accompanied by the acceleration of the gentrification process, it also captured an interesting chapter of history for generations to come and, of course, for the users of the guided tour of the efoto app through this fascinating and lively part of Hamburg.
We can now recommend a guided tour of about 90 minutes starting at Altona station and ending at Borsels Hof, which you can enjoy with friends or visitors in October or later.