Hamburg is the second largest city in Germany and considered to be one of the most beautiful in the country. Despite being located astride the River Elbe, some 100 kilometres from the North Sea, Hamburg is a major port city. It has the country's biggest port - the second-busiest in Europe and only the third largest in the world, after London and New York.

Hamburg is practically surrounded on all sides by water. The Alster river has been divided into two lakes that lie on either side of the city, the Binnen and Aussenalster (Inner and Outer) and the River Elbe flows right through into the North Sea. All this water means an abundance of canals, streams and bridges. In fact, it's a little known fact that Hamburg has more bridges inside its city limits than any other city in the world and more canals than Amsterdam and Venice combined. The figure has been put somewhere around 2,300 to over 2,500 - more than London, Amsterdam and Venice put together.

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