Chilehaus
Almost 5 million bricks went into the construction of this marvelous building at the heart of the Kontorhausviertel, a collection of handsome office buildings that were built in the 1920–40s and now, together with the nearby Speicherstadt, form a UNESCO World Heritage site. Built in a brick expressionist style in 1924 for expat Brit Henry Brarens Sloman, who emigrated to Chile from Hamburg as a young man, made a considerable fortune trading saltpeter and returned to the city to make his mark, the Chilehaus stands 10 stories high and its impressive, jutting tip resembles the prow of a ship. Still housing business offices, it also counts a number of small cafés, shops, and a bar as residents, and is well worth a visit, particularly at night when illuminated.
