Hamburg is the second largest city in Germany after Berlin. This metropolitan city is located in the northern region of the country, precisely at the intersection of the Elbe River and its two tributaries; River Alster and River Bille. Because it is located at the junction of three rivers, making this area of the city flowed by many canals, similar to Amsterdam in the Netherlands, and Venice in Italy. The Hamburg region is bounded by Lower Saxony to the west and south; with Schleswig-Holstein to the east and north; and with the North Sea (North Sea) to the northwest. The population of the city is around 1.8 million in 2016.
Just like Berlin and Bremen, Hamburg is also a state (bundesland), known as Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg (Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg). Apart from the city center, this state area also includes several islands in the North Sea, namely Neuwerk, Scharhörn, and Nigehörn. From the city center of Hamburg, the three islands are about 100 km apart and are connected via the Elbe River. Hamburg is also a city of Hansa (Hansestadt) in the past, because it is located in the area of trade routes in the North Sea and Baltic Sea. From Bremen, the city is only about 100 km to the northeast; while from Berlin, Hamburg is 280 km to the northwest.