The Berlin Wall

[Mad Eyed Screamer]

In censor round sound in a two inch war
I was waiting for the communist call
I didn't ask for sunshine
And I got world war three
I'm looking over the wall
AND THERE'YE LOOKING AT ME

 

[scotty123]

First went through the Berlin Wall in 1979 and 5 times after that, first time through was one of the weirdest experiences of my life it was like going back in time, 6ft blonde women East German border guards pushing you about and shoving guns in your face
It was not as bad as crossing the Iron Curtain (East German Border) just East of Wolfsberg though, they had you out of the car and into different huts where your passport and posessions disappeared for about half an hour and you were questioned by KGB types as to why you wanted to pass through the glorious East German Republic to drive to West Berlin, again guns were held at you
You then had to drive down the one single road to West Berlin and it was like a 70 odd mile death strip, you was told never to drive off the road as you would be fired on, it was lined with army posts and tanks all the way, also Warsaw Pact troops in trucks and jeeps driving about randomly stopping and intimidating you
I always flew in to West Berlin after that, but it was something I am glad I experienced, I seen how Communism worked at first hand

 

[Ruhr]

You then had to drive down the one single road to West Berlin and it was like a 70 odd mile death strip,

That was the most boring car driving experience ever. I had it several times in the 1980s. They had several radar speed checks on the way and they were cashing west german money. One time i was driving behind the same car for the whole distance. Shortly after a West Berliner gave me a list of all radar speed checks he had spotted over the years, the Wall came down and it was worthless.

 

[117 M34]

Can we have the Carlisle wall if Scotland vote for independence?

 

[urmston]

Yes, it seems incredible now that until recently half of Europe effectively lived in one vast prison with no freedom of travel, no free speech, no free press and no free elections.


The liberals from places like the Guardian and the Labour Party, far from being outraged by this dreadful state of affairs and its human rights implications, were usually completely silent on the matter.

Some loony lefties even managed to persuade themselves the Soviet Empire was a good thing. When I was at university in 1977 there was a big march to celebrate the glorious 60th anniversary of the Russian revolution. And it wasn't just daft students who were on it. Many staff were too.

 

[dazdon]

I have relatives in Germany (It wouldn't come as a surprise to some :-) )

When the wall came down there was a kind of mixed euphoria followed by decades of resentment that these 'Foreigners' were overstretching the system.

 

[Bilston Blue]

I never experienced East Germany or east Berlin during the communist era, but did visit Romania in the summer of 1989, six months before the uprisings ended Communism there.

Even for a fourteen year old who was pretty clued up on world politics and took a keen interest in what was happening around the world, that was a seriously eye-opening trip. It was a resort holiday at Mamaia on the Black Sea coast, and we were advised to be off the beach by 6pm prompt. From that time onwards, every evening, the beach was patrolled by armed guards and there were patrol boats monitoring the coastline.

The poverty was shocking; kids would beg us for 1 lei, which was the equivalent then of around 0.1p. They pestered us for our walkmans and cassettes and t-shirts and stuff. Only when I got older did I realise they were probably looking for stuff to sell on the black market for food.

Truly shocking and eye-opening, an experience I'll never forget.

 

[foxy]

The Russians were bastards towards the end of the war and after. Germany had inflicted awful horror but civilians and a lot of the Wermacht troops didn't. deserve what came their way after the war. Communist Russia was no worse than Nazi Germany with gulags.

 

[Barcon]

In censor round sound in a two inch warI was waiting for the communist call
I didn't ask for sunshine
And I got world war three
I'm looking over the wall
AND THERE'YE LOOKING AT ME

I never had a clue what he was saying there, cheers.

 

[Grolsch30]

I remember driving over to West Berlin with my Uncle in his BMW 318.
Crossing over from the West German border and onto the Transit motorway which you were not allowed to deviate from was quite an experiance.

Firstly the East German guards would take your passprts off you at the first check point. then you had to drive slowly to the next check point while your passport made a conveyer belt trip to the guy sitting in the next check point where you would then collect your passports with DDR stamps in it.

Along the transit motorway youd see the east germans in their trabants which they had to wait years for to get one.
Their were special services to stop off enroute to and from West Berlin along the transit road/ motorway which only westerners could frequent and buy stuff from.

We stopped off at one of these to go to the toilets and I remeber we parked up next to a family with a trabant and they were trying to repair it as they had broken down.
Felt quite embarrassed and sorry for them really, god knows how they felt when we parked up in our Beamer.

Another thing I will never forget was when we were in West Berlin there was a podest (where the Brandenburger tor is). and you could look over the Berlin Wall which was a few meters away from you looking over into East Germany.
You could see the East Germans alot further away in the distance on the other side waving over to you and also you could see the traffic and people walking about as if the wall was not their but in a totally different world compared to the West.

You#d see all the East german guards and dogs on patrol, no mans land on the Eastern side and all the Windows from the buildings in the east which had windows facing the west had been replaced with a brick window.

All in all it was fascinating.