Jonathan's post reminded me of the first time I crossed from West to East Berlin through Friedrichstrasse in 1966. It was terrifying, not least because of its complex layout. It was one thing getting out, but trying to find your way back in later in the day was something else. I remember standing in the street thinking I might be arrested if I couldn't find the way out, not least since a man from my home town had been arrested for allegedly aiding an escape. No idea who he was or what happened to him. But if you tried stopping people in the street to ask for directions, they just walked past. The whole thing was scary, chilling.When the BM mounted its Germany exhibition a few years ago there was a model of Friedrichstrassse station and it was a relief to learn that it had been deliberatedly made confusing in order to frighten gullible visitors like me. It wasn't me being particularly obtuse. On subsequent visits my German was better and I resolved not to leave the station until I was absolutely sure I could find the way back. I asked soldiers to explain how I could manage this and, in fairness, they did.In 1986 I took an East German Tourist Board trip to the DDR - all Bach, Goethe and Luther. The bus driver was a gentle, thoughtful man and we chatted quite a bit, though I would never raise anything provocative. I often wondered what happened to him after the Wall came down. It's hard to grasp what it was like for East Germans when the news about Stasi informers broke, people informing on friends and relatives. How's that for a police state.Going back to an earlier era, a friend's family fled Germany in 1938, by then a POLICE STATE. Her mother and aunt were dear to me, gracious, dignified women. I know it rankled that they were unable to matriculate, simply because they were Jews.My penfriend's parents in Vienna would tell me chilling stories of Die Nazi Zeit. When Vienna was occupied until 1955, Hanna's aunt, who died before I started going to Vienna, lived in the Soviet Sector. Horrendous. I remember asking with youthful idiocy "why didn't they move?" I was forgiven! Life was much easier for residents in the sectors occupied by the Western powers. So that's my admitedly sketchy insight into THE STENCH OF A POLICE STATE. To the initiator of this thread, how does it compare with what we are experiencing now?Incidentally, my friend phoned at the weekend. Her first words were to tell me there weren't enough beds in Austrian hospitals, nor PPE. What's new?
Elizabeth Balsom ● 2262d