Berlin is vibrant, diverse and interesting. East Berlin was pretty much demolished during WW II so it is amazing what has been accomplished in the way of rebuilding. Basically, all of the buildings were destroyed so there weren't any old buildings to restore or rebuild. The new structures lack much charm. It feels in some ways like walking on the streets of an American city with its usual array of mall stores, glass buildings, and so on. Interesting that East Berlin is now the "place to be." It is where the action takes place whereas West Berlin is the more staid, traditional area.
I learned a lot about the history of east and west Germany. What life was really like during the division. The difficulties of reunification. People had no experience of living in a democracy and dealing with a capitalistic system. Many promises were made but the East Germans were exploited and taken advantage of. Some wished to return to the old regime and its orderliness. There were tensions between East and West Germans. Now, however, with a new generation, East Germans are fully integrated into the culture and there is little of the previous rancor left.
An example of what happened to many people is the father of our leader Jessica's boyfriend. He was an intelligent well-educated man who believed in the socialist system being set up in East Germany. He was a well respected speech writer for the top officials and a member of the Party. After a time, however, he became disillusioned with the system and wanted to get out. He asked for another job and was given the job of tractor driver. He worked as a tractor driver for 13 years. When reunification took place, he wasn't prepared to do anything else. Many people were assigned agricultural jobs on the collective farms in East Germany and were ill suited for their lives in the new unified Germany. Some people suggested he raise chinchillas to make fur coats. He and his brother put all they had into this endeavor but it was foolhardy since there was no market for fur coats in Germany and the endeavor failed. He eventually got a job at a Home Depot type store and has worked his way up to manager but he has never regained a position to reflect his education and intelligence.
Our three leaders on this trip did a wonderful job of making the trip seamless and smooth for us. Philipp conceived of and designed this trip. He did a wonderful job of finding interesting cultural extras for us to enhance our experience of the country such as the marzipan tour, the various modes of transportation, beer tasting, etc. He also shared stories with us about the country and gave interesting talks about the history. Jessica, a new Experience Plus! leader, is a delightful person from German speaking Switzerland. She was competent and shared herself with us by telling stories e.g. The Little Mermaid story as part of our briefings. Her boyfriend, Ronny, is grew up in East Germany and is also an Experience Plus! leader. Michela is a competent, efficient leader who was always there for us.
