Ingo called me over yesterday. GDR-food was on TV.
Just this summer we went to former GDR with my company, with partners, for fun and I had Soljanka, a typical GDR-soup – my, was that yummy!
I was about 9 years old.
We released balloons with our addresses attached direction GDR from school – I lived near the frontier, more or less.
Some weeks later a letter arrived.
An elderly, childless couple in GDR had found my balloon. They asked who I am, what I do, what I like.
This was exciting, like receiving a letter from another world!
Soon after my answer a package arrived with a large book on horses, the paper so shiny, so different from ours – I kid you not.
Sadly soon I was to find out all they really wanted was Jacob´s coffee, not contact to a West-German kid.
Jacob´s coffee is a brand that was worth something in GDR, more than the “money” they had.
It still is kinda weird Germany was separated for so long, is one since over 20 years, yet the wall is still there.
We still pay and discuss the extra-taxes for “East-Germany”. We still separate and hear in the news in “East Germany” you earn less money, there are fewer jobs in general, life-quality isn´t as good as in “West-Germany”.
50% - ok, that´s 2 people, are from former GDR in my team.
One younger than my Bro but the other really grew up there, raised his kids there and the stories he tells about life over there… they are from another world.
Or from another time, it seems.
They heated the rooms with real fire, if they wanted to move, they had to find a family willing to change places with them. Repairs? Do it yourself, try to get material somewhere. You didn´t go into a hardware store and just buy. Connections were the secret ingredient, “Bückware”, from under the table.
A fight for a place to park your car? Ha, no. Two buckets and a broom was enough to reserve your parking space – there weren´t many cars anyways!
You had to wait some whopping 17 years for a new Trabbi, used ones were more expensive cause if you found one you had one, just like that. Weird, huh?
But it wasn´t all bad. They were there for each other more than over here. More parties, more “family”.
Still I am thankful I grew up in the “golden West
(Meat) Soljanka, though… guess Ingo has to find a recipe and cook it!
3 comments:
Funny story about the coffee Iris. I can imagine how precious coffee would have been in the DDR. Amazing that after so many years things are still "slower" on the other side, I would have thought that there would be more development to employ people, etc.
Hard to imagine there would be quite so many differences Iris.. Nowhere is perfect oui!
Sami, people who want to work hard come over here - but money for renovations goes to the East... Roads, house facades, phone lines... you see the difference.
Yes, Grace, the wall will stay for quite a while in our heads, I suppose...
Post a Comment