In the Shadow of the (Berlin) Wall
slowtravelberlin.comThe Berlin Wall was built right outside The Neumanns‘ apartment overnight. They lived on its shadow and survived to see it fall. Herbert Neumann documented it all (illegally) on camera. Interview by Thalia Gigerenzer.
> One day, when he was walking home from S-Bahnhof Treptow, a tank stopped next to Herr Neumann and a soldier poked his head out, yelling: ‘Does anyone want to go to Neukölln?’ Herr Neumann, caught completely off-guard, did not take the soldier up on the offer. Later, he heard that the soldier had successfully driven his tank through the Wall.
This is fascinating!
Must've been this guy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolfgang_Engels
Funny how the 2 mean are in each other's story as "anonymous" extras.
"While he managed to escape to West Germany and gain his freedom, he ended up losing touch with his mother, who, being a dedicated communist, rejected him as a traitor to East Germany and denounced his escape."
Ouch.