The fall of the Berlin Wall was announced by the East German government on November 9, 1989, in a statement that could be taken as "de facto travel liberalization" in a statement declaring a substantial deregulation of travel and immigration. After the Berlin citizens flooded the wall and the border checkpoint was opened in the turmoil, the wall removal work began on November 10, the next day, and the history of the east-west division was virtually ended.
The Communist Party governments were overthrown in Eastern European countries one after another, and the east-west Germany was virtually unified on October 3, 1990 the following year.
Five years later, our tour members set foot on the eastern side of Berlin, the capital of the Federal Republic of Germany, looking at the collapsed wall of Berlin and touching it with their hands.
There were many old and dark buildings in the eastern part of Berlin at that time, and it was not a glitz, and although it was supposed to be a tourist spot, I couldn't find a cafe nearby to interact with the locals.
As of 1995, when we set foot, I think that even if East-West Berlin unified into Berlin, the atmosphere of the city and the expression and appearance of people were still different between the west and east sides.
After all, for 28 years, it has been partitioned by walls, and people have lived under different political systems.
I think now, at that time, I would like to step into the west side of Berlin and see the difference between East and West Berlin with my own eyes.
ベルリンの壁の崩壊は、1989年11月9日に東ドイツ政府が旅行及び国外移住の大幅な規制緩和の政令を「事実上の旅行自由化」と受け取れる表現で発表したことで、その日の夜にベルリンの壁にベルリン市民が殺到し混乱の中で国境検問所が開放され事をきっかけに、翌日の11月10日には壁の撤去作業が始まり事実上の東西分断の歴史は終結した。
そして東欧諸国では続々と共産党政府が倒され、翌年の1990年10月3日には実質的に東西ドイツの統一がなされた。
その５年後に、私たちツアーメンバーは、ドイツ連邦共和国の首都ベルリンの東側に足を踏み入れ、崩壊したベルリンの壁を眺め、それぞれの手で触りながら当時を偲んだ。
あの時のベルリンの東側は古びて黒ずんだ建物が多くて華やかさのかけらもなく、観光スポットのはずなのに、私には近くに現地の人たちとふれあえるカフェも見当たらなかった。
私たちが足を踏み入れた１９９５年の時点では、東西ベルリンが統一してベルリンとなっても、西側と東側では街の雰囲気や、人々の表情や出で立ちはまだ異なっていたと思う。
何しろ２８年間も壁で仕切られ、異なる政治体制下で人々は暮らしてきたのだから。
今思うに、あの時、ベルリンの西側にも足を踏み入れて、東と西のベルリンの違いをこの目で確かめていればと。
