25 years ago this week I remember watching the TV with my parents and us saying that it was one of those 'history-in-the-making' moments (with a nephew looking at us thinking 'What are they talking about?'). I also remember a 1987 university tutorial where the tutor asked whether Germany might be reunified in our lifetimes...
Well on 9 Nov 1989 The Wall fell,
The Germans have partied in their own way, but for me it's an excuse to celebrate the end of Mutually Assured Destruction* (which bizarrely, I've seen celebrated this evening on Facebook). All in all, this is an excuse to post The Ode to Joy...
* The yoof of today talk about 'Living with the terrorist threat'. Listen: 'Mutually. Assured. Desruction.'
The coming down of the Wall is something that I'll probably always remember. As the next morning, while rewinding a VHS tape, I saw a ITN news bulletin on the event, that had broken the normal scheduled programmes the night before.
ReplyDeleteSo, for all the years that I watched that taped film (I forget what the film was, but not the Wall footage) I'd always watch the news bulletin.
Funnily enough, a few years ago, a piece of the Berlin Wall was gifted to me. It's only a small chunk, but still, it's a piece of history and it's probably one of the few possessions I own that I'd run back into the burning house to collect.
My uncle was stationed in Germany at the time and was there when it came down. As he was friends with some of the border guards, he came home with some rather nice chunks of the wall for all the family. Still has pride of place in my office :)
ReplyDeleteThose 25 years have gone fast!
ReplyDelete