A random walk more or less by the Berlin Wall (June-July 1989)

It will work very well with any video scene showing a _lateral_ camera movement as long as it's reasonably smooth (trains and river boats are best for that sort of thing).

[bigredracingdog]

Around 1987 my brother was taking a college course entitled something like "Contemporary Europe: Past, Present & Future." He had to write a paper that made a prediction about some aspect of European politics, economics or social movements. His paper was called "German Reunification: a 25-year Plan" in which he presented a timeline of events that would lead to eventual reunification. He got a C+. The prof wrote a comment at the end to the effect, "An overly optimistic premise. This won't happen in our lifetimes." I told him after the Wall fell that he should send the prof the paper with a big red circle around that quote.

[eyesofisabelofficial]

I was here in May 1989, the audio really brings it back.
One of the younger members of my student exchange group said
"How long do you think the wall will be there for ?"
to which I answered
"Perhaps 70 years",
It only lasted another 6 months !

[johnerdam]

Sometimes an amateur-shot without a big concept, text and cut, can be YouTube gold!
Thanks for the upload!

[michaelwoodhead]

I visited East Berlin from the UK about a year before the Wall came down. At the time I thought it would be a permanent feature in my lifetime. What a strange place Berlin was. I had to change about $30 into DDR Marks for the day and couldn't find anything to spend it on. Before I returned to West Berlin I tried to give the remainder away to a young assistant working in an art gallery but he panicked and chased after me and made me take it back. Some time later when in China after the fall of the wall I met a guy from East Germany who'd been sent there as a technical adviser. He was a loyal Party member and told me he had no country to go back to!

[budguy]

I was an American soldier in West Germany the night the wall came down. Unbelievable. We went into town, it was the biggest party EVER: new years, christmas, 4th of july combined. People celebrating, and free beer everywhere.

[MrJannisman]

That is a funny Berlin conversation at 15:00:
Older guy: That's smearing. It has nothing to do with art, it should be banned.
Young guy: Well, try to imitate me.
Older guy: Any toddler could do that, I don't need to show you.

[thomasnygaard]

Incredibly cool footage. Went to both sides of the city in 1985. Bring back memories. Thank you so much for sharing! Greetings from Denmark.

[BaldProfessor]

Fascinating. I was living in West Berlin when this footage was shot. Hard to imagine that in less than six months the wall would be down.

[Nikki_Holland]

Interesting film. I visited the DDR three time back in the early 1980s and stayed at the Palast Hotel in East Berlin (opposite the Dom). I went each time on my motorbike and everywhere I stopped, big crowds of people gathered around it to look and admire it. On my DDR visits I saw Leipzig and Dresden. It was a very fascinating period which I’ll never forget. Thanks for posting.

[Breathofdeathh]

This footage is absolutely incredible. Being a kid born at the end of the Cold War I never got to experience any of it. This is like a portal into time and I thank whoever for it !

[dlcy]

In the early 80s we made a school trip to Berlin(West) for a week including a day trip to East Berlin. I made friends there this day in GDR and stay in loose contact over these years with them. 1987 I moved to Berlin(West) and gave the other part of the city at least once a month a visit. I did use many times the Invalidenstr. Checkpoint (11:13) as pedestrian and later as car driver. Still have some stories in mind, some obscure and some not so funny, crossing the boarder. Today i life in the eastern part and my work place is in the west, my duty stroke is bypassing me still at Invalidenstr. Checkpoint and now and then i remember there the stories back in the days,
Thank you for uploading the video and refreshing my memories, 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

[johnschneider]

I was stationed in Berlin 72/73 and this is one of th best films from that time. I was fortunate enough to see most of those. Sites. It really brings back memories

[vincentadams]

Missed you by a month I just turned 27 I actually recognized and remember the girl on the Bike around 14:45 I spray painting my name with a friend of mine in the same exact location I took my photos and looked the girl on the Bike her name was Marina she worked at a Club of the Kudam Tostelfenz!!! Amazing!! I was staying on Moomsen Straße in SAVINGYPLATZ!!

[bardo]

In 1991 I was driving through Europe and from Berlin I just went into East Germany and I had this strange feeling, that I went into a time machine. Everything was different, the buildings, the cars, the people. Even if the wall went down only 2 years earlier it was still so different from the West..

[drau]

When a teacher in professional school said 1988 the sentence: "In 5 years we will be reunited", we all laughed at him. Dear Mr. Geifes, you were so right. Sorry for the laugh.

[tomduggan]

Jan,
Thanks very much for sharing what is a very valuable film on the closing days of the Wall. You did very good work and have captured the essence of the city at that time!

[mateuszmattias]

Das Kreuz von Chris Gueffroy (9:13), der letzte der bei der Mauer erschossen wurde, war als dieser Film gedreht wurde erst 4 Monate alt. (Die Kreuze sind zum Gedächtnis immer noch heute da.)

[Larrypint]

The time that shaped me the most in my childhood was between 1988-1993 in East Berlin (Friedrichshain and Mitte) . So many memories about the differences between east and west Berlin on a daily base and that wasn't a good VS bad. It was just so different

[__Aurora__]

Amazing footage. We moved to Berlin 15 years after these scenes were filmed due to work. We even bought an apartment in Friedrichshain, near Boxhagener Platz and the East Side Gallery. By then it was already a completely different city, vibrant and youthful. Brings back a lot of memories. Regards from Stockholm.

[joythought]

I have really appreciated the comments. So many intersecting stories and so much good will in the comments.
I lived in Koln in 99/2000 and travelled sometimes on weekends to Berlin to hang out with a friend. I remember partying in one of the military/guard houses within the wall area that had become a club and was completely off my head. I always loved both sides of Berlin and remember how wonderful it was to see people on the wall in 89. The human spirit is resilient. Much love!