In 1989 I was an American civilian defense contractor assigned to the Teufelsberg facility in West Berlin. And yes, I was there when demonstrators climbed the Berlin Wall on the night of November 9, 1989.

In the weeks leading up to that event, there were demonstrations in towns like Leipzig. East Germany’s head of state, Erich Honecker, was hospitalized and diagnosed with cancer. The East German government was going through a transition at the time. Erich Honecker was a classic Stalinist. Replacing him was Egon Krenz, a moderate, who like Mikhail Gorbachev saw the writing on the wall (so to speak). From a political and ideological perspective, Honecker and Krenz could not be further apart.

November 9, 1989, was a Thursday. If you were an American working in West Berlin, you had Friday off; that was Veteran’s Day. On that Thursday evening, a few of us ManTech contractors got together and submitted the necessary paperwork requesting a permit to enter East Berlin for the purpose of shopping followed by dinner at the Hotel Stadt. Americans assigned to West Berlin could not go shopping in East Berlin alone—you had to use the buddy system. Typically, after obtaining your travel permit you drove to Checkpoint Charlie (a large commercial sized trailer) and parked your car in the adjacent parking lot. The trailer was staffed by American, British, and French MPs. After exchanging your license plate for a special Status of Forces of Agreement license plate, you proceeded on to the East Berlin side of the checkpoint. This shopping trip was a first time adventure for me. For Nathan and Stan, this was just another typical shopping trip into East Berlin. Both enjoyed shopping for Polish crystal, camera supplies, and tropical fish at dirt cheap prices. Dinner at the Hotel Stadt was top notch (white linen topped tables and tuxedo clad waiters), but only foreigners could enter the building. A typical seven-course meal (everything from soup to nuts) was about $4.00! The rule of thumb was we were prohibited from talking shop at the dinner table—especially if there was a vase of flowers on the table or a chandelier hanging above you (use your imagination).

Returning through the East German DDR (Deutch Democratic Republic) control point at Checkpoint Charlie normally took twenty minutes. That evening it took us at least ninety minutes as we inched up in Nathan’s vintage yellow Mercedes sedan. Demonstrators had begun showing up on both sides of the wall. Friday morning, Veteran’s Day, I awoke in my room at the Hotel Bismarck only to turn on the TV and see demonstrators climbing the wall from both sides! This historic event was unthinkable had it occurred a week earlier.

What had Happened? Egon Krenz visited Honecker at his hospital room and informed him of the rumors that demonstrators would attempt to scale the wall that evening. Honecker told Krenz to give the order for the guards to shoot anyone attempting to scale the wall. Krenz remembered the international press coverage at Tiananmen Square and realized he could be held accountable by the free world if there were shootings and casualties. After leaving Honecker’s hospital room, Krenz called Mikhail Gorbachev and explained the situation to him. Gorbachev issued the order to all East German forces guarding the wall that there was to be no shooting that evening. East Germany was a satellite of the Soviet Union, and an order telling the guards not to shoot anyone climbing the wall would have had to come from the highest level; surely not from Honecker whose standing order was to shoot anyone attempting to scale the wall. And now you know ‘the rest of the story.’

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Busted,

I DO remember it!! I was working at a larger law firm but with the same lawyer and another lawyer then. The other lawyer had been to Berlin as an exchange student and seen the Wall.. This friend sent him a piece of the Wall after it fell..

Doesn't SEEM 20 years though.. Time sure flies!!!

Tom, thanks for sharing this interesting and memorable time in your life. Am sure Reimer, in his own inimitable style, could add much more to "the rest of the story" should he choose to do so.

Thanks all for reminding us to that anniversary. We are preparing a 3-day-festival here in Berlin around the 9th of November. The Berlin Center around Brandenburg gate is blocked for traffic.
I remember it so well, November 1989:
On TV was an East Berlin press conference: Guenther Schabowski, one of East Germany's politicians, read from a paper, that there will be permission sometime soon for East Berlin citizens to go to Westberlin for a visit. Then he stopped. Then one of the journalists asked him at what time this might happen. East Germany was known for their slow bureaucracy.
Schabowski scratched his head and stuttered something like:"Uh, ah, I don't know...from what I read here, this permission starts in the near future...in fact, .... it is RIGHT NOW".
That was his interpretation, not the text of the official paper!
This moment changed everything, and next morning my first patient, a young man, told me he had danced on the top of the wall last night. My first thought was "Now he's ready for the mental hospital", then I rembered and understood.
Thanks again for mentioning our re-unification here on this forum. The USA made it possible, together with Gorbachev.
Last week, Ex-President Bush sr. was here to meet with Gorbachev and Helmut Kohl, German chancellor at that time, in memory of that revolution without blood 20 years ago. What a thrill for all of us!

AND: Thank you American people for being so kind and friendly to our chancellor Angela Merkel yesterday before, during, and after her speech in Washington D.C.! Very much appreciated! And fascinating!

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Reimer,

Reimer, so very touching. History at its best "up close and personal."

Reimer,
Thank you for your response! Guenther Schabowski is mentioned in an article in the Washington Post by writer by Mary Elise Sarotte on his awkward annocuncement lifting the travel restirictions for East Berliners on November 9, 1989. But I stand by my story about Mikhail Gorbachev lifting the order to shoot anyone attempting to scale the wall on that evening. In any event, I'm glad Nathan, Stan, and myself made it through Checkpoint Charlie that night without any shooting.

For the record, later that weekend I was down at Studio 78 in Lichterfelde at Ospressendamn Strassa with my leather jacket stuffed with American Marlboros trying to pick up chicks. Was I lucky? I'm sorry, that's classified!

Great days, indeed!

quote:

Originally posted by Busted:

For the record, later that weekend I was down at Studio 78 in Lichterfelde at Ospressendamn Strassa with my leather jacket stuffed with American Marlboros trying to pick up chicks. Was I lucky? I'm sorry, that's classified!

Smart move, Busted!
Was you lucky? Sure you were. I hope you could handle the crowd of girls!

Thanks for your inside story, Reimer. I remember that event well. I was just reading in today's newspaper about all the locations in America that have a piece of the Berlin Wall on display to memorialize the tearing down of this symbol of the Cold War. Two of them are in FL and I am going to try to visit one at the next opportunity. I am with you, Patsy ...time just flies!

Thank you, Reimer, for the up close and personal account. I LOVE how it was divulged to the people!!! What a day for Germany!!! We love you guys!!!

Thanks Patsy. We love you too, AS YOU KNOW!!!

Thank you Busted & Reimer for your personal account..A Day To Remember & we will!!....so hard to believe it's 20 years ago!

quote:

Thank you American people for being so kind and friendly to our chancellor Angela Merkel yesterday before, during, and after her speech in Washington D.C.! Very much appreciated! And fascinating!

Thank you all for remembering this wonderful day in german history.
I'm glad to call you friends...

Birgit, and we are glad to call you our friend. You make the world a much better place with your loving presence!

Birgit, it was a rewarding experience to have lived and worked in Germany. I left with many fond memories. You and Reimer have helped make johnnycash.com an enjoyable Website for the rest of us.