I visited Berlin just before the wall came down and the difference between West and East Berlin was unimaginable. The West was vibrant, exciting, and full of life while the East was like being in a dystopian prison country. I spent 3 days and nights at the wall when it came down watching the East Berliners walk through Checkpoint Charlie into West Berlin with their faces full of tears and awe. West Berlin gave each of them the equivalent of $35 so that they could go and have a beer. Most of them bought a banana. They could not buy bananas in the East and this was the first time they had eaten one.
I visited Berlin just before the wall came down and the difference between West and East Berlin was unimaginable. The West was vibrant, exciting, and full of life while the East was like being in a dystopian prison country. I spent 3 days and nights at the wall when it came down watching the East Berliners walk through Checkpoint Charlie into West Berlin with their faces full of tears and awe. West Berlin gave each of them the equivalent of $35 so that they could go and have a beer. Most of them bought a banana. They could not buy bananas in the East and this was the first time they had eaten one.