We arrived in Munich after a “delightful” trip on a Yugoslav train. It originated in Athens and it was full of TURKS and GREEKS. The filth was incredible. No food or drinks and the toilets were beyond description. We left at 4:30 a.m. and arrived at 2:30 p.m. to a beautiful hotel dirty and tired. I spent an hour soaking in the tub. Our friend met us and took us to see Munich. Then on our way to Stuttgart and it was blazing hot at 95 degrees. Finally, we arrived in the Black Forest where we stayed in a log cabin and even though I was provided with heavy hunting clothes it was damp. The next morning as it was raining we decided to drive to Basel, Switzerland. It was pouring and at 3:30 a.m. on the train to Berlin. The German train was clean and we had a compartment to ourselves. Then upon entering East Germany the experience with East German soldiers began. We obtained a visa on the train to pass through East Germany into West Berlin. They looked at our passports and were surly laughing at Robert after seen his middle name Kennedy in his passport. They locked the doors and did a thorough search both inside and outside the train. There were soldiers in machine gun nests watching the train. The station was deserted with high walls and barbed wire surrounding it. The train started and many soldiers remained on the train. The train went very fast and only a handful of people in the stations we passed through. Dreariness everywhere in East Germany. The train stopped to let the soldiers off before we entered West Berlin.
We met our friend Hedi at the train station and went to her apartment where we stay for a few days. It is very new and modern like most of West Berlin. We met her boyfriend Michael who showed us around West Berlin. She will join her boyfriend leaving us her apartment full of food for hungry Robert. As a physician she will be on duty at her hospital for two days. Our next stop will be Frankfurt. We saw the Berlin Wall last night. It has been 10 years since it was built and, on this anniversary, they are expecting trouble. Hard to believe anyone could get over that wall. I think the worst thing is the trained dogs on the East German side. There are blazing bright lights and trip wire everywhere. I hate police dogs now more than ever. We were advised to fly into West Berlin but I wanted the experience of a train trip through East Germany. How fortunate we are to live in a free country where you may go where you please. I wanted to see a concentration camp but living with Germans it was impossible. Freedom is the most precious thing we have.
Bye for now
Love Marnee
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