September 1945 - Helmstedt

"People have gathered here, too. They tell me that it really was unmanned until a few moments ago. They push us back with rifle butts and kicks. I manage to stay at the head of the crowd. Each time they turn around, I am right behind them. They won’t budge, not even with Schnaps. Many try to get through 50 meters past the turnpike. But I have to stay on the path with my pram. One of the sergeants gets on his bike and rides off."

27th July - Schwerin to Helmstedt

"Once he has chased us off, the other Russian now stands 30 metres away from the turnpike. I’m already 20 meters closer. If I make a run for it, I’ll get there before him! Shall I? I’m already running. The pram cover won’t fit under the barrier. It’s a matter of seconds! Which means the Russian could still shoot. I don’t care. I pull the turnpike off its’ hinges, pull the pram over, and run as fast as I can. Only after 100 meters do I look round. Many have followed my example. I am saved, the path homeward is clear!"

"I keep running, even thought it’s no longer necessary, out of pure joy. And soon I reach the first English sentry. He gives me directions. My school-English is enough. I understand every word. At the next corner I take a big sip of schnaps! It does me good. Funny – normally I can’t get it down. […] then a women with a sport pram and a small girl in it arrives. I give her a sip of schnaps to, and we continue on together."

"The woman suddenly remembers that a friend of hers fled her to her parents’. We find her. It’s a pretty estate. We are warmly welcomed. The children get a thick milk porridge, and we have fried potatoes, bacon, peas and carrots. We are able to wash in the bathroom, and then we continue, despite the rain and falling darkness."

- Part 2

We are really curious – it looks as though the path we came in on was in fact the exact border path that would have been here then. We walk back, first trying to find the train tracks where they would have jumped from the train in the night. We find them, easily, and can guess at which paths they would have taken to head up to the former crossing point. Distance wise, it makes sense – she had to push uphill through a forest path to get to the first set of Russian soldiers.

Tired, but quite pleased with ourselves, we start the walk back to Helmstedt. Realising that we have missed the last train, we decide to go to a restaurant here, and then take a taxi on to the next town. The restaurant we stop in is Greek, and the terrace looks inviting. However, we have a really bad experience with the owner here, who seems to take offence at our being vegetarian, and asks us to finish our beers and leave which we do, bemused and a bit upset at the hostile and strange reception into former Western Germany.

Janis, as he was called, becomes the mascot for the next few days of our trip. Interestingly we meet a few more Janis’ on the way, and can’t make out if it is the fact that we are travelling with big rucksacks that puts people out, or if there is something in my manner of asking in German that doesn’t suit people here.

On this evening, a kebab shop saves the day, and the friendly taxi driver then speeds us on to the nearest Hotel I could book, which is about 15km away in Königslutter am Elm. The hotel is very sweet, Alps themed, and our hosts here are much friendlier than Janis, thankfully.

"We come past the first houses. We’re given hot coffee. In the village, hundreds sit and wait to be transported onwards with buses. It rains a lot – a downpour! We wait with the others for three hours. I feed Inge in the corridor of a house. Then we’ve had enough. Helmstedt is only 12km away. We’re getting wet here anyway, so lets go.
Both of us march on. We cover the children with blankets and a rain cape. We women are soon drenched. But what does it matter. We are nearing home. My new acquaintance wants to get to the Rheinland. We march for 6km, and get to Mariental or Marienfeld – I don’t remember."

The final stretch is along a long road lined with forest, and then we get to the former border crossing. It reminds us of other border points we know well ourselves – Dover, Calais etc. – but much larger, and much more interesting architecture. It has been turned into an open-air museum, with everything left how it would have been in ’89. It is a very well designed exhibition, which we move through easily, enjoying the really informative boards along the way.

In the main building, we ask if they can give us any information about where the border would have run in ’45 – was it different to later? She takes us upstairs and shows us a few photos. Yes, it was slightly different – back a bit from here, towards Helmstedt and in the forest. ‘Go to the barracks’ (this is where we came through by accident) ‘and take a right, and follow the path in the forest.’

Late 40's/early 50's, before it was moved

1945, a view of one of the Russian checkpoints - very likely a similar 'post' to where Inge crossed over

1950's, a view of one of the Russian checkpoints - very likely a similar 'post' to where Inge crossed over

People crossing over the newly opened border from East to West Germany in 1989.

It takes us about 15 minutes, this time looping around the barracks, and straight into the forest, to where the first crossing point would have been. We spend a good time trying to find the old watch tower, which our guide at the museum had said may or may not still be here, but all we find is an old, small, tower of bricks. We try a different route, back in the direction of the train tracks, but don’t find anything significant.

We are both a little sad at not finding the exact building – but are both also buoyed by the fact that we think we walked the exact route she would have done, without knowing it. Where we stopped at the old medieval watchtower is probably where the second guards would have been. She had to make her way through forest for 20 minutes at least to get from one to the other, and from there on to safety, and so again time and space wise it just makes sense.