Hi Chris ,

Yes , I guess it was a surprise to see how much Ukrainians take pictures.Later they can look back at the photos and reminisce how it was , who were there , and what fun it was.

You see , these people they can still enjoy life and feel good about little things.They still have a great sense of connecting to each other.

We , here in the Western capitalistic society have long forgotten , what the real treasures in life are.

But don`t get me wrong , of course , these people also want a good and prosperous life.I mean , every human being wants to have a good job , good salary and good prospects in life.

When the Berlin Wall fell and the Iron Curtain was taken down , I had already made several trips with the car to Poland , behind the Iron Curtain.

The checkpoint was at Marienburg if I am not mistaken at the East German border.You had to pass through 7 offices for checks.

You had to take all the luggage out and all persons must stand next to the car.They were checking underneath the seats and you had to open the engine hood also.With mirrors they were checking the underside of the car.

After this you were given a transit visa and then you would drive 2 kilometers to get on the highway.
And for 2 kms long , there were soldiers standing on both sides of the road with their AK-47s.

You had to be at the exit border checkpoint within 2 hours , after you had received the transit visa.
You were not allowed to leave the mainroad.

But guess what , on my first trip , yes , I got lost and took a wrong exit.I was passing through a very small village.

All the houses were very small and old.And they all stood on those 50 cm high stone blocks.So you could see from the street side if there was anyone standing in the backyard.

You look underneath the houses.
All the curtains were closed and so were the doors and windows.

There was not a single soul on the streets.I don`t know where these people were.Maybe they had gone to work and would come back later.

There were no children playing in the street.It was very , very quiet.
It was almost scaring.

To me it looked like a ghost town.

But I was thinking , if the Stasi would see me now , I can be in (big) trouble.Because maybe I was there to meet with someone.

Fortunately I did find my way to the main road within 15 minutes and I kept on driving.But constantly looking in the mirrors if I would see a car following me.

Or if the police would stop me further down the road.Luckily nothing happened and when I exited E Germany , I had to wait in the queu to go into Poland.

And the same checks we had to face.Taking all the luggage out and all persons must stand next to the car , etc ...

This is just a small example of how life was , behind the Iron Curtain.

I can assure you , that when you grow up in these circumstances , you will have a different life and you will appreciate other things (compared to Western young kids)

You see , in such circumstances , these people could only rely on their really close family or really , really good friends.

And it is in these conditions that you will appreciate each other more and more.

Oh , sure , I can keep on talking about life behind the Iron Curtain , because I lived there with these people ...