Category Archives: History
History Lessons in Bolivia
In a remote jungle school in Bolivia, I am surprised by what the children learn about Germany. Continue reading
Marienbad Eulogy
Zur deutschen Fassung dieses Artikels. It seems that the Corona virus will impede long-distance travel for quite a while. In that time of need, maybe we’ll finally discover what has always been so close. Writing for an international audience, it’s … Continue reading
The Smoking Snakes
Zur deutschen Fassung dieses Artikels. These days, eurocentric Europeans are celebrating the end of World War II, although in Asia, that show didn’t get cancelled until a few months later. The surviving US-American, British, French, Belgian, New Zealand, Australian, Indian, … Continue reading
Wait, when was World War II again?
Zur deutschen Fassung dieses Artikels. A strange questions, it seems, especially coming from someone studying history. But the more you travel in the post-Soviet world, i.e. in the countries that became independent after the end of the Soviet Union, the … Continue reading
Uman: Communism or Cheesy Story?
There is really no reason to visit Uman. It is a small city like hundreds of others in Ukraine. But because it lies halfway between Kyiv and Odessa, I decided to break the journey and to spend a day and … Continue reading
“East West Street” by Philippe Sands
As a lawyer and budding historian, I found Philippe Sands‘ idea of telling the story of international criminal law through the biographies of Hersch Lauterpacht and Raphael Lemkin interesting. But the book East West Street is overloaded with the irrelevant … Continue reading
Kyiv – Day 18/21 – Snow
Recently, many readers were jealous because of the mild Ukrainian winter. You needn’t be jealous any longer, for it finally snowed and became slightly colder. But before you say “oh, how pretty”, I should point out that the photos were … Continue reading
Kyiv – Day 13/21
For some places, rain is the suitable weather. And nightfall the suitable time. At that moment, the eternal flame for the unknown soldiers of World War II, the memorial for the Holodomor and some church, which I can never tell … Continue reading
Kyiv – Day 10/21 – Babi Yar
There is so much to say about this place, but before I do so, I need to spend more time there, read more about it and think more. As you see from the photos, it got dark too early for … Continue reading
