Tag Archives: German history

Does the Federal Republic of Germany even exist? A discussion with a “Reichsbürger”.

Posted on 2019-08-07 by

Many years ago, someone walked into my law office, showed me a notice about some traffic fine and explained, confusing our respective roles in the attorney-client relationship, why he definitely wouldn’t need to pay the fine. According to him, the … Continue reading →

Posted in German Law, Germany, History, Law, Military, Politics, World War II | Tagged , , | 10 Comments

East Germany and West Germany, seen from the outside

Posted on 2019-03-07 by

In the old days, before Erasmus, academic exchanges were still complicated: visa, health insurance, exchanging money. And then there was no internet, so you couldn’t start looking for accommodation before the move. The first week was usually spent at a hotel, … Continue reading →

Posted in Cold War, Education, Germany, History, Media, UK | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Eastern Germany, the unknown Germany

Posted on 2018-10-03 by

The headline is not universally true, of course, but merely a reference to my own limited experience. But let me tell you how I came to it. Last winter, when I lived in Montenegro, I met a woman who was either … Continue reading →

Posted in Cold War, Germany, History, Travel | Tagged , | 14 Comments

Donald Trump and Adolf Hitler

Posted on 2016-07-30 by

After Donald Trumps’s speech at the Republican National Convention, I made this joke, inspired both by the plagiarism in the current Mrs Trumps’ speech and by the speech itself: As with all my other Donald Trump jokes however, it turned out … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Elections, History, Politics, US election 2016, USA | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

What is the SS Marching Band doing in Bolivia?

Posted on 2016-04-09 by

On average, you are awoken by marching bands in Bolivia twice per week and at least once per week you will be prevented from falling asleep at night by a marching band and fireworks. I generally like this, and it’s much better … Continue reading →

Posted in Bolivia, Education, Germany, History, Music, Travel, Video Blog | Tagged , , | 12 Comments

German history follows me all the way to Bolivia

Posted on 2016-02-19 by

A few days ago in Santa Cruz in eastern Bolivia: The Orient Express on which I had come from San José de Chiquitos even further in the east of the country was delayed by an hour, so I had to hurry to get to the airport to catch … Continue reading →

Posted in Bolivia, German Law, Germany, History, Holocaust, Immigration Law, Law, Travel, World War II | Tagged , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

Why is German reunification celebrated on 3 October?

Posted on 2015-10-03 by

Today, Germany celebrates the 25th anniversary of the reunification of East and West Germany on 3 October 1990. The history buffs among you will know that the Berlin Wall fell almost a year earlier, on 9 November 1989. So why … Continue reading →

Posted in Germany, History, Holocaust | Tagged , , , , , , | 14 Comments