In the organizer's words:

Lecture by Rebecca Salentin

In April 2022, Rebecca sets off to conquer the Iron Curtain Trail: almost 10,000 kilometers through 20 countries, always along the former Iron Curtain. There is snow, many countries are subject to Covid-related entry restrictions, Rebecca herself has mutated into a corona couch potato during the pandemic and her expertise in cycling ends when she unscrews the valve cap: she can't even fix a flat tire. And she doesn't know that although the trail exists as an ingenious idea on paper, in reality it is impassable over long distances. Nevertheless, she rides from the mountainous Balkans across Europe to the Baltic States and on to the icy Barents Sea, exposing herself to wilderness, wind, weather and wild animals. True to the motto: "If the road is too strong, you are too weak!", she perseveres where others have long since given up.

The rudimentary trail repeatedly leads her into catastrophic situations: in the heat of the Balkans, she has to carry her bike over the mountains on humpy goat paths, in the north she sinks into the swamp and above the Arctic Circle, only reindeer, bears, wolves and wolverines keep her company in the icy solitude of Lapland. She crosses the former death strip, passes through secret Soviet towns, restricted military areas, minefields and razed villages. She experiences at first hand the effects that the former division between "East" and "West" still has on Europe today.

Her goal: to shed light on the darkness of family secrets. Where the no-man's-land of the Iron Curtain now leaves a scar across Europe, she searches for traces of her grandparents: one was a Holocaust survivor who wandered from refugee camp to refugee camp as a stateless person along the emerging Iron Curtain, the other was involved in the crimes of the Wehrmacht as a simple soldier. Neither side ever spoke about what they had experienced. Along the demarcation line, where political systems, people and even nature were separated for decades, Rebecca is able to talk to border guards, asylum seekers, war refugees, migrant workers, historians and displaced persons. The old barriers have not yet rotted away, but new bulwarks are already standing. The dead of the Iron Curtain have long since been joined by those of Europe's isolation. Authentic, touching, disturbing and sometimes shocking stories come together. Also because Rebecca dares to go to Russia against the warning of the Foreign Office and risks being arrested. In the end, she has not only uncovered a piece of family history, she also goes down in history as the first woman to conquer the Iron Curtain Trail!

Duration: 17:00 to 19:00

Globetrotter Club members receive all tickets at a discount. So if you are not yet a member, register as soon as possible without obligation.

Price information:

Globetrotter Club 10.00 EUR normal price 15.00 EUR