This dramatized chronicle is based on real events and describes the remarkable love between a terrorized woman from the German Democratic Republic (GDR) and a somewhat peculiar Dutchman. To protect people's privacy, I've changed some names and facts without altering the essence of the story.
This chapter tells about the acquaintance of Barbara, an ex-gymnast who is in serious trouble, and Sven, an ex-command who does not fit well in our society. It's love at first sight. Irrepressible outdoor sex in public is ultimately the result.
§1.1 The Netherlands, a beautiful day at the end of April 1990.
The phone on my desk rang. Lost in thought and a little annoyed I took the telephone handset off the hook.
"Sven van Larwick," I said automatically.
"Hello, Barbara Bannaloni here," came cheerfully in German from the telephone receiver. "I am now in West Germany near the border with the Netherlands, where I visited family of mine. People I had never seen"
After a hesitation: "Could I come and stay with you for two or three nights?" Her voice now sounded a little nervous.
Who she was, what this was about and why she wanted to come was completely obscure to me. In my best German I repeated that I was Sven van Larwick and asked her if she had phoned a wrong number.
"No, no, no," she said. "We met at Meike's house. She gave me your number."
That was strange. Meike knew very well that I didn't want that. She would never do something like that. Who the hell was I talking to?
Suddenly it dawned on me. An adrenaline rush was injected into my blood vessels and my stomach tightened. How was it possible that I hadn't known who she was right away? For more than a year now, she had been occupying my mind day and night. The girl I was talking to, was Meike's furious and stunningly beautiful colleague from the GDR.
§1.2 GDR, February 1989.
It was a rainy evening. The tiled stove radiated a cozy warmth and the smell of burning lignite was detectable throughout the city. The room was lit by a simple pre-war hanging lamp. Meike, her husband Werner and I sat together at the table. She was a nurse and he was the manager of a sports complex. They both were friendly and attentive. Last week, I had stayed with them.
The next day, I had to go back to the Netherlands, even though I really preferred to stay a little longer myself. My visa would expire and I was absolutely no longer welcome in the GDR. Actually, I had never been welcome, but I had obtained a visa anyway. Corruption also has benefits.
I had been commissioned by a senior editor friend to write a piece about East German sports practices. She didn't care about my lyrics because they weren't brilliant. She needed my nose because I was able to smell smelly things. She wanted tidbits, facts and things that were not right. Facts that stank. I had managed to bring these facts to light before. People, especially women tend to tell me a lot without me asking. Sometimes, a smile and an encouraging look can be magical.
Before my trip to the GDR, I had a negative and unfavorable impression of East Germans: closed, hostile, everyone for themselves, and every fifth inhabitant was a traitor, recruited by the Stasi (
the East German intelligence service
). Yet the inhabitants, particularly the post-war youth, were nice, hospitable people who resented the Russian occupiers and the government of Erich Honecker.
After getting to know the country a bit, I understood why the people seemed so unpleasant. Every house was tapped. It was very important at that time not to say anything negative about the government. People who did so were punished with severe harassment or even imprisonment. No wonder that people behaved suspiciously and closed. Despite everything, you could still notice that the population was getting tired of the repression. Something was brewing.
The bell rang and Meike answered the door. Moments later, a dazzlingly beautiful woman, whirled into the room, with the grace of a ballerina. She looked insanely fit, not very tall, about 5.2 feet. Her Incredible strength and flexibility was clearly visible. She was about 25 years old, maybe a bit older. The beauty's appearance had a striking resemblance to that of Sofia Loren during her best years. Actually, she was even looking better.
(
To have a better understanding of what happened to me that night, it would be beneficial to examine some photos of Sofia Loren from the 1950s
).
Meike said to me: "This is Barbara, a colleague of mine. She came by to borrow an iron."
After that, she said to Barbara: "This is Sven, the Dutchman I told you about. Do you want a cup of coffee?"
Meike's colleague floated towards me, and I stood up. The girl stopped right in front of me, came down to earth, and gave me a firm handshake. With a confident look, without any embarrassment, I was examined by her. She had radiant, extremely clear amber eyes. The eyes of Mona Lisa weren't even close to match hers. They captured my own eyes and looking away, or even blinking, was impossible. Her appearance made a crushing impression. Everything was right to perfection. What a radiance and what a terrible pity that I had to leave tomorrow with no chance of ever seeing her again.
Barbara asked me where I lived, if I was married and if I had children. I said that I had a wife, but no children.
"What is your reason for being in the GDR and how did you manage to enter the country?"
She looked at me questioningly with a ravishing and interested look. Was she flirting with me? She was obviously interested in me without me realizing it at the time. I am quite naive in such matters.
