Walking the Border

In 1999, a massive storm off the Dutch coast brought an early end to Marco Bertram's dream to sail to the Sydney Olympics. But the life-threatening disaster freed him up for a different project: Walking the border that once separated West and East Germany. In 2003, he and a friend spend six weeks to cover some 1,100 kilometers (683 miles) and finally reach the Baltic Sea. Bertram, who grew up in East Berlin and was 16 when the Wall fell, biked along the border again in the fall of 2005 and is currently helping to map the so-called Iron Curtain Trail, which will cover some 7,000 kilometers from the north of Finland to the Black Sea.

DW-WORLD.DE: Why did you decide to walk the entire length of the former border?

Marco Bertram: The renovation of Berlin's Friedrichstrasse train station, a former border crossing from East to West Berlin, was a pivotal moment for me. They didn't leave a single trace of the old border installations. Before that, I was happy every time I saw a piece of the Wall disappearing. I was proud that Berlin was growing together. So a friend of mine and I decided to walk 166 kilometers (103 miles) around West Berlin. It took us five days and on the last day, we thought: "We should really walk along the German border."

Most of the border has disappeared. How did you decide where to walk?

We walked on the concrete path next to the border that had been used by East German patrols. Some 80 percent of it still exist.

Growing up in East Germany, had you seen the border before 1989?

I had no idea what it looked like. The Berlin Wall was tangible, but we couldn't get closer than five kilometers to the border. I remember seeing a movie as a child where a deer ran over a land mine in the death strip. That really left an impression. Walking along the border, to see it in such detail, was a strange experience. It was a monstrous structure that really covered every angle and every corner.

What impressed you the most?

I was surprised how many border crossings actually existed. The razed villages also were stunning -- to see a cemetery, to know that a town once existed here, but nothing's left of it. It was also interesting to see that people on both sides had problems. In the East, villages were deserted. In the West, they got subsidies. And even now, people still rather go shopping one town eastwards or one town westwards on their side. That connection's still stronger, especially among the older generation.

What advice would you give to someone who is interested in checking out the former German border?

I cannot recommend doing it on foot. It's a mammoth tour and a lot of it involves walking on streets and that's no fun. But biking along the border is a great thing and you don't have to do the whole length, but can just pick a section. It's all quite beautiful in terms of the landscape.

You've since traveled along the former Iron Curtain elsewhere in Europe. How does it compare to Germany?

There's nothing left between the Czech Republic and Germany. Maybe a stone, a sign on the Czech side, but that's it. There's even less than in Germany, where the concrete path's still there. And the Balkans cannot be compared, because the borders continue to exist. You can't see what the border's like between Serbia and Romania or between Serbia and Bulgaria. If you get within five kilometers of the border, there are patrols that stop you. It's hard to find out what it looks like and it's not advisable to try and get any closer.

Do you already have plans for future projects?

I'm considering walking along the Cypriot border.

What about the border between North and South Korea?

I'll be the first one to walk it once it's open.

An exhibition based on Bertram's German border travels will be on display a the Marienborn border memorial from Nov. 9 until Jan. 29, 2007. He also plans to publish at book about the experience in 2007.