"During the last Socialist May Day parade in Magdeburg, we stood directly opposite the grand stand and I can still remember the propaganda slogans coming through the loudspeakers while the delegation went past.
I was interested in the GDR and in particular, in day-to-day life there. But the only way of becoming acquainted with it was by means of a private invitation – not through a tourist organisation and without restriction. This spurned me to seek and find private contacts with East Germans, such as for example, through neighbours who knew people in the GDR and once, when on holiday in Hungary. And that's how we ended up spending the long May Day weekend on a private visit in Magdeburg. We were happy to go along to the May Day rally with our hosts and later on to the fair where we had a large Frankfurter and a beer."
Udo Schleime
