The Mark of the Deutsch Mark

I'm writing this on a train to Berlin. I have an appointment this morning with the lead curator at the DDR (Deutsche Democratik Republik) Museum at 11, so I got an early 6:30 start to ensure punctuality; which--of course--is very important in Germany.

As many of you may know, the original goal of this project in the Harz had to do with examining the impact of the DDR on folk culture of the Harz. Over the past two month, through a great deal of travel and conversing with people of the region, it is appearing that the traditions of the region remained very resilient to the presence of Soviet rule. Surprisingly enough, the eastern half of the Harz appears to have maintained tradition and culture better than that of its western counter part. In the east, while nearly every town is entered via a rundown or deserted train depot, the historic appearance of the the villages remain much more authentic.

When speaking with residents of the Eastern Harz, the response to the westerners is generally uniform: The Wessies see only money. After the war, the Western Harz sought to redevelop and capitalize on a health/wellness aspect of tourism. Health spas and clean air resorts were established in towns like Bad Harzburg and Bad Lauterburg, appealing to crowds of tourists who could afford such luxuries. Within the economic surge in these towns, the most logical thing to do was to continue to grow. Unfortunately, one of the first stages of growth involves replacing the old with something new--in this case, this meant demolishing many of the half timbered structures that once characterized the towns of the Harz. Essentially, the post war tourism economy of the West Harz was entirely based on a luxury resort mentality.

In the East, under the communist rule, there was no money to "waste" on such things. Certainly, the idea of "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" applied heavily here. Though I might add, if it was broke if was typically fixed with something ugly and made out of concrete. What was fixed after WWII in the east was not very pretty and took a very long time (the central market place in Halberstadt wasn't even touched until after reunification), but the historic houses--thought they might not have been acknowledged as historically worthwhile at the time--were left alone. Tourism in the area was based more so on sight seeing and inquiry over a resort mentality, keeping places like the Hexentanzplaz, Rosstrappe, and Wernigerode relevant. In this sense, Communism--though inadvertently and mostly through a lack of funds--served to preserve much of this part of the east.

I'm anxious to speak with the folks at the DDR Museum, and see if they have much to add to the roll of reunification on the traditions of the Harz. The project is beginning to shape itself into something a bit different than on the get go, but this is really to be expected and actually preferred. The generation gap in the feelings of Heimat (attachment to ones home town) is a major theme that is taking shape, as well as the demise of the Dorf mentality (small village living). These are topics I will discuss further in my next blog.