Virtual European Cultural Centre
- European study of the everyday culture -
Telecommunications
"Deutschlandtreffen" and a call from Berlin
"Deutschlandtreffen" and a call from Berlin
In 1964, a landline telephone was rather an exception, and there were no
mobile phones. A telephone set W38 like the one displayed above was
common. It was pretty heavy and with dial plate. The dialler in the
switching centre was almost directly controlled by the impulses of the
dial plate. For private communication at home, there were hardly any
telephones at the disposal. Most phone calls, also for private purposes,
were made at work. However, only if there was a possibility to phone,
since a telephone was not available at each workplace. But public
communication could have been disabled in the phone at work as well.
"Now, I just give them a ring at home. I only want to tell that I will
be there a bit later than announced." Nowadays I quickly have got my
mobile phone at hand, the message is done and the problem solved.
In 1964, it was not so easy to make a quick call. You had to arrange
everything beforehand or to write a postcard or letter. But this
communication took time, was nothing for urgent matters.
During my apprenticeship for a telecommunications technician, I have
learnt how interphone systems, saftey systems, fire alarm systems and
others are constructed. For that, I was in a group of six trainees who
went from building site to building site in firms, museums or hospitals,
mostly laying the cables for those facilities. We often only met for
instructions. During one instruction, Johannes or Eberhard came up with
the idea to do something together and for instance to go to Berlin. For
it, there was the offer that the best group of trainees can go to Berlin
to the "Deutschlandtreffen" (Germany-Meeting) in May 1964. So we tried
hard and could win the race. Thus, our group went to Berlin, to
East-Berlin more exactly. The "Wall" was already existing.
There were a lot of events, music and many young people at this
"Deutschlandtreffen". It was great for our group to go by motor-boat in
Grünau. Such a thing did not exist in Dresden.
Not so great was our journey to Berlin in goods-wagons without seats and
without windows, but with a big door for luggage and partially with an
internediate floor inside. So we had to sit on the hard floor, always
with some draught. The doors were not closed, and the wooden paneling of
the wagons was not so tight, too. The train had to stop often, probably
also due to the lack of toilets. Anyway, Berlin seemed to be very far
away from Dresden.
The accomodation in Berlin, in a school in Köpenick with thirty people
on straw in a classroom was indeed simple but not unusual in that time.
Moreover, the performances often ended so late that we did not sleep much.
Perhaps I was not used to that kind of stress or I catched an illness.
Anyway, after a short time I felt more and more sick. The idea of
calling somebody to ask for advice did not occurred to me. Where should
I phone? At home, there was no telephone. It went on as it had to, the
problem did not solve itself. Already after a short time I felt so bad
that I had to lay down on the straw in our accommodation. There, the
medical service picked me up and took me to a doctor. Then, I could not
even think as fast as I was transported to the hospital by an ambulance
with blue light. I could only ask Steffen, one of our group, to inform
my parents, because now the Berlin-adventure would take longer. A mobile
phone or telephone was not available, and where should I call?
When my parents got to know about my way to hospital, they were worried
about me, but they had no idea where I could be and what had happened.
My father had a telephone at work and searched for me in the hospitals
of Berlin. After three or four days, my father could talk to me on the
phone. Of course, I had already overcome nearly everything, I felt
better and could tell that I would come home again soon.
I could not tell by which train and - most of all - at which time I
would return. Anyhow, I was at home soon, safe and sound, and could tell
everything, so that all were satisfied and happy again. But nowadays,
with mobile phone or telephone, such things happen in a quite different
way. Let me call somebody straight away!
