Today’s Coffee Connection is my DAAD colleague John Paul Kleiner who is responsible for our Canada office in Toronto and who is also a historian with a special interest in the GDR.
John Paul is the creator of the blog GDR Objectified where he presents his collection of objects produced in, or related closely to, the German Democratic Republic (GDR)with the aim of providing a window into East German history in a historical and/or personal way. John Paul has a unique point of view as a Canadian historian who personally experienced Germany before, during and after the fall of the Wall.
I was born in East Berlin and was only 7 years old when the Wall came down. In this episode we talk about our experiences with the GDR from our unique viewpoints .
We talked about his blog, GDR movies, cultural artifacts and East Berlin architecture. Our conversation led to the Palace of the Republic, as an example of the challenges of reunification and how Ostalgie fits into the negotiation of the past and present.
Links:
DAAD Canada www.daad-canada.ca
GDR Objectified blog https://gdrobjectified.wordpress.com/
Kanopy (free streaming through public library) https://www.kanopy.com/
