When I visited Brussels, back in 2009, I had a fascinating “encounter” near the European Parliament. It was an exhibit made of parts from the Berlin Wall!
I have never been to Berlin but growing up, the Berlin Wall was something that was all too real and even from a young age I could understand the absurdity of such a thing.
I also remember the 9th of November 1989 as one of the happiest historical events of my life. One that triggered immense hopes for the future in my mind as well as in those of millions of other Europeans.
Some were fulfilled. The Cold War effectively ended as well as the Soviet Union.
Most were not. The European Union never became what it should have become, quite the contrary. Russia is still a “problematic” country on the world stage. The US as the sole superpower for a while was not the force of good it should have become. Globalization happened in such a way that it can be considered the cause of most of our problems nowadays.
Despite all of that, I still cherish this day, probably because historical events are rarely positive things nowadays. And seeing those parts of the wall for the first time gave a physical reality to those memories.
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