It was here, in April 1986, that I dined out in Leipzig for the first time. The restaurant is very much as I remembered it. Atmospheric. Located beneath the Mädlerpassage in Leipzig’s historic quarter, its entrance is marked by two very fitting bronze statues; Mephisto and Faust and Bewitched Students. It has four dining rooms; the Groβer Keller (large cellar), the Fasskeller (barrel cellar), the Goethezimmer (Goethe room), and the Lutherzimmer (Luther room). In 1986, my friends and I were seated in a jam-packed Groβer Keller by our Hungarian waiter, Luis Ratz. After ordering devilled pork all round – that’s all there was – and Hell, the local beer, we were all starting to feel like quislings of Mephisto himself which, appropriately enough, would be how many would later view us as capitalist westerners. We were attracting attention from the diners and waiting staff, especially the girls, and I couldn’t help sensing trouble ahead.

After serving our beer, Luis asked me to follow him to the kitchen. It seemed a strange request and the girls thought I should stay put. I had a certain responsibility being the only boy, I guess, but the lure of adventure, not to mention a peep behind the scenes of this famous restaurant, were all too much to resist. So I followed him. The kitchen was like the engine room of a sinking ship, full of steam and water, with people running around like crazy, trying to keep it afloat. Luis opened a bottle of Hell and poured two glasses. We toasted and drank. Out of the corner of my eye I saw that he had completely emptied his, so I made sure I did the same. He was grinning from ear to ear.

You want to change money ? he said. I can give you a good rate. Black market rate.
Well we’ve just arrived so we’re all okay right now, but when we run short I’ll come and see you, I replied.
Good, yes. How long are you staying in Leipzig ?
Three months.
Three months ! Wow, that’s great. We can be good friends.
Sure.
Are you married ? Luis asked.
No.
Look here. He pulled out a wallet and from within it withdrew a small photograph of a young girl.
This is my daughter, he said. She is beautiful, no ?
Yes, very.
You want to marry ?
Not right now, I smiled.
No, not right now. But she is in Hungary. I want her to live in the west. She is very beautiful. Maybe you can think about to marry her ?
Sure, I’ll think about it. But I have a girlfriend who may not like the idea much.
Ha ha, yes, I see. But think about it, okay. And remember, the money. I can give you a good rate.

About this project

In 1986 Paul Crask, a student of German at Leeds University, went to study at the Karl Marx University, Leipzig in the former GDR. For three months he travelled by train around the south of the country, as well as to East Berlin, visiting places such as Dresden, Weimar, Jena, Halle, the Harz Mountains, and the former concentration camp at Buchenwald. Accompanied by a handful of students from Leeds, and followed everywhere by the Stasi, Paul kept a detailed journal of his adventures during this fascinating period in history. It was the time when the US bombed Libya from the UK, when the Chernobyl disaster took place – and all of it during his time in the east. Paul found himself in conversations with Afghans, Russian soldiers, members of the East German secret police, and he even walked in on a PLO fund-raiser completely by accident.

1986 is a project that aims to bring these episodes and many more back to life, almost a quarter of a century later.

To discuss this project, please email paulcrask@gmail.com