A few days ago I drove to Las Vegas to visit my brother.
It was a nice and easy ride, Interstate 5 through Sacramento. Turning east on 58 through Bakersfield and Barstow , then on highway 15 to Las Vegas. All together 720 miles with a driving time of 11. 1/2 hours. The gas prices varied between $ 3.65 and $ 4.25. The traffic was light to none and there was not much difference between this ride and my usual annual rides during the last 20 years.
My surprise came when my brother took me downtown and I observed an unusual place. To make it short, they sold pre-mixed drinks, like Margaritas, to the passing tourists. No place to sit down, just the drinks over the counter.
So far, so good.
However, the prices were something else. The least expensive drink was $9 and then up to $39. I was stunned, $20 on the average for a single drink. So I stopped and watched if this outfit really had customers. Well, I did not see anyone buying a drink for $39, however, there were plenty people who paid $15 – and then tipped another $5 on top of it.
The bartender did not even mix the drinks as they were all pre-mixed. They must be living in a different world than I am in.
On our ranch, we have to buy chicken feed and raise the chicks for over 1/2 year until they lay any eggs. Then we have to provide water and clean the chicken sheds, buy cartons for the eggs and finally sell the fresh farm eggs for $ 3.50 a dozen. . . and tips? What is that?
Hmmm……………..
Dear Horst Christian, I could not put your books down, they are so inspiring and made me look back to the time I lived in Berlin as a child. I was born in 1939 and I still remember when Berlin was surrounded by fire, when we had to run across the street to seek shelter. I remember when Berlin was bombed and many of the streets and building were destroyed. I remember seeing bodies floating near a canal near a hospital (I don’t recall the name of the hospital). I still recall a big hole in our apartment building which was hit by a bomb. Our apartment was next to the Russian Consulate.
I remember a lot of the street names. I lived in ‘Tempelhof and then in Neukoelln. I worked near the Zoo at a place called Oberverwaltungsgericht. I never really appreciated what took place in Berlin because I was too young. As I was reading your books and also a book called ‘Letters from Berlin’ I was reminded how bad things really were.
I am glad to be living in this country now, but I never want to forget how horrifying things were for the jewish people and also the german people
Thank you for keeping my childhood memories alive
Dot McDonough
Hi Dot,
I am glad to read that you survived a terrible time period.
The odds were absolutely against you. Your parents or your relatives who protected and assisted you, must have been remarkable people.
I also remember your place of work. The Oberverwaltungsgericht was not a word or name for us, but a “Begriff”
You mentioned Neukoelln and I remember counting dead bodies in the Grollmanstrasse. Counting dead bodies and dragging them to burning sites.
We dragged the remains to massive holes in the ground and the Soviets poured gasoline on them and/or burned them with flame throwers. Not fun,thinking back.
I sincerely hope that your childhood memories are more pleasant than mine.
Congratulations, Dot, for making it to the US.
Thanks for reading my books and should you have any particular questions about a specific place in Berlin don’t hesitate to ask. I was there and my memory is still working. Maybe I am able to answer.
All the best to you, Dot,
Horst