Europe Euphoria

The Berlin Wall split East from West Berlin for many years. There was a time when it was considered the most detested symbol and Berliners were eager to tear it down but now the city officials and the artists are arguing about how to do the exact opposite. How to save the crumbling wall rich in history of troubled times. The Wall is rotten inside which is eroding it away steadily and fiercely. Not only the East Side Gallery of the wall is crumbling but the remains of the166-kilometer wall are also dying out. A long 1.3-kilometer stretch of gaily-colored Berlin Wall situated alongside the river Spree and near the Ostbahnhof railway station is one of the major tourist attraction. The famous images such as the fraternal communist kiss between East German leader Erich Honecker and Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev or the East German Trabant car that appears to be bursting through the wall are fading and appear as a sad sight. The total cost of renovating the wall is estimated to be more than euro 1.3 million (US$1.8 million). The start of restoration work was planned for September but would most likely have to be postponed due to funding woes and paperwork. The delay in the wall’s renovation project is further deteriorating it and we hope the city officials soon take steps forward to keep the wall’s largest remaining section from eroding away and falling apart.