Shortly after the Berlin Wall came down in 1989, I moved abroad from Germany. On the occasions I did return I rarely ventured further than Hamburg where my family lived. Yet now, here we were, sailing to a completely unknown country – the former East Germany. Our family, now based in Sydney, planned an exploratory cruise along the coast of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern – a state in the north-east of Germany. The Baltic is renowned as a soft cruising ground without tide or major swells and is perfect for sailing between the months of June and August. Every few miles there is a marina with all the facilities to welcome sailors at a reasonable cost. Navigation in these more southern reaches of the Baltic is also quite easy.
EXPLORING UNKNOWN TERRITORY
Looking at the innocent sandy coast, I felt deeply for the many Germans who had been living in a communist state
