Sanssouci Palace - Frederick II's favorite "carefree" residence, Potsdam
Start at the Brandenburg Gate, 1991
Reichstag and bend in the Spree in Berlin
The strip of wall next to St. Thomas Church in Kreuzberg
The remains of the "Wall" near St. Thomas Church in Kreuzberg as a scar of the division of Germany
Berlin block with Zwingli Church in Berlin-Friedrichshain
Berlin's Gendarmenmarkt with the French Cathedral and former theater
Theater ruins, Old Town Hall and Nikolai Church in Potsdam 1991
The Elbe bridge near Dömitz, symbol of the division of Germany
Hovering over the Friedenskirche with a view of the gardens of Sanssouci Palace
Flying red deer in the shallow waters of Lake Müritz, once the hunting ground of the party leadership
Quedlinburg is famous for its medieval half-timbered houses
in 1990, the residents' lignite kilns also dominated the cityscape
Quedlinburg, old imperial city on the northern edge of the Harz Mountains
Quedlinburg, old imperial city on the northern edge of the Harz Mountains
The City-Hochhaus is considered one of Leipzig's landmarks and once housed the university as the "Uniriese" (university giant)
Refurbishment in stages, Leipzig City
Leipzig Trade Fair City, New Town Hall
Leipzig's main station, one of the largest terminus stations in Europe
Before Ketzin, the Havel Canal meets the Sacrow-Paretz Canal
Fruit blossom in Havelland near Ketzin
The state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern meets today at Schwerin Castle
The Schwerin Residence Ensemble has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since June 2024
With its countless playful turrets, Schwerin Castle, picturesquely situated on the lake, is one of the most popular castles in the world
Kombinat "Schwarze Pumpe", lignite gasification near Spremberg
Kombinat "Schwarze Pumpe", a dirt spinner, ecological emergency area
Gigantic lignite mining in the Lusatian coalfield
Huge chasms of torn up earth bear witness to decades of lignite mining
Lignite was the main source of energy in the GDR
Huge coal excavator in the 80-meter-deep opencast lignite mine near Spremberg
Lignite excavator behind demolished windmill near Gerbisdorf
Chemiekombinat Böhlen near Leipzig, the air tasted like matches when flying over it
Soviet barracks near Naumburg
Soviet army pioneer scrap near Werder
Soviet army pioneer scrap near Werder
Picnic on the Unterwarnow near Rostock
Typical GDR campsite, Stresow Bay on the island of Rügen
A Sorbian village near Spremberg has already been cleared for future opencast lignite mining
Cleared site on the edge of lignite mining near Spremberg
Gabled houses from the 17th century line the market square in Wismar
Port and city center of Wismar, once a mighty Hanseatic city
Wismar was the second largest seaport in the former GDR
Spreewald idyll
Former Chorin monastery on the Amtssee lake, founded by Cistercian monks in 1258
Engine shed of the Deutsche Reichsbahn in Rostock
Combine harvester of an LPG harvesting near Puttbus, island of Rügen
Village church of Vilmnitz on Rügen
Elbe riverbank with Dresden Court Church
Magdeburg was once considered the strongest fortress in Prussia, Magdeburg Cathedral and city wall on the Elbe
Not only barges find their way into the interior of the Spreewald
Bautzen, medieval town center of the city of the Sorbs
View of the Haputmarkt and Alter Wasserkunst in Bautzen
Meissen became famous above all for its porcelain manufactory
The Wartburg on the Wartberg, Thuringian Forest
Martin Luther translated the New Testament from the Greek at Wartburg Castle
Kyffhäuser monument - what happened to the legend of Emperor Rothbart?
Administration building of Wismuth AG, uranium mining near Ronneburg/Gera
Socialist concrete slab housing estate in the satellite town of Prohlis, Dresden
Almost completely destroyed in the hail of bombs in February 1945, Dresden was a major construction site in 1991
Dresden, Florence on the Elbe, once one of the most beautiful baroque cities on the continent
Old tobacco office in Dresden
Pillnitz, pleasure palace and baroque palace park of Augustus the Strong
Pillnitz, pleasure palace and baroque palace park of Augustus the Strong
Pillnitz, the Bergpalais as a mirror image of the Wasserpalais on the Elbe
Winter atmosphere in a village near Beierfeld, Erzgebirge
Vilmnitz village church, Rügen
Lutherstadt Erfurt, Domberg with cathedral and St. Severi Church
Today, market stalls once again fill the huge cathedral square in Erfurt
The trading and university city of Erfurt is over 1200 years old
Mecklenburg was shaped by the ice age
The old town center of Werder is located on an island in the Großer Zernsee
Old water tower in Rostock
Tall ships from all over the world came to the Hanse Sail 1991 in Rostock
Ruins of the brick Gothic Georgenkirche church in Wismar
Trading and warehouses in Rostock
Snow caps over quartz sandstone, climbing paradise Saxon Switzerland, Rauenstein
Typical rock formation of the Elbe sandstone near Rathen
Elbe Sandstone near Rathen, the Elbe cuts through the Table Mountain region
Snow-covered rock formations in Saxon Switzerland
We float silently over the Rätzsee in Mecklenburg
Grosser Plessower See, Havelland near Werder
Spreewald barges waiting for tourists
The palace and artistic landscape of the gardens on the Neisse swallowed up Prince Pückler-Muskau's entire fortune
Idyllic sailing on the Beetzsee

With the balloon over East Germany (1991)

Together with Nord/LB and Interflug, Kajo applied for permission to launch a hot-air balloon over the GDR in 1990. With the support of the state airline, we were eventually able to achieve 60 launches. Many proposals failed because they were too close to Russian military installations. Floating over a landscape in a hot-air balloon is one of the most beautiful flying experiences. What an enhancement to explore a Germany from the air that had hardly changed since the end of the world war. For a photographer, however, the hot air balloon can also be an extremely frustrating aircraft, as it is not the pilot who determines the direction of travel of the mobile vantage point, but the wind. Too much or too little wind or thermals also prevent a take-off. We covered over 30,000 km with a VW bus and trailer in order to take advantage of the few hours available. The wind direction, wind strength and sunny, thermal-free times of day had to be right. The volume published by KaJo-Verlag in 1991 (author: Martin Ahrends) was reprinted several times.