"A view from the living-room window in what was my family’s official flat on the second floor at Hof Central Station. A train full of refugees – I think it was the fourth – arrives from Prague. Guarded silence prevails among the countless auxiliary staff from the Bavarian Red Cross (BRK), as well as among the railway and city police, and Federal Border Guards. Hof locals, burning with curiosity, also remain very quiet. From the passengers in the train that has just pulled in, however, there comes a deafening roar – like that of a football crowd cheering a goal – and shouts of 'Freedom! Freedom!'
Now the refugees on platform 1 at Hof station are being attended to. The Red Cross serves up various kinds of soup on the speedily erected beer-tent tables. The travellers have their first encounter with some of the major Western food companies: bars of chocolate – mostly from Nestlé – are served on paper plates.
After the initial euphoria over the successful escape, the excitement dies down. Now it is time for the refugees to clarify their still uncertain situation. Where are they going to go? What is the next step? Armed with name boards, the refugees and some of their Western relatives start looking for family and friends. There are also a few immediate offers of help: to find apartments and work, for example. Even today, some of the refugees are still living quite contentedly in Hof. But for those who want to continue their journey, the next stop is Hammelburg reception camp.
I obviously had a very privileged view from the second floor. But I didn’t really feel particularly comfortable taking photographs. For now and then, people down below noticed me. Did they perhaps think I was a member of the Stasi?"
Markus Lohneisen (Hof, born 1967)
