The battle of Oberbaumbr¸cke

It tickles me that I will be able to tell my grandchildren that i fought the Germans for their benefit. Of course, I don’t plan to have any children so quite how i tell their children anything is something i haven’t worked out yet. And quite what the benefit to them of me having taken part in a 1000 person foodfight is also unclear at this stage.

It is an annual event that sets the good people of Friedrichshain against the evil of Kreuzberg. Fought on the Oberbaumbr¸ke that (regrettably) connects the two district, and marks the former division between east and west. A division that still exists in the mental attitudes that sets the hard working (or often not) folk of F’hain against the decadence of X-berg.

Here is a list of everything I remember throwing.

Preztels
Spaggetti
New potatoes
Aubergine
Courgette
Apples
Oranges
Lemons
Tomatoes
Eggs
Egg Carton
Strawberries
Flour bombs
Water Bombs
Grapefruit
Bits of Melon
Bok Choi
Celery
Onion
Some slimey green fibrous gunk
A Soggy sponge
A Pillow
A Matress – more pushed than thrown
I also hit a lot of people with a foam baton.

I only brought eggs, tomato and a few pretzels (perhaps the least effective projectile in the fight but all i had with me) everything else was scavenged and recycled. But you know what they say.

“Keiner ist gemeiner als der Friedrichshainer!”

The matress actually became a politcal football. It’s progress marked the frontline of hostilities and thanks to the rallying organisation of the Wasser Armee Friedrichshain, it progressed steadily west.

From the outset, the result was never in doubt but fair play to the resistance of some 36-ers, it was well over an hour before the matress lodged against the police bus at Schlesische Tor. And once again Friedrichshain secured a famous victory

Oh and please don’t tell anyone I am living in Prenzlauer Berg.

About caspar

Caspar is just one monkey among billions. Battering his keyboard without expectations even of peanuts, let alone of aping the Immortal Bard. By day he is an infantologist at Birkbeck Babylab, by night he runs BabyLaughter.net
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