Interesting facts

Since his childhood, Andreas Kieling had enjoyed forests and rivers. Jack London was one of his favourite novelists. But his home environment and prospects in the GDR had become too restricted. In the autumn of 1976, the 16-year-old left a note for his parents in Jena saying, ‘Don’t worry about anything, I went to be with a friend.’ He departed by train for Bratislava with a map, compass, a paratrooper’s knife, and binoculars in his rucksack. Only a few kilometres upstream from Bratislava on the Danube, the Iron Curtain was considered to be the most insurmountable, due to the width of the river. After jumping out of a slow-moving train, Andreas began to roam through bushes and undergrowth along a pathless terrain towards Devínska Nová Ves. At night he stayed close to the fences to observe the border guards. The next night seemed favourable for action, since it was raining. There was no turning back. The first two fences were easily navigated, but his foot got stuck on an alarm wire; suddenly searchlights lit up the border strip. The obstacle of the corroded third fence almost ended his escape; however he was able to free himself with the help of his military knife. Next he jumped into the Danube and swam parts of it underwater. Gunshots were fired at him, and a bullet grazed his lumbar vertebrae. He went forward, although injured, and suddenly landed at a Weinviertel village festival in the middle of the night. A border policeman there assured him ‘Here you are free!’ His wounds were treated in a Viennese hospital.