German reunification as a great adventure

Admittedly the ties Berlin native Julian Tadesse has to Ethiopia are not diplomatic, but his links with the East African nation are every bit as close – because they are of a personal nature. Julian Tadesse was born in Berlin. But when he was two years old his Ethiopian father and German mother took him to Addis Ababa. Several years later the family moved back to what was then West Berlin – and Julian witnessed the historic upheavals surrounding 9 November 1989. The fall of the Berlin Wall brought many changes, in Germany, in the world and in his own life. The day the Berlin Wall came down Julian, then ten years old, ran with his father to the Brandenburg Gate full of expectations and experienced events up close. “On the one hand it was an exciting time. What was once the border zone became an adventure playground with lots of things for kids to discover.” However, a few years later, Tadesse would experience a number of sobering events. He saw images of racist riots in Rostock’s Lichtenhagen district. “Suddenly, it felt like eastern Germany was a no-go-area for me. Fortunately, that has changed since.” Today, he finds German society more open and cosmopolitan. Tadesse works in Berlin as a research assistant for the Zentrum Moderner Orient (ZMO). What he likes about the capital is the international atmosphere. And he still feels very close to his second home: his PhD thesis is about the business startup scene in Ethiopia.