i was riding a bicycle heading back to my hotel room in berlin when i spied a hearty inflammation of moto-bike mounted polizei. now, i am not versed in german customs….. and especially not versed in the ways of the polizei, but it seemed kind of odd. it almost looked as if they were banded together in required group formation back to base after a shift. there was no sense of urgency or emergency for that matter. perhaps they were headed to the splügen brau and then homeways for a bit of spatchka ?

The Trabant was produced by former East German auto maker ‘Sachsenring Automobilwerke Zwickau’. It was the most common vehicle in East Germany, and was also exported to countries both inside and outside the communist bloc. The main selling point was that it had room for four adults and luggage in a compact, light and durable shell. With its mediocre performance, smoky two-stroke engine, and production shortages, the Trabant is often cited as an example of the disadvantages of centralized planning; on the other hand, it is regarded with derisive affection as a symbol of the failed former East Germany and of the fall of communism. It was in production without any significant changes for nearly 30 years with 3,096,099 Trabants produced in total. Since it could take 15 years for a Trabant to be delivered from the time it was ordered, people who finally got one were very careful with it and usually became skillful in maintaining and repairing it. Used Trabants would often fetch a higher price than new ones, as the former were available immediately, while the latter required the infamous long wait.

i spent a couple of days in berlin recently and spied this un-identified mercedes van. subsequent attempts to discover the model and year of production of this specimen proved fruitless. any sleuths are welcome to comment and enlighten us with any knowledge below. for some reason this van reminds me of the david bowie song Panic-In-Detroit: “looked a lot like che guevara, drove a diesel van, kept his gun in quiet seclusion, such a humble man. the only survivor of the national people’s gang”