2. Mai 2004, 23:59

"Да здравствует 1 мая!"

The 1st of May already began on April 30th as every year with the so-called Walpurgis Night. Thousands of people normally have a party with fires, drinks and music at the "Mauerpark", which is right around the corner where I live. But this year the park was closed for glass bottles by the police and there wasn't seen any little fire. But policemen everywhere. Some little fights was the result - but not as dramatic and nothing compared with last year.

At next day's afternoon I was at the "Brandenburg Gate" at the EU-Party fpr the enlargement of the European Union. But this was more disappointing. Just some pavillions of the ten new members of the EU and a big stage with choirs singing mysterious folk songs. I looked, of course, at the Latvian booth, which wasn't as many people in like in the Polish or Czech one. But there wasn't so interesting things - just some Air-Baltic-information and a map of the Baltic states and information on Jurmala. Well, I took a postcard of last year's Euro-Song-Contest in Riga.

There was also offered some Latvian food, some kind of sausage with some salad or sauerkraut - but I haven't tried it.

At evening and night, after the traditional "revolutinary" 1st-May-Demonstration in Kreuzberg there were the normal fights and riots again. Stones and bottles were thrown, water canons, a lot of police at any corner and so on...