Lichtfest Leipzig (Augustusplatz)
It is now time to make concrete plans to be in Leipzig on October 9, 2014, to participate in the 25th anniversary celebrations of the peaceful end of the confrontation between 70,000 demonstrators carrying nothing but candles, and the secret police in full military combat gear. October 9, 1989, was the decisive Monday. Surgeons had been ordered to stand by, and blood reserves had been stockpiled. No shot was fired.
By October 23, 1989, the protestors grew to 300,000, peaceful demonstrations were being held all over East Germany, and on November 9, 1989, the Berlin Wall fell.
There will be an official ceremonial act in Leipzig in the presence of Secretaries of State James A. Baker III and Henry Kissinger, as well as other dignitaries and heads of states and governments, on October 9, 2014. We from Houston-Leipzig have been invited to the official ceremonial act and the presentation by Secretary Baker.
We need to send names of participants in the trip to Leipzig now. The Office of the German President has requested a list of names of participants from Houston. If there is a change later, that will be understandable, but please respond now, if you intend join us in Leipzig so that we can comply with the request.
The Houston-Leipzig Sister City Association with the great support of its sister organization in Leipzig, the Städtepartnerschaft Leipzig-Houston e.V., will prepare a program of interesting events for a week or so, beginning on October 8, 2014. We will visit interesting places and people that have not been on previous programs, and participate in the many activities in Leipzig around the time of the anniversary. Details will follow.
On October 18, 2014, the Leipzig Opera Ball takes place. Previous honorees were sister cities, and this year’s motto for the ball is Houston. The ball takes place in the entire opera house, with various venues of entertainment before, during, and after the dinner. It is so exciting that our very own Houston Grand Opera is planning to send two HGO Studio artists to sing at the event. Fabulous, blown up images of Houston by our very own Jim Olive will adorn the opera house. We will also need to know whether you wish to participate in the Opera Ball so that we can secure tickets for you.
For lodging, our sister organization has reserved a block of hotel rooms. The price is around EUR 160.00. However, we are still trying to get accommodations a bit more reasonable. Of course, there is always a balance between price and being right on the spot where the activities take place. Details will follow very shortly.
Please let us know by this weekend (email or telephone) whether you are interested in joining us for this historic trip to Leipzig.
See you tomorrow, May 15, 2014, at 6:30 p.m. at our regular meeting. Dr. Hund will tell us what happens to our money and how Mr. Putin’s actions will affect the economies of Europe and the U.S. For more information, please check our website here or at houstonleipzig.org.
Sincerely,
Wolfgang Schmidt
2014 President
281-630-0714