Central Europa

Europe is moving... at least in my mind.

The whole started with a not so prudent statement from my part. I said something about Slovenia being an Eastern European country. Of course my Slovenian girlfriend didn’t like it… (she is no longer my girlfriend...) Slovenia lies in Central Europe!!! My earlier biased view that Central Europe consisted of Switzerland, Austria and possibly Germany started to fall apart. I took a look at the map of Europe and with a Grimwall estimation, I reckoned that the most central spot of Europe would lie somewhere close to Berlin… Well maybe I thought of Germany being the geographical center wasn't so wrong after all.

A couple of weeks later I had a meeting at the Vilnius University, where the rector talked about Lithuania as a Central European country. Maybe I was ready to accept that Slovenia was a Central European country. But Lithuania?? For me it was in the outskirts of Northeastern Europe.

Admittedly, I got a little obsessed about finding the answer to this riddle. And in September the same year I found an article in the Swedish newspaper DN: the geographical center of Europe lies on small hill right outside Lithuania!! How could this be possible. I took another look, and now I considered the greatness of Russia a little more. The European part of Russia goes far east towards the Ural Mountains; maybe a day trip or two from Moscow. Considering this I could more easily accept Lithuania as Central Europe.

The riddle was solved - but not my obsession. I found a book – which name a no longer remember – from a former SVD employee, where he describes his journeys in Central Europe; in the Nomansland over the boarders in Czech Republic and Austria (it wasn't that a good book so I don't recommend you to read unless you are as obsessed as I am).

I more and more come to understood that Central Europe had more of a psychological meaning than geographical. For people leaving in Slovenia, Lithuania, Poland, Ukraine... living in Central Europe was a way to take distance from the former communist regimes of "Eastern Europe". I fully accept it, in fact I now try to enlighten my ignorant "West European" friends :) Central Europe is the most interesting part of Europe right now I think.

Hm, it is not so easy... In France - where many people think that France is the center not only of Europe but the world (hm... if my French friends read this, I will stinking cheese in my mail box tomorrow) - a small town in eastern France actually was the center of "Euroland" until the 1st of January 2007, when Slovenia joined the Euro. Now the citizen of the town was worried that they would no longer be in the center of Europe. In my point of view Slovenia shouldn't change anything for them, since both Austria and Finland already are further east than Slovenia, but I might have estimated wrong again... Even more striking was a advertisment from eurolines which offered cheap trips to North and Eastern Europe. North Europe being the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxemburg and Eastern Europe being Poland, Germany and Austria. Ones again Europe had moved in my mind. I asked the salesperson at Eurolines desk in Grenoble if they really considered Germany being Eastern Europe and got the answer: c'est est de la France (it's east of France). I am still not sure how I should interpret that answer... I also often have to explain that Sweden is a part of Europe...

The whole issue inspired me to write a novel about Central Europe. The title being "Central Europa" - inspired of the name of many train stations and the name of Europe in the way it is written in most European languages. A Portugese boy, starting is hunt for the center of Europe(similar as with me), starts a inter rail journey from the south of Portugal (Faro) in 2004. In March he passes Madrid, just during the time of the train bombings in the capital (without himself being directly involved), he continues north towards Paris, Brussels (Belgium the heart of Europe...), then back south east towards Switzerland and Austria (in Vienna there is a loosy café called Café Europa). The first of May he arrives in Bratislava, just as the 10 new countries joined the EU. He then continues north and arrives in Lithuania where he finds the geographical center. The books thereafter end with the Euro 2004 Uefa championships back in Portugal... hm, I don't think it could be a bestseller...

sense: "ha'n'int en litta kula me bara Dalarna på?"