#konigsberg

Open house event on board the German light cruiser Königsberg

By the way, I thought I’d tell you a bit more about where I come from, so to speak, what I am) Since this social network is primarily for English-speaking guys, I’m sharing this, and it's obvious that there's not much context, for example, regarding where Lithuania is, what Liechtenstein is, and so on. Just like I can’t say where North Dakota is, where South Dakota is. So here it is)

I’m Lia Hatskevich (original surname - Tumashevich) On my father's side, I’m of Belarusian Romani descent, and I also have some Polish roots. On my mother’s side, I am Russian, and there seem to be some Jewish roots somewhere, but this isn’t certain, as my maternal grandfather was from an orphanage, and my grandmother is an orphan who was found and adopted by a Red Army soldier in the blockade of Leningrad (Saint Petersburg). ------

Prussian tribes used to live here, and then the Teutonic Order came in. They created their own state. Over time, it became part of the German Empire.

As a result of the end of World War II, as may be known, borders were changed, and part of Prussia was given to Poland, Lithuania, and the RSFSR (Although it would have been ideal for me if there had been a new region, like the Prussian Socialist Republic, let’s say, and it were on par with the Baltic states after the collapse of the USSR). After that, there was active deportation of Germans, which is sad. And the resettlement of residents from the Soviet Union. Not only ethnically Russian, and, of course, others like Belarusians, Ukrainians, and so on. They managed to somewhat restore life in the destroyed former capital of Prussia and its surroundings, albeit clumsily. There were attempts to erase the Germanness of the region and promote Communism because of state ideology, all that. My grandmother, Nastia's grandmother, told me how she walked around the ruined Royal Castle and how back then, children, supposedly German children, were stoned. And she told many stories about how people lived here before the Soviet occupation. It’s really funny how they renamed cities in a Soviet style. There’s the case of Königsberg, which, according to one version, they wanted to keep the name, and for about a year after annexation, it was still called Königsberg, along with Königsberg region, and when the question arose of how to rename it, one version wanted to name it Baltiysk, but then… one of the Soviet figures, Kalinin, died. He had NOTHING to do with the region whatsoever. And the name Baltiysk was given to another city in this region (which, by the way, is where I’ve lived my whole life).

If Nastia’s ancestors moved here in the 1950s, so did her grandmother. Mine did around the late 1960s.

And after the collapse of the Soviet Union, this region was secured for Russia. That's the situation.

Amber region. A beautiful place, and at the same time, it feels as if there is still a phantom pain for the past in the air. A spirit that is still trying to find itself in a new shell. I love my home, and it makes me sad what is happening to it due to the actions of a dictator who has taken power and forbids us... LGBTQ people to be ourselves here, and kills people in neighboring countries, including with our own hands...

But that’s another story.

Town scene in Königsberg, Kaliningrad, Russia

I was just visiting Nastya and her grandmother this evening. Along the way, I decided to take a few photos for you, to introduce you to König, aka Kaliningrad, aka Königsberg, aka Kneiphof, Twangste. This city, and the amber region in general, has experienced so many changes. Maybe one day I'll be your guide for a bit, sharing all sorts of facts and, in general, about my life, so to speak, although it'll probably be boring, you'll lose it. Many people have experienced divorces while still young, pet deaths, forced moves, mothers abandoned by strangers for three years, embarrassing school stories, how you might have wanted to go to the theater but were sent to study radio engineering, where you found your soulmate. And then you realized you weren't cis, but then suddenly laws appeared prohibiting your existence.

Palaestra Albertina institute of the Königsberg University, modern-day Kaliningrad, Russia