The author describes the circumstances accompanying the opening, in the nineteen seventies, of the border between the PRP and the GDR on the Oder and Lusitian Neisse, pointing to the backstage politics of the event, which occurred in 1972, in both the domestic and international context. Issues related to the tourism between the two states when no visas or passports were needed to travel across the ‘Border of Friendship’ are outlined as well.
The reasons for opening the border and the purpose of travelling across it are detailed, with particular attention being paid to the motives for the citizens of Poland and the GDR alike to undertake a journey to the neighbouring country. The author presents an evaluation of the possibilities offered by these travels in the seventies. In describing the issues related to the opening of the border, he focuses primarily on the political, economic and social aspects, emphasising the role of the official and unofficial contacts between the societies of the two countries. By the same token, he provides proof that the opening of the border constituted an important episode in the contacts and co-operation between our countries and institutions.