This Article is From Sep 09, 2015

Ordeal Has Finally Come to an End, Say Refugees After Reaching Germany

Refugess have been put up in makeshift tents before moving them to more comfortable accommodations in different cities of Germany.

Munich, Germany: To make refugees comfortable in Germany, crisis management groups and volunteers are working overtime in cities like Munich, where the refugees are being asked to spend a few nights in makeshift beer tents that host parties, before they can be given proper accommodation.

NDTV visited refugees who had been asked to stay at the Munich fair grounds. Arriving from war-torn Syria, they are quiet and exhausted, but relieved to be alive, and in good hands.

Their journey took them to countries like Hungary and Bulgaria where the police was violent, as they were not allowed to cross over to Austria. The administration had left them to fend for themselves when it came to food and drink.

23-year-old Hamza told NDTV, "The local administration is making sure that they had space to sleep and there was no shortage of food or drink. What mattered most was that the Germans greeted them with smiles."

Children were carrying a handful of toys that the locals have gifted them. Their parents are grateful that their ordeals have finally come to an end.

Others, who had managed to reach Germany before the borders opened, also came to meet those who had just arrived.

11-year-old Katarina left Syria two years ago with her father. "I like it here because I can go to school," she tells NDTV. She says she misses her home in Syria and her friends there.

Soon buses arrive at the grounds to take away the refugees, and get them registered before taking them to more comfortable accommodations in different cities.

Germans have started to say that they are the "Americans of Europe" and a significant influx of refugees could even change the demographics, perhaps also making their country, a more diverse, and open society.

Many Germans are themselves descendants of refugees, as more than 13 million displaced people had fled from the east after the Second World War.
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