Eastern Europe: December 2007 Archives

December 21, 2007 marks the end of overland border and seaport checks between many former communist states in Eastern Europe and their Western neighbors. This is a symbolic event similar to, but not as grandiose as, the tearing down of the Berlin Wall.

The Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Slovenia join 15 other countries already participating in the "Schengen" free travel zone (Malta also joins on December 21). Citizens of Schengen-participating states are only required to carry a common "Schengen visa" instead of specific visas for each country they visit.

It is great to see the people of Eastern Europe gain new freedoms, as yet another barrier falls in part of the old Eastern Bloc.