ICPIG history > Testimonies and anecdotes

ICPIGs in Eastern Europe During the Cold War, Seen by a Western Researcher
Souvenirs from André Ricard, CNRS, France

Editor's note: during the Cold War, ICPIG adopted an East-West alternation, providing a rare opportunity for scientists from both blocs to meet and exchange knowledge despite travel restrictions. Here are few anecdotes from this period by André Ricard. 

Bucharest (1969)

Upon our arrival in the evening with some colleagues, everything was closed. While wandering through the city in search of a restaurant, we realized we were being followed. On the ICPIG outing day, we ended up in a huge theater, packed to the brim. It was there that I discovered an incredible pan flute player: Zamfir, who later went on an unforgettable tour in the West. On the return to the airport, we French colleagues helped share the luggage of Martha Bacal, who was leaving for France permanently.

Prague (1973)

Following ICPIG, I was invited several times to workshops in the countryside near Bratislava. During our discussions, my colleagues expressed a desire to remain socialist, for the sake of the social benefits (like crèches in factories). What they all wanted was to be able to travel freely, without the restrictions of the Stasi. After the fall of the Wall, a German colleague told me that now, it wasn’t the Stasi that held them back—but the god Dollar!
At one of those workshops, my wife wished to join me. But once she saw the remote location, she preferred to visit Prague instead. This caused significant trouble for the workshop organizers: they had to obtain the necessary permits for her to take the train and arrange her reception in Prague. I was quite embarrassed!
Once, while traveling from Vienna to Bratislava for a workshop, I was forced to refuse to open a package containing an IR photomultiplier. The Slovak customs officer insisted, not understanding English. Eventually, tired of the situation, he pointed at me and said, “doctor-doctor.” I nodded, and he let me pass.

East Berlin (1977)

After ICPIG, the University of Greifswald organized a workshop, and we traveled by steam train from Berlin to Greifswald! Leaving Berlin, some buildings were still in ruins from the war, and tanks were visible along the border. In Greifswald, we were warmly welcomed, including a sailing trip on the Baltic Sea.
The return journey was less idyllic: the train stopped halfway between Greifswald and Berlin. I was alone and didn’t speak German. I had to change trains, but several were waiting, heading to destinations I couldn’t understand. My visa was expiring that evening. Fortunately, a German advised me on the correct train to Berlin airport. A fond memory of stress!

Budapest (1985)

What struck me was the restaurant menus listing many dishes—only for the meal to end with just goulash. There was also a small museum denouncing the crimes of Imre Nagy.

Moscow ? (Editor's note:probably Minsk 1981)

The ICPIG was boycotted following Sakharov’s exile to Gorky in 1980.

Conclusion

I will always remember that ICPIG, during the Cold War period, made it possible to meet researchers from Eastern countries—I think, for instance, of Polak and Slovestkii, among others.

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My first international conference, ICPIG in Vienna 1967
by Nader Sadeghi 

I found  among my old photos two pictures from the ICPIG 8th edition in Vienna, 1967. If I remember correctly, this was the opening session of the conference, with (I believe) the President of the Republic of Austria sitting alone in the front row, and all the leading figures of atomic and plasma physics in the row behind him. In the other photo, one might (or might not) recognize a young PhD student (Editor's note: Nader Sadeghi...) listening attentively to the interpreter.

 At the time, photos were still taken in black and white, and general lectures could be delivered in four languages—English, German, French, and Russian—with simultaneous interpretation.

I have very fond memories of that conference, though also one major disappointment: together with my fiancée, who had accompanied me and would become my wife a few months later, we discovered that the famous Blue Danube was, in fact, very dirty and murky grey!

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