Leipzig Communist Community (Part 2): Communist Life Within a Capitalist Country

Editor's note: The author once studied agriculture as an exchange student in Croatia (and has now returned to Taiwan, China), and wrote a series of articles introducing the local "squat life" and agricultural observations. This article describes the author's first arrival in Europe and work-exchange experience in Germany; this article is the second half of the Germany experience. To read other articles in the series, please click here.

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In many parts of Germany, especially Leipzig, renovation projects for all kinds of vacant houses abound. Many old houses abandoned for decades or even one or two hundred years have been occupied by squatters, but there is also another model within the system: young people can write a proposal and apply to the government to move into a vacant house, and if all goes well the government will subsidize them or even buy it outright for them. The community where Michael lives is one such case. It is a farmstead nearly three hundred years old, and at first glance it brings to mind the layout of a sanheyuan (traditional three-sided courtyard compound). Besides the old house being renovated for them to live in, there is also a small-scale piece of farmland at the back growing organic vegetables.