" After a tearful parting from Elizabeth and her family, we climbed into the back of the postal van. Adventurous Brigitte climbed onto the armoire that was tied down, however Ursula and I found room sitting on a mattress. I had to console poor Ursula since we had to leave her Mama doll behind; it was far too dangerous to take it along. At the bridge there would be officials, soldiers and throngs of people. It was a chance we just couldn’t take!
The drive was uneventful and the mattress even made the ride relatively comfortable. We approached the river and as expected we were stopped at the bridge. Although I couldn’t see anything in the darkness of the van I could hear Fritz talking to some officials in a remarkably relaxed and friendly way. They apparently were satisfied with the story concerning his furniture. It seemed that everyone was using official vehicles for their own use, since private vehicles were almost non-existent. With this they slapped the side of the van and let us pass. We continued across the bridge without incident and at last I was back in a part of Germany that I felt I knew.
We were no sooner in the city of Mannheim than Fritz stopped the truck. He threw open the doors and told us to get out. “I don’t have time, I have to get rid of my furniture and return this van,” he said. I think the realization of what could have happened, had we been detected unsettled him, and he didn’t want to take any more chances. I looked around but had no idea of where I was. There was refuse on the streets and heaps of rubble that hadn’t been cleared away yet. Most of the street signs were missing but eventually we managed to get our luggage to a corner that I recognized. "

― Hank Bracker