An unexpected knock on the door awoke two and a half thousand families in the Soviet-occupied zone of Germany. Thus, on October 22, 1946, the secret operation "Osaviakhim" began. Just a few hours later, all these people—engineers and technicians from the aviation and mechanical engineering industries, sent to the USSR as "living reparations"—would board a train to an unknown destination.

However, twenty-two-year-old student Ida is ready to leave war-torn Germany behind. The journey to Russia seems more like an exciting adventure to her.

The book is based on a diary written by the author's mother. It is complemented by the voices of other witnesses, creating a kaleidoscopic picture of the lives of German specialists in the USSR. For each, this experience was different, but the turning point in their biographies, leaving a mark on their entire subsequent lives, was common to all.