In Germany, "Generation X" is not widely used or applied. Instead, reference is made to "Generation Golf" in the previous West German republic, based on a novel by Florian Illies whilst, in the east, children of the "Mauerfall" or coming down of the wall. For former East Germans, there was adaptation but also a sense of loss of accustomed values and structures, sometimes turning into romantic narratives of their childhood. For those in the West, a period of discovery and exploration of what had been a forbidden land.