A group of young offenders has lost faith and trust in the German state. They are to be rehabilitated and are sent on an expedition to the Alps. But there is a terrible accident and one of the caregivers is found dead.
An English spy is sent to Berlin in 1961 to sift out a traitor in the UK Embassy or among the Allies, shortly before the construction of the Berlin Wall.
At a poorly-funded German cultural institute in the fictional "armpit" of the Middle East, efforts by interns and staff to promote German language and culture have decidedly mixed results.