11 December 1976, diary entry Sabine Voigt, Dresden/GDR: „By the way, I've sent 4 letters into the world. … Let's see whether I get a reply“. Sabine is 16 years old at the time. A typical teenager, she is full of longing for the big wide world, so far out of reach.
Ultimately, the four letters become forty. They are all sent to imaginary recipients at exotic places around the globe – just like Funafuti, found in her school atlas, an atoll in Tuvalu, an island state in Oceania. Fifteen undelivered letters are returned – and Sabine guards them like a treasure.
Suddenly in autumn 1989, the Berlin Wall falls. Sabine enjoys her unlimited freedom to travel, constantly photographing countries and people. At times on her own, she visits over fifty countries, including her youthful dream destinations. But she never sets foot on Funafuti.