Saturday, December 03, 2005

Damned Be The Jazz

23. Mai. 39

Life flows steadily on. Rain pours heavily, increasingly downwards. Chilly and unlike summer, I spend the morning in the charming little writing room, next to the music room. It is peaceful and pleasant, as the children are all at school. I write up my diary, learn a poem from Goethe. Soon after one, the house begins to stir up a bit, the children are home, and at half 2, we ate lunch. The food is very good. Soup, a meat course with what obtainable vegetables are to be bought, and afterwards a nachtisch [edit: dessert]. Today we had thick soup ... of beans. Afterwards came fish with sauce and potatoes - and to end up with, we had mehlspeise with cream and sugar.

Soon after lunch I rallied forth. It was not attractive outside - and I went into a shop + bought the ever needed Briefpapier for 1.25M, some postcards showing some views of the I-District, in which many delightful corners are to be found; old winding narrow streets and crooked steps running and climbing between the houses; and such poor poor people did I see eating some obnoxious stuff with their fingers out of tins.

Soon after 4 I went into the club, as I had promised to meet Dora there that we might go together to the Hungarian Tanzabend (which actually began at 8pm and would possibly continue until 5 the next morning) however, left at 9. Dora was not there; but after waiting sometime we met and collected a party. We were together 2 Bulgarian girls, 2 men, 1 Hungarian and myself. And how they dance, and the ... music and the songs. So heartrending - real musik. Damned be the jazz blaring from records in the next room. We danced wild Hungarian dances and I danced too for all I was worth. But such dances are not for the large feet of the English.

We danced Wiener waltz to gramaphone records, foxtrot and all. We drank wine and ate sandwiches (rolls cut in half, with tasty bits - eggs, fish, cheese, garlic etc laid on them). By nine however, I was satisfied that I had seen and learnt enough, I left the party to continue it's wild musik. They are a different people, the Bulgarians/Hungarians. Romantik, hardworking, with charming natural manners. The women are small, with small hands and feet, large eyes and long laughs, often very attractive. The men equally attractive, thought taller than the women. I left feeling I had certainly learnt something.

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