I could appreciate advantages of living in 15 “ghetto” district of Vienna only when spring came. There was Schmelz nearby, – spacious patch of ground, where local pensioners cultivated vegetables and flowers in small private gardens. Most of the time outer environment could look grim for us – city folks […]
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Why are always dressed up in black? It does not suit you at all, - dropped one of my female companions exhaling smoke of her cigarette, while we were on porch of one feeding on unemployment institutions, where we had our German classes, – three women making small talk in Russian. – Besides, I have read in glossy magazine, that those who prefer wear black, are often depressed. She talked with the aplomb of a sophisticated woman in spite of reliance on glossy sources of information. Seeing her so close, I kept patronizing silence, as her face at that moment exposed nothing except shining beauty of youth.
For thousands of years living without electricity and toothpaste, our forefathers, free of matrimonial restraints forced later by patriarchate, used to choose intimate partner by smell, as many mammals do. Probably the ability of humans to perceive odors partly degenerated with time. But even now in epoch of commercial odorants […]
by Galina Toktalieva To make our lessons more enjoyable, young teacher replacing an older one, urged us to talk in German about personal ambitions, stimulating our activity by patient approach of recently baked pedagogue and by genuine curiosity that glowed at her fresh innocent face. Poor German and lack of […]
Banality often contains concentration wisdom of folks. They say, it is not shameful to be poor. Poorest can obtain social security benefits. What is poverty in Austria, how it looks, tastes and smells? Apart from concept, I wanted to know this as personal experience. Being granted with work after five […]
Whenever I look out of window, and see a piece of blue sky, roofs with black dots of crows at antennas, and hear distant lulling clang of tram, I feel piece and sweet anticipation of new rendezvous with Vienna. I go out and gaze at surrounding curious subjects as newly […]
Pressure in form of compulsory education In breaks we were eating together in dim canteen of education center in routine of our unemployment compulsory course. Dining hall was full of people.It was steaming stewed cabbage, which melted in the mouth and reminded me of hearty soviet meals, which were but 200 […]
Graz was the very place, where my emigration trial by water and fire started. It was southern-looking fair town with medieval architecture, in strange way reminding me of sunny Bishkek streets. It was love at first sight. Graz struck me as prettiest place I ever knew. However, to reside in historical centre of it under heated, as oven roof, trapped in tiny attic, with deafening, amplified uproar of surrounding restaurants all night long, was hard. In addition, other inhabitants of under-roof space belonged to the African commune rap fans, and from their round-the-clock jovial blare, I was separated only by thin carton wall.
They say the moments when airplane takes off and lands are most fascinating. There I was again - in the big belly of steel bird landing this time in Stockholm airport. High speed, vibration and awareness of certain risk- make perception especially sharp. In proximity of a few seconds you evaluate all your life. I was invited to Sweden by one of my pen-friends with whom I corresponded for 5 last years of my stay in Moscow. Nils often wrote me about his life. Swedish veterinarian of 50 years old