In addition to the letter we see today, I posted earlier about a letter Helene wrote on March 5, 1941 relating a lovely memory about playing a “Name That Tune” type game with her children. In that same letter she explains that they cannot send the Gablonz pieces they described in the letter posted on March 3. In today’s letter from March 4 and 5, 1940 we learn of another game they played.
Vienna, 4 March 1940
My beloved children!
The next premiere in the Burgtheater is something entitled “136 Days” because that’s how long Harry’s letter of 21 October took to get here. Even though it was really late we were really happy to get it because we found out more details about your trip and the impressions you’ve had and how you were received. We are doing much the same as you are: we live with you and among you in our thoughts so we often find in your letters the proof of the way we’ve been feeling. It’s been 5 months since we took you to the train station and it’s unbelievable how fast time has passed although there’s days that never seem to end. Especially those when my imagination leads me somewhere. Yesterday was pretty much a day like that. I could have sworn we would be getting letters. I might have gotten it yesterday if it hadn’t been Sunday. We spent the day with a game that was the latest things a couple of years ago. This very successful game was invented by Harry L Lowell and it goes like this: You hide something behind your back and say “What do I have in my hand?” And you say “Retina 2” and you do this until it drives the other person crazy. Papa played this yesterday and as often as I thought I’d guessed it, he said “no”. This is the way we spend an English Sunday as at a church festival. I am curious which crazy ideas we’re going to end up with next Sunday.
5 March 1940
Harry just got an order to appear today at 11 at Seitenstettengasse 2-4, Room 27. It will be noticeable if he does not show up. After I told you of the experience of the day, waiting for the mail wasn’t really worth it. So I will not take my anger out on you. The sun is shining and I will take care of some various details because I can imagine we shouldn’t let sunny days go unused. So that’s the end of my 19th Clipper letter. Will have more next time.
10000000000000000000000000 Kisses,
Helene
Helene refers to a letter they just received that Harry had written on October 21, just 6 days after Eva and Harry’s arrival in the U.S. They probably wrote about visiting both the 1939 NY world’s fair and the Golden Gate International Exposition on Treasure Island. Imagine being introduced to life in America that way!
Here are photos of souvenir coins Harry saved from those visits:
Here are photos Harry took from the ferry to Treasure Island and of acrobats at the fair:
Although I don’t have a copy of the letters Eva and Harry wrote to Helene and Vitali, I have one that Eva wrote to Paul Zerzawy while he was in New York telling him about their safe arrival in San Francisco. He met them upon arrival in New York and made sure they got on a train. An earlier post includes excerpts of this letter with Eva’s first impressions of San Francisco.