One chapter has closed and another begun. The Magical Mystery Literary Tour has ended. Our intrepid adventurers have all left Berlin. Some returned home, some continued on extended journeys to England, Spain, Poland, and within Germany. Many of them have stories to tell you, and I will be sharing them with you as the Kafka Project's research in Eastern Europe unfolds. In all, the tour was indeed magical. We had astoundingly beautiful weather, and although we were a most diverse group, we all got along very well. Good friendships were formed. It was such a good experience we may indeed do it again next year.
And now the Kafka Project has begun in earnest. The first step in the Kafka Project's Eastern European Research began with a meeting in Kleinmachnow, south of Berlin, in a bird and flower-filled garden on a quiet cobblestone street.
Byron and I are the guests in the home of the family of another of Kafka's loves, Grete Bloch . Eva Bloch Turner, and her husband Jack. The Turners keep a garden apartment in this lovely house built for Eva's grandfather in 1933. Until the reunification of Germany in 1989, this peaceful and quiet street lined with mansions and villas was in East Berlin, and only the best, highest-ranking Communists lived here.
William Diamant from Anna Maria, Florida
June 29, 2008 at 10:25 PM
For this next phase, I've been wondering. Is it possible the letters to the little girl who lost her doll could be among those that you are searching for????
Kathi Diamant
from Krakow, Poland
June 30, 2008 at 03:44 PM
Hi William Diamant, aka The Father
Funny you should ask. This came up at Hans Koch's lecture on Kafka in Berlin that Byron and I attended. Afterwards, one of the students asked about the Doll story and whether it were true and if so, if those letters or the now old lady might be found. Koch mentioned the search that Mark Harmon conducted in 2001. But he was speaking in German, and I missed a good half of what he said. I'll ask him next time. It's sadly typical that people still doubt the story. When I'm asked I'm happy to say that there are at least three original sources of it: Dora told the story to Max Brod, Marthe Robert and Felix Weltsch, and at least Marthe and Felix wrote about it. I'm glad Paul Auster just wrote about the story--did he credit Dora, I wonder?--because it's getting more and more known, perhaps because of him and his new book, which obviously I must get ahold of. I know he just presented at Shakespeare and Company in Paris, for their recent literary festival.
Thanks, Dad, for following along. We couldn't do this without you!
PS> The old Jewish section of Krakow, about a 15 minute walk from our flat, is celebrating its 18th Jewish Festival. Went to a depressing lecture about Allied knowledge of the mass murders as early as 1941, and to a Yiddish class, which was decidedly more fun. Byron and I learned how to write our names in Yiddish and exchanges pleasantries. They are so...yiddish! Like:
Vos hert zikh?
(How are you?)
reply: Vos zoll zikh hern?
(How should I be?)
A gut morgan!
reply: A gut yor!
(always one better...)
a shaynem dank!
anelahngrwight ououdssA wenlta, is having the 8th Jewiis
Kathi Diamant
from Krakow, Poland
June 30, 2008 at 03:45 PM
PS
anelahngrwight ououdssA wenlta, is having the 8th Jewiis
means nothing other than extra letters at the end of the page, left on accidently. Live and loin.
Wiliam Diamant from Florida
July 01, 2008 at 05:37 PM
"anelahngrwight ououdssA wenlta, is having the 8th Jewiis "
is verklempt!
John Peterson
October 25, 2008 at 03:23 AM
I just watched Wasington Week In Review. They discussed the money spent on Sarah Pallin's cloths. She has said that the cloths will be donated the charity. She is the only canidate who is not a millionare. She shops at thrift stores for her family. That was not said. The people who are responsible for this program owe the American people the TRUTH. I have been a member of KPBS since the 1970's. I am thinking of not renewing my membership. Tell us the TRUTH!
