Selected text
At the time before the war, Thessaloniki was a multinational city and Judeo-Spanish was spoken in the open. It was spoken in the port, at the market and no one had a problem with it, no way. They may have made fun of us, but it was common to hear it. At the market, for instance, Jewish shops were one next to the other, and often they spoke among each other Judeo-Spanish unreservedly.
I also went to the movies with the same group of friends. We went to watch American and French films shown at the time. We chose a film, for instance, and said we’d go to this or that movie house tonight. All movie houses were very nice. The four that were in the center of town and ‘Ilyssia,’ ‘Dionysia’ and ‘Titania’ [renowned cinemas of Thessaloniki]. We never went to ‘Pathé.’ We mostly went to ‘Ilyssia’ and ‘Dionyssia.’ Before the war I went to the Fair [International Trade Fair of Thessaloniki, which took place every September]. I went with company, it was a feast.
I had a bicycle, but it wasn’t mine, we rented it. I used to take it and go on excursions, such as to Panorama [small village on top of a hill north of Thessaloniki] or Peraia [a seaside resort east of Thessaloniki]. I went on excursions with my group of people, my friends, two or three friends. We went on Sunday. We set off in the morning and went riding with the bicycle. And we returned in the same way. We didn’t have a certain place to stop. We went for the ride, we didn’t have a picnic and didn’t sit down anywhere.
None of us lived in the center of the city. Our neighborhoods were from Evzonon onwards. This was known as the area of Campagnas [countryside; area east of the city where most middle-class and upper-middle class families lived in detached houses]. We went downtown to go to the movies. There were three open air movie theaters in Aristotelous Square [the central square of the city]. There was nothing else. [Editor’s note: due to the devastating fire of 1917, the city center was still in the process of reconstruction.]
After the end of the film we went back home. We didn’t go to have a drink somewhere because there weren’t any such places. There were a few patisseries in that part, no more. There was the Almosnino patisserie [the most famous Jewish-owned patisserie of Thessaloniki], where my grandfather Moise went. It was a simple patisserie in Aghia Triada.
There weren’t any shops in the center of town. The commercial market was as of Aghiou Mina onwards [in the western part of the old city]. I didn’t go to the shops. I didn’t go shopping. My mother bought my clothes and shoes were ordered to be made. I never went to the department stores. Neither did my classmates. There were not any shop-windows at the rate there are now, so I didn’t look at the windows. For instance many houses in Tsimiski Street [presently Thessaloniki’s High Street] had no shops at the ground floor.
Neither did my friends of male classmates care about fashion. Some of my classmates were more elegant. Almost all of them wore a tie. Our female friends had their clothes sawn; some by their mothers. The way they dressed was according to their character. We didn’t care much about that kind of thing. Of course, when we went to a party we all took better care, but up to the point we could afford.
My classmates didn’t visit any brothels on Aggelaki Street [where many brothels were situated]. None. Only Dick Benveniste [president of the Jewish Community of Thessaloniki in the 1970s], who was two years older and smoked while he was still a student, went to the ‘girls.’ This is what he told us. Otherwise, none of our classmates smoked. Smoking was not in fashion.
I also went to the movies with the same group of friends. We went to watch American and French films shown at the time. We chose a film, for instance, and said we’d go to this or that movie house tonight. All movie houses were very nice. The four that were in the center of town and ‘Ilyssia,’ ‘Dionysia’ and ‘Titania’ [renowned cinemas of Thessaloniki]. We never went to ‘Pathé.’ We mostly went to ‘Ilyssia’ and ‘Dionyssia.’ Before the war I went to the Fair [International Trade Fair of Thessaloniki, which took place every September]. I went with company, it was a feast.
I had a bicycle, but it wasn’t mine, we rented it. I used to take it and go on excursions, such as to Panorama [small village on top of a hill north of Thessaloniki] or Peraia [a seaside resort east of Thessaloniki]. I went on excursions with my group of people, my friends, two or three friends. We went on Sunday. We set off in the morning and went riding with the bicycle. And we returned in the same way. We didn’t have a certain place to stop. We went for the ride, we didn’t have a picnic and didn’t sit down anywhere.
None of us lived in the center of the city. Our neighborhoods were from Evzonon onwards. This was known as the area of Campagnas [countryside; area east of the city where most middle-class and upper-middle class families lived in detached houses]. We went downtown to go to the movies. There were three open air movie theaters in Aristotelous Square [the central square of the city]. There was nothing else. [Editor’s note: due to the devastating fire of 1917, the city center was still in the process of reconstruction.]
After the end of the film we went back home. We didn’t go to have a drink somewhere because there weren’t any such places. There were a few patisseries in that part, no more. There was the Almosnino patisserie [the most famous Jewish-owned patisserie of Thessaloniki], where my grandfather Moise went. It was a simple patisserie in Aghia Triada.
There weren’t any shops in the center of town. The commercial market was as of Aghiou Mina onwards [in the western part of the old city]. I didn’t go to the shops. I didn’t go shopping. My mother bought my clothes and shoes were ordered to be made. I never went to the department stores. Neither did my classmates. There were not any shop-windows at the rate there are now, so I didn’t look at the windows. For instance many houses in Tsimiski Street [presently Thessaloniki’s High Street] had no shops at the ground floor.
Neither did my friends of male classmates care about fashion. Some of my classmates were more elegant. Almost all of them wore a tie. Our female friends had their clothes sawn; some by their mothers. The way they dressed was according to their character. We didn’t care much about that kind of thing. Of course, when we went to a party we all took better care, but up to the point we could afford.
My classmates didn’t visit any brothels on Aggelaki Street [where many brothels were situated]. None. Only Dick Benveniste [president of the Jewish Community of Thessaloniki in the 1970s], who was two years older and smoked while he was still a student, went to the ‘girls.’ This is what he told us. Otherwise, none of our classmates smoked. Smoking was not in fashion.
Period
Interview
Nico Saltiel