Selected text
I married on 1st September 1939 in Plovdiv, on the day when the Nazis invaded Poland [see Invasion of Poland] [8]. My wife is, in fact, my first cousin because she is the daughter of my mother's brother Nissim Geron. At that time such marriages were allowed. In fact, I didn't know my wife well before we married. I remember that she first came to Plovdiv in 1934 to visit her relatives. She was supposed to live in the two-storied house of Aunt Roza, who, however, had gone on a holiday to Chepino. That's why my aunt asked me to meet my cousin Nina [Regina] at the station and I agreed. I remember that she was a beautiful girl and that she impressed me a lot. That's how our love started.
Nina stayed in Plovdiv for about a month and then left for Sofia. We wrote to each other from 1934 to 1939, when we got married. We had a religious wedding. Rabbi Shemuel Behar, who was a very dignified and clever man, married us. The rabbi prepared for us a special marriage certificate - a ketubbah, which is written in ancient Hebrew. I remember the rabbi telling my wife to take good care of the marriage certificate. At the wedding ceremony in the synagogue in Plovdiv I had to do the ritual of breaking a glass with my foot. A glass covered with a white napkin was put in front of my wife and me. I stepped on it heavily and smashed it. This is done in order to have luck in the marriage. Some people jokingly say that in this way the groom 'frightens' the bride into submission. The celebrations after the wedding took place in the house of Aunt Roza, my mother's sister.
After we married, my wife and I decided to go on a honeymoon to Belgrade. It was announced that on 3rd September 1939 England had declared war on Germany, but we decided to go anyway. We had a very good time there and we even found it funny that while we were in Belgrade, there was a food crisis in Bulgaria and a ration system was being introduced, according to which meat was given out only two days a week. At that time we were still not aware of the hardships we would experience in Bulgaria.
Nina stayed in Plovdiv for about a month and then left for Sofia. We wrote to each other from 1934 to 1939, when we got married. We had a religious wedding. Rabbi Shemuel Behar, who was a very dignified and clever man, married us. The rabbi prepared for us a special marriage certificate - a ketubbah, which is written in ancient Hebrew. I remember the rabbi telling my wife to take good care of the marriage certificate. At the wedding ceremony in the synagogue in Plovdiv I had to do the ritual of breaking a glass with my foot. A glass covered with a white napkin was put in front of my wife and me. I stepped on it heavily and smashed it. This is done in order to have luck in the marriage. Some people jokingly say that in this way the groom 'frightens' the bride into submission. The celebrations after the wedding took place in the house of Aunt Roza, my mother's sister.
After we married, my wife and I decided to go on a honeymoon to Belgrade. It was announced that on 3rd September 1939 England had declared war on Germany, but we decided to go anyway. We had a very good time there and we even found it funny that while we were in Belgrade, there was a food crisis in Bulgaria and a ration system was being introduced, according to which meat was given out only two days a week. At that time we were still not aware of the hardships we would experience in Bulgaria.
Location
Bulgaria
Interview
haim molhov