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Then I went down to the street to play with my friends; sometimes we played hopscotch [Hickelkreis]. We would draw different forms onto the street and hop on one leg from one box to the next. I would also ride my bicycle a lot.
My parents gave me a very pretty bike; it was my Rolls Royce. I can’t remember how old I was when I got it. Everyone had a bike at that time. I didn’t cycle to school though; I went by foot. It took me 20min to get there. In the afternoon, I would drive around with my girlfriends.
We used to dress differently back then. I was dressed very well, with coat and hat.
I also took dance lessons. For my first ball, I got a wonderful ball gown, made from light blue taffeta. It was tailor-made for me. There are beautiful photos; my brother took them. I sit in the Gentlemen’s Room, wearing the ball gown.
My brothers – and me too – attended a Zionist 10 youth movement named “Blau-Weiß” [Blue-White]. This youth movement was just one of many Zionist groups back then; it was very well known at the time. We didn’t go out to cafés, or to eat, we didn’t do that.
We went hiking, we sang, and we talked a lot about Israel. My life was never boring, because we were always together. We went to the Frankfurt City-Forest with our bikes and we went to camp together. I still have some photos from back then. We met several times a week, even after Hitler had risen to power.
My parents gave me a very pretty bike; it was my Rolls Royce. I can’t remember how old I was when I got it. Everyone had a bike at that time. I didn’t cycle to school though; I went by foot. It took me 20min to get there. In the afternoon, I would drive around with my girlfriends.
We used to dress differently back then. I was dressed very well, with coat and hat.
I also took dance lessons. For my first ball, I got a wonderful ball gown, made from light blue taffeta. It was tailor-made for me. There are beautiful photos; my brother took them. I sit in the Gentlemen’s Room, wearing the ball gown.
My brothers – and me too – attended a Zionist 10 youth movement named “Blau-Weiß” [Blue-White]. This youth movement was just one of many Zionist groups back then; it was very well known at the time. We didn’t go out to cafés, or to eat, we didn’t do that.
We went hiking, we sang, and we talked a lot about Israel. My life was never boring, because we were always together. We went to the Frankfurt City-Forest with our bikes and we went to camp together. I still have some photos from back then. We met several times a week, even after Hitler had risen to power.
Period
Location
Frankfurt
Germany
Interview
Erna Goldmann