I think this is a historical photograph, a beautiful picture of the Orthodox Jewish school on Zochova Street in Bratislava. I studied there in my first and second year. Vilma Lowyova was my teacher. The lady standing with her back against the wall should be her. I think this photograph could have been taken in 1940-41.
I remember one girl from school. She was an orphan; her name was Kaufmanova. She died in the Holocaust. We weren't friends. The children played together in groups according to their social status. Children from better-off families were grouped together and didn't know the others.
My best friend was Sulamit Nagelova. Her father had an antique shop on Kapucinska Street, but a library is there nowadays. Sulamit was a blonde girl with blue eyes and I loved her very much. She also died in the Holocaust. One girl survived; she was called Ullmanova. One of her relatives was a journalist. She had wavy hair, was so beautiful and so self-confident ? even as a child. I cannot remember the other children because I grew up in quite some isolation. I had a nanny and wasn't allowed to play with other children. I always had to play alone.
Children of the Orthodox Jewish school in Bratislava
Centropa Collection acquired by USHMM
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