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Before the war, our family had a good life. First, Father was the only bread-winner. Mother was a housewife. I even had a baby-sitter. Then my mother was probably very bored and also started working. We weren’t rich, but lived comfortably. We had a large apartment. There was enough money for good food and all the necessary clothes. We couldn’t afford expensive things. I remember when Father bought his first Philips radio. It cost a fortune. I think my parents won at a lottery at some Jewish event. In general, they could afford pretty much everything at a reasonable price.
Life was good and peaceful in the Estonian Republic [11]. Even during the tsarist regime, when Estonia was part of Russia, it never had such an attitude towards Jews as was the case in Russia. There were no Jewish pogroms [12] in the entire history of Estonia, and no anti-Semitism in pre-Soviet times.
On Sundays all members of the family spent time together. We used to walk around Tartu, had lunch in a restaurant. I was friends with the elder son of Father’s brother Hirsh. He was two years older than me, and his brother was two years younger than me. I was closer with the elder one. In summer we went to the small town Elva, not far from Tallinn.
Life was good and peaceful in the Estonian Republic [11]. Even during the tsarist regime, when Estonia was part of Russia, it never had such an attitude towards Jews as was the case in Russia. There were no Jewish pogroms [12] in the entire history of Estonia, and no anti-Semitism in pre-Soviet times.
On Sundays all members of the family spent time together. We used to walk around Tartu, had lunch in a restaurant. I was friends with the elder son of Father’s brother Hirsh. He was two years older than me, and his brother was two years younger than me. I was closer with the elder one. In summer we went to the small town Elva, not far from Tallinn.
Period
Location
Tartu
Estonia
Interview
Avi Dobrysh