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Vidin was, and still is, a very interesting town, because it is situated on the banks of the Danube River. The banks itself are very beautiful. Across the river is the Romanian town Calafat, which we could see. There was a nice park, which ended at 'Babini Vidini Kuli' [Baba Vida Fortress] [7]. There was a Turkish prison there before in which most of the prisoners in 1939 were political ones.
The Jewish community in Vidin was very united. Most of them were merchants and most had nice houses. Our house was also one of the more beautiful houses in town. Naturally there were a lot of poor people, but there was no hatred and rivalry between the people. The Jewish families in Vidin lived in a separate quarter called 'Kaleto'. Vidin was divided by a big fortress wall, it was called 'kale' and most of the Jewish families lived in the same part of the town. The Jewish school, the synagogue and our house were also in Kaleto. Some of our neighbors were Jewish, others were Turks, with whom we got on very well.
A Turkish junior high school was opposite our house. We talked in Bulgarian with the Turkish inhabitants. There were a lot of Turks in Vidin at that time so we kept in touch with the Turks on the one hand and with three Bulgarian families on the other. We were connected to all our neighbors with doors in the fences, which were called 'kapidzhik' [small doors] in Turkish and since we were on a street leading to the center, our neighbors - both Jews and non-Jews - passed through our yard to go to the main street. These doors helped us a lot during the curfew in 1943-44. There was a curfew for the Jews in Vidin because of the Law for the Protection of the Nation [8] and we weren't allowed to go out. In fact, Kaleto was turned into something like a ghetto and we were allowed to go out only for two hours a day - between 10am and 12am. And we observed that regulation, because there were policemen and Legionaries [see Bulgarian Legions] [9] outside. But thanks to the doors in the fences we, the children, and the adults too, could get together. Thanks to those fences we kept the social contacts with our relatives and neighbors.
I remember that when I was a child my mother and I went to Yugoslavia to visit her parents - my grandmother, Sarah Beraha, and my grandfather, David Beraha - my uncles, cousins etc. Almost every summer my mother and I went to Skopje. We usually traveled by train; there was no other possibility. Once or twice we traveled via Belgrade. We traveled on board the riverboat along the Danube, from Vidin to Belgrade to meet there my elder uncle and his family. Then we left for Skopje. We had a great time there, because we were a big family.
The Jewish community in Vidin was very united. Most of them were merchants and most had nice houses. Our house was also one of the more beautiful houses in town. Naturally there were a lot of poor people, but there was no hatred and rivalry between the people. The Jewish families in Vidin lived in a separate quarter called 'Kaleto'. Vidin was divided by a big fortress wall, it was called 'kale' and most of the Jewish families lived in the same part of the town. The Jewish school, the synagogue and our house were also in Kaleto. Some of our neighbors were Jewish, others were Turks, with whom we got on very well.
A Turkish junior high school was opposite our house. We talked in Bulgarian with the Turkish inhabitants. There were a lot of Turks in Vidin at that time so we kept in touch with the Turks on the one hand and with three Bulgarian families on the other. We were connected to all our neighbors with doors in the fences, which were called 'kapidzhik' [small doors] in Turkish and since we were on a street leading to the center, our neighbors - both Jews and non-Jews - passed through our yard to go to the main street. These doors helped us a lot during the curfew in 1943-44. There was a curfew for the Jews in Vidin because of the Law for the Protection of the Nation [8] and we weren't allowed to go out. In fact, Kaleto was turned into something like a ghetto and we were allowed to go out only for two hours a day - between 10am and 12am. And we observed that regulation, because there were policemen and Legionaries [see Bulgarian Legions] [9] outside. But thanks to the doors in the fences we, the children, and the adults too, could get together. Thanks to those fences we kept the social contacts with our relatives and neighbors.
I remember that when I was a child my mother and I went to Yugoslavia to visit her parents - my grandmother, Sarah Beraha, and my grandfather, David Beraha - my uncles, cousins etc. Almost every summer my mother and I went to Skopje. We usually traveled by train; there was no other possibility. Once or twice we traveled via Belgrade. We traveled on board the riverboat along the Danube, from Vidin to Belgrade to meet there my elder uncle and his family. Then we left for Skopje. We had a great time there, because we were a big family.
Location
Bulgaria
Interview
sophie pinkas