Klara Kohen at the graduation of her last alumni in 1985

Here I am at the graduation of my last alumni in 1985 as a teacher in the 18th School 'St. Cyril and Methodius' (now 'William Gladstone') in Sofia. I am the one wearing a blue dress, with the bag and the bunch of flowers in the center. When I finished university I returned to Stara Zagora and became a teacher. I didn't have any conflicts at my working place because of my Jewish origin. It was the time when I became friends with people outside the Jewish community because all of my [Jewish] friends had already left. Yet I had a very nice company of Bulgarians - intelligent people, engineers. We gathered in order to listen to classical music. I will never forget how much I liked the 'Tannhauser' overture [from the opera by German composer Richard Wagner]. We gathered in each other's houses so as to listen to records. Now I am thinking why the young people are so devoted to drinking and sex? We were around 20 people sharing our time only to listen to music. We also went to the opera and theater. Now I live alone in Sofia but I have many friends, including Bulgarians. Dr. Raikovska lives right below me. Last year I broke my hand - or actually, it would be more precise to say that they [the thieves] broke my hand. They pulled my bag in order to steal four levs from me [two USD]. Dr. Raikovska and I were walking via the lawn near our living estate to a shop. I was pushed and my hand was broken. She took care of me; we are like sisters. I have another friend, Margarita, a former colleague of mine, and I have another friend, who is Jewish and her name is Prof. Marieta Haimova. We communicate well. I rarely go to the synagogue, but I did go there for the anniversary of my husband [in the Ashkenazi tradition Yahrzeit], as many friends and acquaintances gathered. Otherwise I am not that regular. I keep in touch with my husband's sister Diana.