Tuesday 25/5/04 … the ‘Birds’ (Vaidas, Brigita, & dghtr Miglė) rrive x taxi & pick me up @ 3.45pm.

Its
7.18 & wev just taken off in a Boeing 767 whch looks huge 2 me but my nghbour (fathr of greek rigin
& mothr rumanian) in th wndow seat says its not large x komparison 2 ntrn@ionl flghts. He is readn
‘3/4/04-12/4/04’ & says he finds it easy. Dinnr is gettn servd. The 1st lessn I learnt was u dont x beer
@ the airport coz u can get it 4 0 on th flght. 4 som reazn Vaidas got us each a stubby of Carlton dra-
ught @ $5.60/stubby. On the plane I askd 4 watr wth me meal then realized I lready had a small serv
on th tray. W rrive in Sydney @ 2020 @ Terminl 3. Wev just xprienced my 1st case of air turblnce. Iv
bn on 2 flghts b4 : 1ce from Sydney 2 Melb. whn I was a yth & 2 Tassie 4 a gig (2 sing litho songs) O
5 years ago. Wv startd our ↓ in2 Sydney. @ the ntrn@ionl airport : Boeing 447 (300 passngrs) dprts
@ 2215 4 Narita/Tokyo; flght time 9 hrs 20 mins; hot meal & breakfast prvided. I hav a headache in th
↑ & ← of th head whch I find dsturbn as I nevr get headaches. The book Iv brought is ‘After Such Kn-
owledge’ x Eva Hoffman (© 2004 pub X Perseus Books Group. Isbn 1-58648-046-4) bcoz its O mmry
& histry. Brigita is readn ‘I Have Become Alive’ X Swami Muktananda. Miglė (7 years old) is readn ‘J-
ust Kidding’. Sh gets bord quickly & keeps sayn so. Wv boardd & th hope is ther r nough spare seats
2 scor 4 in a row so w can lie down…. Iv got 4 seats 2 myslf & a set of lghts just got swtchd off. M dr-
nkn a Bin 50 Lindemans Shiraz. Hav poppd a pill 4 th sofagus & takn me shoes off. Eatn a meal & it
was OK. Earlier I lost me pen but had nothr in rserv. I dont dsrv 2 b treatd like this whn much of the O
is mpovrshd. I dont know why Im doing it othr than 2 complete O. (K8 has made friends wth a lady @
the print shop, a lCiHcEeHbOlVaSuKcIh, an rtist hoo has don ← O. Sh is O my mums age. Her fathr
died whn sh was 5 months (b. 6 sept. 21) & whn sh was 2 her mothr took her, her 9 year old brothr E-
dward, & a 7 year old sistr ← australia → vsit rl@ivs in russia. Th@ was in 1923 & sh ddnt get out till
58 years l8r in 1981 whn sh rturnd here. Edward was xcuted during the stalnist purges in 1938. Her
primary language is russian but sh also underst&s “kitchen lithuanian” as sh → ther in 47 & has gr&-
chldrn ther still. I rang her yestrdy & said Id c@ch up wth her whn I get back.). My mothr took me as a
3 year old & my 1 year old sistr Rasa out in 1944 & now Im rturnn 4 the 1st time 60 years l8r. Its 12.40
x my watch whch hasnt bn djustd from Melbourn time & Im goin 2 c if I can get som sleep. Vaidas hoo
has th 4 seats in front is w@chn Lord of the Rings…. Tokyo airport. Its hot & Im sweatn in the rmpits
but no1 els seems troubld. 9.15am. Our Aeroflot flght 2 Moscow via Paris (4/8/04. but it was continuin
→ Paris ← Moscow) doesnt leav till 12.00. In Sydney a hungrian guy hoos breath smelt of locohol vo-
lnteerd I was ← pol& or @ least ← somwhr in east/central europ. On th flght 2 Tokyo a lady askd whr
I was ← & whn I said ← Melbourn sh said I rmindd her of her fathr, a japnese. I hav no nclin8n 4 my
usual rflktiv style of writn. My 1st sghtn of japan was while w wer still over th c & I cght sght of Mt Fuji
abov th cloudline in th far dstance. Why is this termnal so hot & humid? Ddnt get much sleep last nght
though I took 1 Temazepam tablet so 2nght Ill take 2. @ 1st w thght w mght hav time 2 get out of th
airport 4 a bit so w changed $20 → 1348 yn. But w find w havnt got nough time → anywhr so weel
hav 2 spnd it here. A stubby or glass of beer costs O 400 yn & the same 4 a coffee. X myslf I would
hav bn happy nough 1drn O th termnl wthout spndn anythn. Vaidas says Im stingy. Ncidntlly Miglė is a
bit of a pain grssivly dm&n @ntion …. Aeroflot is 0 like Qantas. Evry seat is takn & life goes on, ti-me
passs quickr. Or mayb its just th@ w r travlln in daylght (wth th sun – Moscow time is 5 hours ear-lier).
Im up 2 p83 of ‘After Such Knowledge’. In it Eva Hoffman is transl8n (c Susan Sontags (hoos ncestrs
migr8d ← litho & pol&) commnts on this word in an ssay in ‘Where the Stress Falls’) mmry → words.
Sebalds ‘Immigrants’ is mmesurably mor powrful. (Im writn in crampt konditions btween 2 sle-epers).
In nothr ssay Sontag says th@ Borges liked 2 say (quotn Browning hoo wrote somthn like “the present
is the instant in which the future crumbles into the past”) th@ every moment of time contains the past &
the future, whch makes my claim (c ‘29/4/04 – 1/5/04’ p2) th@ “All pasts and all futures are only
reflections of the present” noriginal. H reckons T.S. Eliot said it 2. (From ‘Burnt Norton’ (Four
Quartets) : “Time present and time past / Are both perhaps present in time future, / And time future
contained in time past. / If all time is eternally present / All time is unredeemable.”) On tuesdy may 11/04 in
th Age p3 of A3 Simonne Levi-Jameson hoo owns th ‘Art Sans Frontieres’ gallery @ 715 Rathdowne
St., North Carlton, Tel . 93497211 said “I shall be … always in the present, because once you have resolved
your past, its there that you find your future.” Eva Hoffman says on p74 “Only then can they go on to reco-
1
gnize that the awful events in whose spectral grip they have lived belong to another time; that the past need no
longer live on within their psyches and bodies; that it is indeed the past.” Th@ th past need not be rtaind in
th mmry is true but it certainly livs on in th body (4/8/04. c Nietzsche (Foucault undrstood him on
this )). Othrwise how can u xplain th@ I m on my way → KAUNAS ? Whn I st8d my version of it
(26/5/04. If u r 1drin whthr its true (ie =) or not youv lready lost th plot. Th point is I like th kumpny Im
in. Th@s the only measure.) I had no idea th@ Borges had said much the same yet I hav read all of
his prose over & over & I had 2 study th ‘Four Quartets’ @ Melb. uni. Prhps w hav not ssmil8td th
past fully (ie. w rtain a sepr8n from it; a skreen btween it & us so w can rfer (point @) → it)
until w hav 4gottn it – only thn can w regurgit8 it (pass it ; vacuate it; trans4m; n4m) but
slghtly altrd bcoz th dffrnce has bn incorpor8d. (W r headn → STORM & hav bn told 2 FASTEN
SEAT BELTS). Iv ju-st realized & Vaidas konfirms 2day is Wednesday 26/5/04 (2.25 pm MOSCOW
time). Thursday 27 /5/04. I havnt had a nap since th Sydney Tokyo leg of the flght & Vaidas is comn
ovr in O 1 hour (@ 8pm). Aftr w part Ill hav 2 crash. Filln in : Moscow airport (esp. th domstik sektion
wher peopl wer bu-nkn down on the floor & on th rows of seats wth all their gear (the womn from Ulan
Bator wer havn a really good time) as if theyd bn ther 4 weeks) woz th xact →←of Narita xept 4 th
price of beer whr w paid $7 merican 4 1 pot. On the flght → Riga in a Tupolev whr evry seat was takn
x large men th guy nxt 2 me made me keep him kumpny in drinkn his Hennessy whsky (1/8/04. I told
th story 2 a nglsh-mn in Vilnius & he said ther was no such thng, but I was usn it as a gnerik term). He
was dressd in suit & n@y shirt & he said anythn is possbl & he gave wads of notes → th air hostess
hoo tried ← but cldnt & brought us out our glasss & a box of fancy chocs so w wer th only 1s on th
plane ndulgin. His 2 mobiles kept On & he told me his fathr had died 2 days ago (age 68) & he was
goin → his funeral & he also showd me a pic of his daughtr on the screen on 1 of the mobiles. Whn I
askd hav u got a card? (as I wantd 2 use his partculars in the journl) he said he had a BMW. Whn
Vaidas xplaind I me-ant a business card he gave it 2 me but it was in russian. Brigita l8r xplaind his
name is givn as Alex-ander Liepa (a typkal l@vian name) & it says he is joint ownr of an
INTERNATIONAL CHARITY FU-ND opr8n in Riga, Moscow & St Petersburg ! Whn he left I 4got 2
pick up th whsky bottl in th kontainr in th back of th seat in front whch was still ½ full. Im in KAUNAS
in th HOTEL METROPOLIS (2/8/04. in Vilnius (c ‘Vilnius → Melbourne’) I bought a CD of songs x
Danielius Dolskis from th 1930s & 1 of th orchstras on th CD is calld METROPOLIS (Metropolio in
litho meann ‘of th metropolis ’) rght in th ce-ntr of town & verythn here is ½ price (beer 3.5 litai 4 a big
glass; dlcious meal 4 Lt (2 Lt = 1 oz $); my magnfcent room wth a balcony ovr th street just near
LAISVĖS ALĖJA is 70 Lt/day inc. breakfst). I spnt th O day (from 7am) 1drn O th city & esp in th OLD
TOWN but Im 2 buggrd 2 giv an ccount & Vaidas has just turnd up. Friday 28/5/04. (just turnd off th
kids cartoon on th st8 litho TV whch I had turnd on hoping 4 th news @ 9; it was a russian produktion
wth litho voice ovr) Had my 1st full nghts sleep wth th help of 15mgs of valium & wash & showr &
brushd me teeth & m back 2 normlty havn, as far as Im ware, faild 2 xprience any sgns of jet lag. This
hotel & my room r uttrly beautful like somthn from a 1930s movie – watr stains, wall pper rising @ the
edges, brass fittngs 4 the head lamps, old worn red karpt. Whn sh was xplainn breakfast was in a
rstrant down th street (missd it this mornn) th rceptnist xused th@ this was not an xpnsiv hotl. But I
couldnt b bettr housd @ any price. Rturnn 2 th trip here. A friend of Vaidas, Romas Mekisa, pickd us
up @ Riga @ 1am ystrdy havn bn kontaktd x Vaidas @ short notice. Petrl is xpnsiv so my kontrbution
was 2 pay him $75 (aust) = 150 litai 4 th cost of his 500k O trip. He took me drektly here th room havn
bn lready bookd x Vaidases brothr. Still in l@via w woz sprung x cops 4 speedn & had 2 pay a 5 latu
bribe 2 get out of a 35 latu fine. Vaidas sa-ys last year he paid mor in bribes than 4 petrl. All th cops
here r on the take. They lay in wait in sne-aky positions wher th chances r ↑ youll make a mstake. In
this case the sgn ndik8n th nd of the 50k zone was an nusually long way past a tiny town & Romas
had ssumed w wer lready in th 75k zone. @ th litho/l@l& bordr I used my litho passport (yes! I m
now a citzn of urope (I would like 2 b a citzn of th O but it would mean th only 1s against hoom I could
b protektd would hav 2 b xtrtrsstrials), a du-al passport ownr, havng rceivd my litho 1 a few days aftr
complainn in my last piece of writn (c ‘29/4 /04 – 1/5/04’ p11) th@ 8 months aftr I had bn told it would
take 3 months I still hadnt got it) 4 th 1st time. Anyway, w got → Kaunas @ 4.30am whr w woz pulld up
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x th cops gain hoo checkd Romases passprt, drivers licence, & car nsurance, wthout a word of
xplan8n as they r supposd 2 do ccording 2 Romas hoo ddnt querie it coz he was 2 tired. Th@s lithol&
4 u & Romas said I should void 1drn O Ka-unas @ nght whch should b easy as dawn is @ 4am & it
doesnt get dark till mdnght (1/8/04. l8r I crr-ctd thes). Its 9.50 & I m keen 2 get going strtng wth ppr &
breakfst in LAISVĖS ALĖJA & then → old town (SENAMIESTIS) gain. Very briefly yestrdy I : walkd all
day & saw a Kuosa (Corvus monedula) , & a Kiele (Motacilla alba) & othr birds I hadnt cn or heard
b4 this being not only my 1st trip 2 lithol& but also 2 europ (I bought a bird ID book in th mornn & hav
me bnoclars); vistd various churchs & was takn 2 the roof of th jesuit 1 (I told thm my mothrs brothrs
had bn tort x thm & I woz tort x thm in Melb. & Kun.l Kazimieras J. Ambrassas SJ hoo has writ a book
O oz & knows heaps of lithos in Melb. nclu-ding Andrius V. gave me a booklet ‘Aukštyn’ x him 2 pass
on 2 Martynas Didžys (4/8/04. wth hoom I rowd up th Yarra from Altona → Northcote in a canoe whn
w wer kids) & he offrd me a meal (whch I dclined) & would like us 2 eat 2gethr nothr day but Im busy
& havnt evn kontaktd my relos yet) & was givn ntry → old synagog whr th doors wer nlockd 4 me;
vistd th beautful Vytauto parkas & othrs; wal-kd O in an ‫ ٱ‬of tiny dcrepit woodn houses wth low eavs
in winding streets such as Žalioji g, Serbentu g. Vyšniu g, etc. whch raisd feelngs & mmries I ddnt
know I had rtaind; but mostly I walkd in th ‘old town’ hoos evry street I would like 2 xplor (& esp th
dkrepit courtyards whch u ntr thrgh stone archs). Im →. (10.20am) ….5.50. Was goin 2 start writn but
Vaidas just rang 2 say he will b here in ½ an hour so Ill just put in sevrl of th birds I saw : th commn
duck on th Nemunas (Niemen) (3/8/04. c front covr) is Didžioji Antis (Anas platyrhynchos); th
seagulls r Rudagalvis Kiras (Larus ridibundus); a tiny bird @ a nest box in a clump of trees on th
bank of th Neris is th Margasparnė musinukė (Ficedula hypo-leuca); & th domnant crow in th city
wth an mprssiv wheezy call & black & grey plumage is th Varna (Corvus corone); & I saw a Dagilis
(Carduelis carduelis) whch has bn ntroducd 2 oz & known ther as th goldfinch. Saturday 29/5/04
(04/gegužės 29, šeštadienis) 7am. Shaved using shaving cream 4 th 1st time in me life. B4 I head off
→ hotel breakfst in what Vaidas says is a good rstrant here is a dskription of ystrdys whch I 8 in a
very kum4tabl, privleged pub/bar, a few 00 yards from th fountain in Laisvės Alėja (whch is O 1k long
& leavs th Bourk st mall 4 dead bcoz it has no vhiclar traffic. I startd wth a coffee @ 2 Lt (2/8/04. in
Moscow airprt u can pay 5 euros 4 a coffee) & read th ppr (‘Kauno Die-na’ (2.5 Lt) whch som say is th
best qualty ppr in litho @ the momnt). I dont know if theyv heard of latte or capuccino here as u lways
get a small strong black, & I do as th lokals. @ 11 I was abl 2 x 2 cepelinai @ a cost of 6.5 Lt whch
wer dlicious & I hardly evr get 2 eat bcoz they r so time konsumin 2 make. If som1 was makin thes in
a rstrnt in Melb theyd cost O $15. Got talkn 2 a guy @ th nxt tabl hoo was my age & hoos dghtr is a
violnist 2rn th US & will b → oz nxt year. 2 finsh I had an xllnt red wine 4 6 Lt. Th@ = 17 Lt ie $8.50 in
th smartst sOngs @ th top nd of town. The KULTURA sektion of the ppr had a page of poems. Here is
a xampl titld ‘Smėlio laikrodis (prisiminimas apie tuos, kurie gy-veno veltui)’ x Kestutis Navakas :
“(neprašyk manes kalbėti apie smėli) mes / rinkome kriaukles ieškodami tuštumos / mes dėžes atidarėm : // iš
nieko ir iš nieko / iš nebaroko negotikos // iš vėjo ir vėjo (pilno aitvaru bei / liūdnumo) turėjome rinktis / is
properšu ir properšu (neprašyki manes!) // ar žinai kad štai šitas gyvenimas – tavo? // (žiurek mirusius neša i
žydo namus / ar jauti kaip sekunde tave sutaupo? Bet / kur save dėsi ) mes // gė-rėm žodynu degtine ir pagirios
/ budavo sunkios kol / skyrė mums tyla // kol vedės mus viena iš kito // (i atminti medžiu) kol stiklo narve /
paskuntinė smiltelė pakibo”. @ th jesuit school (ownd x th govt. but they want 2 turn it in2 a priv@ fee
payn school 4 th elite. Th lady showin me O chuckld whn I suggestd they would b teachn th kids of th
new rich 2 pray 2 th money god) I vsitd ystrdy ther is a dsplay on th wall in th co-rrdor commmr8n
Adomas Mickevičius, th great romantik poet, hoo had taught @ th school. Mickevič-ius wrote in polsh
& is rvered ther as th greatst of thm all but th lithos claim him as ther own. Simon Schama points out
the likelihood he is thnically as much jewsh. I m glad I m not going on guidd trips or being shown th
2rist spots x rl@ivs as I get bord x self servn hstry & I was nsnsitiv nough 2 sugge-st 2 Kun. J.
Ambrasas SJ th@ Mickevičius probbly only taught ther a very short time whch he +mittd. Im →
breakfast. … whch was a serv yourslf on th 2nd floor of a fancy hotel so I left as I wantd 2 eat in a
place closer 2 ‘th street’. Good food is so cheap here th@ 4 a rch wstnr th ssue is th best sOngs in
whch 2 sit down. I 8 cepelinai gain in a small café/bar x the sprmrkt x th fountain. Now Im going 2 co-
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ntnue readn th ppr (havn com back 2 my room 206, Metropolis 2 pop a ntacid pill 4 me sofagitis) @ th
fancy bar I 8 in yestrdy. Ncidntlly th 1st place me & Vaidas drank a beer (4 Lt) in yestrdy had a beer
gardn wher our tabl was about 15 yards ← th ntrance of a small brick church whch Vaidas rmarkd
was over 500 years old. X the time w got up → look nside th doors had bn lockd but ther was a tiny
stairway in2 th back of it whch went in2 a room wher 00s of candls wer burnn. The young womn hoo
lockd up aftr w had a look said this was the 2nd oldst church in Kaunas. Aftr Iv read th ppr ovr a beer
(Iv dscovrd u hav 2 hav 1 aftr eatn a meal of cepelinai bcoz they r in a very dlicious but oily sauce) Im
→ look nside it & in th oldst church whch is in th ‘old town’ though I think it mght b 1 of th 1s I vsitd
ystrdy. X th way th TV in my room is a ŠILELIS br& whch wer manfacturd in what had bn a huge mm-
orial church whn it funktiond as a faktry undr th soviets. I had a look nside th very ugly mnmntl struk-
ture in th process of bein rstord, whras nothr but very beautful (from th outside) church near the sem-
nary x the Neris rivr (not far from th old castl rmains) whch is ndoubtdly very old but had bn used as a
storhous (as had th littl 1 x th bar) looks so nglektd th@ if its left much longr it may b byond rpair. …
Its mdnght & I dont hav time 2 put in an ntry. 04/ gegužės 30, sekmadienis (sunday 30/5/04) 6.25
am. I 4got 2 mntion ystrdy whn I was dscribn my breakfst th@ as I was readn th ppr wth me wine a
boy of O 12, wth a long sad face came → me & quietly pleadd 4 money. I ddnt giv any & l8r saw him
thrgh th front wndow walkn ↓ th street jauntly h&s in pockts. On my 1st mornn here as I was climbn th
steps in2 Vytautas Park an oldr kid, 15 or so, sportly dressd wth baseball cap & small day pack askd
4 a cigrett. He lookd no diffrnt 2 any such kid in Melb. Th most commn way of beggn is 4 an old womn
2 b kneeln on a piece of cloth on th pavemnt hunchd ovr fingrn a rosry & mumbln prayrs. They try 2
c@ch sght of hoo is comn out of th cornrs of their eyes. 1 such thankd me profusely as I was walkn
away askn god 2 favour me wth evry kind of good 4tune. U put your coin in2 an rdinry drinkn cup wh-
ch they hold or is on th gO. They of10 position thmslvs eithr side of church doorways. As I was leavn
th Vytautas church (oldst in Kaunas) x th Nemunas rivr ystrdy whr I had w@chd a weddn I had 2 ma-
ke sure I had 2 coins of = value (20c) as I ddnt 1t 2 favr 1 ovr th othr. Sually I pass them x. In th ‫@ ٱ‬
th eastrn nd of Laisvės Alėja near th distinktiv, beautful & huge cathedral (but wher th paintngs of th
st8ns of th † nside r kitch) whch is 1 of th l&marks of th city ther is 1 of th only 2 publik toilts (th othr is
in Rotušės 4/8/04( ‫ٱ‬. c covr map) @ th ←→ nd of Vilniaus st) Iv bn abl 2 find. U pay 24c 2 th womn in
th room nside th door 2 use thm. Ther was an old womn in th sual kneeln positin ½ way btween th
church & th toilt. 2 pay th womn in th toilt I had changed a 50c coin & if I hadnt givn th rmainn 26c →
beggr it would hav meant I had valued her less than a PISS. Last night O 11 whn I → O th cornr 4 a
beer ther was a boy in a kneeln position outside what he would considr an xpnsiv rstraunt (dirt cheap
x our st&rds). He was about 12, in track suit, & wth his roller blades on. I doubt if he kept up th posit-
ion 4 long but som of th old womn stay like th@ 4 hours. I also saw a man kneeln hunchd ovr a dog
btween his rms. Vaidas reckns its only rcently, wth th rrival of th 2rsts, th@ beggn has strtd & th@
they r mor numrous in Melbourn (but ther they dont work as hard & earn much mor). Theyr prffssionls
he reckns & my cousin Juozas Žižis hoom I met ystrdy whn I → 2 c th hous in Biliuno (now Smetono)
g. x th Nemunas (much wider than th Murray & flowing strongly) in Panemune whr I had spnt th 1st 3
years of my life & whr th oak tree (10000 Lt fine if its cut down) whch was plantd @ my birth is 1 of
the largest trees O & undr whch th boy (took me 5 mins 2 konvince him 2 opn th door as he was in th
hous x himself; th hous has bn dvided → 2 & I had knockd on th wrong door) had cn a hedgehog (ež-
iuka) (me & Juozas saw an otter (ūdra) undr th bridge wher th Jesios rivr → Nemunas) says they dont
need 2 do it. Vaidas has rung (7.50 am) 2 suggst w → song fstvl in Vilnius (Vilna, Vilno) & thn → his
place near Ukmergė 4 a nght x a fire in th opn & ← 2 Kaunas 2morrow so I hav 2 pack me daypack &
rush → get a bite 2 eat as he will b here x 9.30. …2004m. birželio 2 d (wednesday 2/6/04) Got bak
ystrdy evnn. Alvinga (dghtr of Jurgis (brothr of Juozas) hoo livs in Minsk (bielorus)) hoo livs wth her
mothr (teachr of nglsh) & alhocolic ((2/8/04. but mayb not) hoo had opnd th door 4 me but I ddnt c any
mor of him) brothr (his wife & child r in bielorus) Ernestas had left th fotos sh took of me & Juozas (he
had takn me → Panemune cemetry (th dead r mor prsnt here than in oz; gravesites r well 10dd & oftn
vsitd; mmorials (esp 2 partisans (calld bandits x th soviets & not 2 b konfused wth their use of th term
partisans whch refrs 2 th men hoo fought 2 disrupt th german rtreat bhind th lines 2wards th nd of th
4
2nd O war as th front movd wst)) dot th countryside in th most nxpectd places; workshops 4 making
gravestones (PAMINKLAS (PAMINKLAI in plural)) r a major business) then past th field O th size of a
basktball ‫ ٱ‬not far from th house in Biliuno st (whr he had livd in th care of a dranged rl@iv (aftr w had
fled wstwrd in 44 bcoz my fathr hoo was tekniklly a dsertr from the soviet rmy would hav bn jaild &
lmost certnly shot (peopl wer 4 much less)) bcoz both his parents had bn rrsted & in siberia (as 1 of th
“childrn of th nmy of th peopl” up 2 th last days of soviet russia whn travl ovrcs had bn made easier he
still wasnt llowd 2 † th bordr evn in2 pol& or th othr east ropean commnst st8s)) wher the MUTIL-
ATED bodies of PARTISANS used 2 b thrown out of trucks & left in rows 4 days guardd x 2 NKVD
men wth submachine guns. A 3rd NKVD man in civvies would mingl wth th nlookrs w@chng 4 sgns of
rkognition from grieving MOTHERS or relos hoo had 2 train thmslvs 2 hide all emotion so th SPY wld-
nt spot thm & hav thm → SIBERIA.Ther wer many such ‫ ٱ‬in th suburbs & in centrl Kaunas Juozas
said) then w went ↑ hill (my mum has a foto of me held on my unkls shldrs as a kid on it) calld Napo-
leono Kalnas overlookn th Nemunas (Niemen) from whch Napoleon had w@chd as his rmy †d th rivr
ovr 3 pontoon bridges his ngineers had built. I think I mght b gettn things out of ordr as w probbly vs-
itd th gOs of th offcer trainn school earlier whr my fathr had spnt 4 or 5 years b4 bcomn an air4ce pilot
& offcer (he had wantd 2 b a doktor but couldnt a4d th schooln bein th son of villagrs & th only way 2
get a free duc8n 4 him was @ miltry school or a smnry) & so earnn nough money 2 help his 2 oldr
brothrs complet their duc8n & evn saving nough wth whch 2 x his parnts a propty whch wasnt mainly
birch swamp but his savings wer made valueless x a dvalu8n) & whr th riginl barracks r still st&n thgh
pparntly not in use though th place is 1ce gain a miltary base whch w had sneakd in2 thrgh a rusty g8
@ th bottm of an ovrgrown cemnt staircase left ajar in th rear wall sOng th base. W had cn a soldier
on guard wth a rifle in th field whch w skirtd thrgh th scrub out of view. W → strght down th middl of th
base long n vnue lined x trees as bold as brass & left thrgh th main g8 nchallnged coz th guards wer
checkn only traffik GOING → TH BASE. Ncidntlly now th@ Im a citzn of europ & so hav dual cit-
znship Im in th COALITION OF THE WILLING x 2 (how p@riotik is th@!) as lithol& is 1 of th mmbrs &
has sent a couple of 00 soliders xept readn th pprs here u wldnt know iraq xistd coz they is only ntrstd
in lokal news & dont realize th@ whatvr moneys th yanks bribed thm wth 2 join doesnt slghtly comp-
ns8 4 th ncreas in petrl prices whch r huge here & r sendng peopl (specially farmrs hoo try 2 b modrn
x usin traktors (old soviet gas guzzlrs) broke). Aftr partng kumpny wth Alvinga (hoo h8s it here & is
pining 2 get back 2 th US whr her partnr is & whr sh had bn 5 years but ← bcoz her teenage dghtr
hoo was bein brought up x gr&mothr was playn up & bein away a week @ a time. Now Alvinga cant
← & has 2 hav only short meetns wth her partnr in europ coz sh has no pprs (like many lithos in eur-
op & oz & all ovr th O but specially in New York from wher Juozases dghtr, Egle, (@ hoos fl@ (on th
edge of th old town just x th rivr & th jesuit school I had vistd) w finshd off th day wth wine & dlicious
food (like all th food here) b4 Juozas walkd me back 2 th Metropolis (whr u can reach me x On 0011
(ntrn@tionl) 370 (litho) 37 (Kaunas) 205992 (rception desk) & ask 2 b put thrgh 2 me in room 206 as I
will xplain 2 H l8r 2day (same day in Melb. but 7 hours l8r)) hoo also has spent th last 8 years in NEW
YORK (lookn aftr a disabld man) & also has a teenage dghtr hoo was bein brought up x her gr&mothr
& hoo also cant get back bcoz sh has no paprs (bcoz of th TERRORISTS & here they dont giv a shit
O terrorists coz they r mor worried O th MUGGINGS) but sh wantd ← yankiel& bcoz of th awfl food &
othr stuff) & is konsdrn tryin 2 get in thrgh MEXICO) w ↑ top of th hill ovrlookn Aleksoto bridge (4/8/04.
c covr map) whr th view was bettr than from Napoleons hill & whr ccordn 2 Juozas som 20 or so of th
litho snipers hoo wer pickn off th soviet soldiers as they wer scrambln in panik 2 get → from th germ-
ns th day aftr opr8n BARBAROSSA was launchd in 41 wer killd whn they wer flushd out x th despr8
ruskies. This is th day whch is rmmbrd x th lithos as th day of the uprising (101 coffins wer cermon-
iously buried) but th jews rmmbr as th day of th KAUNAS POGROM wher probbly O 1200 (2/8/04. 4
mor ccur8 dtails c ‘Vilnius (no 1)’ & ‘Jews, Lithuanians and the Holocaust’ x Alfonsas Eidintas.) jews
wer murdrd (but I read 8000 in a pprback calld ‘The Holocaust’) but som lithos claim NONE or hardly
any wer. But rght now Kaunas is beautfully green & verywher u go chsnuts (kaštonai) & lilacs (alivos)
r in flowr. Th numrous bars & cafes as good as any Iv cn r playn nglsh muzak (Vaidas has just walkd
in) … Had a coffee; he bought som books 4 his m8 Hilas in zrael; I → a card 2 my mum in Sydney 4
5
hr brthdy on 4 june; met & drank 3 beers wth ReUgDiIdNiSjKuAsS hoo is 1 of th mor succssful rtists
here (headn off 2 work in italia 4 a few mnths) hoo is currntly ntrstd in old maps & rtracing th → map-
pd out x a medieval travlr. He is a grafik rtist & w vistd his new studio in ‘old town’ a littl off Vilniaus g.
He nvited us 4 t 2 his place 2morrow & I said Id giv him a sampl of my stuff & said I mght use 1 of his
Kaunas maps if he givs me a copy; tried 2 O H 2 tell her th numbr 2 O back on th card I bought her 4
th purpose coz its cheapr th@ way but her no. is NGAGED so m O 2 try gain – got thrgh 2 Dan hoo
says shs @ a libary dinnr so Ill try in an hour @ 11.30 pm Melbourne time) I told ReUgDiIdNiSjKuAsS
O AEROFLOT & how nlike on th QANTAS plane whr ther was a telly on th back of each seat th AER-
OFLOT plane had 1 telly abov th centr aisl 4 evry1 & strght aftr th safety nstructions fnishd they nno-
uncd th@ th video playr had brokn ↓ so th TV was rtractd ↑ th ceiling 2 evry1s musemnt & my rlief.
But I prferd th AEROFLOT hostesss hoo lookd like ordnary broads whras th 2 jap womn on th QANT-
AS flght lookd like mannequin klones of each othr. Durin th flght th AEROFLOT hostess spoke in ngli-
sh 2 me probbly knowin I was ozzie from th passngr list & whn I said SPACIBA as w ↓ @ MOSCOW
sh was tickld pink. Then w talkd O why Kaunas peopl dont say hullo whn u pass thm in th street. I pa-
ssd a fishrmn on th bank of th Neris & whn I said how r u he turnd his back on me as if I was prying
in2 his ffairs. My 1st learnn xrcize was 2 say xcuse me (atsiprašau) but th@ also oftn doesnt work.
Near SOBORAS (th big church @ th westrn nd of LAISVĖS ALĖJA) I askd a guy whr th toilt was & he
nswrd as if he was nconvniencd & wldnt rpeat his drektions whch wer unklear. Same whn I askd 4 th
trolley bus 2 PANEMUNE. Egidijus rckns its bcoz peopl learnt 2 trust no1 & evn nghbours pass x prt-
ndn not 2 c each othr. Undr th soviets th idea was 2 mind your own business & 2 b nkonspikuous. But
I said th@ in Muitinės g. in old town I passd a klassic jew (as in a llustr8n 4 Shylock) wth a long black
coat & long grey beard & black h@ & hunchd shldrs wth rms †d bhind him lookn worried & I said GE-
ROS SVEIKATOS (good health) & quick as a flash & wth a pleasd look he shot back IR PAČIAM (& 2
u) & in Vilnius (…a, …o,…e) I askd a guy in litho whethr th time on me w@ch was rght (bcoz th clock
on th towr said diffrnt) & he noddd yes & said PROSHE coz he was polsh. An old lady on th bus said
not 2 say I was ← oz coz I mght get muggd & Egidijus said som1 got killd 4 50 Lt th othr day. Ther is
a sens of threat in th air & young men mit8 macho fashn x dressn in jeans pants & jackts etc. I saw 4
guys walkn ½ th lnth of LAISVĖS ALĖJA 1 evnn jumpn O & swearn as if 2 test th lmits of peopls reak-
tion & evry1 prtendd they nevr saw thm. As a middl aged womn in a leathr jackt †d in front of thm on
her way ← work 1 sp@ on her back whch sh may not hav noticed but sh certainly would hav heard th
loud rmark O f@ arses made x 1 of th othrs but sh nevr turnd O. Egidijus reckns it will take a genr8n 4
it 2 change. Kaunas lacks nfluences from outside bein thniclly uni4m & is also th bastion of litho jingo-
ism. He hmslf would nevr go thrgh russia or on AEROFLOT as I had. But I found Ukmergė (2/8/04.
But c my commnts in ‘Vilnius → Melbourne’. It is not th same place havn bn a jewsh (70%?)
town b4 th war (but I ddnt know!) & most of th peopl r new. A signifkant fraktion of th jews
were herdd → synagog & burnt live. It bkame 1 of th main centrs in lithol& 4 th xtermn8n of
jews hoo wer transprtd ← th sOng towns & villges eg : TAUJĖNAI, KAVARSKAS, KURKLIAI,
VIDIŠKIAI, SIESIKAI (whr my fathr was born), BALNINKAI, ŽELVA (a pretty place now), ŠEŠ-
UOLIAI (whr I vistd th chrch), PABAISKAS, DUBINGIAI (on a beautful lake rsort (c ‘→ (no 2)’),
ŠIRVINTOS, MUSNINKAI, GELVONAI, BAGASLAVIŠKIS etc.) kompletly dffrnt & peopl lookd rlaxd
as they mght in a medium size oz town. How can u xplain it? I m havn nothr go @ On H. Shes not ho-
me. I had my times mixd up. 11.30 in Melb. is 4.30 here – Ill try then. Dan & th othrs r OK & th new
fence is in (5/8/04. & intrudes → our propty x up 2 4 nchs @ 1 nd (thes r th things I fnd havn wokn
from jetlag)). Im off 4 a coupl of cepelinai followd x a beer as Iv only had som fried rye bread sticks
wth garlik (whch is st&rd here wth beer) 4 th day. Just 2 fnsh off th commnts on Kaunas mannrs : Vai-
das reckns th komparison with Vilnius is th 2nd most commn topik of convrs8n mong his friends most
of hoom bein rtists vntually leav 4 Vilnius (…a,…o,…e) th 1st bein th dffculties of an rtists life (& how 2
get out & make it in th west) since th dmise of th soviet st8 now peopl rspect only $s) wth th rceptionst
& sh gave thm → me whn I xtndd my stay 4 nothr coupl of days. 1 of thm is of me & Juozas st&n in
front of MY OAK & its big. Just realized Id bettr make my bookn in Vilnius wher I hope 2 get a room
rght in th ‘old town’ @ th rt cadmy wher they r rntng 4 th fantastik cheap r8 of 40 Lt / nght. Couldnt get
6
thrgh. Off 4 a meal, 3pm. …Got → H & told hr 2 considr th possblty of us → here 2gethr @ ths time
nxt year. Couldnt prtend I was missn her as its 2 hektik 4 me 2 b missn anythn.(19/6/04. Sigh…
haven’t you ever heard the saying “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say nuthin’ at
all”? or “Honey attracts more flies than vinegar”? Or even “Its wise not to be tactless to
the typist”?- helh&z) (3/8/04 ystrdy H (hoo is typin) h&d me a poem sh wrote then : “he doesn’t
miss me he says / busy as he is with birds / and bridges / and bars. / a small sin of
omission / would not have gone amiss. / at least, by implication, / he may miss me / in
the few dull moments / when there is not-hing / better to do.”) Im not managin 2 keep up
wth th writin & as I was walkn back from me meal I met Romas hoo had pickd us up @ Riga wth wife
& baby strolln long Laisvės Alėja & he was pushn 4 me 2 meet up wth him gain. He knew all O my
last 2 days & evn cn th foto wth th stork bcoz hed cn Brigita earlier in th day. Aftr On H I got my bookn
in Vilnius 4 2 weeks from wdnsdy nxt week. He took th bookn in my 1st name sayin he ddnt need th
srname as ther arnt th@ many Arunases (4 /8/04. but thr r a helluva lot I found). Im going 2 hav 2
write th rest in a kind of shorth& as ther is 2 much dtail & I want to com home wth somthn of
mangeabl lenth. As I was → long Zikaras g. a lady hoo volnteerd 2 giv m som drektions was telln me
he had taught in th rt school in th park near x & po-intd out th hous he had livd in. I ddnt realize @ 1st,
honey, it was his son hoo had bn th oz (taught @ RMIT) sculptr hoos son u had taught @ Heidelberg
High & usd 2 com home complainn what a pest he was. Certainly 1 4 my future book on
COINCIDENCES. In Vilnius w wer listnn 2 a group of singrs pr4mn in 1 of th ‫ٱ‬s u get bhind th houses
in evry block of th old town & me & Algis Karazija from → ‫ ← ٱ‬spottd each othr @ th same time. Wer
both from Melbourn & Iv mntiond in 1 of my pieces he scord th job as 1 of th 2 drektors of th Vilnius
jazz festvl (5/8/04. but c ‘Vilnius (no 2)’) so I gave him th 3 pie-ces Iv put out this year in whch I happn
2 mntion ½ th peopl he is bringn ← Melbourn 4 th festvl in sept. (Danius K, Neil Kelly, Rohan Drape,
Craig Fermanis (hoom I talkd 2 a few weeks ago whn he said he was giggn in the US & knew 0 O
comn here)). I had put th pieces → my day pack @ th last momnt as w wer leavn th Metropolis. But
he lready knew I was in litho coz Dana Levickis hoo had lob-bd in on th jesuit school in Kaunas a
coupl of days aftr my vsit had told him. In Vilnius I saw th most beautful nterior of a buildn I had evr cn
in th Pranciskaus church of th Bernardinu monstry whr th da-mage don in th soviet years had only
servd 2 hghlght th beauty of what was left. It was 1 of th only 2 ccasions I wasnt abl 2 rtain my
komposur. Bob Hawke (& Malcolm Fraser & Peter Moore) would hav cried bucktfuls in my position. I
could find reazns 4 my fragilty but they r nvntions aftr th evnt & only dsguise th fact th@ th emotions
com 1st & r likely 2 b nrl8d 2 th xplan8ns. (“If you do not want certain people to get into a room, put a lock
on it for which they do not have the key. But it is senseless to talk with them about it, unless you want them all
the same to admire the room from outside. // The decent thing to do is : put a lock on the door that attracts only
those who are able to open it & is not noticed by the rest “ – ‘Culture & Val-ue’ x Ludwig Wittgenstein) Thn
w → country cottage (SODYBA, VIENKIEMIS) 11ks out of Ukmergė on th edg of Rimeisiu kaimas
(village) wher Vaidas gr&fathr had 1ce kept 40 hives (each x 4 th vol-ume of an oz 1 & not dsignd 2 b
shiftd O x truck). All xept 1 of thm wer killd whn an aerial sprayn on th kolhoz in soviet times
nadvertntly sprayd thm. Nxt 2 th SODYBA is a tall brick chimny wth a nestn gandras (stork)(Ciconia
ciconia) on a normous stick nest. I saw @ least ½ doz of thes nests in th distrkt lways in th most
promnnt position & always wth a parent on th nest. Vaidas took a pretty good shot of me walkn past 1
on a lowsh lamp post. Th rezdnt cuckoo (ther r 2 pposing kinds of folk lor O thm : 1) If whn u hear th
1st 1 of th czon u hav money in your pockt youll b rich 4 th@ year & 2) in son-gs its call is konnktd 2
notions of mpndng death) (Cuculus canoris) was in full voice. Th O place was sOd x large trees &
scrub & was live wth chirpn & warbln. I met th nghbours Antanas, Milda & son Egidius GRYBAS
(mushroom) hoo r such archtypal xampls of simpl, drekt & vaišyngi (hosptbl) count-ry peopl th@ I
mmedi8ly doptd thm as th sampl on whch 2 try 2 base a rkonstruktion of my gr&parnts hoo wer in a
village 6 ks th othr side of Ukmergė. It helpd th@ Antanas Mushroom lookd like my gr&-fathr in th few
fotos of him in my possssion. I hav a copy of a dockt dclarin th konfisk8n of his last cow 4 failur 2
dclare it 2 th authrities. Th village he had livd in (Žeimiu kaimas) was bulldozd 2 make way 4 peat
minin. As I was thinkn O thes things I xperiencd my 2nd loss of kontrl but was abl 2 dsguise it x walkn
7
out in2 a lush field hoppn wth frogs. I slept partclarly well 4 th 2 nghts w wer ther whch is proof th@
somethn is rght in th vienkiemis & sOds. W 2rd th neighbourn villages whch on th vrage r 3 or 4 ks
part. Just outside a village 3 ks away is a monmnt in th 4m of a stone oblisk fenced x a foot hgh solid
cast iron fence commmr8n th death of Vladas Žvirblis (1920-1946), Vaidases unkl, as a soviet hero (4
havn bn shot x partisans (miškiniai)/bandits as he was ← school wher he was a teachr. @ a simlar
time my fathrs brothr Jonas hoo had bn a commnst (3/8/04. But c ‘Vilnius (no 2)’) from th prwar days
whn th party was bannd was also teachn in th dstrikt & they may hav known each othr. Vladas Žvirblis
was killd aftr testfyin in a court case unrl8d 2 poltiks (says Vaidas). Aftr th break up of th sov-iet union
Vaidas fathr rectd an ntric8ly carvd woodn † in th same nclosure in front of th stone oblisk. Th 2
mmmorials side x side provide a poignant llustr8n of th dffring magin8ns of 2 ncompatbl syste-ms.
3ks furthr in a yard of an ordnary hous ther is a large † made from CEMENT in mmry of th partis-ans.
Now how O this 4 a COINCIDENCE. Th hous blonging 2 th Mushrooms burnt ↓ last year & was rbuilt
wth th help of nghbours but th wndow ‫ٱ‬s wer nstalld x a Darius ŽIŽYS from furthr away. I hav cn
(3/8/04. false mmry) a foto sent 2 us of a Darius ŽIŽYS & his brothr (mayb th sons of 1 of th sons of
Jonas ŽIŽYS) & whats th bettn they r 1 & th same person? I should find out on friday whn I meet up
wth Juozas ŽIŽIS hoo has promsd 2 show me th riginl site of Žeimiu kaimas & th township of Siesikai
wher my fathr was aktually born. Oh yes, @ th Birds I saw a deer 2ce & w found th dam wher th bea-
vrs liv whch @ack th trees on their proprty. 2004 m. birželio 3rd (Friday 3/6/04) Ssortd trivia : in Kau-
nas as I was → long th Nemunas som cheeky girls hoo wer sunbakng calld me dėdė (unkl) & in Ukm-
ergė wher a row of 8 or so stalls wer tryn 2 sell what lookd like xllnt meat but me & Vaidas wer th only
kustomrs w wer +rssd as berneliai (boys) x a woman trying 2 get our @ntion from her stall. L8 @ nght
in th bars O th fountain th prostitutes (3/8/04. But mayb just cuntry (Hamlet – Shakespeare?) girls →
2 th big city tryn 2 dress smart from w@chn telly & readn fashion mags (Vaidas sggestd)) wear high
heeld white shoes & white socks ↑ their knees & hav bleachd straw colourd hair. Som → this hotel 4
th nght I xpekt. Th 1st day I was here I kept seeing x 2 of peopl I had known of litho thnicity in Melbou-
rne or rptitions of a kractristik curl of th lip or othr physcal feature. Young men cut their hair short as I
do whch xposes their skull shapes whch r like cantelopes somwhat fl@nd @ th rear (but wth a small
bump in it just like mine) as if dsigned 4 sleepn kumfy on your back (but I cant bcoz of apnea). They
can look dorky & mm@ure, possbly causd x provincialdom or x a l8r age of physcal m@ur8n. I must
hav lookd like th@ in2 my 20s (but w age well !). On th 1st day whn I bought a newsppr @ th suprmrkt
on th cornr wth a 100 Lt note th checkout girl had → bank 2 change it. It happnd again @ 1 of th ritzy
bars (wher th barmaids wear white bloomers th@ protrude O 4 cms undr short red skrts (3/8/04. Did
you take the exact measurement with the world’s longest rod? – helh&z)) near x @ O
11am. Im well off in oz so x local st&rds I m obscenly rch. In Sydney, 4 nstance, I lways notice how I
nd up spendn mor than I xpectd & hav 2 wthdraw xtra funds from th holeinthwall but here $200 goes
a very long way & th supply in th wallet seems nevr 2 dmnsh. Fact is in spite of my airfare & this hotel
in th very centr of town I mght → Melbourne havn spent less than if I had stayd. I could do this evry
year (eg 4 summers) @ no cost 2 me. In litho folklor ther r stories O peopl hoo make a pakt wth th
devl whr if they keep 2 th terms of th kontrakt whnvr they put their h& ↓ pockt they find money in it.
What kind of kontrakt hav I made? In thes stories it is lways th devl hoo is th honst 1 & can b tru-std 2
keep his side of th bargn. Humans ntr thm dshonstly hoping 2 dceiv th othr party & somhow wri-ggl
out from their kommttmnts in th nd. X being in th rich nd of town I teach myslf not 2 look @ th kn-eeln
womn or think O what it would b like 2 spend my old age in th city centr on me knees 4 hours each
day wth an mpty cup in front of me. Eldrly men hoo beg r silent & dopt a posture of abjekt hum-ilty wth
an vacant look → a spot on th gO O 6 ft in front of their feet. They r stoopd slghtly 4ward so u can c
they r discom4td holdn their cup (or tin can) wthout th slghtst movemt like statues. Th sort of beggrs w
hav in Melbourne would b konsdrd here as sheisters or ntrprneurs & they make huge $s ko-mpared 2
th womn here hoo sell posies of flowrs pickd from th pastures & hoo dont considr thmslvs as beggrs
@ all. Just 4 th rcord, 2rsts hoo → Kaunas dont go → O th suburbs x thmslvs (or in groups 4 th@
m@r) or evn O th ntric8 network of dirt alleyways connctng th courtyards thrgh th archways bh-ind th
buildings of ‘old town’. I ddnt c a singl persn I suspectd of bein 1. Ther r othr things 2rsts wo-uld
8
not b xpektd 2 know as ther r no ndic8ns (@ least not tangibl 1s – but prhaps in th shad-ows
@ evnn (9.30 – 11.00)) or rmindrs of thm. It is likely th beautful hotel I m in was ownd b4 th 2nd
O war x a jew or jewsh kumpny. Most hotels (& bars etc) wer. Ther is evry likelihood th
ownr (3/8/04. & I 1dr O th singr Danielius Dolskis?) ndd up in th Kaunas ghetto. Th knowledge
is wth me all th time – I kannot eraze it. As I → O in th senamiestis (old town) I hav a sens of
somthn whch Iv bn tryin 2 but nabl 2 put → words. Th kind of feeln u mght get if u walkd in2 a
buildn wher evrythn is OK & th blood has bn washd away, th stains paintd ovr, but I dont want
2 xamn it carefully lookn in2 th cracks in th walls. It wouldnt do 2 scrape out 4 analysis th deb-
ris btween th floorboards. 2004 m. birželio 4d (Friday 4/6/04) Ddnt sleep last nght. Th beer, coffee
& f@y foods life style is c@chn up wth me. O 11.30 I had a beer in a bar x th fountain & w@chd th
nght life. A lot of loud youths & tartd up girls. A guy threw a girl → fountain & sh was thrown ↓ 2ce
mor x othrs. I sensd a pack mntalty. Sh was laughn it off. 2day was th 1st warmr day of th summr (a
month l8 evry1 says) & it was noisy outside well in2 th mornn. Youths brayn. Ther is a disco nxt door.
Then what soundd like a distnt car larm got goin & went on & on. It ccurd 2 me 2 check th wndow & it
was opn.They opn it whn Im out 4 vntl8n as ther is no (5/8/04. & th hot watr pipes in th walls cant b
swtchd off) airconditionn. It is doubl paned & whn I shut it ther was no mor noise. Still ddnt sleep &
feel heavy headd. 2nght Ill hav 2 pop som mor pills & I hope Juozas isnt offndd (Im → his place in
Šiauliai (Shialev) x th 5pm train). He will want me 2 stay @ his place but Ill try 2 xplain I prefr a hotl as
I need ‘space’ 2 write. Ystrdy I went back 2 Smetono (4mly Biliuno) g. & was met x th mothr of Alvin-
ga (4mr wife of Juozo brothr Jurgis hoo now livs wth a new famly in Minsk aftr a midlife crisis whn he
ab&nd his med. career 2 bcom a folk rtist & hoo parntly has a very beautful & prmtiv SODYBA in a
backward part of bielorus) hoo servd food (potato pancakes & sliced meat) wthout 1ce ncouraging
(oppsit 2 th Mushrooms of Rimeisiai hoo in true peasant style try 2 4ce u 2 eat) me 2 eat while eatn
hungrly herslf. I was glad coz I had ovreatn on buns cookd in oil whch r sold in th stalls in Laisvės Al-
ėja. Juozas says they go hungry @ times. Sh showd me th room wher Felicija my gr&mothr had died
& in whch sh thinks I had also bn 4 my 1st 3 years. 0 came back 2 me. I ddnt feel kom4tabl in her ku-
mpny. She → a few times 2 wake Alvinga hoo is dprssd & sleeps all day, keepn merican time sh said.
I checkd out th yard bcoz it features in many fotos my mum has. Th dog in a wire cage long nough 4 it
2 run O in was goin brserk & throwin itself gainst th walls. It is noticeabl th@ peopl keep large vicious
dogs as th idea is not 2 warn of ntrudrs x barkn but 2 protekt u x killn thm. ReUgDiIdNiSjKuAsS says
som kids hav bn. Whn Alvinga finally srfaced w → brisk walk 4 sevrl hours & it turnd out n4m@v &
njoybl. I hav troubl hittn it off wth peopl of my own age. Alvingas situ8n is th@ sh married her 2nd hus-
b&, also a litho but hoo had 1 a migrants VISA 2 USA in th lottry, aftr her own VISA xpired & cant get
back → th US until he gets US citznship whch should b this year. Its an on-again-off-again rl8nshp
anyway. He sends money but I noticed her mum pressd a note in2 her h& whn I said 2 Alvinga wed
stop @ a bar. W walkd O in th beautful large 4st park (Panemunės Šilas), observd th sunbathrs @ th
beach x th Triu Mergeliu Bridge, saw a newly built fenced & g8d dvelpmnt 4 th rch (no1 makn an hon-
st livn or x th laws of th l& can f4rd such a hous) had a beer, saw th TB santorium 4 kids (lmost non-
xistnt undr th soviets but now skyrocketing but I read in th mornn Kauno Diena th@ ccordn 2 europ
fficial figs th konomy has ↑ x 6% each of th last 2 years, th highst % in europ. Whch do u think is a
mor signifcant measure? Th gap btween th rich & poor has bcom unbridgeabl sh says. Rapid system-
ik change ↑ som & ↓ othrs wth th rubbsh. Ther r many gaps in th meagr social welfare systm. Sh doe-
snt get nmploymnt bnfits coz sh hasnt workd in a litho firm havng bn workn in th US. I hav bn told x
evry1 nanmously th@ my thght of walkn † th beautful rolling, nfenced countryside (cows & horses r
ndvidually tethrd & u c womn in th fields wth buckts milkn a cow or carryn mayb 2 buckts on their shl-
drs; whn w wer leavn Rimeisiai I could c Antanas Mushroom workn his block walkn bhind a 1man
plough drawn x his hors – like a llustr8n x Van Gogh) is out bcoz eithr they wont put u up thinkn u r a
possbl robbr or if they find out u is an ozzie whch they certainly would whn u nquired @ th village ge-
nrl stor 4 ccomod8n som drunk (coz ther r a lot of dmoralized drunks in th VIENKIEMIAI) mght knock
u off coz he thght u was a millionair. & I hav no doubt ther is no room in th new konomy 4 future Mus-
hrooms or their very shy grown son (his girl left him coz he took 2 long) hoo squattd on his haunchs
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wth his back gainst th wall (like u c vietnames do in oz) as I talkd 2 Milda & Antanas in th kitchn). Thn
w walkd † th Užtvankos Tiltas (whch holds back th watrs of Kauno Marios) from whch w got a great
view northeastwrds of th Nemunas dottd its ntire lenth x white swans (5/8/04. ther r 3 kinds : Gulbė
Neblyė (mute swan) (Cygnus olor), Mažoji Gulbė (Cygnus columbianus), & Gulbė Giesmininkė
(Cygnus cygnus)). W took 1 of th microbuses (1 Lt from anywhr) → city & partd kumpny havn succ-
eedd in reachn each/other. I got 2 th Metropolis just as Vaidas was → look 4 me in th nearst bars.
Brigita & Miglė wer waitn in th car & w → 2 vsit ReUgDiIdNiSjKuAsS & wife & daughtr in a modrn fl@
nxt 2 Vytauto parkas wth a view ← kitchn ovrlookn centrl Kaunas & senamiestis. They r mong th 1s
hoo hav made it & I must say Im mprssd x his work & his mannr. He will drop off (but ddnt) his vrsion
of an old map of senamiestis @ th rception desk 4 me 2 use as a covr 4 this piece whch Ill mail 2 H
2day nstead of writn lettrs. He says in soviet days his new studio in L. Zamenhofo g. (whch runs →
Muitinės g. whr I had said hullo 2 th klasskly garbd JEW hoo ReUgDiIdNiSjKuAsS said was no lokal)
used 2 b an ordnry soviet unit from whch an old womn ran a SLY GROG (& a bite of sausage) joint
aftr hours 4 those in th know. Th street (4/8/04. c rght h& side of covr map) is named aftr a doktor
hoo came from VARŠUVA (WARSAW) & set up a praktice ther. ReUgDiIdNiSjKuAsS konsidrd
naming his studio ESPERANTO (but dcided it woznt ppropr8) bcoz L. Zamenhof(as) was th nv-
ntr of ESPERANTO (so evry1 would b abl 2 tork 2 each/othr). I m going ↓ 2 get this fotokopied &
then → PO → H (19/6/04. It was on the verandah when I came home from school on
Thursday, the day after you rang. I’m finished typing it now, at Miller Str-eet, at 8.20 pm
on the coldest day we’ve had yet in Melbourne - 9˚at 1.15 pm as I was walking into town,
with an icy southerly blowing. You managed 9792 words in between all the travelling,
talking, eating and drinking – helh&z). Th nxt piece will probbly b titld ŠIAULIAI → VILNIUS. Bon
voyage & travl well.

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