May 7.Day 6

Le temps a changé depuis hier.Le ciel est blanc et il faisait froid cette nuit.
The weather changed.White sky and it was cold tonight.

Элена,дай мне твой мэйл адрес.Он где то а его не нашла.Ты скоро уедешь во Францию.Удач желаю на пути.

J'ai rendez vous avec Jula a Daugavpils a 1 heures et nous revenons ici.Elle a vécu a Vishki apres la guerre et bien sur connait beaucoup de choses.Je pense qu'elle m'aidera dans mes recherches.
I have an appointment at 1PM with Jula in Daugavpils ,then we come back here.She lived in Vishki after the war and knows a lot.
La Lettonie a beaucoup changé depuis mon dernier sejour en 1994.A l'epoque elle sortait du communisme et il restait beaucoup de traces.Maintenant comme tous les pays d'Europe de l'Est elle s'uniformise sur le modele Europe de l'ouest.Batiments modernes,super marchés,voitures neuves etc etc...

All the houses in the village seem small but inside it's quite big and there are several rooms.I have a better idea of how my ancestors lived as I go in all the abandoned houses when they are not locked.My family during czarist government lived in the house of Danilievitcha on Peterburg st which is Aglonas st.


The pharmacy of Vishki(back of the house)




Inside










Before driving to Daugavpils to take Jula I went to Lizla Petrovna Borkevich to take pictures of the "pojarnaya kniga".

VIDEOS

Jula's mother's house in Vishki.The house has been bombed during the war as most of the houses of Vishki.





My fiancé,Nina,Dima and Jula



Izrael Dumesch's house





Bazarnaya Plochad


Appartement where Jula lived with her mother


This lady talks a little about the holocaust in Vishki

May6.Day 5

This is the former pharmacy in Vishki.It was on Aglona st on the right side when you come from Spogi.
C'est l'ancienne pharmacy a Vishki sur la rue Aglona coté droit quand on arrive de Spogi.
This stove is inside this abandoned house and concerning stoves my friend Natalia from Orenburg(Russia)wrote "we had the same stove one under socialism in our bathroon when we had to boil some water and take a bath, it called "titan. we burned there small pieces of wod, old newspappers and magazines."

The house of The Bor Jewish family is situated behind the pharmacy


On Aglonas st when you come from Spogi all the houses on the left have a have an odd number


Aglona st which was,I think,Peterburg st during Czarist regime was named Komsomolskaya st during the soviets.


At 11AM I have an appointment with Ilza Petrovna Borkevich who lives on Aglonas st in a former house of Moll.The house ,she said,is 120 years old and she has been owning it since 1944.I'll try to buy her "fire book".

Ilza Petrovna's house

At 3PM I'll meet with Galia Koltun whose maiden name was Yoffe.Her grand mother and ancestors lived in Vishki.Nachman Usdin ,my Great Grandfather's brother remarried with her Grand mother Gita Yoffe after Sora-Piesha Moshevna Usdina(Nachman's first wife)'s death in 1900.
Gita Usdin was killed by the nazis in 1941.Their son Izrael Usdin was killed in Germany during the war in 1944.Their descendants live in Israel.
Click here to know more about Galia and her family.
And to see all the photos click here

ALL THE PHOTOS

*************
This morning after having driven in Vishki and trying to draw a map of the village I drove out of the village on the way to Kraslava and I saw a house on the right side far away on a hill in Moskovskaya village(it's not really a village as there are only several house.
In this house a woman Tamara who was a friend of Jula Dumesch(yes,yes Bruce ...and to morrow Jula and I will go to them)and her mother live.It's a beautiful place,remote but beautiful.
They live as we lived many many years ago.

Preparing potatoes for the cow,the veal and the pork

What a contrast with the hotel Latgale in Daugavpils where I drunk a coffee before I met with Galia and Boria Koltun.
They invited me to a restaurant(шикарный ресторан)


Then we drove to the Dvinsk Krepost and to The pogulanski forest where the nazis murdered thousands of Jews in 1941.


"At the end of june 1941,Vishki was captured by the germans.On the night of july 28,the local Jews were banished to the ghetto of Dvinsk.On the road,they were joined by streams of Jews from other municipalities who were transported there.As soon as they passed by the Agloneh monastery,the Jews were shot by Latvians who gathered on both sides of the road,thus extracting from them some victims.After a stay of a number of days in the crowded Dvinsk ghetto,the Vishki Jews were told,as were all the Jews who had arrived from the surrounding villages,that they were about to be transferred,as it were,to another ghetto.They were taken to the adjacent Pogulanski Forest and murdered with guns,as part of the terrifying slaughter known in the Dvinsk ghetto as the "provincial action".Among the victims was the last rabbi of Vishki,Rabbi Yaakov Meir Pulchinski.The two USDIN brothers from Vishki who worked in a peat mining camp adjacent to Eizpoteh escaped from there.Together with two other Jews they hid for a long period of time in the ruins of an ancient fortress in the area.In the year 1944,the four were discovered and murdered."
Gita Usdin,Galia's Grandmother and my Great Grand aunt wasn't killed in Vishki but I
in a gaz truck.

ALL THE PHOTOS
TOUTES LES PHOTOS

Le 4 mai.May 4.Day 3

Quelle journee!What a day!
Riche en emotions.Full of emotions.

Je commencerai par Samuel Glezerov qui est un parent par alliance et que j'ai rencontré ici il y a 14 ans.Je le croyais en Israel et dans un autre monde.
I'll start with Samuel Glezerov, arelative by marriage whom I met here 14 years ago.I thought he was in Israel or in another world.
Mais ce matin j'ai essayé malgré tout de lui telephoner.But this morning I tried to call him.

Et c'est lui qui a repondu.And he answered.
Et je suis vite allée a Daugavpils(la deuxieme ville de Lettonie) a 25 kms de Vishki.
And I drove to Daugavpils(the second town in Latvia)25 kms from here.
Ce fut une joie inexprimable de nous revoir.It was an inexpressible happiness.
Nous avons dejeuné ensemble.Sa fille Lija,sa petite fille Dinotchka que j'ai connue bébé,et son amie Maria etaient la.
We had lunch together.His daughter Lija,his grand daughter Dinotchka whom I knew as a baby and his friend Maria were there.



Samuel Glezerov sings!
to watch the video stop the music on the player which is on the right.
pour regarder la video eteignez la musique sur le player a droite



A propos de Samuel Glezerov et comment nous sommes parents par alliance.
About Samuel Glezerov and how we are related.
Bierka(Boris) Usdin,le cousin germain de mon grand pere a ete arrete par les Soviets et envoyé en camp en Siberie avant la seconde guerre mondiale.Quand il est revenu a Vishki,sa femme Genya et ses enfants avaient ete assassinés par les nazis ainsi que son frere Ytzik et sa femme.
En secondes noces il a epouse la mere de Samuel Dina Abovna Glezerova.

Bierka(Boris) Usdin,my Grandfather's first cousin was arrested by the Soviets before WWII.When he came back her wife Genya and his children had been murdered by the nazis.
He married to Samuel's mother Dina Abovna Glezerova.




J'ai rencontré dans cette maison une dame agée qui a un livre de comptes sur Vishki des annees 30 et 40 et j'y ai vu souvent les noms de Usdin et Dumesch.
I met an old lady who has a cash book of the 30 ies and 40 ies and I saw the names Usdin and Dumesch.


Le soir chez Volodia Gaga,un original, j'ai trouvé une photo de la poste de Vishki.
In the evening at Volodia Gaga,an original man, I found an old photo of the Vishki post office.


If you wish to see Volodia Gaga,his house,his animals and his "bardak"click here
Si vous voulez voir Volodia Gaga,sa maison,ses animaux et son "bardak" cliquez ici





Volodia Gaga

Mikveh or Bakery?Mikveh ou Boulangerie?Микве или Булочная?

Tony,who will recognize himself,sent me a picture of the former mikhve(Jewish ritual bath)of Vishki before I left and yersterday I went there.
Tony qui se reconnaitra m'a envoyé avant mon depart une photo de l'ancien mikveh(bain rituel juif)et je suis allee voir hier.

An old lady who was gathering these flowers to make a kind of honey with them said it was a bakery.
Mais une femme qui ramassait des fleurs de pissenlits pour en faire une sorte de miel m'a dit que c'etait une boulangerie,enfin que dans ce batiment ils cuisaient le pain.

My fiancé(!)said it was a ritual bath before I said something about this building.
Mon fiancé (!)m'a dit que c'etait un bain rituel sans que je lui dise quoique ce soit.

I saw a kind of furnace inside through the windows



In the evening I asked Janis but he doesn't know.
Le soir j'ai demandé a Janis mais il ne sait pas.

You can see other pics of the mikveh here and photos of the synagogue basement
Il y a d'autres photos du mikveh ici ainsi que des photos des fondations de la synagogue

The are quite a lot of stork's nests here.
Il y a pas mal de nids de cigognes ici.


Now I am going to get info about my Pogil family.Yersterday I met a woman whose brother is a good friend of a Pogil who emigrated to the USA fifteen years ago.

I am related with Pogil as following:

According to the census for 1935 Rivka(my Great Grandmother Sarah Alterman's sister) and Esphir Gram lived in Vishki at Aglonas Street (number not stated).
Sora-Jocha(Rivka's daughter) married to Aron Pogil, born February 15 of 1896 in Vishki. They had at least one son Schloma Pogil, born on November 11 of 1929 in Vishki. According to the census for 1935 the family of Aron Pogil lived in Vishki at Rigas Street 112.
According to the records of the Soviet Extraordinary Commission for 1945 – the list of the Jews killed in 1941 in Vishki – Aron, Sora-Jocha Pogil and Riva Gram were killed in 1941 in Vishki.

Vishki.Deuxieme jour.Second day.Suite

I talked with quite a lot of people today.When I say my name they say"A Jewish name.There were a lot of Jews here but they were all killed".All the people I talked with are russian.By the way I don't know if there is one Latvian in Vishki!Even in the supermarket,which is in Spogi and where I bought kwass you hear only russian.They remember the Pogil,Bor and Dumesch families(you're lucky Bruce).To morrow I'll meet a guy who has a good friend named Pogil and who emigrated to the USA fifteen years ago.May be we are related.My Great Grandmother's sister's daughter married a Pogil.
I took quite a lot a photos again .

The former schhol of Vishki(already existed in 1950)

To see the photos click here
Pour voir les photos cliquez ici

I saw the basement of the synagogue.Seems that the column which was still there in the 60 ies felt down and is still at the place.

The steps of the synagogue

In an abandoned old house in ruins I have been followed by a guy who wanted to marry me!


Handsome guy,isn't he?

I drove to the Memorial Stone to the Jewish Holocaust Victims.It's a very small one but it's better than nothing.The Jews of Vishki and Dagda were shot here on the way to Daugavpils.




I had lunch at The motelis Garden on the road to Daugavpils.(Помнишь Брюс?Очень хорошая кухня)Tres bonne cuisine.



Roasted pork with pineapple for 3.70 lats

This evening I drove to the Jewish cemetery again and took black and white pics that I'll put on line.





Tombstones of the cemetery of Vishki(black and white)
Pierres tombales du cimetiere de Vishki(noir et blanc)

Vishki.Deuxieme jour.Second day

Janis Kudins chez qui je loge est maire de Spogi et de Vishki.Il semble tres respecté et fait beaucoup pour les deux villages.
Janis Kudins at whom I stay is the mayor of Spogi and Vishki.It seems he is respected and does a lot for the two villages.

Il est assez difficile de se reperer a Vishki.Aucun plan n'existe a part celui ci .Quant au nom des rues il est facile de tout melanger tant les avis sont differents sur les noms d'avant et d'aujourd'hui.La rue Peterburg etait appelée Rue Komsomolskaya a l'epoque sovietique.
Ce matin je vais aller dans le quartier de la synagogue,ou du moins ce qu'il en reste c'est a dire rien a part les fondations.Les nazis ont fait un carnage ici .Tous les Juifs qui n'avaient pas eu la chance d'emigrer comme mon grand pere ont ete extermines,pour la plupart soit dans leur maison soit dans la campagne ou on leur faisait creuser des fosses qui allaient etre leurs tombes.
En ce qui concerne les victimes cliquez ici
les victimes de ma famille cliquez ici
et ensuite sur les liens.Vous comprendrez les raisons qui me poussent ici.

La synagogue de Vishki avant la guerre

Et pour changer de sujet voici une vue de ma chambre chez Janis.


A view of my room at Janis

Et maintenant je pars!
Bruce,Christine,I did not translate this page because you know all and I am in a hurry to go....

Vishki.May 2

Vishki.22 heures 30.Cet apres midi j'ai fait la connaissance des proprietaires de la maison de Sonia.Des gens charmants,des Russes comme 70% des habitants de la region.Je me suis promenée a Vishki et ai pris quelques photos que l'on peut voir ici

Vishki.10 1/2PM.This afternoon I met the owners of Sonia's house.Very nice people,Russian people as 70% of the inhabitants of this area.I walked a little in Vishki and made some pics that can be seen here




Et puis je suis allée au cimetiere Juif.And then I went to the Jewish cemetery.



click here to see the photos
cliquez ici pour voir les photos

Le 2 mai.May2

Pour rassurer mes amis qui me suivent et mon cher oncle,je suis arrivée a Vishki apres 2800 kms et trois jours et demi de route!
I arrived in Vishki after 2800 kms and three days and a half.



Le 30 Avril.April 30

Quelle route pour aller de Prague a Auschwitz surtout en Pologne.Il n’y a pas d’autoroute et les routes sont en chantier.De plus il y avait un monde fou.J’ai fait 600 Kms en 9 heures si bien que je suis arrivée a Auschwitz a la fermeture,c’est-à-dire a 17 heures.Par contre Birkenau etait encore ouvert.No comment.Il y a trois ans j’avais filmé.Cette fois j’ai pris des photos;

What a road to go go from Prag to Auschwitz,above all in Poland.There is no highway and the roads are in repair.Even more, there are a lot of people.I made 600 Kms in 9 hours so I arrived in Auschwitz en they close at 5 PM.Birkenau was openNo comment.Three wear ago I made a movie.Today I took photos.

Click here if you wish to see the photos
Cliquez ici pour voir les photos

A une vingtaine de Kms d’Oschwiecim(Auschwitz)sur la route de Katowice a Bierun j’ai trouvé un hotel très sympathique a 40 euros la nuit avec le petit déjeuner.J’ai dîné au restaurant de l’hotel.Schnitzels/frites et coca pour 30 zlotis ce qui fait environ 7 euros.

At about 20 Kms of Oschwiecim(Auschwitz)on the way to Katowice in Bierun I found a very nice hotel for 40 euros/night,breakfast inclueI had dîner at the restaurant of the hotel.Schnitzels and a coke for 30 zlotis which is about 7 euros.

There is no internet in the room.Il n’y a pas internet dans la chambre.
I write with Works and shall place the text later.
J’ecris avec Works et je mettrai le texte en ligne plus tard.


J’ai encore environ 1000 kms pour atteindre la Lithuanie et a ce rythme je ne pense pas y etre demain soir.Je suis pressee d’arriver dans le shtetl de Bruce et surtout d’etre a Vishki.
There are still about 1000 Kms to reach Lithuania and I dont think that I’ll be there to morrow evening.I am in a hurry to be in Bruce’s shtetl and above all to be in Latvia.

Ce ecrits ne sont pas très intéressants mais la priorité de ce voyage est Vishki et la Russie.Je ne peux m’eterniser dans les pays traversés,d’autant plus que je les ai visités il y a trois ans ainsi qu’il y a longtemps a l’epoque soviétique.
It’ not very interesting but the priority is Vishki and Russia.I can’t stay a long time in the countries that I go through,considering that I visited them three wear ago and during the soviet time.

Le 1er mai.Mai 1st.

Quel est l’abruti qui m’a dit qu’il n’y avait pas d’autoroutes en Pologne?Katowice est relié a Varsovie par une autoroute(environ 250 Kms).La sortie de Varsovie a été épouvantable.Environ une heure trente pour faire 5 kms.J’ai passé la frontière lithuanienne vers 6 heures et je suis a Ladzijai,le shtetl de Bruce.La ville semble assez etendue mais il reste quelques vieilles maisons style datchas russes.Je suis dans un petit hotel a 70 lats la nuit.Toujours pas de connection internet.
Demain je vais essayer de trouver le cimetière juif.

Who is the fool who told me that there is no highway in Poland?There is one from. Katowice to Varshaw(about 250 Kms).To get out Varshaw has been quite horrible.About 1 hour and a half to drive 5 kms.I crossed the Lithanian border at 6PM and I am in Ladzijai,Bruce’s shtetl.The town seems quite big but there are still old houses,russian datchas style.I am in a little hotel.70 lats/night.No internet connection.To morrow I’ll try to find the old jewish cemetery.