The Missed Connection in Berlin - Part II
When I sent a letter to dr. Farkic about a month ago, I wasn't expecting any kind of reply. So when she called me to say that yes, I was indeed correct about the connections I had made, I freaked out. We agreed to meet and today was the day of our encounter at a little cafe in Charlottenburg.
I didn't quite know what to expect beforehand. For these past few weeks every time I would pass an older person on the S Bahn in Charlottenburg I would think "Maybe this is Michael." I was nervous they would not be so welcoming or that they would think I want money or part of the inheritance.
I walked into the cafe and, to my surprise, the whole family was there. Michael reminds me so much of Alice. I think it may be the demeanor, I'm not sure.
So many dots were connected today. They showed me pictures. I had never seen a picture of Moscha before.
He was a man of very strict routine. He would wake up in the morning, go take the dog for a walk and smoke his cigar (since he wasn't allowed to smoke in the house), go to the office on Düsseldorfer Str. and work until lunch time. Then go home, eat with the children when they came home from school, walk the dog, smoke his cigar, and then go back to work.
He has a Scandalli accordion that Michael still keeps. He played it a bit when Sarina - one of the surviving sisters of Moscha - came to visit them. She passed away in Santiago, Chile. There's also a cassette tape in which Moscha sings a song in Ladino that his father taught him.
Michael also found the grave of Ida at the Weißensee cemitery, which I will have to visit soon. The question of why her death certificate said Roman Catholic was answered: Moscha was friends with many people in the Nazi party and, as a businessman, he was advised to "convert." The family didn't practice Judaism, so it was easier for them.
The trajectory of Moscha is as follows:
They went to Belgrade, then Alice ran off with Marco and he stayed. Alice went to school with Rozalija, which explains why they were so close in age. Rozalija was a Catholic and her brother (I think, I don't remember this correctly) was in the army. She hid Moscha in her attic throughout the war. She was supposed to marry a young Jewish man who ended up being deported and died in Auschwitz, so after hiding Moscha for a few years they got close and decided to marry. In this in-between time Moscha was captured by the Nazis, but escaped somehow. I need to ask for more details on this.
They had two children, Tamara and Michael. In 1948, Tito started also expelling Jews and they decided to go to Israel. They had an apartment in Jerusalem right at the border of the Palestinian war zone, which was then handed in to the nuns and became a cloister. Later, Michael and his wife Lale visited the apartment.
In 1952 they returned to Berlin. They couldn't adapt to the lifestyle in Israel. A friend of theirs, Mordehaj, who helped them a lot in Israel joined along and as a thank you, Moscha gave him the storefront in Düsseldorfer Str. to operate his little store.
The garage in Düsseldorfer Straße was definitely the apple of his eye. When Moscha had to leave Berlin - right after Ida died - he left many people in charge of the garage in hopes that when he came back, they would return it to him. Most of these people passed away and their sons and daughters were unwilling to sell it back. But one of them, Joanna Ludewig, a strong Communist lady and the secretary to Moscha, remained faithful until the end. When he came back, she was waiting for him. When Michael was telling this story he started tearing up slightly. She seemed to have made a strong impression on him.
A story that differs a bit from what I have is what happened between Moscha and Alice. Apparently she went to Triestre with Marco and took some diamonds that were being kept by a friend of Moscha's. He was really angry at her and that's why they cut off communication and, later, he disinherited her. After talking to my grandmother on the phone she told me that Alice was not disinherited because she didn't want to marry Moncelo, but the fact happened later on.
So many stories, so many news, but I'll leave at this for now. Little by little we will uncover more.
I didn't quite know what to expect beforehand. For these past few weeks every time I would pass an older person on the S Bahn in Charlottenburg I would think "Maybe this is Michael." I was nervous they would not be so welcoming or that they would think I want money or part of the inheritance.
I walked into the cafe and, to my surprise, the whole family was there. Michael reminds me so much of Alice. I think it may be the demeanor, I'm not sure.
So many dots were connected today. They showed me pictures. I had never seen a picture of Moscha before.
He was a man of very strict routine. He would wake up in the morning, go take the dog for a walk and smoke his cigar (since he wasn't allowed to smoke in the house), go to the office on Düsseldorfer Str. and work until lunch time. Then go home, eat with the children when they came home from school, walk the dog, smoke his cigar, and then go back to work.
He has a Scandalli accordion that Michael still keeps. He played it a bit when Sarina - one of the surviving sisters of Moscha - came to visit them. She passed away in Santiago, Chile. There's also a cassette tape in which Moscha sings a song in Ladino that his father taught him.
Michael also found the grave of Ida at the Weißensee cemitery, which I will have to visit soon. The question of why her death certificate said Roman Catholic was answered: Moscha was friends with many people in the Nazi party and, as a businessman, he was advised to "convert." The family didn't practice Judaism, so it was easier for them.
The trajectory of Moscha is as follows:
 |
| Alice, Michael and Tamara |
They had two children, Tamara and Michael. In 1948, Tito started also expelling Jews and they decided to go to Israel. They had an apartment in Jerusalem right at the border of the Palestinian war zone, which was then handed in to the nuns and became a cloister. Later, Michael and his wife Lale visited the apartment.
In 1952 they returned to Berlin. They couldn't adapt to the lifestyle in Israel. A friend of theirs, Mordehaj, who helped them a lot in Israel joined along and as a thank you, Moscha gave him the storefront in Düsseldorfer Str. to operate his little store.
The garage in Düsseldorfer Straße was definitely the apple of his eye. When Moscha had to leave Berlin - right after Ida died - he left many people in charge of the garage in hopes that when he came back, they would return it to him. Most of these people passed away and their sons and daughters were unwilling to sell it back. But one of them, Joanna Ludewig, a strong Communist lady and the secretary to Moscha, remained faithful until the end. When he came back, she was waiting for him. When Michael was telling this story he started tearing up slightly. She seemed to have made a strong impression on him.
A story that differs a bit from what I have is what happened between Moscha and Alice. Apparently she went to Triestre with Marco and took some diamonds that were being kept by a friend of Moscha's. He was really angry at her and that's why they cut off communication and, later, he disinherited her. After talking to my grandmother on the phone she told me that Alice was not disinherited because she didn't want to marry Moncelo, but the fact happened later on.
So many stories, so many news, but I'll leave at this for now. Little by little we will uncover more.
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