This photograph was taken probably the summer the war broke out, in what is now the Czech Republic, near Liberec, where my grandparents had a house on my great grandparents' estate. On the left is Andreas, the eldest. He is 18 here. In the middle is my father, aged 14, and to the right is Leo, 18 months younger than his elder brother. Leo had a twin sister, Edina, who is not in this picture. I'll post a photo of her later when I get to her letters. The lady in the picture was from the village.I love this photo because everyone looks healthy and well fed, suntanned and happy. I don't even need to scrutinise the photo to recognise the knees!
The little house in the woods was a place of great happiness for the family. There were paths for hiking, ponds for fishing, and plenty of wildlife. All the children in my father's family were nature lovers, and felt very tied to this area, even though they attended school and lived in Vienna for most of the year.
In 1999 I visited Bohemia and saw the house, which was lived in at the time by a forester.
