Vorwort Liebe Familie

ich schreibe nun meine Lebensgeschichte,

Chloé
A European Nomad

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

I was born in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, under the stern eyes of the castle. 

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Was weisst du über deine Geburt?
My birth?
They told me it should be easy for a healthy young Greek beauty.
The problem was getting to the clinic. We lived opposite Edinburgh, in Aberdour separated by the vast estuary of the Firth of Forth.
In those days there was no massive bridge across the water, only a ferry which did not work in the dark. My mother namely Maria Aliki, ( from hence forth only Aliki) was advised on her last check up to stay in the clinic and not risk giving birth on  the 3 hour round trip to the nearest bridge and back in winter.
She took their advice on January 22nd, bade her husband farewell and waited.
A day later on January 23 1948 their baby was born at 10.30 in the evening.
My father was not present at the birth but in those days men never were!

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Wie sind die Eltern auf deine(n) Vornamen gekommen? Haben deine Eltern gut gewählt?
How did my parents decide to name me?
This was a slightly fraught situation for them. In Greece a very strong tradition was, and still is to this day, to name your children after their grandparents. Added to this, you had to have a Christian name (of a saint) because in Greece you do not celebrate your birth day but your Saint day. Both my grandmothers were called Anna! There seemed to be no excuse for not giving me this name.

However they were strong enough to not desire a third Anna in the family and wished to call me Chloë, a romantic name from late Greek mythology. But this was not a Saints name! They then chose another name for me : Angela, placing it first in the registrar. This being a Christian name as well as a Saint's name. they did " the right thing" for me, but I do not remember ever celebrating my name day!
Chloë derives from the Greek word X... meaning :" blooming" or a young blade of green grass. Pronounced Chlo-ee, or 
Klo-ee.

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

In was für eine Zeit wurdest du geboren?
Times wer difficult in 1948. It was  less than 3 years since WW2 ended. There was still  rationing in Great Britain. People were trying to rebuild their lives.my father continued as an officer in his Royal Artillary regiment based in Scotland. He had taken part in the whole of the war.

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Was ist deine erste eigene Erinnerung an dein Leben?
First memories of my life ?

First negativ memory : Being draged under water by a naughty playmate in the country-club pool of Ismailia, Egypt. I thought I was drowning.I was about three years old.
First positive memories: Awaking to the sound of doves and pigeons calling out side my window in Kariskaki street  in Thessaloniki, a comforting,
soothing,joyful sound. 
Another early memory was my first concious  visit to Mürren, aged five .
 This magical place in winter-- the snow piles on the roadside were higher than myself; Abegglen's shop showing fluffy toy animals; a whole window full of children's dreams, and just a stone's throw away from there the scary Allmendhubelbahn.
This funicular rattled up the steep slope, only to dissapear into an icey cavern full of  huge shiny stalactites and stalagmites just like in a fairy tale. Beautiful and scary.
Long gone are the icicles; renovated away, but I still think of them every time I take the modern funicular!
Another lasting memory was the hushed voices of our parents in the front of the car, driving endless miles across Europe, whilst my little brother and I slept or rested on the back seat elevated  to create  a cosy bed. ( no seat belts in those days) With the cars' humming and their words, it became like a goodnight story sound.

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Was hat man dir von deiner Taufe erzählt?

My baptism?

I know very little about my baptism for the simple reason that there was little to recount. I was baptised in an Anglican Church in a small town in the south of England. I was only 6 months old and this minute nomad had already moved from Scotland to England. My father was soon to be relocated again. I have a photo of that day depicting little Angela Chloë in a lace dress and cap, embraced in my father's arms.
No other family members were present; Greece and Switzerland were too far with no affordable transport. No God parents were present either. Ted and Aliki, had made some Scottish friends in the neighbourhood since their arrival at the end of 1947. Agnes, one of these friends, was asked to be Godmother to me. Having small children of her own, she too was unable to be present at the Baptism. Knowing the Anglican Church, as I do now, she will have been provided with an official card with all details of the day including a commitment to assist my parents in bringing up their daughter as a Christian. Apart for three short years in Scotland after my brother was born, when we returned to Scotland, I never saw her again. She emigrated to Australia with her family. On a certain day in January, close to my tenth birthday, a parcel arrived from Australia! A delightful furry toy Koala bear appeared. The parcel and card were addressed to my younger brother Roy.... I took this token and loved my Koala bear.

Why was I baptised into the Anglican Church? My father was brought up in the Swiss reformed tradition, my mother in the Greek Orthodox tradition. They will both have been aware of the hopes of their families to continue their tradition. As fate would have it they were both far away from their families, alone, yet independent. A choice had to be made. Not to baptise, was not really an option in those days. The British Armed Forces followed the Church of England tradition ever since King Henry the eighth  left the Roman Catholic Church. As my father was also British, that is only British, only possessing a British passport, (more on this later) they found this compromise the best solution. After all Christ should be the same in every Christian church.

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Welche Rolle spielten in deinem Leben deine Patin und dein Pate für dich?

What role did my Godparents play in my life ?

None. See above.

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Falls du Geschwister hattest, wie haben sie dich aufgenommen?

If you had siblings how did they receive you?

I was the eldest; so the receiving was done on my part. A little brother. I don't remember how I felt. I was only just four years and four days older. I assume I was happy for no stories of jealousy were passed down the grape vine. On the contrary we were both received and guarded by our white Alsatian "Gannet". Legend relates that upon my birth this beautiful but sceptical animal had to jump straight into my pram to make sure I was first  of all accepted and then when this turned to adoration, well guarded. To mothers' deep relief!

 

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Wie gross war dein erstes Zuhause? Erinnerst du dich an die einzelnen Räume?
My first home was a stone cottage in the village of Aberdour. It was called
"Home Park Cottage". I vaguely remember four rooms: a sitting room,a dining room and two bedrooms upstairs. From the photo it would appear there are more rooms because I detect  at least seven chimmny pots on the roof. 
It is possible that the only heating in the cottage was through fireplaces. I remember the kitchen had a huge fire place.

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Wie sah dein Zimmer aus? Hattest du ein eigenes?
Strangely, I cannot remember my bedroom in Home Park Cottage, but I can remember sitting in a large armchair by the fireplace and reading. Reading was my passion when indoors, playing in the garden, weather permitting was the other passion.

Bedrooms are a challenge to my memory ; of course there were several:
Greece ,Egypt, Scotland, Poland, and Switzerland. Some memories are illusive moments of cloud- like whisps on a misty day.
Scent, sight and sound prevailed as in Ismailia and Salonika .

Bedroom  no 1: Egypt, Ismailia:
The first was golden light behind cot curtains, kind words and offered tid bits from Hafiz,our cook. (Yes, we were given a cook!) Hafiz , a very gentle man, provided delicious oriental  food  which my parents loved and I stubornly refused. my mother recounted I ate nothing! For over a year I only had diluted condensed milk!

Bedroom no 2: Greece, Salonika: 
This room was full of the comforting sounds of my grandmother's doves. Light and sound filtered through the slits of the wooden shutters.The soft gentle repeat of   birds calling calmed the child to sleep. The low afternoon light also crept through the shutter chinks, leaving paterns on the amazing crocheted curtains. These drapes and matching bed-cover were all hand made by my great grandmother Poppy Yia Yia who lived on the ground-garden floor below. To this day I still posess one precious cover which graces our guest bed.
In this cosy safe haven of a room, little nomade spent her siestas. On waking she was taken to her great grand father Thoma's  lap as he sipped his "after siesta"  greek/ Turkish  coffee.This  ritual included tiny pieces of Loukumi for grand daughter  Chloë and a game.

Bedroom 3 Poland, Warsaw.Obronsov dwa.1954
Shared with my brother Royston, this room was small, plain,with a little window and  no view. There were books and dolls for me and endless little cars for my brother.
Alass, he did not become a Formel One race driver, but an engineer, an Olypianike ski-racer, and an excellent fast driver of cars. 
There are memories of awaking with excitement in this room on Christmas day, to the anticipated stockings, full of presents from Santa Clause, dangling from the ends of our beds . Our joy was not depleeted when we stretched out to remove yet another bug fom behind the picture on the wall. This was Polish /Russian surveillance of every room when your father happens to be a Military Attaché from Britain. 
There was no view in this dull inside room , but outside, downstairs in the garden,a wonderful fountain gushed in the middle of a round pool, under the big walnut tree. Here we splashed and played with great delight with our landlord's children. Little nomad was learning Polish fast.
Many are the childhood memories of my time in Poland: In this same garden the land lord had planted an apple tree, a new sort of apple was expected. Autumn arrived and the tree produced apples of a yellow colour with a soft pink blush. Not only were the few apples beautiful, but so good to eat -my first Golden  Delicious!  A novelty! 
We kept rabbits too, fascinating for young children.-Were they pets or for food? The male rabbit was kept separate from the females and the young.
Then one day the Drama happened, the connecting door was left open and all the young bunnies were eaten up by the male! Shock! Never fogotton. Strangely enough other rabbits must have escaped too .The whole front garden which looked out onto the road and the Vistula was full of holes, a complete warren of them, with almost more holes than the house walls which were still marked by gunfire from the war. 
The flowers  were delicate as butterflies.. transparent shades of delicate pink white and crimson (?). They floated above my head as I walked through  flower bed , the sky their background. Many years later I dicovered their name on the Bernese market, Cosmea. I took a bunch home fascinated, painted them and they became the first of my successful greeting card collection printed by ABC cards.

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Gab es ein Fenster, aus dem du besonders gern rausgeschaut hast? Was sahst du?
There were three wonderful bay windows on the front of the cottage, shaped like a semicircle. the view from them was enthralling. Several  fields, arena shaped ,spread down to  the river estuary front and the village habour.
Edinburgh was visible across the sparkling water - perhaps 9 miles away.

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Weisst du noch, wie die Küche ausgesehen hat?
The kitchen was warm and dark with a very large fireplace.

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Wie war es draussen? Gab es einen Hof oder einen Garten?
There was a garden surrounding the cottage;a magical place for children who loved the outdoors.Small trees and big bushes made perfect places for hide and seek and  for secret camping places.Behind the cottage there was a garage, a garden shed and a swing.In front, steps leading up to the main door were always lined with blue and white flowers, thee colour of  the Scottish flag.( and the Greek one, I just realised!) Flowers were every where in Spring, especially my beloved yellow daffodils. PHOTO
An almost invisible fence surrounded the whole garden making it a safe place for small children.

Here I must explain that the memories of Scotland and the cottage, started age four up till six and a half. An observant reader will remember from a previous chapter,that the little nomad left Scotland six months after she was born.
During the interveening years  Chloë had left England, lived in Greece, wandered further to Cyprus, and moved on to Egypt before returning to the cottage in Scotland!
By now she was speaking Greek and English.

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Wohnte noch jemand bei euch?
-Did any one else live with us ?
Only my Swiss grandmother, Anna, came to stay with us after I was born,  for several weeks. Later,on our return from Egypt, a relation of my father's family from Brienz, called Elsi  came to join us as a help and nanny after my brother  was born.

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Erinnerst du dich an deine Spiele? Was oder womit spieltest du/spieltet ihr besonders gern im Haus oder im Freien?
We played board games inside, like Snakes and Ladders.
Outside we played hide and seek, catch, houses and fairies in the bushes. when I returned as a 45 year old the beloved bushes were still there!

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Was für Bücher gab es in deiner Familie? Durftest du sie anschauen?
In time, and when we were more settled, the books piled up. 
My mother loved reading: historical, geographic and biographical novels. We had English, Greek and German books.

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Erinnerst du dich an Märchen, Gutenachtgeschichten, die man dir erzählt hat? Oder Kinderlieder, die man dir vorgesungen hat?
I loved the illustrated fairy tale books that my parents read to me and my brother. Bed time stories and songs were mostly English nursery rhymes and Swiss Gute Nacht Lieder. The tales of Noddy were very popular.
The  fairy tales that Hans Christian Anderson wrote were beautifully illustrated; the stories often sad.
Nursery rhymes were a favorit. The repeated lines,with catchy little tunes were fun, as well good for memorising the language.
These precious books, wonderfully illustrated have been kept; the rhymes passed down 3 generations; from me to my children, and on to our grandchildren.
" Ba ba black sheep,
   Have you any wool?
   Yes sir, yes sir ,
   Three bags full".......

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Welches waren deine damaligen Medien? Telefon? Radio, TV, Bücher, Comics, Computer, Spielkonsolen, etc.? Gab es Vorschriften deiner Eltern?
How did I communicate and keep informed in those days? 
It was a whole different world! The word Media did not exist as such.
There were telephones which hung on walls or sat on a desk. You had to dial, and telephoning cost a lot of money. The radio set was a large apparatus with a built- in sound box,plugged into the wall. There would only have been one in a house hold.
I don't remember a black and white TV, but I know when my parents bought their first coloured TV. It was in 1968 When the Winter Olympics were in Grenoble. They were hoping to catch a glimse of their ski- racing daughter!
There were books and books and books in every room.  Board games like snakes and ladders and chess were popular and people actually talked to each other! Mobile phones  had not been discovered yet. I did not posess one untill I was a married woman with children.

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Erinnerst du dich an Filme und/oder TV-Serien?
As a small child aged four, five and six  1952-1964 there were no TV series and Films. Later at different schools there were none either. Nor any were there any to be found at the the small village in the mountains when my father took early retirement from his armyand diplomatic career. At boarding school I remember being envious of the films and musicals  that my friends recounted on their return from holidays in England, London, France and far flung countries of the world.

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Erinnerst du dich an die Geburt von Geschwistern? Was hattest du dabei für Gefühle?
I am thinking hard, but I cannot remember my brother's birth.  He was born four days after my forth birthday on January 27th 1952. I assume I was pleased as  no tales of jealousy were passed down!
Thanks to Royston's pending birth we had returned to Scotland. Mama did not fancy giving birth in Egypt. In 1951 there were tensions in the Suez Canal zone. The British-Egyptian treaty of 1936 allowing the British Armed forces to be stationed in the canal zone to protect their rights of passage, was cancelled in 1951. At that time, thousands of British soldiers were stationed at Ismaelia on the banks of the Suez Canal, including my father. Ted applied for leave to return to Scotland for the birth of his second child. This was granted but leaving Egypt was another case. 
Twice plane  tickets were reserved and cancelled due to skirmishes with the Egyptain forces. At last, on a third attempt, signs of further war fare were eminent.  Before the sirens screamed again, calling the soldiers to further duty, father's commander called him at midnight to warn of the next crisis with the message:
"Take your wife and little girl and leave now immediately!" 
Which we did and arrived safely in Rome in the early hours. A few days later we landed in Edinburgh and made our way back to Aberdour.

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Wer passte auf dich auf, wenn deine Eltern nicht konnten? Gab es Kinderkrippen, Kinderhorte, o. ä.?
Who helped look after me if my parents were unable?
They had no nanny, grandparents were the option. However, they did not exactly live next door. At my birth in Scotland, my Swiss grandmother from Mürren offered to help and had made her way by train and sea to Aberdour.My Greek grandparents were even father away in Salonica. 
From letters I found from my father to my mother,at this time; ( he was sent  to  headquaters in England to prepare for a different posting after serving his regiment at the Suez canal) there were difficulties. Grandmother  Anna Huggler was having some psychological issues and worries. She and my mother hardly knew each other and this must have aggravated the situation. They could communicate in German (more later) and Aliki was learning English. Anna's English was fluent having married an Englishman who was wounded in WWI ( more later)
However, as soon as my father could take a few days off he returned to Scotland to sort things out. It turned out that his beloved  mother was more trouble than help. She returned to her mountain village in Switzerland. 
Aliki, with her friendly personality and natural gifts was well looked after by the local midwife and mother's help assotiation.This, despite having recently given birth, away from her family, country and language. Since her wedding in Greece she had spent about 14 months in this northen country of tough but tender-hearted folk and they had embraced her.
In less than a year. little nomad  Chloë and her parents were on the road again, six months  in Scotland, six further months in Britain and then to Salonika and Cyprus
where Anna ( yes, both grandmothers had the same name) and Thoma were delighted to help their daughter with their grandaughter.
Apon our return to Scotland when my brother was born , Elsi came into our lives. Elsi, a relative of my father's from Brienz Wiler became our Nanny and stayed till we left Scotland again. Aged five I went to School as is normal in Scotland and missed Kindergarten all together.

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Wovor hattest du am meisten Angst?
During our  first year in year in Warsaw. the National Day of the country came around. This was held with extensive celebrations. The end of WW2 was marked, but Poland was still behind the iron curtain of Russian supremacy.
Our parents were invited to the official day and had left the house. Dusk had fallen and a thunder storm advanced toward our home which looked out over the River Vistula. Roy(3) and I (7) were playing in the dining room, our bedroom being  too small.
Thunder and lightening  had commenced when an almighty noise joined the storm.
Once, twice, three times, then simultaniosly lightening and an immense explosion of glass crashed into the room...... the canon salvoes continued.
We were terrified.
The ceiling-to-floor windows of the dining room had shattered!
The waifs were found  huddled together under the dining room table. 
Our cook May,and her husband who must have been at the back of the house had come to rescue us.
I was never more frightened in all my youth.

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Erinnerst du dich an die Jahreszeiten?
In Europe we are fortunate to have all the seasons! Spring, Summer Autumn and Winter. They are all beautiful, but to the little  Nomad the extreems of summer and winter were the best.
Summers in the mediterranean are magical. The sparkling sunlight on the sea, the beach, sand castles, sea food, swimming,and return to Saloniki by boat crossing the bay to the otherside.My uncle Taki(Christaki) helped me to swim.Of course it could be very hot but the Greek daily rythem paced itself around the heat.  That is, untill the EU times were forced upon them.
Volta, the mandatery strolling in the parks and along the water front after sundownwas another highlight.
Winters in the Swiss alps are magnificent and magical too : Magestic the the Bernese alps.Huge piles of glittery snow higher than myself are a constant memory of the paths through the village of Mürren where my grandmother Anna lived
For children there was endless fun in the white stuff; snowballs, igloo building, . snowmen ( today snow women would be aproprate:)) sliding down hills and toboggening,later skating and ski-ing on huge wooden skis.
 All not so wonderful for my poor mother who frze constantly and was terrified the Black Monk - the nearest mountain to the village, across the gulf of the Lauterbrunnen Tal- would fall on top of her!

1.  Erste Erinnerungen und Kindheit

Welche Rolle spielten Sonntage und Feiertage wie Weihnachten, Sankt Nikolaus, Ostern und Geburtstage in deinem Kinderleben?
What place in our lives did the Sunday Festivals play?
Childrens eyes ........

2.  Meine Eltern Edward & Aliki Varley Sionidou

Question: When you think of your mother, what is the first thing that comes to mind?
Aliki's laugh- her peals of joyful laughter could be heard several stories high!

A happy former memory ? -- Mother's glowing welcome at the chalet door, the joy of receiving such a warm embrace.