Diary of Marie Bashkirtseff
CZENUKFR

Wednesday, 13 August 1873

First into town, to several shops. I refused my grey hat — it is a caricature (green dress, good). My dress is rather fine. At the Exposition. We visited the Agriculture Halls. In the Russian pavilion we found Papa's tobacco. Sacha had made him a surprise by exhibiting it. I hope he will receive a medal, for the tobacco is, in my opinion, the best. Then we absolutely had to see Lefevre's wine; they will take us all when we return. We saw it.
Dinner at the Provencaux; it is very good there. I eat like a beast. Gutman, the last time, invited my aunt to come to his box.
And accordingly we got ready, and went to the opera: Romeo and Juliet (white dress, hair around the head in the classical style, good). We arrive at the box, but the doorkeeper says it has been sold; we are astonished, we inquire, but the owner of the box comes — he has bought it. It is a rather disagreeable position, but one must manage; we ask for a box, there is one, but Paul went downstairs to find one. For fear of having two, we ended up with none. My aunt grows angry, Dina pulls a face, Paul plays the clown. I take matters into my own hands; I force my aunt to ask on another side. The box attendant runs off to find a box; she goes down, she comes up, and at last she produces a box on the first tier, left side — twenty-five florins. I am very pleased, and there we are in our box; the house is full. There are nothing but second-rate Germans and ugly Russians.

Notes

In English in the original. ↩