Diary of Marie Bashkirtseff

# Mercredi, 24 février 1875

Rain, rain, rain — like autumn, which I love. Sacha and Nadia take me to the circus with the children (blue dress, Dina's black velvet hat, good) — the hat becomes me wonderfully. In the next box are the sisters of the little dark Spaniard; one of them is ravishing close to. These are the same Spanish girls who seemed so to admire my white dress and who look at me pleasantly. Sacha maintains they devoured both me and Nadia with their eyes. And Stiopa, with that little voice of his that is beginning to thicken and his Little Russian^["Little Russian" was the 19th-century term for Ukrainian.] accent, says:

Pluie, pluie, pluie comme pendant un automne que j'aime... (robe bleue, chapeau velours noir de Dina, bien) le chapeau me sied à merveille... *Sacha prétend qu'ils nous ont dévoré des yeux, moi et Nadia, et Stiopa* dit de sa petite voix qui commence à être grasse et avec son accent petit-russien:

That one was always looking at Moussia.

— *Celui-là regardait toujours Moussia.

Stiopatchka, here everyone looks at everyone else — this is not that sort of place, I tell him.

— Stiopatchka, tous se regardent l'un l'autre. Ici ce n'est pas le cas*, lui dis-je.

Then why was he looking at you instead of watching the circus? You see!

— *Alors pourquoi te regardait-il au lieu de regarder le cirque ? Tu vois !*

I noticed the Spaniard on account of his ravishing horse.

J'ai remarqué l'Espagnol à cause de son ravissant cheval.