LOOKING OVER EUROPE

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 19104, 27 August 1936, Page 13

LOOKING OVER EUROPE

VISIT TO LENINGRAD

LIFE IN RUSSIA

STAY IN ITALY REFUSED

After making a tour of Europe, Mr. Gordon Gray, formerly district accountant to the Public Trust Qffice at Grevhtouth, returned to New Zealand last week. He will now take up similar duties with the Public Trust Office at Dunedin. Mr. Gray, who has been absent from the Dominion for a year, has been giving Europe a good look-over. He was actually in Damascus at the time of the riots -some months ago, due to strikes on the part of Arab workers. Prom the Holy Land Mr. Gray went on to Italy, and was there during the time that England applied the sanctions against that nation. Personhe could not say that he was made uncomfortable by the situation which prevailed, but the strained relations did affect the tourist traffic. He scarcely saw.au Englishman or m ; American while he was in the country, and on one occasion when he went on an organised tour of Borne, with 54 people in "the party, he was the only Englishman, so he was given a guide all to himself. • "Travel is dirt cheap in Italy," said Mr. Gray. "Anyone who stays over a week in the country gets 60 per cent off his charges. Those who do not intend, to stay a week have to t get their passiorJEs'sstamped and pay, a*fee.: I knew about the " stamping. from, the tourist agent in Syria, nut he did not tell me about the fee. When I found that out I thought that I may as well stay over the week and get the reduction, but when I asked to be allowed to do so the authorities refused, on the ground that I was a member of a sanctionist nation. That, however, was the only occasion when therje was any unpleasantness on that account, save for a bit of an argument in a cafe." INTERESTED RUSSIA "Of all the countries I visited in Europe, Russia was 1 one of the most interesting, ' ' said Mr. Gray. * ' True, I only went to Leningrad, but even there one <an gain a fairly good idea of the city 3ife in Soviet Russia. There, of course, everything is under Government control. We went by the Intourist organisation, by way of Sweden. There are two great hotels for tourists in Leningrad, and one may got along very well, paying between £1 and. £2 a dav for board and lodging at these hotels. Thev gave me what they call English food". Certainly, there was plenty of it, but it was cooking was not so good. "One may shop in Leningrad just as in any other city, only that every shop is a. Government shop, with a manager. They do not dress their shops windows very well, but I take it, most of the. usual commodities can can be obtained, if one has the roubles to pay. No one dresses very well, but many thousands of the people of Leningrad dress as they used to in the old days.

"What impressed me as peculiar was that everyone seemed to be in a, hurry. j§ Until I got used to the pace, I imagined something must have occurred to someone when I saw them almost running along, but I soon got used to tie fact that this pace was normal.,

"I inquired if there were any unemployed, and was told that unemployment hati been eliminated. Everyone has to f-ork. One works or starves! "At"the same time "one cannot help but think that the Russians are achieving something," said Mr. Gray. "There is a great youth education movement, training the youth not only in intellectual pursuits, but in industrial work and in physical development. I saw some of thousands of youths going through their exerciftm in one. of the great squares. There are 50,000 students at the Leningrad University, and many of them are learping English. They are very friendly to the English at present. I think that is because England was among the first nations to open up trade Wife So.vjet Russia—partly that and partly "perhaps beenuse they distrust Germany. MTTLE SIGN OP POVERTY

"I saw no poverty in Leningrad. I mean* to say that while there is cheerful poverty to be seen in England today, prosperous and all as she is, I did not see it either in Germany or Russia. At the same time the impression I got of the German people of to-day is that they are rather a dour lot, certainly the reverse of cheerful, while the English people are cheerful even when they are right up against *it. I found England in favour in Germany as well as in Russia. In fact, I gained the impression that all the nations I visited valued and wished to retain the friendship of England.

"I was amazed one day in Leningrad to hear a shrill whistle, and then to find myself alone, in the street," said Mr. Oray. "I could not make head nor tail of it for some time. There I stood in one of the main streets from which everyone seemed to have vanished as by" magic. Then came the whistle again, and I saw people emerging from doorways and cellars and side-streets. I learned afterward it was a rehearsal for air raids. The people are being trained to seek shelter at a given signal. It is marvellous to see how prompt they are at recognising the signal, and diving for shelter. It shows, at the same time, that Russia does not deem herself immune from attack by air."