1. (24-27) The Swerve

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24: The Swerve

One Sunday evening sitting across from Olga and Kimi on the plush sofa in his elegantly furnished flat, Vronsky lights a favorite Havana cigar and smiles strangely. “He, les filles, I have surprise! I must leave Mukden at once.” Looking at Olga and using her diminutive he continues. “Olenka! You and I fly to Tokyo tomorrow and I open a cabaret that will make Rossia look like Siberian saloon. And you Katyusha, have no fear. Papa will not abandon his darling girl. Soon I send for you.”

  Vronsky pours champagne. “To Tokyo!” They click glasses. He drains his and flings it into the fireplace.

  “Tokyo!” Kimi exclaims in awed whisper. “Tokyo!”

Six weeks later, her departure: Vronsky has arranged for Kimi to fly as passenger in government aircraft with a reporter, Kimura, who is a rising star of the government news agency. A teacher-type, age 30, he speaks English perfectly.

  He picks her up in a government car and they drive out to a dirt airstrip where a 2-propeller, single-wing airplane is just starting up. “Our plane” shouts Kimura.

  Gasoline and oil fumes fill the cabin and she sees 3 rows of double seats on left and a line of singles on right. Kimi sits with Kimura behind the pilot.

 The plane rises rapidly and turns sharply left to avoid nearby mountains. Kimi’s heart thumps thrillingly; it is her first flying.

25: On to Tokyo

Kimura points: “Look, China's Great Wall!” The plane descends to refuel at Peking. Kimi by a window balances on her knees a red-ribbon-tied white-paper box. Untying the ribbons and opening the box she sees a 5-compartment tray with a center of white rice topped by a small cherry-plum tomato pickle, and the rice surrounded by – in clockwise order of the corners, starting from the right upper – chunks of duck in thick brown fragrant sauce, two canary eggs on bed of grated Chinese cabbage, slices of red bean gelatin yokan on toothpicks, and the candied, tiny oranges called kumquats. A covered cup of green tea and chopsticks are in side holder.

  Kimura, picks up a chunk of duck between chopsticks. “Peking duck appropriately brought aboard at Peking.”

  Kimi delights in the sweet & sour sauce with the soft juicy duck meat: each mouthful makes for anticipation of the next. A chopstick-full of white rice between each chunk of duck renews her palate for the duck. The canary egg is a first for her and putting one in mouth, she exclaims, “Oh my goo'ness!" in imitation of little Miss Shirley Temple. (To hear Shirley Temple sing it, click the YouTube) 

Oh My Goodness - Shirley Temple - YouTube

   Kimura sips the tea and sings “The tea tastes just like wine!  Hallelujah, I’m a bum again!” from an Al Jolson movie. (To hear it here, click the YouTube)

"Hallelujah, I'm a Bum Again!" (Al Jolson, 1933) - YouTube

► 2:32

Three hours later, shaken awake and opening her eyes, she sees a landing runway rapidly becoming ground level as the plane touches down at Tokyo's Haneda Airport.

26: Balalaika

Kimi spots Ivan Vronsky and Olga from each one's particular standout piece of clothing: his tan Ulster coat fashionably belted and Olga's outré black harem pants.

  After a goodbye to Kimura, whose agency car is waiting, she follows them to a big black American Packard car whose driver, a stolid large blond Russian addressed as “Valya,” leaps from seat and opens a rear door. Minutes later Kimi is getting her first view of Tokyo.

  The car turns corner, heads up hill and, at top, stops in front of a high red brick fence with fancy metal gate. A man dressed in uniform like the Czar’s personal guard helps Kimi out. Olga points to a stretch of greenery ahead. “That’s Shiba Park. And see?” She swings finger to left, “Way over there, the Emperor's Palace?” She gives a wicked smile. “By the way darling: you look sensaysh. How is your sex life?” Kimi smiles.

  Kimi focuses on Vronsky’s place. It is early evening and she cannot help noticing the brightly lit outline of a big balalaika on the roof. Located atop Shiba Heights it flashes a glad ad over Tokyo at night. The building resembles a miniature Kremlin. “Where are the customers?” she asks as they walk toward it.

 “Monday is Daddy’s day and night of rest and ours for fun, darling.”

Vronsky pushes aside the padded red-leather doors and with deep bow ushers in the girls.

 “Notice the color of our doors, darling. Daddy’s suddenly gone communist in Tokyo. Quite a turnabout don’t you think?”

  Vronsky laughs. “Business before beliefs, child. The Soviet Embassy is just down the block and their top people are our best clients. They are my countrymen.”

  “That’s why Daddy has me do The Marching Song of the Red Army.”

  “Do Imperial Army officers still request Katyusha?” asks Kimi.

  “Yes, darling; the song and you”, says Olga with lascivious look.

  They sit at a front center table. Kimi looks around the dining & entertainment area: a semi-circular stand bar in rear and tables curving around a dance floor with centered front stage.

  Vronsky snaps fingers and an elderly waiter appears. His white goatee impresses Kimi. “Nikolai, this is Katyusha,” Vronsky explains. “You are to treat her just like my Olenka.” Nikolai clicks his heels and kisses her hand. “A beautiful zoftiga Katyusha!” he murmurs in foreign accented Japanese.

  “What is zoftiga?” Asks Kimi.

  “Healthy looking,” Vronsky answers but Olga whispers in her ear “Well stacked, darling. Russians like big tits.”

  Vronsky has good hearing; he frowns. He addresses the waiter.

  “Now go back and tell Irené to cook up a storm in honor of Katyusha. For starters bring cherry grapefruit, half-sliced, and giant shrimp cocktail then cold borscht with biscuit. Pepper it well – you know – but no salt. For main course, filet mignon, charcoal it well, and baked potatoes with sour cream – lots of sour cream. Also black bread and fresh farm butter. For dessert, bring what the Americans call – you know – the one with the ice cream and marshmallow cover on fire?”

  “Baked Alaska, sir?”

  “Yes, that is it. They stole it from us.” He chuckles.

 “Now Nikolai, why not make martinis for us? Vodka of course and no ice; the ice dilutes too much. And have Irené come out.”

  A handsome blonde Russian woman in cook’s stained white apron comes to table. Vronsky stands, embraces her strongly and kisses her on lips. Then with right arm affectionately about her shoulders he says: “I am not ashamed to admit to being a one-woman man. And Irené is that one. You can have your anemic modern flapper! Give me a healthy looking Russian woman who can cook and I’ll be content for life!” He pats Irené’s broad behind and she smiles.

  Again, Kimi is called Katyusha, and as she stands to do traditional bow she is hugged powerfully by Irené who says something in Russian that Olga translates as “What a lovely girl! But she needs fattening.” Irené returns to kitchen just as Nikolai brings the martinis in chilled cocktail glasses each with olive on skewer and twist of lime.

  “We shall drink this like Russians,” says Vronsky, holding his glass high. “To good health and great happiness!” He tilts glass and drains it, as do the others.

27: Singing Game

“Let us play at singing,” says Vronsky. “First, Katyusha.”

  Kimi is shy, never having sung in public. But with the martini, Olga’s prodding, and Nikolai’s gallantly offering his hand, Kimi finds herself standing on stage singing a fisher-folk North Island ballad in deep throaty voice as she heard her father sing. What she lacks in training she makes up for with sincerity.

  Vronsky comments: “By voice, Katyusha is truly northern woman of her folk. Give me amateurs like her rather than the overpaid so-called artists foisted upon us.” Then he stands and sings Ochi Chornya in honor of Kimi’s eyes. Now, all look to Olga. Standing, she strides to stage, picks up balalaika, and, with wink to Kimi, says: “Gentlemen and lady! I dedicate this to the ever victorious and absolutely glorious Red Army” then goes into mimicry of what she had seen a young American comic singer do. Danny Kaye(minsky) or something like that is his name.

She calls it Borscht Sonata: it is a series of Russian rhyming names in rapid succession and changed for laughs; with lyrics like “Rip your corset off” for “Rimsky-Korsakoff.” Once she launches into song, Nikolai who paled at “Red Army” bursts out laughing.

Later, Kimi thinks that Irené’s food, which she ate every bit of, is a bite too much for her ample figure.
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