The Journey

“Opa’s Scrapbook”

(Prologue and Epilogue added to provide context.)

Prologue

1. Eindhoven, Netherlands … - 1940

¨ Mattheus Dorenbosch and Aukje Hoogeveen married May 7, 1937

¨ Hilde’s birth January 10, 1939

¨ (Forgetting to take along these personal documents proved to be the bane of their subsequent journey)

¨ Philips job assignment to Budapest around April/May 1940

Part I Europe

2. Budapest, Hungary Jan. 30 - Feb. 12, 1941

¨ Living quarters

¨ Reassignment to Philips Argentina via Dutch East Indies or New York

¨ Visas missing (documents lacking); wife expecting

¨ Plan for Batavia (Dutch East Indies); have all visas

¨ US visa cancelled; Argentina visa transferable to Batavia

¨ Confirmation from New York

¨ Plan to take trains to Istanbul

¨ Carried camera and diplomatic pouch with business and personal mail

¨ Must leave quickly due to threatening German forces

¨ Departed in secrecy to avoid exit complications

3. Belgrade, Yugoslavia (now Serbia) Feb. 13 - Feb. 14, 1941

¨ Short visit with friends

¨ At the Bulgarian border, a bombed (by the British) train blocked the train to Istanbul

¨ Bus ride and later train taken to Sofia; missed Istanbul train departure date

4. Sofia, Bulgaria Feb. 14 – Feb 15, 1941

¨ Full of tourists and military

¨ Overnight stay

¨ Lost luggage found

5. Istanbul, Turkey Feb. 16 – Feb. 19, 1941

¨ Full of soldiers (presumably Turkish)

¨ Felt safe to curse the Germans openly

¨ Cabled New York that all was well; received instructions

¨ Ran errands and took injections brought from Budapest

¨ Very lucky to have all baggage and to get tickets for Bagdad

6. Baghdad Express train trip Feb. 19 – Feb. 22, 1941

¨ Fast train, 3 days and nights, via Ankara (Turkey), Aleppo (Syria), and Mosul (Iraq)

¨ Taurus Mountains (Turkey) beautiful, with many long and short tunnels

¨ Warnings against mail thieves in Syria

¨ Many friendly acquaintences made on train

¨ Hilde dubbed “Miss No” for being very contrary

Part II Asia

7. Bagdad, Iraq Feb. 22 – Feb. 27, 1941

¨ Hilde’s blond hair and blue eyes attracted a lot of attention from locals in Iraq

¨ No RR station, city dirty with beggars, mosquitoes and cockroaches

¨ Sinbad Hotel was ancient, but acceptable

¨ Aukje fell, saw (Austrian) doctor, was OK

¨ Lucky to get quick flight tickets for Batavia, thanks to Aukje’s condition

¨ Luggage to be shipped by boat

¨ Confirmation from New York

¨ Camera released by Iraqi government (photographs forbidden)

¨ Hilde delighted everyone under the wing of the plane

8. Basrah, Iraq Feb. 27 – Feb. 28, 1941

¨ Good flight

¨ Modern hotel

¨ At 12,000 feet Hilde asked the captain if she could play outside

¨ Flight continued via Bahrain (Arab Emirate) and Karachi (Pakistan)

9. Jodhpur, India Feb. 28 – Mar. 1, 1941

¨ Hotel like a fairy tale – very luxurious

¨ Very hot weather everywhere

¨ Flight continued via Allahabad (India) and Calcutta (India)

¨ Troublesome immigration procedures in Calcutta; Opa protested and prevailed

10. Rangoon, Burma (now Myanmar) Mar. 1 – Mar. 2, 1941

¨ Beautiful Gold Pagoda

¨ Drinks with the flight crew; overnight stay

¨ Fight continued via Bankok (Thailand), Penang (Malaysia), and Medan (Sumatra, Dutch East Indies)

¨ Tense political situation in Bankok; glad to leave

¨ Penang record heat, but beautiful island

¨ Medan - Dutch soil again!

11. Singapore Mar. 2 – Mar 3, 1941

¨ Spent the night at the Sea View Hotel

¨ Many warships in harbor

¨ Flight continued via Palembang (Sumatra)

¨ In Palembang, met by Aukje’s brother Hielko Hoogeveen, in Dutch army

12. Batavia, Dutch East Indies (now Jakarta, indonesia) Mar. 3 – Mar. 6, 1941

¨ Wonderful reception; nice to speak Dutch again

¨ Stayed in Hotel des Indes

¨ Easy customs due to intervention by Philips

¨ Very hot weather – big change from below zero in Budapest

¨ Hielko joined them again here and in Bandung

13. Bandung, Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) Mar. 6 -Mar. 22, 1941

¨ Lived in Olcottpark Pension

¨ Visit to the volcano Mount Papandayan

¨ Visit to Lembang (Opa’s birthday)

¨ Argentina visa impossible in Batavia; assignment postponed four months

¨ USA visit suggested for the interim; visa needed

¨ Best chance for visas: Australia

¨ More visa and travel-ticket crises

¨ Received word that luggage had never left Baghdad

¨ Heat oppressive on land and at sea

14. Batavia again Mar. 22 – Mar. 25, 1941

¨ Best chance to get visas, tickets, etc.

¨ Flights to Sydney or USA sold out for months ahead

¨ Ditto ships, but a first-class cancellation came in just at the right moment

¨ Last-minute farewells, but Hielko couldn’t make it

Part III The Pacific

15. Aboard ship M.V. Boissevain Mar. 25 – Apr.9, 1941

¨ Sailing from Batavia to Sydney via Surabaya and Brisbane

¨ Blackout conditions at night

16. Brisbane, Australia Apr. 7, 1941

¨ Beautiful weather; no longer so hot

¨ Tour of city

¨ Jellyfish, kangaroos, koalas, and snakes

17. Sydney, Australia Apr. 9 – May 27, 1941

¨ Beautiful city, but crowded for Easter holidays

¨ Long wait for Thys…

¨ Stayed in Oriental Hotel (3 weeks), then two apartments

¨ Difficult and competetive work environment

¨ Misunderstanding with Argentina office

¨ Contrived, but successful, application for US visa

¨ Thys’ birth May 19. 1941

18. Aboard ship S.S. Monterey May 27 – June 17, 1941

¨ Sailing from Sydney to Los Angeles via Pacific islands

¨ Boring trip; poor service on board; hot weather

¨ Auckland, New Zealand May 30, 1941

¨ Fiji

¨ Samoa June 4, 1941

¨ Tahiti June 7 - June 9, 1941

¨ Attractive menu covers from ship

Part IV North America

19. Los Angeles, USA June 17 – June 20, 1941

¨ Hilde lost, then found, on ship

¨ Stayed in Biltmore Hotel

¨ Oil wells everywhere

¨ Toured Los Angeles (using babysitters)

¨ Thys one month old

20. Coast-to-coast flight June 20 – June 21, 1941

¨ Los Angeles to New York

¨ Via Salt Lake City (Utah), Cheyenne (Wyoming), Omaha (Nebraska), Des Moines (Iowa), Chicago (Illinois), Cleveland (Ohio)

¨ Crew disallowed baby cradle in cabin; Opa protested and prevailed

¨ Pullman-style beds; slept poorly because of frequent stops

21. New York, USA June 21 – July 1, 1941

¨ Met at Laguardia Airport by Philips boss and colleague

¨ Stayed at Devon Hotel

¨ Record heat; no air conditioning

¨ Met with boss alone until 2:00 a.m.

¨ Decision made then to forget about Argentina and stay in the US (always Aukje’s preference)

¨ Rented furnished home (Myrtle Boulevard, Larchmont)

¨ Afterthoughts about the journey

¨ Arrival of Baghdad luggage in September

Epilogue

22. Larchmont, New York, USA July 1. 1941—

¨ Two more rented homes (Forest Avenue and Stuyvesant Avenue)

¨ Annelies’ birth May 27, 1943

¨ Jan’s birth July 24, 1944

¨ First owned home (Larchmont Avenue) Fall 1944 - 1957

¨ Matthew, Aukje, Hilde, and Thys received US citizenship 1953

¨ New home in nearby New Rochelle (Echo Bay Drive) Summer 1957 –