Author(s): Clio Calodoukas

NZ Biography/Memoir

My memoir All Roads led to Shanghai gives my readers a glimpse of an environment so different and exotic from present times when, as a young girl during the 1930s and 1940s, I lived in the unique International Settlement of Shanghai. The city was a mix of Asian and European society; when Chinese women still wore cheongsams and older men dressed in long black gowns, while Japanese women wore kimonos and carried their babies on their backs. Shanghai, a thriving financial centre governed by the British, did not require entry visas. This allowed thousands of displaced people to arrive: White Russians fleeing Bolshevik forces and European Jews escaping Nazi persecution. Having lost their homes and most of their possessions these refugees had to learn to adapt. They persevered and created a society that was diverse, vibrant and colourful. Shanghai's wealth also lured Chinese villagers to leave their farms and seek work in its factories. It is within the context of these events that my family's story unfolded. My family also sought refuge in China. Among them my White Russian grandparents, who had to flee from Vladivostok with their two daughters, and my Greek father, who had left Asia Minor just prior to the calamity that befell the Greeks, when thousands, including his parents, perished in death marches. Some years after arrival in Shanghai my father was able to buy The Astoria Cafe and Confectionery which proved to be a very successful business. The Astoria was renowned for its delicious cakes baked in the French tradition and for creating marvelous wedding cakes. In 1931 my mother on a visit from Harbin, and only 19 years old, met my father and they married in the following year. Shanghai offered them a wonderful social life and they spent their evenings going to dinner parties, cabarets and concerts. My sister and I were looked after by our caring Amah who became like a surrogate mother to us. Meanwhile, China was going through its own political upheavals. The fall of the Ch'ing Dynasty had brought about a phase of enormous transition and a growing awareness of China's subjection to foreign demands. A republic was formed but struggles ensued between Right and Left factions of the Kuomintang. In 1937, a dominant Japan took advantage of the country's instability, invaded and occupied Shanghai and a significant part of China. World War II followed and it brought further suffering to China's inhabitants. The end of WWII saw a re-emergence of hostilities between China's Left and Right factions. Europeans began queuing at various consulates seeking visas to more stable destinations. Our close friends and relatives kept departing, leaving a void in our lives. Shanghai was dear to us and my father could not be persuaded to leave until the sound of artillery shells exploding outside the city announced the approach of the People's Liberation Army. Abandoning our home and possessions we finally had to make a hurried departure from a city we loved, to arrive in Sydney, Australia, a few weeks later in June 1949. www.allroadsledtoshanghai.com