Konrad and Alexandra (pdf) - Rolf Gross

Maritial Restlessness
Konrad Learns Chinese
1910
Konrad had grown increasingly irritable. He felt bored. The daily routine of teaching two
courses at the university and a seminar at the institute was interrupted only by endless faculty
meetings and an occasional chat with a colleague. At home Vladimir’s visits were predictable,
literary rumors, his problems with Tamara, or his attempts at writing. Alexandra was kept busy
at her practice by a growing number of new patients, many young women, students,
mistresses, writers, musicians, and artists. Often interesting people, but Alexandra never
brought her patients home. Elisabeth ran the routine household affairs. Alexandra prepared
breakfast and dinner. At night they shared reading or playing with the children.
Konrad had become a family man, his greatest joy was reading to Otto. Last year they
had read parts of Marco Polo’s travels. With glowing eyes Otto had listened to the fabulous
cities Polo visited along his way to Mongolia. Now Otto read by himself Schwab’s Illustrated
Greek Myths, a copy Konrad had owned as a child.
On weekends they went riding together, he and Otto, who now had his own threequarterhorse
stabled in Lakhta. He loved these rides. Alexandra, with this excuse or that,
stayed away from their father-son excursions.
It was not only their relationship that drifted self-absorbed through the days and months.
Since Witte's economic success and Stolypin’s draconian suppression of the revolutionary
elements, St. Petersburg had sunk into a lazy life of dissipation: affairs, literary intrigues, duels,
plays, ballets, and operas. The intelligentsia was ensconced in comfortable bourgeoise
apartments, dachas, and country houses. More and more people spent their vacations in
Western Europe or on the Crimea. The "revolutionary" scene had turned quiet, the censorship
relaxed, no more strikes. The radical leaders languished in prisons, in Siberia or in exile.
Despite the Tsar’s attempts at curtailing Parliament, which led to a quick succession of four
Dumas, part of Witte’s constitution had survived.
By 1910 the world had become peaceful, satiated, and complacent. It came as a
welcome relief to Konrad when George Dadiani renewed his offer to go to China with him.
George had changed their itinerary, instead of taking the train directly to China, they would
make a detour on the Transbaikal railway through Central Asia via Samarkand and Tashkent.
They would go during the late fall and winter of 1911, when Central Asia and Southern China
would not be so hot.
Konrad’s heart jumped. Since his childhood reading of Marco Polo’s adventures,
Samarkand and Tashkent were even more colorful dreams of his than China.
Alexandra encouraged him. "Maybe you can visit Shakh-i-Zabz and see the last ivan of
Tamerlan’s Aq Sarai," she suggested. "God, where are Izabel and Marti hiding? What do you
think, I will invite Niko and Claudia for part for the time you are away. I long to see them, and
they will be good company."
Konrad was relieved. He threw himself headlong into Chinese.
The Chinese wife of a sinologist at the university gave him private lessons. Every week
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