ters in Central Asia are piercing and bleak, id summers bring cery and mosquitoes, but, in April, touc of all trees douses tys t-catcs.

    Every city s oernal logic. Imagine a city draraigric se, in pale terracotta. Loerraces of o rise out of tis, not built out of it. t, gritty dust over everyt tel crayons leave on your fingers.

    Against t crusts of ceramic tiles t cover t mausoleums ensorcellate transforms itself to green . Beneaternately lapis lazuli and veridian, tamburlaine, tomb. e are visiting an autically fabulous city. e are in Samarkand.

    tion promised t  least, did not in, pink and yellocripes of brilliant colours t dazzle like an optical illusion, and th much jewellery made of red glass.

    to be fro a traig takes to t a break. tartling. ten ts. Young girls tle velvet caps embroidered allic ted igy years.

    t live in an imaginary city. t kno turbanned, sed, booted menfolk are creatures as extraordinary to t, in all ttering and innocent exoticism, in direct contradiction to ory. t kno t kno ty is not tire y, beautiful as an illusion, ea nudges ts wicker cage.

    t er from a glass over radis of t summers dried fruit -- apricots, peac for a fees, stored in sa ter and no open on tall to s nest of garnets remains y of Samarkand is salted apricot kernels, more delicious, even, tachios.

    An old ains,  flourtle-doves are nesting among to a cup of buttermilk for s slohey are growing.

    So in time. Or, it is as if sing for Sco perceive a final daale of all concluded, fall silent. t vanish.

    A goat is nibbling   by tiful amburlaine.

    tamburlaines arted to build t t urn, one arcill remained unfinis directly to tect and begged o  tect told  e time only if she gave him a kiss. One kiss, one single kiss.

    tamburlaines  only very beautiful and very virtuous but also very clever. S to t, boug of eggs, boiled tained t colours. Sect to t and told o c it. ook a red egg.  does it taste like? Like an egg. Eat another.

    ook a green egg.

    does t taste like? Like try again.

    e a purple egg.

    One eggs tastes just they are fresh, he said.

    t to t but taste t you like but you must leave me alone.

    Very ect. But soon o ime ray , and you er.

    Drink from eachese bowls, he said.

    Sook a drink from t bo tered  contained, not er, but vodka.

    t er bot eacastes quite different,  is th love.

    tamburlaines ect on t back to t victorious tamburlaine rode into Samarkand ive kings. But  to visit urned ao ter sasted vodka. tamburlaine beat  until sold ect and t ioners foot to the mosque.

    tioners saect standing on top of tairs  wo Persia.

    tory in simple, geometric samburlaines ory ripe laterally across iny plaits, like any ot red and we radis for er s. Perhere.

    Our Lady of the Massacre

    My name is neit I may not speak of no  noo my person nor my life as to my nature. But I first sale ters left living  on t became of t kno, as for me, I could do a bit of se me up as a maid of all o an old  lived in our parish.

    t, of t t to ing a son and getting no saugin, Greek and a bit of   telescope o vie oo bad to make out muc  clear sigo to come. Sen let me  at tars, too, for I ers, as you can see, and o  my  ts and zodiacal instruments. And, old me I  need t no time in all my life, but a little conversational each me, for reasons as follows:

    t tars, ake a long voyage over to t, s t;red c; could be none ot tribe of Israel, so saug;lovequot; and quot;;, and muc I ten, so t I could talk to my   been a steady girl, surned my  t tars foretold I so be nohe Red Men.

    For, s country far beyond ter ty, and its rivers floly from Eden so, ed to true religion -- quot;o  deserve it and my little babby sit smiling over everytin and cross  I never told nobody about  ar-gazing, eit ic, tcure.

    One day ts up again and  all to em but t s for meself.

    I take it into my o go to London, ime -- five days. s to London, I stole my first penny loaf, to keep me from starving, o my undoing, a gentleman t spies me slip to my pocket, instead of raising a o treets, takes my arm, inquires:  or inclination t makes me take it. I flares up at t: ant, sir! says I and ty young quot;Lancas; as I  for nottered and coaxed me t I  o a room  in a public s  for s money t ever I sail ts for, so o pray forgiveness,  I sa fall, e one, and t;Lancas; rade as t;Lancas;.

    No   tter bread of exile. But you could say t,  made a t, it ed me in t and ; for it since my customers, blinded as t and often fuddled o pluck, living, than geese, dead.

    It c of ty alderman t took me to Nee for I quarrelled  and sook  of me to trate out of spite. So, just as my old Lancasress said, I sailed to Virginia but I  in a convict transport. to brand me, as ts, and sold me to ence in tation for seven years, after whey said I should be a free woman again.

    My master took a liking to me, for I  yet aged above seventeen, and  of tobacco fields into c t like it, t I s taste of ered me unmercifully t, since I  play t maid  me alone in ter o c being Sunday morning, t one , says I s  or no. I picked up t one, tot a sigicking;  into t dripping.

    Seeing me in sucer, t of vegetables cries: quot;s t;

    quot;ell,quot; says I, quot;t noried to board me and Ive  oo.quot;

    tured kind of Negro man and a slave, ickled once too often by t forbear to laug says to me: quot;t be off into t your fate to tender mercies of tter.quot;

    of dinner in it and a tinder-box  o, and I sation a clean pair of ell you, adding to my list of crimes t most heinous: escape from bondage.

    I am a good rudge from Lancaso London and by time nig doo eat t of bread and bacon teen odd miles betation and rougoo, for my master  to groo il I gets to , Id ply my trade amongst strangers, for a  o set up business.

    You must knoo Florida but ten or t, for I kne ance furt, for t vastness of to me. As for t, c t sound under took a bearing by t on.

    I er out of treams and it  off a bit of fruit but my guts began to rumble by dinner-time and I cast my eye about for more solid fodder. Seeing ts and birds unknoo me, I t: quot;s!quot; So I tied my srings togeto make a little snare and trapped a small, bro kind, but earless, and slit its t, skinned it, toasted it on tinder-box ted  and a bit of bread.

    After I eat my dinner, I sa t t I mig stones,  of effort, and so get a kind of flour, as  imes of . I reasoned o douger. t. And, if I ed fisom, I could tickle trout ream abounded, ry girl kno unlike picking a pocket. Also, it seemed to me, if I dried t s for a mont so far in planning my diet, I t:  meat  salt!

    For, I t, I eel and fire and te is temperate, tful; ter out of brancime until time. Besides, to tell trutrils oo full of tink of y to relisurn to t I t t I sravel on a little more, for safetys sake, into t no ing party migurn me to tell you, more dread of te man,  time unknoo me.

    So I aking my living from try easily enoug tle; but ter t I ribe in a clearing and t to kill  t ing t. So I steps back to  s of a planter, alt I rod before. But s so t s and .

    I never t it but step across to pick up to -seller t overturns  of apples.

    ts to  and  fear me for it, or, rat fear me because of it, but, all t like takes  from me again as if to leave me in t. But I am struck by  red but  came into my mind to open my bodice, ss, t, ter skin, I could give suck as ouched my bosom.

    S middle age dressed in no a buckskin skirt and sed ill ioned me, as I t, t ion. So off go my stays and I to a bus. to give uck in my apron.

    quot;No!quot; I t  over and s muc ake to mean quot;Knifequot;. I say it after ing to it, but ser ;S;. Or, a o Englise. And t   ever I spoke, t t, by any means. t, as I can see, marked by caugry  ;S;. ely repeats after me but I can tell it means noo her.

    Sions me: so look for me among to to;takenquot; by em alter  took me  my , t im.