"They were constantly chewing gum -and always the feet on the table..."

"Well, the American culture was actually a totally different culture than ours. Their music was accepted, it was really swinging music and everyone loved to dance to it.

The only thing that always disturbed us a little about the Americans was that they were constantly chewing gum and that they stuck their chewing gum everywhere. There was chewing gum all over the tables. But most of all, they always put their feet up on the table or had their feet hanging out somewhere. From the windows, you could see their feet hanging out. In the Grand Hotel in Zell am See, you could see the Americans sitting in their rooms with their feet hanging out the windows. An Austrian would never have even thought of such a thing, to behave in such a way. This was something we regarded as a little peculiar."

Gertrude B., born in 1930, she experienced the era of occupation as a salesgirl in Zell am See/Salzburg (Boltzmann-Institut/Steinocher-Fonds Interview Archive, Salzburg)