1952

Of the many '52s who once lived and worked overseas, only a handful are still there. They're the ones who have lived abroad for decades, speak the languages fluently and are generally immersed in the culture. What do these classmates have to say about life in a foreignto us, not to them—country?

Tom Fenton has been a CBS Television European correspondent for many years. He now reports from London, where he lives with his originally Parisian wife, Simone. Tom says, "I refuse to call myself an expatriate, even though I have been living and working abroad since 1966. I am a foreign correspondent, and you can't do that in your own country. Why do I do it? Adventure. The thrill of something new. I love all the countries I have lived in—ltaly, France, Israel, Russia, England. But America is home, even if only in my heart. Will I ever move back to Baltimore? Remember the old song, 'How are you going to keep them down on the farm, after they've seen Paris?' I've not only seen Paris, I married it!"

Al Fiertz has worked in banking in six Euro- pean countries. Presently he's in Luxembourg. Here's why he continues abroad: "I still enjoy the challenges of different cultures and environments, maybe because I've been able to change countries frequently. And to think that people actually un- derstand when I speak—he who nearly flunked French 101. One of the biggest differences between the United States and Europe has long been in political outlook. Europeans look more to their government to protect their privacy and civil rights. These are important issues for me.

"On a lighter note, the quality of the whole wining-dining-marketplace scene continues to be an important—if not vital—attraction.

"Finally, I travel a lot and flying actually remains enjoyable—shades of my old USMC and PanAm piloting days, no doubt."

George von Peterffy lives in Germany with his German-born wife, Ulrike. His extraordinary and varied career has been mostly in overseas banking. He wrote us a lengthy—and fascinating- commentary on Germany today. George is surely not an uncritical advocate for Germany. One of his observations: "Nominally, Germany is a democracy and an open society. But reality is that even though there is a universal right to free speech, there really is no open speech because no one exercises the right. They just don't talk about politics or anything at all controversial. Nor do most people dare to dispute the dictates of officials of all stripes.The respect for authority is pretty universal. There is none of the lively anarchy of the American citizenry."

Brud Leiter lives in Morelia, Mexico. He's married to a Mexican woman lawyer and he says: "My business is designing and marketing various handcrafted items which I have made by small- town Mexican artisans. Open on my Web site www.usa-directo.com.

"I like living in Mexico and will probably be here for the rest of my life. I like the people I work with. Their lives are rich with ceremony and custom. Although they don't have much money they live enviably contented lives.

"I love the climate here, sunny and warm. We have neither heating nor air conditioning in our house.

"Although there is much to like in Mexico, I am distressed that so many wealthy people here have a total unconcern for the poor. The exploitive Spanish attitude of prior centuries still exists."

189 Mountainside Road,Mendham,NJ 07945;(973) 543-4044; dex*itex@aol.com