l v i i i I N T R O D U C T I O N T O V O L U M E 1 3 occasion accompanying his text with drawings of volcanoes, boats, and fish. He re- corded both immediate impressions and longer reflections on his readings, on peo- ple and places, and on scientific and other topics. Soon after setting sail, Einstein recorded his great pleasure at the warming sun of the Mediterranean and the gradual disappearance of the “abyss” separating the the “I” and the “it.” A psychiatry treatise he was reading during the first days on board (Kretschmer 1921) led him to reflect: “Yesterday still shaken by reading Kretschmer. Felt as if grabbed between tongs. Hypersensitivity transformed into indifference. During youth, inwardly inhibited and unworldly. Pane of glass be- tween subject and other people. Unmotivated mistrust. Paper substitute world. Ascetic impulses” (Doc. 379, [p. 2]). On this trip, Einstein encountered for the first time a multitude of various nation- als, most of which he had never met before. He describes the Japanese passengers and crew as being “unproblematic, impersonal” and as “cheerfully fulfil[ing] the social function falling to their lot without pretension, but proud of their community and nation” (Doc. 379, p. 1v). In Port Said, he observed “a swarm of rowboats with screaming and gesticulating Levantines of every shade, who lunge for our ship.” He went on to note the “bandit-like filthy Levantines,” yet “handsome and graceful to look at” (Doc. 379, [p. 4]). In Colombo, he was transported by rickshaws and “was very much ashamed of myself for being a part of such despicable treatment of human beings but couldn’t change anything.” He was appalled and fascinated by the masses of beggars, with their “royal” bearing, physical strength, and dignity. But in the “indigenous” quar- ters, “for all their beauty, they give the impression that the climate prevented them from thinking backwards or forwards for more than a quarter of an hour. They live in great filth and considerable stench at ground level, do little, and need little. The simple economic cycle of life. Much too crowded for allowing an individual a sep- arate existence” (Doc. 379, [p. 7]). These encounters led him to reflect on Europeans as well: “Once you take a proper look at these people you can hardly appreciate Europeans any longer, be- cause they are molly-coddled and more brutal and appear so much coarser and more covetous—and therein unfortunately lies their practical superiority, their abil- ity to take on big things and carry them out. Would we also become like the Indian in this climate?” (Doc. 379, [p. 7v]). The first official engagement of Einstein’s trip awaited him in Singapore in early November, after having been at sea for almost four weeks. Upon his arrival, he learned that Chaim Weizmann had once again decided “to make use of my voyage for the Zionists’ benefit” (in 1921, Einstein had accompanied Weizmann to the United States, primarily to raise funds for the Hebrew University).[26] Einstein met