‘It is a dull day, as it always is in this district, and for a moment, the entire vista seems nothing more than a photograph from an illustrated newspaper, so flat and grey are the houses, the people and the carriages. That reality is paper-thin, and it betrays its imitativeness in every chink. At times, one has the impression that is only upon the tiny patch before one’s eyes that everything arranges itself properly into that pointillist image of big city boulevards, whereas to the sides, that improvised masquerade has come undone and is unraveling. Unable to preserve in its role, it is falling to pieces above us into plaster and oakum, the lumber room of some enormous, empty theatre. Tense poses shudder on that outer skin, the artificial seriousness of masks and ironic pathos. But far be it from us to want to unmask the spectacle. Despite our better judgement, we, too, are drawn to the tawdry charm of this district.’

- Bruno Schulz, The Cinnamon Shops.

More info on Bruno here.