Ara is an Armenian boy living with his family in Axis-occupied Athens. His family, along with all the families around them, are starving. Ara must travel 70 kilometers by bicycle to a coastal farm, where he hopes to barter a pair of silk stockings for raisins. As he leaves home, he sees a girl drop dead from hunger on the road in front of him. Along the way, Ara finds a rare treasure: a walnut. He decides to keep it but worries about whether the walnut is rotten for half an hour. Ara finally arrives at the farmer's house, but the farmer simply needs no silk stockings. At Ara's insistence, however, the man relents and gives him two handfuls of raisins in exchange. Disappointed, Ara combs the shore nearby for any crabs, but finds none. Minutes later, he has eaten all of his raisins and vomited them all up again in quick succession. He pleads with the farmer again. Out of pity, the man gives Ara two more handfuls for his shoes. Pedaling home without them is not easy, and before long, he sits on the side of the road in tears, having eaten his walnut and all of his raisins. When a German troop convoy passes, he desperately tries to throw himself between the trucks, but to no avail. Ara will live to see another day.