<Begin Segment 22>

TI: And then after then, where'd you go?

SO: Then, oh, after that I was sent over, and then we went on a regular troop ship, a victory ship. Went on a victory ship, and then outside of Okinawa, we hit a storm, typhoon. And normally our boat would travel seven to eleven knots, but this boat was just going three or four knots going up and down. Every time the ship hits the ocean back again, the whole boat would vibrate, and there were rumors that a lot of victory ship that did split in half. So there were rumors, and then every day we had fliers, then morning the paper would come out and said, "Don't worry, this victory ship is well-built." [Laughs] And me, being a poor sailor, I just couldn't keep the food down. I'm hungry, go down in the chow line, and we had to use our meal card, can eat only one meal at a time. And then the minute you close in by the food, when you smell the food, then I had to turn away and go up. Then they said, "Okay, go in the other line and get your seasick pills, and then drink the seasick pills." Then the minute I drink the seasick pills, I go back in line again, then out goes the seasick pills. And they said, "Oh, keep on drinking some more." I couldn't eat, so I had to go downstairs, back sleep in my bunk. And then had one guy, a good piano player. And then since the ship was rocking back and forth, he tied the piano to the post, and he was playing this symphony music. Oh, he was a good (piano) player. So now, every time I hear that music, I think about, that I was sick on the boat. [Laughs] And my neighbor who lived below me would come and ask me for my food coupon because he was a good sailor. I said, "Here, have it." But came back, I don't know when I need my food again.

TI: Oh, that's funny. So your neighbor came to, because he wanted the extra food.

SO: That's right.

TI: That's good. And so where did you finally end up after the difficult ship ride?

SO: Then it was Yokohama harbor. Then I heard that's a big harbor, so we entered Yokohama harbor, then got off the ship, and we caught a train, then from Yokohama to Tokyo now.

TI: Now, was this your first time in Tokyo?

SO: First time.

TI: And what were your, what were your impressions when you saw Tokyo?

SO: Oh, on the way from Yokohama to Tokyo, we saw all the buildings that were burned. That was after the Americans dropped incendiary bombs. So you only saw rusted roof iron, so everything was down. Then after we got to Tokyo, then they assigned us to the NYK building, Nippon Yusen Kaisha building. So we went in there, and the building was... they were trying to install Western-style toilets and fix up everything, so it was a mess, and they had to install steam heaters since it was month of November, it was cold already. So everything was, lot of cement dust and all that, all the construction going on. But for us, it was a different experience, so we had a lot of fun. And for the next day, we tried to get our pass and then go down Ginza to buy whatever we wanted. And when we saw these dried squid, we thought, "Oh, this is what we've been missing." But we needed something to broil with, so we looked around for the electric stove, bought an electric stove, and then took it back. And the NYK building, everybody was broiling dried squid. Then these white boys were complaining to the officers, "Something is going on. It's really smelly in all, the whole floor." And here the officers don't know, the haole boys don't know, and then they're looking around. Said, "What's this smell? Something funny, yeah, in here." And right in front of their nose, all that taking place, all the squid being broiled. [Laughs] It was fun.

TI: Oh, that's a funny, that's a good story. [Laughs] Because I know what that smells like. That's good.

<End Segment 22> - Copyright © 2010 Densho. All Rights Reserved.