<Begin Segment 19>

TI: So you go to California and then you get shipped back to the East Coast to be then shipped to Europe.

YM: But I'm happy they did that, because then I had a chance to go to Europe. I think both places were in tough shape, naturally. But I was able to go to Berlin. I spent about eight months in Berlin, I guess it was.

TI: And what kind of duty did you have in Berlin?

YM: Well, I was with operations, S-3, Battalion S-3, and we were in the American sector. Berlin at that time was in the Russian part of Germany, and Berlin was just a little island in a Russian area. And divided into four parts, French, English, Russian and American zones, four zones. And it was called Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Forces. That was the purpose of that site in Berlin. And so our job was mainly to maintain the buildings, repair the buildings using German prisoners of war. And while I was there, I was able to see a little bit of Berlin. Of course, it was pretty well devastated except for a few buildings where we were able to... one building was a concert hall that wasn't destroyed, so we used to go to the symphonies every week. And I had a jeep, so we'd drive to the lakes, to the beaches. And I used to take piano lessons from some woman who apparently was a concert pianist. And went to a building, the University of Berlin was right near our sector, so I'd go there and take piano lessons. And in those days, cigarettes were a medium of exchange, you might say. So I would pay with a cigarette or whatever, I'd get a haircut for one cigarette, and laundry for one cigarette, and so forth. The Germans had it real tough in those days.

TI: So describe that. When you say the Germans had it really tough, I mean, how devastated was Germany?

YM: Well, it was a very cold winter. I guess it was the coldest winter ever for the Germans and for us. And so you'd see Germans constantly walking around trying to pick up wood for kindling. And we'd see them walking around... they'd come to our company area and, of course, the GIs would be smoking and they'd flick, flick their butts. And the Germans would go after those butts, and they'd use it for making, either smoking themselves or making another cigarette out of it and using it for a medium of exchange. Because they could by a head of cabbage with one cigarette and that sort of thing. The place was just completely devastated, just a pile of bricks, like a brickyard. Except where we were staying, we stayed in the apartment sector, where I think the faculty of the University of Berlin people stayed. The room I had was just lined with books on the wall.

TI: And how about just the communication between you and the German people? Did you have much?

YM: We had German women working in our offices, secretarial staff. And I was taking German lessons from one of our secretaries. I'd go to her house in the evening and be sitting at the table, and I'd be smoking in those days, so I'd put a pack of cigarettes on the table and her dad would come around, walking around the table and eyeing the cigarettes, you know. And I said, "Go ahead, help yourself," and he'd take cigarettes. Once, Alice sent me a box of chocolates, so I brought those to her house and put 'em on the table and said, "Help yourself." That was a real treat for those people. They just didn't have that. Yeah, it was quite an experience.

TI: And for you, it sounds like you took this time to do things like learn to play the piano, learn German...

YM: Yeah, we had time on our hands.

TI: And so was that typical of the other GIs, to do things like that?

YM: Well, I don't know about the other GIs, some of them did, I guess. Most of the GIs were more interested in drinking beer and whatnot, cutting up a little bit.

TI: Were you able to travel to other parts of Europe during this time?

YM: No, unfortunately, it got to a point where they said we could go to, I think it was Switzerland. And I thought, "Oh, boy, I'm going to Switzerland and maybe get some milk to drink or something." [Laughs] But by that time, my orders came to return home, so I didn't get a chance to go there.

TI: Now, have you been back to Berlin since?

YM: I was in Berlin two or three years ago. I was just curious to see what it was like.

TI: And what was your reaction when you saw it?

YM: It's a beautiful city now, just beautiful. All the devastation is gone, all new buildings, you know. And just a beautiful place. I tried to find the area where we lived, but I just couldn't find it. I think it's all been torn down and rebuilt.

<End Segment 19> - Copyright ©2009 Densho and the Twin Cities JACL. All Rights Reserved.