Densho Digital Archive - Jiro Sugidono Interview (denshovh-sjiro-01-0024)

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TI: So what are some other memories of Europe for you? When you think about your time in Europe, what were some memories?

JS: Oh, (yes). 'Cause, see, one thing good about 442nd, they gave you a lot of time off. What do you call that, I wouldn't say vacation, what do you call that? Pass. Anyways, they gave us a whole week pass to go to Switzerland.

TI: So this is after the war's over.

JS: (Yes), after the war.

TI: So you had a week in Switzerland, and what, and that's one of your good memories?

JS: (Yes), 'cause me an another guy named Mas Takahashi, we went together and we went ice skating. And there was a young girl, Swiss girl named Heidi, and she was skating. And so we went to talk to her, and before you know it, I was skating with her, and she invited us over to her house. We went over there and they gave us some chocolate or cookies. Over there, in Switzerland, the tavern they call it, I guess, it's not like a bar over here, they had family. Kids come in, they have drink, but kids come in, too, see, so they could have coffee or tea or maybe hard liquor, too, if they want. But it was more, more like a tavern. It was more like a restaurant-like. (Yes), and they were nice people. For a while, even when I came back, they wrote a letter to me back and forth. Now I forgot about where it is.

TI: So was it because they were really appreciative of what the American soldiers had done, or what was that connection?

JS: Well, Switzerland was neutral. In fact, lot of people kind of hated Swiss people 'cause they were neutral, but they were making money, 'cause they're the ones loaning the money to Germany or whatever, sure. But then, but the people there are really, really what you call, nice people. They're the first, in Switzerland, the people all talk the old language by the border. If you're in Italy, they talk more... in French, Switzerland and Germany or Austria, any other countries that touched, they talked their language. So I don't know if Switzerland is... well, it's supposed to be a neutral country, though.

TI: So any other memories of Europe?

JS: (Yes), after the war, we had a lot of places like Lake Lecco, that was a nice resort place. I got a lot of pictures of that place. It's, it's nice lake, and that's where we have a rest, where we rested. And that's where a lot of my friends that I still know, that Nihei, he lives in San Francisco now, he was in the same company as I was, L Company, so... (yes), there's not too many left. Shig was the other one, he was L Company, too. Naturally, the guy who was, is the daughter who made a picture about her father?

TI: Oh, Hamamura?

JS: (Yes), he's still living, but he's on a wheelchair. I think he had, he was diabetic, so they had to take his leg off. Oh, he's tall. Because when he got wounded, I wasn't there, but I heard that, oh, they had to have about four or five guys carry him down. [Laughs] He's over six foot, you know. Oh, boy.

TI: So after Europe you came back to the United States.

JS: (Yes).

TI: And you were, where were you discharged?

JS: Oh, I was discharged at Camp Beale, that's by Sacramento, I think. And I was discharged in '46. Well, actually, that's when my discharge would be over, see, but I, but I still was in the army yet until '46, even though I came home.