A blog from World War 2 | Un Blog dalla Seconda Guerra Mondiale

October 1, 1943

Donato Russo and I went to work today.  We unload apples, cucumbers, and vegetables from Italian freight cars. At night, we go back to our dormitory. The only thing we eat here is “suppe”: warm water with wheat bran and not a bit of seasoning. At 20:00 we must take an obligatory shower, and at 20:30 everyone must go to sleep. Every morning we go to the same place. We walk three kilometers through the city to reach the loading dock. We loads trucks with cases of apples and take them to the place where the boss has his office and from where he sells produce to organizations, restaurants, and whatnot with proper ration cards. At midday we have lunch at a restaurant: suppe and kartoffel.  At night, they accompany us to the dormitory.

5 Comments

  1. Soldier's Mail:

    What an outstanding site. I’m hooked on the story and can’t wait for the next entry.

  2. Julie:

    Thank you for sharing your Grandfather’s diary. A journey for you both, and I am sure an emotional one for you. I’m following it with interest.

  3. Rosanna:

    Thank you both! I feel very fortunate to have this historical relic in my hands and I’m so glad to know that it’s having an impact on people worldwide.

  4. Flavia Cerrone:

    This is a great idea! I suggest you could involve school children in translating your granfather’s diary. They could learn not only italian, but especially history, which is so easily, and sadly, forgotten.
    Keep up the good work!

  5. Rosemarie Dainelli:

    Thank you for opening this forgotten chapter of history. How lucky we all are that your grandfather kept a diary.

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