Life in Italy during WW2 | My grandparents' story

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  • Опубликовано: 6 июн 2024
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    Meet Carmine and Pina, our grandparents!
    They were born in Cerignola (Apulia region) during the Second World War (Carmine was born in 1936, Pina was born in 1945).
    They have so many interesting stories, life in Italy was very different just some decades ago...
    In this video they share their own personal and unique stories about being a child during the Second World War among fascists, Germans and Americans.
    We are grateful to have heard these stories many times with our own ears and we think it's time to share them with everybody around the world.
    Because history is important.
    It defines a culture, it defines a nation.
    It defines us.
    #wwii #history #worldwar2 #italy #grandparents #shareyourstory
    00:00 - Intro
    00:37 - How was it being a child in the Second World War
    01:54 - Memories during the American occupation
    06:16 - Memory of the American Army leaving their town
    07:14 - How men avoided being soldiers in the Italian army
    07:58 - The tragic story of Pina's father

Комментарии • 63

  • @johnleonard7134
    @johnleonard7134 Год назад +3

    Greetings from New Zealand.
    My father with two of his brothers fought in North Africa then up though Italy.
    It was no fun, my father was wounded three times in North Africa one of his brothers once.
    He then went to fight in italy along with his brothers.
    On the same day, the 22 july 1944, in San Donato, South of Florence his brother Jack was killed and his brother Maurice was mutilated by 14 bullets from machine gun fire.
    He was a invalid for life and died an ruined man aged 54.
    My uncle, whom I'm named after is buried in the commonwealth cemetery on the banks of the Arno River just south of Florence. A beautiful place, lovingly cared for by the kindest "gardeners". Really they are part gardeners, part social worker to the emotional vistors😪
    God bless them.
    My father's parents were farmers in New Zealand, can you imagine the day news arrived, one son dead the other gravely wounded expected to die!
    My father seldom spoke of his five and a half years away at war. He did say however once, north Africa was a war fought between two armies with little civilian lost but Italy was a heart break to see so much civilian suffering.
    There are no winner in war.

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад +1

      Such a heartbreaking story, thanks for sharing it with us.
      I totally agree: there are no winners in a war. Let's hope we as a society have learned that and won't make it happen again.
      Hugs from Italy!

    • @johnleonard7134
      @johnleonard7134 Год назад +1

      @@ItalybyItalians thank you. Very important story for me.
      In 2017 I took my 24 year son to the florence war cemetery. He was surprised that many of the dead were his age or younger.
      I hope he will keep the memory of my familie's sacrifice alive.
      On a brighter note! Thank you for making your excellent videos. I'm bringing my wife to Italy in spring of 2023 and I'm finding your work informative.
      We only have three weeks so concentrating on the north.
      Your video of Venice was particularly good😁

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад +1

      @@johnleonard7134 thank you very much, we are glad if our videos can be of help, we try to give as much local information as we can 😊
      That's sweet you took your son there, it's important to never forget.

  • @jasonhobel8175
    @jasonhobel8175 Год назад +1

    Thank you for this video. It was very touching and their generation is so important to keep their stories alive and well. They are the last of the greatest generation ever and that they have given and sacrificed so much in order to make life better for future generations. It is great to hear stories like this and I hope you are able to do more in the future. And please keep your regular videos going too, it is great to learn about the hidden gems of Italy. Thank you again for sharing this video.

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад +1

      Thank you for watching it!
      I agree with everything you said, their generation did any kind of sacrifice to give us a better life.

  • @darlataddeo6376
    @darlataddeo6376 3 месяца назад

    This was so nice! I really enjoyed listening to their stories. What an amazing generation to be respected. Bless them.

  • @hamoudachebbi9382
    @hamoudachebbi9382 Год назад +1

    Italian people really knew harsh times during ww2 and post ww2 , such a patient and courageous people, the people of Italy ❤️
    Thanks for this valuable testimony and waiting for other similar videos 🙂

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад +1

      Thank you, happy to hear you liked this new topic!

  • @dejhary8132
    @dejhary8132 Год назад +1

    This is a gem of a treasure! Always been fascinated by wartime stories directly from the wise who bravely survived and conquered such a dreadful time in history. Thank you for sharing and would like to hear more stories with English subtitles please (a big help!). Thank you Carmine and Pina for your great and vivid storytelling of your indelible childhood memories. With much love from California.

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад +1

      Thank you for your kind words, Carmine and Pina will be very happy to hear them 🥰
      Hugs from Italy

  • @trendingwwwandw
    @trendingwwwandw Год назад +1

    Love your interview style video
    Thanks for adding English for Carmine and Pina ...
    The bookmarks you have in this video made it easy efficent to detremine what you are offering
    L12

  • @arbutusrd
    @arbutusrd Год назад

    It feels so special to be able to hear their stories. Thank you very much for sharing!

  • @dantecipriani5829
    @dantecipriani5829 Год назад

    You just can not believe how fascinated and touched I am by the life stories and facts regarding these two lovely people, dear Carmine and Pina..I wish them both a healthy and happy life and I would like to congratulate you for creating such a magnificent vlog, and surely looking forward to see some more similar content in near future..Thank you and all the best.!🙏🏻❤️🤍💚

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад

      Wow, your comment makes me so happy! I'll report what you said to Carmine and Pina. Thank you! I hope you'll enjoy my future content.

  • @paulfreitag7772
    @paulfreitag7772 Год назад

    Wonderful to hear these stories but such a sad one for Nonna Pina. 😢

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад +1

      Yes, she always tells us about how sad she has felt all her life for not being able to know her father...
      Thank you for your comment!

  • @roobyrue4557
    @roobyrue4557 Год назад

    I Really Enjoyed That Thank You x

  • @cathyk2093
    @cathyk2093 Год назад

    Really enjoyed this video ! Yes More please!

  • @rabotnickaklasa
    @rabotnickaklasa Год назад

    New here great channel, Italy is always first choice to spend vacation together with my family, till now we visited Anzio, Neapol,Nettuno,Rome, Sienna, Firenca, Verona, Pisa,Bologna, Rimini, Ravenna, San Marino, Ancona. Local people are friendly and helpful, specially older generation, they didn't know English but you will understand everything:)

  • @StreetMotorriders
    @StreetMotorriders Год назад

    Thanks for sharing your amazing granpa story my friend. Greetings from your new fans 🙏

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад

      Hello, I'm super happy you found it interesting 😊

  • @tommyv5866
    @tommyv5866 Год назад +1

    Welcome back !!

  • @ikmarchini
    @ikmarchini Год назад +2

    from New York/New Jersey. Americans soldiers go everywhere but we have never known the ravages of war as the Italians have. It creates the national character. Italians, who have been conquered for millennia, know enough about war to avoid it. Americans, in their ignorance of war, are always looking for it. It doesn't work out well. And for us Italian-Americans WW2 was tricky. Italy was the enemy but the country was full of Italians- Fiorello LaGuardia was mayor of NYC. Most people don't know, but Italians in the beginning were rounded up and started to be put in camps like the Japanese. Difference was we are white, were very integrated into society, and had some political power, which the Japanese did not. Within a few months they stopped collecting Italians but the Japanese remained interred until 1945. Baseball hero Joe DiMaggio's father, born in Sicily, was a fisherman on the California coast. In 1942 they arrested him and put him inland and out of living. My grandmother came in1903, never took US citizenship until 1957, and barely escaped being put in an interment camp. Yes, I always love hearing the old timers recount history. Di piu'.

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад

      Wow, thank your for sharing these stories with us, it's so interesting. History is precious, I always say we should study it more and from more point of views!

  • @praesentius
    @praesentius Год назад +1

    That was great! I really think it's important to chronicle as much as we can about that period of time. Even the viewpoints of children is valuable!
    Also, your videos are great! I'm moving to Lucca in the first quarter of 2023 and I'm drawing all sorts of inspiration from your videos for places I want to visit.

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад +1

      Yes, I totally agree with you!
      That's cool, congrats on your big move! Where do you come from?
      Hope you'll find yourself at ease here in Italy 😉

    • @praesentius
      @praesentius Год назад +1

      @@ItalybyItalians I'm from the DC area of the US. I used to live in Ferrara many years ago. I finally found a path back and I'm doing it!

  • @stevegardner6760
    @stevegardner6760 Год назад

    Love your youtube vlogs. I always look out for the new ones . You are very positive and engaging presenter doing vlogs about my favourite country . :) Thank you. Keep up the good work.

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад

      Thank you Steve ❤️ where are you from? Hugs from Italy 🤗

    • @stevegardner6760
      @stevegardner6760 Год назад

      @@ItalybyItalians :) i'm From South west England . I Always try and visit Italy at least twice a year 😍I shall use your tips for Matera when i go there in April. :)

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад +1

      @@stevegardner6760 ah wow that's awesome 😎 let us know your experience in Matera!

  • @brianfilkowski
    @brianfilkowski Год назад

    Excellent video. Very interesting. Thank you for sharing. So many stories to tell.

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад

      Thank you, we are so glad you liked it!

    • @brianfilkowski
      @brianfilkowski Год назад

      @@ItalybyItalians I close on my house in Morra, Umbria this coming February. Southwest of Citta di Castello on the Tuscan border. Watching your videos has been very inspirational, not to mention informative. For now I keep taking my Italian lessons.

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад

      @@brianfilkowski that's good, keep on studying and good luck for your future projects!

  • @frankwyndham9478
    @frankwyndham9478 Год назад

    I love your content and I love to hear older people speak about their past. That being said io sono un principiante nella lingua italiana e ora ho paura che non avrei l'abilita da capire niente quando vado a puglia a tre settimane. Puoi fare pui interviste con la gente parlando italiano, forse un po pui lentamente. Grazie mille. After seeing your video on Matera, I can't wait to be there.

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад +1

      Grazie mille! Non ti preoccupare, loro due parlavano in dialetto ma ormai tutti in Puglia parlano anche italiano, con te parleranno la lingua standard.
      Divertiti, Matera è bellissima!

  • @pedrorochadacunha8129
    @pedrorochadacunha8129 Год назад +2

    Great idea and great video :D
    I'm sad there was no mention of brazilian soldiers. We grew up learning about our participation in retaking Italy from the nazis alongside the american and italians, i wish we had made a bigger impression 😅

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад

      Thank you!
      True what you say, but this is a video based on our grandparents stories and they only met Americans during the war. Probably Brazilian soldiers were in another part of Italy from where they lived.
      Hugs from Italy 🥰

    • @ikmarchini
      @ikmarchini Год назад

      I didn't know that and would like to know more.

  • @christophgoldmann5682
    @christophgoldmann5682 Год назад +1

    Omg.. Finally a new video! Almost asked if you are still alive guys...

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад +1

      LOL I wish I could stop working at my job but I can't 😂

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад +1

      Do you like this new video? It's quite different from our usual content 🙂

  • @iamgabriel5823
    @iamgabriel5823 Год назад

    I would definitely like to hear more stories about how they survived the hardships during the war.

  • @frederickmitchell5960
    @frederickmitchell5960 2 месяца назад

    My grandfather, and his brother, served in the US Army during WWII. Their father, my great grandfather, was born in Italy😊

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  2 месяца назад

      Wow! Do you know where your grandfather was sent to fight?

  • @kamleshsingh895
    @kamleshsingh895 Год назад

    i want to come italy forever how can i come there please tell me. You can help me please.

  • @blackbeardpapa9547
    @blackbeardpapa9547 Год назад

    ma che bella coppia

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад

      Sì, sono molto carini 😁 Ma tu quindi hai origini italiane o hai studiato italiano?

  • @joevaccaro6655
    @joevaccaro6655 Год назад

    Bel video 💯 il mio nonno Pasquale 🌶 ha servito nella marina contro Giappone, la guerra e l’inferno veramente. Lui era il patriarca della famiglia, mi manca tanto. Era un uomo di carattere, 😔 mi manca davvero.

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад +1

      Wow, ha combattuto in Giappone? Eh sì, la guerra è un inferno, un'esperienza orribile che molti dei nostri nonni hanno dovuto subire. È bello sapere che avevate un così bel rapporto 😊

    • @joevaccaro6655
      @joevaccaro6655 Год назад +1

      @@ItalybyItalians Certo, e stato alle isole del Pacifico. Lui abitava in Brooklyn, il capitale dell'Italiani negli Stati Uniti (maggiorita del Mezzogiorno), al inizio della guerra.

    • @ItalybyItalians
      @ItalybyItalians  Год назад +1

      @@joevaccaro6655 wow, da Brooklyn all'Oceano Pacifico... Che tempi duri.
      Un abbraccio

    • @joevaccaro6655
      @joevaccaro6655 Год назад

      @@ItalybyItalians Grazie, un abbraccio a voi :)