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In 1950 I went to the army, the year the Korean War started. Until then I had the right not to go because as an orphan I was considered the head of the family. So I served less in the army, something like a year and a half. I presented myself in Haidari [a district in Athens with a military training camp] where, I think, I stayed for a month. And after basic training I was sent to Drama and then to Corinth [a city in northern Peloponnesus 60 km from Athens], and after that to the school for interpreters, because I had applied for foreign languages. From the school of interpreters I was posted to the American military command in Kozani [a city in western Greek Macedonia, 70 km west of Thessaloniki].
Around 1951 the Americans undertook the training of the divisions that the English had before. A lot of officers had come. At first, when I went to Kozani, there were eight or ten American officers, majors or generals, each directing a sector, so to speak. Strategic tactics, training of the army. My work as an interpreter was translations. We did written translations of the texts the Americans had with them to give to officers of our own army, and during the training I translated since none among the officers we had then knew how to.
I learned English because I wanted to forget German. In 1945 or in 1947, I don’t remember exactly, a friend pushed me to go together with him to a language school for English. And I went for a semester, but I was bored. Because in this school the training advanced very slowly, and because I knew other languages such as German and French. So I had no problem learning the language. In other words, with the help of a dictionary and books. I translated from magazines and books with the help of a dictionary. I took a pencil and paper, wrote things down and this way one can learn. A couple of hours of work every day, and one can learn on one’s own, if one wishes, but there is work to be done.
It was not hard for me, besides I had the example of my relatives. My uncle knew eight languages, my grandfather knew four or five, I think. I work fast and I read fast. Not everybody reads with the same speed. I read very, very fast, almost vertically. I have read thousands of books.
I remember that when I started learning English and I reached a point where I could read, I went to the American library. Then I went to the British Library. I went through all the books. I went to work in the morning, and in the afternoon, and sometimes at night until ten or eleven I read.
This job I undertook as a secretary helped me very much because I sat with the dictionary and worked for many hours. I had to learn English for the work my uncle assigned to me. It was a condition that I had to learn English very well because a large part of our work was in English.
I didn’t stay in Thessaloniki during the time I was in the army. In fact I remember that after my training in Corinth, I went to an infantry sector outside Larissa. I had become a distributor of rations and taught English to some officer, the commander of the battalion I was serving in. It was very pleasant and I had a good time. When we went to Haidari for instance there were many of our acquaintances from Thessaloniki. And with some who were from Thessaloniki who I didn’t know we became very attached.
It was known I was a Jew because of my name. But with those friends I made in the army, I never had a problem because of that. Neither with the officers. During the Jewish holidays they gave me a leave of absence. It was an opportunity for me to ask for a leave and come home. The leaves of absence were something like a routine in the army. And there was never any comment.
Around 1951 the Americans undertook the training of the divisions that the English had before. A lot of officers had come. At first, when I went to Kozani, there were eight or ten American officers, majors or generals, each directing a sector, so to speak. Strategic tactics, training of the army. My work as an interpreter was translations. We did written translations of the texts the Americans had with them to give to officers of our own army, and during the training I translated since none among the officers we had then knew how to.
I learned English because I wanted to forget German. In 1945 or in 1947, I don’t remember exactly, a friend pushed me to go together with him to a language school for English. And I went for a semester, but I was bored. Because in this school the training advanced very slowly, and because I knew other languages such as German and French. So I had no problem learning the language. In other words, with the help of a dictionary and books. I translated from magazines and books with the help of a dictionary. I took a pencil and paper, wrote things down and this way one can learn. A couple of hours of work every day, and one can learn on one’s own, if one wishes, but there is work to be done.
It was not hard for me, besides I had the example of my relatives. My uncle knew eight languages, my grandfather knew four or five, I think. I work fast and I read fast. Not everybody reads with the same speed. I read very, very fast, almost vertically. I have read thousands of books.
I remember that when I started learning English and I reached a point where I could read, I went to the American library. Then I went to the British Library. I went through all the books. I went to work in the morning, and in the afternoon, and sometimes at night until ten or eleven I read.
This job I undertook as a secretary helped me very much because I sat with the dictionary and worked for many hours. I had to learn English for the work my uncle assigned to me. It was a condition that I had to learn English very well because a large part of our work was in English.
I didn’t stay in Thessaloniki during the time I was in the army. In fact I remember that after my training in Corinth, I went to an infantry sector outside Larissa. I had become a distributor of rations and taught English to some officer, the commander of the battalion I was serving in. It was very pleasant and I had a good time. When we went to Haidari for instance there were many of our acquaintances from Thessaloniki. And with some who were from Thessaloniki who I didn’t know we became very attached.
It was known I was a Jew because of my name. But with those friends I made in the army, I never had a problem because of that. Neither with the officers. During the Jewish holidays they gave me a leave of absence. It was an opportunity for me to ask for a leave and come home. The leaves of absence were something like a routine in the army. And there was never any comment.
Period
Interview
Nico Saltiel