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Oral history recording with Domenico Casetta.Recorded as part of the Italian Memories in Wales project (2008-10), delivered by ACLI-ENAIP and funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. Part 2 of 6 (AV 11367 - AV 11372)

00:00:00 Domenico remembers the third wave of bombing in 1944, carried out by American forces. He remembers seeing planes in the sky and running to shelters, staying there for around two or three hours until they ended. Domenico explains that Turin had various shelters, and that when the siren sounded they had to run quickly to the nearest one, otherwise they would risk being shut outside with no protection. But Domenico explains that the biggest effect of war was the lack of food; rather than having money it was a question of being in the right place at the right time. Everything was in shortage so they tried to save as much as possible. As for the fascist regime, in 1943 the Salò Republic was created, things worsened and the presence of the Germans soldiers was more oppressive. Many Italian soldiers decided to join the resistance; as a result there was a civil war. He remembers the feeling of fear in Turin, where there was a house in which people suspected of rebelling against neo-fascism were held, tortured and killed.

00:26:47 Everyday life and schooling carried on as normal even during wartime. When Domenico finished middle school he decided to study to become a surveyor, as drawing was his passion. He remembers the education system in Italy in detail; once they had finished primary school they had to choose whether to go on to middle school to study, or on to professional training which prepared children for manual work. Domenico chose to attend middle school.

00:39:37 Domenico’s father wasn’t sent to war and was taken on at a factory in Turin. When the war finished he passed a medical exam and was allowed to transfer to Wales.

00:48:00 Due to strict regulations, Domenico’s father was only able to send fifteen pounds a month back to his family, which Domenico and his mother were forced to survive on. As soon as he arrived in Wales, Lorenzo, Domenico’s father, worked in a foundry in Derby where he met the Belli family who had various cafés around Wales. When they tried Lorenzo’s ice cream they decided to take him on in Swansea.