Voice/Vision Holocaust Survivor Oral History Archive

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Bella Camhi - November 18, 1999

You're on your own still.

No, no, no.

Now you've come to the Americans.

Here, we were already uh, the Americans were there and they were taking group by group, you know. The ones who were more emergency, they would go to the hospital. And uh, then we were having fun. You know, we were again--we stayed there in that uh, uh, in, in this place, you know. But we were free to go to--if we want to buy something, no questions asked.

You just take it.

Just take it.

Do you know the name of the place?

This was in, in the--in Munich, up in uh, downtown Munich, in the head of the town.

How did you feel being among the Germans after that?

Who, me?

Yeah.

I tell you something, you going to laugh. A, a German fell in love with me. He even lied, he says, "I'm Jewish." I said, "My foot." He was so handsome, twenty-one year old. I don't have it. He gave me a little comb that you take lice and a little brush. And uh, I says, "First of all, I don't even know what you're talking about. I am still drunk." We didn't know what had hit us yet. It wasn't uh, we were not free yet because I didn't want to stay there. I didn't want to make my home there.

This person wanted to marry you?

Mm-hm. I didn't even know what marry was about.

And he knew you were Jewish. He said he was Jewish.

Yeah. He says he was Jewish. I said, baloney.

Did you--were you thinking at this point about any of your family?

No, No. Because I didn't believe I survived. I have no belief. I don't even believe it now that I'm talking to you.

Hm.

Right this minute I feel like I, I got up from the grave and I'm talking to you. No, because it wasn't, it wasn't life that any normal human being will go through everyday for so long.

You mean it was like a dream.

It's, it's just--you don't' believe it yourself. I mean, a few episodes, I says to myself, I just don't believe it. And especial to be in this country yet. This was really hard to take. Because we don't want another traveling ???. Where we gonna be dropped off.