What a difference with last December!
Looking back…
A year ago, we had come to the end of two years of on/off travel restrictions. And just when it looked like things were finally picking up again, Omicron and war in Ukraine threw us another curve ball.
The forced stay-at-home period did bring some advantages though. A lot of “thinking time”, for starters. Time to assess what I had been doing and what I wanted to do going forward. Time to consider the best ways of doing what I wanted. And time to weigh up the viability of all those plans.
There was also finally time to do all those things that got so easily pushed on the “I’ll do that later, when it’s quieter” pile.
Making it happen
With creating a website, figuring out list building for newsletters and getting my head around the difference using social media makes, it was time for the “real stuff”. The thing it was all about: running tours for Nisei relatives.
And so, at the start of 2022, we were ready to introduce more relatives to the places and people in Europe where the 100th/442nd fought, but now with our dedicated tour brand.
In last month’s blog post, we shared some of the pictures from the 4 tours that went out this year.
Looking ahead
With only a few weeks left of 2022, we are already working hard on getting 2023 ready for you! We will keep offering regular departures to France and Italy, starting in the spring with a combo tour of the Gothic Line and the South of France.
To most, names like Monte Folgorito, Georgia Hill, Pietrasanta or Tendola sound fairly familiar. The achievements of the Nisei in breaking the Gothic Line in days – if not hours – where others had been denied progress for months are well-documented.
The invasion of the South of France on the other hand is often overlooked and overshadowed by the Normandy invasion. By the time the men of the 100th/442nd were arrived in the Alpes-Maritimes, they were battle scarred by the events in the Vosges. By comparison, the assignment of guarding the Franco-Italian border was easy. Soon, the men would call it the Champagne Campaign.
While there were no heroic battles here, the local residents still fondly remember the strange looking men of the 100th/442nd. The Christmas party organised for the children in the village has a lot to do with that!
September 2023 signals the 80th anniversary of the 100th Battalion’s arrival in Italy. To mark the occasion, our September departure will focus on those first few months of action with a tour from Salerno to Rome.
And in October we will once again join the commemorations in The Vosges. A bonus excursion will be added to this tour. We will look at the presence of Issei soldiers in France during the First World War at Vimy Ridge.
Keep making a difference
As 2022 draws to a close, I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has been involved with keeping the Nisei Legacy alive.
A massive thank you goes to all those of you who have joined us on tour already. I am also very grateful to all those of you who have told others about our tours.
But an equally big thank you goes to all our friends in Italy and France. Without their help and dedication, the experiences offered to our tour guests wouldn’t be nearly as moving and meaningful. They really do make all the difference!
I want to wish everyone of you a peaceful Christmas, surrounded by your loved ones. And for the New Year I wish you all health, wealth and happiness.
Looking forward to seeing you in 2023!
