Dated Aug. 22, 1943; postmarked Sept. 2.
Dear Mom and Pop,
I’m feeling fine and fit and I hope you all are the same.
I was in Oran and bought a few trinkets awhile ago. When I get enough, I will send them home. I also visited Sidi Bel-Abbes, a little south of Oran.
I was in Canistel, a little town just a few miles east of Oran. When I was at Canistel, I went swimming every day, but it was costly. I had to walk down a 700-foot cliff to go swimming, but the worst part of it was climbing the cliff after I finished swimming.
That’s all for now. So-long.
L&K,
Babe
(NOTE: I cannot find a town in Algeria named “Canistel” or anything close to it. I’d welcome help on that one.)
Well, Happy and Safe 
Canistel is referenced at the Veterans History Project of the Library of Congress: http://lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/vhp-stories/loc.natlib.afc2001001.00817/enlarge?ID=ph0005001&page=1 and http://lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/vhp-stories/loc.natlib.afc2001001.00817/enlarge?ID=ph0004001&page=1. There’s evidently a tropical tree/fruit by that name. Could this have been an Allied camp given that name? There are what look like cliffs along the coast east of Oran (along the N2), and what few buildings there are along that way look like they could be military barracks.
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It’s actually Canastel, now part of Oran proper, although it would have been further out before urban sprawl.
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Thank you for your insight on this! I really appreciate you taking the time to contribute.
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