| Before
joining the bus company I had earned about
eight pounds a week. Now my basic for fortyeight
hours (six days) was twelve pounds eight shillings.
Most of the duties were more than fortyeight
hours and there was further overtime available
if someone went sick or was on holiday. Of
course my parents wanted a bigger share of
my income even though I was often not around
for meals and got little more than a bed in
a an unheated room to sleep in for my money.
But I still had cash left over and decided
to spend some of it on a holiday |
 |
| My
parents' reaction of course was hostile "Don't
you think we would like a holiday abroad?".
Mine was "With the money you're earning
and the money you're getting from me for nothing,
who the heck's stopping you?". They never
did go abroad and didn't complain when any
of my brothers did. |
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| Like
our duties, holidays were on a rota. We had
two weeks each year. My first holiday was
in May 1968. I had travelled all over Britain
with and without my parents but had never
been abroad. In the 1960s there were strict
exchange controls, the amount of money you
could spend abroad was very limited. I found
a holiday to Luzern in Switzerland which appealed
to me. It included train travel, hotel with
full board and a discount ticket for the lake
steamers and mountain railways. |
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| The journey
up to London was one I had made
countless times and the boat train
to Folkestone was straightforward.
The ferries in those days were
run by the railways and this one
carried passengers and railway
wagons, but not cars and trucks. |
|
| The ferries
had first and second class sections
which were completely separate,
with seating out on deck. And
the same kind of catering as on
British Railways. Even though
the ferry I caught was run by
the French railways, the sandwiches
were definitely British. |
|
| Anyway, I
found a seat on the deck and watched
the white cliffs vanish. |
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