Saturday 8th 1958

Written on m.s. "ORANJE' headed airmail paper. (Month is possibly Oct or Nov).

to be from Genoa,

Dear Mum Dad and Alan,

Thank you for seeing us off on Thursday, we had four seats and therefore plenty of room on the train and the children behaved beautifully. No customs formalities in S'hampton and but for a 15min queue for stamping passports we went straight on to the ship. Your flowers were in our cabin and look very attractive - thank you once again. Henry and Hilda sent a wire wishing us Bon Voyage so we felt that we were being thought of right up to the last moment. The ship sailed promptly at 3pm and is big and fast. We got well into the Bay in the night - not rough but with a big swell and lots of rolling. The children did not mind, but after we had given them breakfast we missed ours. The whole morning and feeding them at lunch was a strain for Margo. Luckily I remained fit enough to help and had a light lunch myself. We ran into fog in the late afternoon which stopped us for a while but nevertheless we had finished with the Bay by evening thanks to a fast ship, and we were both well enough to attend the Captain's cocktail party in the evening and have a light dinner. Bed early and all slept well to wake to the sun and warmth somewhere off southern Spain. The childrens' nursery is excellent and both can be left there all day, which does give a break. We collect them for sleep during the day and also at meal times but I think that all in all the voyage will give Margo a rest. The ship is just what was needed for that. We have met a Mr & Mrs Calvert, the father and mother of one of the foreign staff in Singapore who had mentioned we would be on board. They are a cheery couple.

All our love for the moment and best wishes, and thank you for all you have done for us - it will mean a lot for this tour.

Love from
Margo Peter Caroline and Adrienne xxxx.