This is actually the last day I wrote up my log even though we didn’t fly home from Italy until Thursday 11/11 — the cruise was 17 days long. “The following day” I cite here was Sunday 7/11 and it seems we went to Itea in Delphi. I admit with shame that I’ve no recollection of this excursion. Evidently I did not write my log unless forced. However, rest assured that I recall arriving at our next and final stop, Venice. My teenage memory bank can retrieve every sordid detail of that visit; no log required. Tomorrow’s blog, my friends.
One last thing here though. My Uncle Trevor (who died in 2010) was on this cruise. I think I knew he was going to be there but had forgotten and it wasn’t until he found me in the Ship’s Common Room that it came back to me. Trevor was my dad’s brother. I hardly knew my father as he left when I was 5 and Mum barely kept in touch with his family: younger brother, Trevor and elder sister, Mollie, although both had tried to help after Dad left. Anyway, Uncle Trevor found me on this evening, before we arrived in Venice. He was party leader for another school and had chosen this cruise because he was Catholic (as were all the Nasons, including my father) and wanted to visit Catholic sites in Venice. He seemed charmed by me and, I think, surprised I’d turned out so well considering my father’s absence.
After Dad died, we cleared his cottage and discovered a suitcase of letters under his bed. Not only did we uncover everything we’d written him as children, we found a letter from Trevor. He said he’d met me on this Mediterranean cruise and that I was “a lovely girl” of whom he should be proud, but who needed a father. He reprimanded his elder brother, suggesting he reconsider his life decisions and start taking care of his children who were somehow growing up to be fine adults, in spite of his dereliction of duty. If Dad felt some guilt, there was no evidence of it, and I didn’t see my Uncle Trevor again for many years. He gave me a map of Venice which I’m looking at as I write this blog.
6/11/71
Pireaus to Itea
Personal Log: Twelfth Day
Today we had lessons as usual, as we were not going ashore. We were told that we had to get our scrapbooks finished by this evening so I spent most of my time sticking in pictures and the essays that I had already written. Then we went to the assembly hall for a lecture on Delphi by Mr. Gawthorpe which was very interesting. He is a good speaker. In the afternoon there were deck games again but these were the finals of deck hockey and deck cricket. I played in deck hockey and we lost. The cricket players won. Perhaps that was because I was not playing! After having played hockey I went back to the common room to finish the scrapbook and bring my log up to date. I spent a long time tonight getting ready for the dance because I had so much time to spare. Went to bed at 9:30 because we have to get up at 6.00 the following day.
