Chapter 2
The First 3 days
January 11th started early despite the hangover from the night before, imbibing wine at the
next-door neighbours.
(They crop up in my story again in 1958 half a world away)
It was my sisters 7th birthday and she and my mother accompanied me to London / Waterloo Station from where I was to travel to Plymouth on the 10 o'clock - a journey of some 5 hours, in those days hauled by a steam driven belching warhorse of an engine so unlike the "Electric" of Southern rail where our only steam line was from Purley to Oxted.
I travelled on my own, as apprentices were not drawn in great numbers from the Home Counties it seemed. It was not until the train's arrival in Plymouth at around 3pm, that I actually met anyone associated with the matter in hand. As we alighted we were rounded up at the ticket gate by a Petty Officer and directed to board an Open canvas topped Bedford R.N. Transport lorry for the onward journey through Plymouth, which still showed the effects of World War 2, and across the Torpoint Ferry to be disgorged at the Guard House of H.M.S. Fisgard.
We were then assembled on a small assembly area, just to the right of the above picture, to be detailed off to our prospective Divisions and Dormitories/'uts. I had been assigned to Frobisher Division and 'ut 7 and on entering, after we were taken there by a senior apprentice, found my berth, the first bed just inside the door.
A Typical Dormitory
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oNuX7bs2qAM
Having deposited our small cases of personal possessions our guide then rounded us up and led us to the Mess Hall for some sustenance, for having travelled for many hours most of us were starving as growing boys always are, and had long since devoured any packed food our mothers had provided at the start of the day.
Once fed and watered we were again taken back to the Guardroom assembly area and fallen in as a proper marching party to proceed over the road to the naval stores in H.M.S.Raleigh to acquire an issue of bedding.
This collection proceedure had continued all day until the last waif was rounded up