Page 94 - Michael Frost-Voyages to Maturity-23531.indd

up some courage and asked her for the dance (I had been taught to dance both
at school and at Warsash – we were supposed to be gentlemen, after all!) and, to
my amazement, she accepted. I was no dancer, despite the lessons, but I knew
enough to undertake the basics, and I found that I could dance on gossamer if the
moment was right, and she, fortunately, came at the right moment. I was pleased
to find that her name was Elaine, but even more pleased when she asked whether
I would like to join her and her brother at their table – now I knew why she, the
most attractive girl that I had seen on board, had been left alone by all the likely
young men that surrounded us. Sometimes fortune does favour the brave!

The next day we arrived in Madeira, one of the most charming and scenic
of all the smaller destinations. Reputedly it has one of the finest climates in the
world, being at the edge of the Gulf Stream and situated at a latitude where it
neither gets too hot nor too cold. And if it does get a bit hot, one can ascend
the volcanic hills of which the islands are composed. My luck was in, because
only three tenders were needed, the ship being very close to the jetty, and on
drawing lots, I managed to be one of those who got the day off. Unlike many
such places, the populace seemed not to be intent upon hawking their local
specialty, this being Madeira wine, and it occurred to me that this must be one
of the world’s best places of which to call oneself a citizen. My cup ran over,
however, when I found, not quite by coincidence, that Elaine and I had come
ashore in the same boat. She was accompanied by her parents and introduced
me to them in a most encouraging way.

The following day at sea was something of a follow-up exercise, the weather
being calm and the sun hot. The evening encompassed an unusual sport, some
sort of dog-racing exercise (with, of course, cut-out wooden dogs) that greatly
entertained some of the gambling fraternity, which, I need not add, in those
days was in ships quite illegal. My joy was somewhat curtailed by seeing Elaine
with another young man, who justifiably seemed very pleased with himself. But
this time I did not interrupt the liaison, my confidence level being somewhat
straitened by again sensing competition.

Sao Miguel, the main island of The Azores, greeted us in the morning. It
was almost a repeat of Madeira, being an autonomous region of Portugal, and
with just as delightful a climate. Being the location of the triple junction of
the Eurasian, African and North American tectonic plates, it was extremely
mountainous and necessitated a long day in the boats; hardly onerous, but not
very exciting. The evening was better; I found Elaine alone in the ballroom and
we spoke for two hours. Last night’s beau was, I discovered, aged 16. I went to
bed feeling much the better.

Another short southerly voyage brought us to Tenerife, the centre of the
Spanish Canary Islands, another series of volcanic islands. Quite spectacular,

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