Hitching a Ride in Uniform

My old shipmate gave me the idea for today’s blog, He mentioned our long ago Navy days of hitch hiking in uniform. Of course we were an irresistible lot in those days, it was very hard for a person to drive by without stopping to pick up us poor wee sailors!!!!!! In yesterdays blog I talked about the difficulties of travelling by British Railways. I didn’t always go by train, some times due to the lack of finances I had to use my trusty thumb. Hitching in the late 1950’s early 1960’s was still a safe and a fairly reliable means of travel, especially in uniform. It was  often faster than the train! I enjoyed rides in a large variety of different vehicles. Some times posh Jags, some times ratty Minis, once  a Royal Navy ambulance, another time a farmers hay wagon, a bit slow. However the most memorable ride was in a BMW Bubble car (as in the photos). I must have been considerably thinner in those days, because if you look closely at the seating capacity, you might wonder how three people could fit into that little car. I was amazed when it stopped for me because there was already a young man and woman in the basic two seater. Nevertheless, I was squeezed in the middle of the front seat and carried on to the next town. I had to be very careful not to move too much, the young lady might have taken offense!!!or maybe the guy!!!it was indeed an intimate ride. One thing I never completely understood about those days was the Plymouth/Portsmouth transit. On weekends many sailors stationed in Plymouth hitch hiked to Portsmouth, and sailors stationed in Portsmouth hitch hiked to Plymouth?????? I guess the Navy made a point of never stationing us were our wives/girl friends lived. God Bless and keep reading.