Toronto....
Sorry,Cliff, for the absence but I have, and am still having, trouble with this pernicious plaything. I will do my best...
We disembarked wearily from the train on which we had spent long hours and were confronted by the huge figure of a man with the rank of F/Sgt.R.C.A.F. "Get fell in, you horrible lot." he screamed. "Back to the Bull.... " we thought. We formed into a sweating,humid,weary,grey flanneled blob of humanityand were told "Forward 'H'arch ." We marched forward into a large hall where tables were groaning with all the foods that we had forgotten existed. Steaks, chops, eggs, hamburgers, bacon, butter...Everything was there and all served by the welcoming, smiling, friendly and pretty faces of scores of ladies of Toronto who were there to make us welcome. The F/Sgt's face broke into a thousand cracks and wrinkles which was the nearest he could get to a smile. From then on, as we were the first large numbers of RAF who had come to Toronto since the outbreak of war, we were virtually given the freedom of the lovely City. We were issued with RAF Uniform for our stay and the sight of that uniform was sufficient to open the doors of Cinemas, Restaraunts, Drug Stores (Where I sampled my very first "Banana Split ), Pubs, Cafes. It was impossible to pay for anything.
One day, a friend and I decided to hitchhike to Niagra Falls. A car pulled up, the driver, a middleaged man asked where we wanted to go and,on learning, told us to get in. He returned home where his wife and two very pretty daughters made up a huge picnic and we all drove the very long distance to Niagara to see the wonderful Falls.
Another terrific evening was when we were all invited to a dance where the great Louis "Satchmo" Armstrong was playing. . No one danced but we all stood in the front of the orchestra and swayed and cheered and applauded. Just like the movies ! It all had to end, of course and after two marvellous weeks ,it was back to those horrible grey suits and we "entrained" for the long journey to our destination, Albany, Georgia, The USA.........to be continued, soon I hope, and I do hope that you will forgive any errors of dates etc. but it was nearly seventy years ago and I , foolishly, never kept a diary.