The distinction drawn by Uwe Siemon-Netto between civilised sea journey and speedy flights, particularly on Concorde is well timed (Letters, FT Weekend, June 19).
Like him I discovered Concorde thrilling however I didn’t thoughts the restricted house. My flight was for a quickly organized assembly in upcountry Connecticut which additionally required a dismal two-hour Greyhound bus journey from JFK. With out Concorde I might have refused the assembly. The flight was an excellent distinction to the 2 days it had taken, 15 years earlier, on a propeller airplane, from Gatwick to Freetown, a comparable distance, with refuelling in Lisbon, Las Palmas (an in a single day stopover) and the Gambian capital Banjul (or Bathurst, because it was then known as).
Nevertheless, subsequently I selected the even longer 10-day passage from Liverpool aboard the beautiful Elder Dempster mail boats for my West African travels, with civilised eating and the congenial firm of fellow “coasters”.
John Gapper (Opinion, June 12) and Siemon-Netto ignore the choice of rail journey, when it’s out there. Within the late Sixties the UK Treasury provided financial system class air journey or firstclass rail after I needed to attend UN conferences in Geneva (with orders to stop the introduction of one other financial league desk the place the UK could possibly be backside).
Naturally I selected rail. I boarded a cushty single couchette from Victoria to Paris (the coaches went on the ferry to Calais), adopted by a stroll from Gare du Nord by the Marais to Gare du Lyon to catch the Orient Specific to Lausanne. There I modified to the gorgeous Rheingold from the Hook of Holland, with its closely upholstered seats, and mahogany and brass fittings, to reach relaxed in Geneva.
Present restrictions make contemplation of such civilised overseas journey hypothetical. When it turns into attainable my spouse and I’ll take the Eurostar and TGV to Good once more, as opposed to the stress of flying.
Malcolm Levitt
London SE13, UK
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