CHAPTER 69 - FROM ALGECIRAS TO THE DARDANELLES ---- CAPÍTULO 69 - DE ALGECIRAS A LOS DARDANELOS
While the train slept, in the depth of the small hours, it began to slow down until, after the gentle sigh of the brakes, the whole convoy came to a standstill. In the corridor, a yellowish light flickered on without warning. Footsteps were heard, the sound of boots muffled by the carpet. John, a light sleeper, opened his eyes for a moment. He caught a muted murmur, men’s voices speaking in a language he could not quite recognise. Then the faint jingle of keys, a soft knock on a nearby door, and a ‘passport, please’ uttered almost in a whisper. The officials moved along the train, carriage by carriage. They woke no one unless it was strictly necessary. They opened doors with care, examined documents under the dim light of the corridor, stamped them, nodded, and went on their way. The train was halted in the midst of the Balkan darkness, somewhere between Yugoslavia and Bulgaria, on a platform that could be sensed rather than seen, hidden in the meagre lighting of the station. Only the ...
