Chapter 1
Arrival on the Island
“Oh, we are so far away from home now”, said Mary getting out of the plane in the Far East; Vladivostok.
“I can’t believe that we just spent 8 hours flying.”Bill smiled.
“I watched three big cartoons and ate two times. It was great!” little Timmy rubbed his tummy.
We will spend the whole summer in a puppy’s camp. The camp is called “Eagle’s nest”. It is located on an island not far from Vladivostok.
My name is Rex and I am a puppy. I just flew to this wonderful place with my younger sister Betsy, my little brother Timmy and my best friends and classmates Mary, Bob and Bill. Bill and Bob are twin brothers. The last vacation we spent in Turkey together and we had a lot of fun. Now, I can’t wait to start our journey here in the Far East.
“Look, this dog is here to meet us.” Bob pointed to the big bulldog that held a sign: “The Puppy Rex family and friends”.
“This is Mr. Johnson” I said. “Let’s go!”
“Good morning puppies. I am very glad to see you.” Mr. Johnson said.
“Good morning? How?” Timmy looked disappointed.–“We flew from Moscow eight hours ago and it was 4 p.m. 8 plus 4 is is…”Timmy thought for several seconds, “…is 12! It is 12 p.m. – midnight now. But why is the sun shining so brightly?”
Mr. Johnson smiled.
“Timmy, don’t you remember I told you there is a seven hourtime difference between Moscow and Vladivostok” said Betsy.
"I kind of remember, Betsy.”
“It is midnight in Moscow, but it is 7 a.m. here.”
“Really? Wow.”
“You are very smart, dear puppy girl.”Mr. Johnson smiled again.
“Her name is Betsy.” I introduced Mr. Johnson to my sister. “Yes, she is a very smart puppy. When we go on a vacation to a new place she always reads a lot about it. Last time she read a whole book about Turkey.”
“Glad to hear that! It is always good to be prepared for the journey!”Mr. Johnson said. “Well, now it is time to go. I will drive you to Golden Horn Bay. Mr. Michael Foxter, a leader from your camp will meet you there. He will take you to an island on a motorboat.”
“A motorboat… wow! That sounds fun!” Timmy smiled.
***
Mr. Johnson drove us to Golden Horn Bay. This bay looked really great. It had a large bridge that connected both sides of the bay. If you look carefully, you will notice that huge columns of the bridge look like two “V’s”, introducing the name of the city: ‘VladiVostok’.
A big white motorboat was waiting for us. The Capitan, Doberman Pinscher, was wearing a sailor’s shirt with blue and white stripes and a captain's cap. He waved his friendly paw. “Hello guys! Welcome to my boat!”
“Hello Mr. Michael Foxter! Thank you. We are coming!”I said.
We carefully walked along the ladder and got into the boat. The captain started the engine and our motor boat began to race through the waves. The wind was blowing in our faces and our mood was perfect.
“Is it your first time in the “Eagle’s nest” camp, puppies?”asked Mr. Foxter.
“Yes, sir” I answered.
“You can call me Michael.”The captain smiled. “I am just a little bit older than you. I am also new here. I started to work in the camp just two weeks ago. I like to be a leader; it brings me a lot of joy.”
“Are there a lot of puppies in the camp, Michael?”Mary asked.
“There are fifty-four. Now with the six of you, there will be sixty.”
“Oh that is so nice. I can’t wait to meet all of them.”Mary smiled.
“Yes, and our boss Mr. Rish, is a very good dog, too. If you are lucky, he will show you his greatest treasure.”
“Greatest treasure? What is it Captain Michael?” Timmy was very interested.
“It is a golden bone.”
“A golden bone? Really?”Timmy looked surprised.
“Yes, it is a bone thirty centimeters long made from pure gold. Mr. Rish got it from his ancestors who came to Vladivostok a long time ago from China. He is very proud of this thing and likes to show it to the puppies. So if you will behave well, you can look at it one day.”
