102. Now what?

Theodore Bear picked up his back pack, his cane and the carry bag with snacks that Frederick Bear had given him and went in search of Duty Bear.  Following the signposts, Theodore Bear started down a long passage.  He  first stopped to look out of the window and stood there for a while, fascinated by all the many aircraft standing in front of the building.  “It is a hive of activity out there,” he said to himself, “look at all those service vehicles bringing the luggage to be loaded and there are so many passengers climbing up the steps into the airplane.”   Then he continued down the passage, went around a corner and into a big, airy office with a whole row of desks.  “101,102. .” Theodore counted, “. . 106.”  But poor Theodore's heart sank.  There was no one sitting at Desk 106 and the chair was neatly pushed in under it.

101. The Airport

The bus rounded a big traffic circle and stopped at the entrance to the large white terminal building.  Theodore Bear and some of the other passengers got off and they all walked to the lovely glassed entrance together.  Theodore was rather pleased to be able to follow the others as he did feel a little strange in such a big, busy place.  Inside it was even more busy with long lines of passengers waiting for their flights and others rushing back and forth pulling their luggage behind them.  Theodore just watched for a while and looked at the many signboards showing the flight departure and arrival times and check-in counter numbers.  On the walls and pillars there were pictures of aircraft with different colors and names on them and more pictures of beautiful places one could fly to.  “All very exciting,” thought Theodore, “ hmm, now let me see, oh there is a sign that says 'Desk 101 – 110' and that must be where I will find Duty Bear.”

100. The next Stop

The bus made good progress along the highway, stopping only in the towns and villages for passengers to get on and off.  Theodore Bear took note of all the places they passed through and in between reached for a snack from the carry bag that Frederick Bear had given him.  The afternoon shadows were already lengthening when Theodore saw the road sign pointing to the airport and the driver turned off the highway. The tree-lined road was wide and busy with many cars and buses speeding along and Theodore could see aircraft coming and going.  “This must be a very big, important airport” Theodore said to himself as he took a little white card out of his rucksack.  “I am looking forward to meeting Duty Bear again. The address he gave me says Desk 106 on the first floor.  I hope I will be able to find him.”

99. A Sunshine Bow

Theodore Bear brushed his fur neatly and then peeped out of the window.  “A lovely sunshine morning. I am wearing my bright yellow bow today to match it,” he said to himself and picked up his back pack and cane.  It was still early when he and Frederick set off and soon the bus arrived at the stop.  “Good-bye, Theodore, have a good trip,” said Frederick and Theodore thanked him once more before climbing up into the bus to get a good window seat. Poor Frederick Bear felt quite sad to see him go. Theodore waved with both paws when the bus pulled away and then leaned back in the seat to watch where they were going.  The city was soon left behind and Theodore took a last look at the beautiful mountains before they disappeared from view.  The country side was flatter now and he noticed the thick grass growing in yellow soil.  He saw the large herds of cattle with long, long horns and the big ranch houses and wondered if he would perhaps see a cowboy or two.

98. The Plan for Tomorrow

“What about tomorrow, Theodore?” Frederick Bear asked. “I have had such a lovely time here with you, Frederick, thank you very much indeed, but I do not want to overstay my welcome and I will move on again tomorrow.  I want to take a bus and it will be a very long ride so I need to leave early,” Theodore told him. “Are you going already?” said Frederick, “I am glad you came to visit me and it has been a lot of fun doing things together.  I will come to the bus stop in the morning to see you off.  Let us have another cup of honey tea and then get to sleep.”  Frederick brought the tea and also a carry bag full of good things for Theodore if he felt hungry on the bus. “Thank you, Frederick, this looks delicious.  I will pack everything tonight so there is no rush tomorrow.”  Soon the house was in darkness and everyone in Dreamland watching moose and bears.

97. An Evening at Home

This time there was a lot more traffic and it took longer to reach the bus terminus. “Thank you very much for a safe journey, Mr. Driver,” everyone said as they got off the bus.  “Come with me again sometime,” replied the driver, “good-bye for now.” Frederick and Theodore walked back home and spent most of the evening talking about the wonderful day they had.  They looked at the Nature Reserve brochure again and Theodore said, “Look, Frederick, here is a picture card at the back.  Do you think we can use it to send Merlena Bear a greeting from us?  I think she would be pleased to hear about our trip today.”  “Good idea,” said Frederick, “ we can each put a paw print on it for her,” and he got up to fetch Merlena's address.  “We can drop this in the post box when we go out again.”  Then  Theodore leaned forward on the table,  “Frederick, about tomorrow...” he said.

96. Back in the Bus

As they came to the end of the trail at the rest camp Theodore Bear and Frederick Bear both spoke at once.  "That was amazing. What a lovely trail.  We were in the right places at the right times," they said as they boarded the bus.  The other passengers wanted to know what they were so excited about and what all they had seen. They had to tell their story in detail and repeat it again for the driver when he came.  “You were extremely fortunate,"the driver told them, "it does not happen often that you see both a moose and a bear on one day." "This lovely day has passed so quickly," sighed Theodore as the bus edged out of the parking place. The driver reminded everyone to keep watching on the way back to the gate but they did not see more animals.  The sun had dipped behind the mountain already and soon they left the reserve to head along the main road to the city.

95. A Lucky Day

Frederick and Theodore stood quite still on the path and looked across the water to the grassy patch on the other side of the lake.  The lake was small so they could see clearly and the smiles on their faces grew bigger and bigger but they did not say anything, just watched carefully. There in the  grass next to the water was a magnificent black bear.  "This is our lucky day,” Theodore thought to himself, "maybe he was hoping to find a fish and I do not think the ranger would mind him catching one!"  The bear looked at the two visitors standing on the trail path. Theodore and Frederick could hardly believe their good fortune.  After some time the bear turned around and went back into the forest, stopping to eat a few wild berries on a shrub first and Theodore and Frederick started back to the rest camp to be in time for the bus.  They walked quietly as before, enjoying the sweet sounds of a tinkling stream, birds twittering in the trees on both sides of the trail and thinking about their amazing stroke of luck to see a moose and a bear on the same day.

94. Something to see

Theodore Bear stopped so suddenly that Frederick almost bumped into him.  Theodore pointed forward with his paw and whispered, "Over there up the mountain, I think that is a moose. A real live moose!" and he smiled a very wide smile.  Frederick nodded agreement. It was not close enough to see well and the moose soon moved out of sight but they were thrilled.  Before they went on Frederick quietly opened Theodore's back pack and took out their lunch which they ate as they went further along the trail, Frederick walking in front this time.  The path turned a corner and between the trees a small lake with crystal clear water came into view. "I wonder if there are fish in there or if it is too cold for them, but I am sure the ranger would not be happy if somebody caught one," Theodore mused.  They walked on slowly and followed the path towards the water's edge, coming out of the trees into the open.  Frederick stood still. "Wow! Oh wow!" he breathed."Look!"

93. The Trail

"Are you all still awake?" the bus driver joked.  "Yes!" shouted everybody, "we want to see where we are going." The driver laughed, "In a few minutes we will be arriving at a rest camp where we will stop for some time.  You will be free to visit the restaurant, sit on a bench or walk on one of the trails.  Just be sure to remember the rules, stay on the path and be back in time.  Enjoy yourselves!"
Theodore Bear and Frederick Bear wanted to walk along a trail and agreed to be as quiet as possible so any animals would not hear them coming and run away.  They put on their beanies and scarves again, took the rucksack with and set off at a brisk pace being careful not to step on any twigs that could crack noisily.  Sometimes Theodore walked in front and then Frederick had a turn to lead the way. It was peaceful in the forest away from the city's hustle and bustle.  They felt so happy.

92. In the Nature Reserve

Theodore and Frederick were having a wonderful time on the bus.  The driver pointed out things to see all the time as he drove along the narrow road in the Nature Reserve. "Here on my left you can see the stream rushing over the stones.  This comes from way up at the top of the mountain where the snow is.  In winter there is snow here too but the stream still flows," he said, "these trees are able to carry a lot of snow without their branches breaking off.  In the springtime there are flowers in the grass at the edge of the road too."  The road crossed the stream and curved around the big rocks. "Notice that there are some cloud patches between the highest peaks and there are no forests up there as it is too cold for the trees. Only little tufts of shrubs and some moss grow on that part of the mountain," the passengers were told.  "I am learning so much," Theodore thought to himself.

91. The Bus Ride

The city was still asleep and there was very little traffic in the streets.  Theodore Bear and Frederick Bear had a seat next to one of the big windows on the bus. They took off their beanies and scarves and Theodore put his back pack carefully on the baggage rack.  Now they settled back to enjoy the ride.  Soon they had left the city behind and the road started to go uphill and wind it's way into the mountains.  "It is so pretty here," Theodore commented, "look at the sun shining onto the snow on the peaks and on the red rocks below it.  Oh, and look at all the trees next to the road, all the same height with long straight stems."  "Lovely, I wish I could look everywhere at once," replied Frederick, "I think we are almost at the entrance to the Nature Reserve.  That looks like it over there in front."  When the bus arrived at the gate the driver spoke to the ranger who then waved them on.  "Here we are, folks, keep watching carefully to see all the interesting nature here in the reserve," the driver told the passengers and he drove very slowly along the road so they could see everything.

90. On their Way

Theodore Bear heard something ringing and opened his eyes.  "Oh, yes, the alarm," he remembered, "we are going on an outing today."  And he jumped up to be on time.  Soon he and Frederick Bear were ready and they both wore their beanies and scarves as it would be cold outside so early when they walked to the bus stop.  Theodore looked at their reflection in the shop windows and laughed as he said, "I can't believe that is me with a beanie and scarf as it is always so hot in the desert where I live."  The bus was already parked at the bus stop and the driver welcomed the passengers aboard.  He told them they would be traveling straight to the nature reserve and read their rules.  Do not damage any plants, do not interfere with any animals, leave no papers or peels lying around and only walk on the paths.   "Everyone here?  Fine, let's get on the road," he said.  And they did.