It has been less
than a year since I first met my traveling companion, but in many ways it seems
like so much longer. When I think of all
the places I have been since then, I can hardly believe it. I have to say that when he invited me to
travel with him, I was not at all certain.
I told him I didn’t like the idea of not having a home, but he assured
me that I would have a home in
I got excited at
the idea of living somewhere with lots of snow and ice. Some bears don’t like the snow, and will
actually sleep all winter long. I
laughed when I was told that, because I am definitely not one of those
bears. I love the snow. I love to play in it, to roll in it, and to
get all covered in it. It is great
fun. Of course,
I have had a
wonderful time traveling around the world, but one of the things I’ve always
been looking forward to the most was the chance to go skating on the canal in
When I saw my
usual traveling companion, I gave him a big bear hug, taking care not to stick
out my claws, of course. After I’d
finished telling him all about my trip to the Olympics, he told me that he had
a surprise for me. I love surprises, so
I looked around to see if I could spot it, but everything looked normal. Then my traveling companion told me that the
weather had turned colder, and the canal was still open. When I had decided to go to the Olympics, I
had told myself I would have to wait another year to go skating on the canal.
Then, I’d had such a wonderful time in
We decided we
really should go early, so that the ice would still be good. The nice sunny March days may be pleasant for
people, but for bears with warm fur coats, and for ice, they are not
ideal. Bears never sleep in, so I was up
with the sun and ready to get going.
Finally at
When my traveling
companion said we could go skating, I immediately went to my room to look for
my skates. Most bears don’t know how to
skate, but as you know, I am not like most bears. Still, my traveling companion suggested that
perhaps this first time, I should let him do the skating, and just enjoy the
ride. I wasn’t convinced, but I decided
not to make a fuss, and let him put me in a special pocket on his backpack
where I could see everything around me.
It was fantastic. I was able to
wave at all the people skating on the canal, and show them thewonderful pins I
got at the Olympics.
I was surprised
at just how many people there were skating on the canal. I’ll bet there were over 1000 people
there. Unfortunately I didn’t see a
single bear, but I suppose that is because most bears don’t like to skate.
My traveling
companion had told me that skating was fun, but there was another reason to go
on the canal. He said there was a
wonderful tasty treat called Beaver Tails.
I gave him one of my strange looks when he said that. At first I though he was joking, but he
assured me he was serious. So many
things about people confuse me, you’d think I’d be used to it by now, but this
just didn’t make sense. I didn’t think
people ate beavers, and I just couldn’t imagine eating their tails. It just didn't sound appetizing, no matter how
much my traveling companion insisted. In
the end, I just nodded and changed the subject.
I had completely forgotten about the Beaver Tails until my traveling companion mentioned them while we were skating. I told him that I really wasn’t all that interested, but he could go ahead if he wanted. He asked if I was sure. Of course I was sure. When he went to the stand to order a Beaver Tail, I realized this was another one of those strange human things.
There were no
beavers anywhere to be seen. Then I saw
what the Beaver Tails looked like, and I told my traveling companion that I had
changed my mind. He just smiled, and
didn’t seem surprised at all.
When I had my
first taste of the Beaver Tail, I thought I was in heaven. You may have heard that bears are very fond
of sweet things. That is one way that I
am like all other bears. I sat in my
special pocket and ate every last bite.
When I was done,
I asked if I could have another one. My
traveling companion was a little surprised I could eat that much, but he was
kind enough to get me another one anyway.
It tasted even better than the first one. Yummmm.
After eating our
Beaver Tails, we had lots of energy for our skate. I was busy watching the people, so I didn’t
really notice where we were. Suddenly my
traveling companion said it was the end.
I was disappointed. Then he said
that it was time to turn back. I had
thought we were finished skating, but he had meant we were at the end of the
canal, and it was time to skate back.
Suddenly I was very glad I had decided to ride instead of skate. I found out later that we had been skating
for almost 8 kilometers, and now we had to skate the same distance to get back!
When we arrived
back at the beginning, I noticed something that looked like a swan made of
ice. I asked my traveling companion what
it was, and he said it was an ice sculpture.
I asked if we could have a look, and he took me up to see it. I even went for another ride, though I think
a real live swan would have been more exciting.
After my ice-swan
ride, it was time to head back to Stittsville.
I was tired, but I’d had another excellent adventure, and couldn't wait
to tell my grade 3 friends all about it.
I wonder where my next adventure will be?