The Ship to America

Everyone on the top deck was very quiet. They barely heard the motors start. Soon the ship was slowly pulling away from the dock. They stayed there until the dock could no longer be seen and there was nothing but water all around them.

"It's a little frightening, Father." Liesl stated.

"Yes, I'm sure it is. For me it's calming; whenever I could I would open the hatch of the submarine and just enjoy its peacefulness. Let's go explore our ship."

The steward heard Georg. "Now I know who you are. You're Captain von Trapp."

"Yes I am. I fear another war is about to begin. I doubt war will come to America but I will help that government any way I can."

"My name is Tony. I believe the same. I'm sure in time all cruise ships will be in dry docks. Now let me take you on a tour of the ship.

"The deck we are on has an obvious name, the Observation deck. You can come up anytime; you captain already know this, sunrises and sunsets are spectacular at sea. And the constellations are very easy to see."

"Father, will you bring us up here some night?"

"Of course I will, Brigitta."

"Now we will go down two flights of stairs. The immediate deck below us only has cabins on it. The second has cabins too but it also has a fine dining room and a theater."

Tony took them to the dining room first. This room had many small tables; some were set for only two people, others for four. And Tony told them.

"Tables can be moved together to make enough seats for your group."

"Father, will we eat here?"

"We may Kurt. Why do you ask?"

"It may not have food I like."

Tony answered for Georg. "Young man, all of our eating establishments have selections which everyday people eat; so don't worry. Let's walk to the theater.

Here Liesl spoke. "This is a real theater; it even has padded chairs."

"It's a miniature of theaters found in the big cities of America. We show movies and have live performances. Now follow me to the next deck.

"Here there is a lovely place to sit in the sun and simply enjoy being in fresh air as the ship heads to America. And captain, your two boys will probably enjoy the next deck the most. Located on it are several large rooms; one has a net for volleyball, another has bowling allies and also one for playing tag in. There are also rooms your girls will like. They can paint, take ballet lessons: there's also a shuffleboard court where they're taught how to play the game. The aft of the ship has the court where many adults spend a lot of their time."

"Georg, I can't believe how much there is to do. The children should never be bored."

"You're right, madam. I'll take you back to the dining room. It's set up with snacks. Dinner will be at seven today; all other days it's six to eight."

They discovered Erwin, Hugo and his family were there too. Everyone ate a snack and the navy men talked.

Erwin told Georg. "I never expected a ship like this. We're going to be so busy the days will go by quickly. Our steward told us this ship docks in the port of Philadelphia; it's not as busy as the port further north in the city of New York."

"My children are excited with all there is to do on board. I see Tony has called them together. Kurt probably asked to go to one of the play rooms. We'll see you at dinner."

Georg took Maria's hand and walked towards the children. "Father, Tony is taking us to a room where we can play Freeze Tag."

"That's fine, your mother and I will come too."

Hand in hand Georg and Maria went with their children. In this large room the children ran off their pent-up energy. An hour had passed and Tony had one more place to show them before dinner. He told them.

"I've found reading to be a wonderful activity to help me fall asleep at night. Do you like to read?"

"We do." Friedrich answered. "Father always required us to read every day."

"Then you will really appreciate where I'm taking you."

Tony heard Brigitta and Louisa's whispers. "The ship must have a library."

Tony smiled and led them from the play room. The library room was only a short distance away. A small sign identified it.

"I was right Louisa."

Tony heard her. "Yes girls this is the library room. Follow me inside."

"Tony, it's a real library."

"That it is and it even has a librarian who will show you around."

"Good day everyone. My name is Marian. We have books for all ages; books for children are in low bookshelves so they can see them. Are you looking for anything in particular?"

Maria answered her. "I think all of us would like to learn more about America."

"I get that request a lot so I grouped books about America together. Let me show you."

"On the lowest shelf are picture books about America and early readers. They also have lots of pictures. On the next shelf are books for the primary grades. Here you will find books written by an American author, Laura Ingalls Wilder. She tells about her adventures with her family after they move to new home in the middle of America. Many American schools have them in their libraries. Take your time and find that special book for you."

They did take their time and everyone did find that special book on American history. And enough time had passed; it was the dinner hour. Tony took the group back to their cabins to leave their library book there and get ready for dinner.

Kurt was ready first so he walked with Tony. "Kurt, I'll let you lead your family back to the dining room."

"I will. I'm really hungry."

With Kurt in the lead they arrived at the dining room. Erwin, Hugo and his family were already there. They occupied all the seats on one side of the grouping of tables. The von Trapp family was on the other side. Menus were at each place.

Once again Georg read the menu out loud. "For an appetizer you can have either soup or cheese and crackers. Your meal choices are roasted beef or chicken, mashed or fried potatoes and your vegetable choices are asparagus, buttered corn or carrots."

"Father, what is corn?"

"I don't know. Waiter, can you tell us?"

"It's a grain which grows on a long woody core known as a cob. It is often eaten right from a cooked cob. It can also be shaved off and mixed with butter. It has a sweet nutty taste. It's very good. I can bring you a big bowl of corn and sliced carrots so everyone can enjoy them."

After taking their order of either beef or chicken, he returned to the kitchen to place their orders. He returned with bowls of soup and platters of cheese and crackers. After about twenty minutes, he served the main meal. The corn was tasted by all, even the little girls, and brought rave comments. Dessert was another new food, pudding pie topped with whipped sweet cream.

The excitement of the day had drained everyone; they returned to their cabins for a good nights sleep.