This is the next part of my story about Peggy who is staying with her grandma who lives near a lighthouse. Peggy has been taken on a boat trip by Mr Benbow, a friend of her grandma, to Farholm Island. They have gone into the Olde Ship Inn, which Peggy finds very exciting.
I had finished my bag of crisps which are really, really thin slices of potato which have been fried so they are crisp! I think that’s an excellent name for them. They were very delicious and Mr Benbow had warned me there was a little screw of salt in blue paper. I looked in the bag and could see it – what you do is sprinkle the salt onto the crisps which makes them very tasty. Mr Benbow said you had to look out for the screw of salt because if you weren’t concentrating and put it in your mouth it tasted terrible, and he made a funny face.
Mr Benbow was talking to the lady behind the bar who he said was Aunty Pol. Did this mean she was Mummy’s sister? I don’t think so, she was as old as grandma; maybe it was just a friendly way to speak to her. She said if I wanted to bob down I could have a look round the pub. Mr Benbow lifted me off the stool. I said thank you to Aunty Pol, and then I had a look at the interesting old pictures on the wall by the counter which is called a bar because it is an inn which is also called a pub. There is a pub which we walk past on the way to school but it doesn’t look like the Ship Inn.
There were some gentlemen sitting at a table and they were playing dominos and they said did I want to play but I think they were joking. There was a seat by the window and I kneeled on that and looked out at the boats in the harbour. It was wonderful and I wished I could be here for ever and not have to go home. I don’t mean I didn’t want to go home to Mummy, but I wondered if maybe we all could live here, near Granny and Mr Benbow, and near Farholm Island.
Mr Benbow came and said Uncle Charlie who is Auntie Pol’s husband was going to take us for a ride round the island in his car if I would like.
“That would be very exciting, Mr Benbow! I’d love that!” what a wonderful day I was having. Poor Barbara, she was missing out!
We had such an exciting time. I am going to write a story about it and call it ‘The Grand Tour of Farholm Island’ because that is what Uncle Charlie said. The road wasn’t like a proper road and it was very bumpy. We saw lots of sheep but we couldn’t see the lovely view because of the sea mist, but I thought it was very exciting and very atmospheric. Mr Benbow and Uncle Charlie laughed when I said ‘atmospheric’ but not in an unkind way. You’re a clever little moppet, that’s for sure, Peg! said Uncle Charlie. There was another lighthouse at the end of Farholm Island, it was white and quite short and fat, and Uncle Charlie said it was a bit like him, and we laughed some more.
Uncle Charlie had brought some bottles of beer, which he said were gottles of geer. I didn’t know what he meant and Mr Benbow said he would explain later. Uncle Charlie had very kindly brought me a bottle of Vimto. I said to Mr Benbow that I would put it in my knapsack and take it back to Granny’s so Barbara could have it.
“You drink that and enjoy it, young Peg, and I’ll get another for Babs when we get back to the pub,” he said. I thought Babs was a funny name for Barbara, but I was very pleased to have my delicious Vimto now!
Lois Elsden 