Imogene goes a-voyaging

Title

Language

English

Year

1939

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Abstract

(Continued from the January number)

IV. IMOGENE RETURNS TO THE PHILIPPINES

Fulltext

54 THE YOUNG CITIZEN February, 1939 Imogene Goes a-Voyaging By ALICE FRANKLIN BRYANT (Continued from the, Jan1.1,ary number) IV. IMOGENE RETURNS TO THE PHILIPPINES IMOGENE'S visit to the Unite~ States was over. She had seen Grand-Daddy and cousins and other relatives> and had even gone to sc4ool. But now she was again on a large steamship, returning to the Philippines -she and Mother. Yes, they were really making the return voyage. The trip home was like the trip . to the States exapple cannery. So many pineapples_! Piles and piles of them! A man took Imogene and Mother through the cannery, so they could see how pineapples are _prepared for shipment to other countries. . First the pineapples were put onto a conveyor belt that carried them along while they were being peeled and sliced · 1 b y machinery. 'G i r ls wearing rubber glo v e s took out any imperfect slices to be. u~ed in making crushed pineapple, and put the· perfect cept that it was not so co 1 d. "Nice, pleasant weather w h e n one can be out on deck is much better than that cold weather," thought I m o- Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands slices into cans. gene. After sailing for quite a while, their boat arrived at Honolulu, where they stopped a day. Imogene likt:d Honolulu. There were many flowering shrubs and trees, and it was nice and warm. It was very much like the Philippines. And what a lovely tropical city is Honolulu! Imogene's Mother took her to a pineThen the cans, on a conveyor belt, travelled through a big cooking · tank. Whe~ they came out C?f that, the tops were put on the cans. and they were stacked up to cool. After going through the cannery, Imogene and her Mother had a lovely ride up a valley and onto the top of a high cliff called the Pali. From there they had a fine view of the other side February, 1939 THE YOUNG CITIZEN 55 H~u:aiian Pineapple Field of the island, but the wind was so strong they did not want to stay long. Many of the visitors from the ship went to see some of the n a t i v e Hawaiian dances. They were danced under the coconut trees by Hawaiian girls who wore queer looking dresses and had garlands of flowers a~out their necks. When they got back to Honolulu they went to the house of a friend who lives at the famous beach at Waikiki. Here Imogene enjoyed going bathing in the sea. And what fun it was to watch the surf riders! People stood on large boards, and let the white-topped waves carry them along. Sometimes a rider could not keep his hold, and down ~. he went into a big wave! It was in- · teresting to watch the surf-riding, but Imogene did not want to try it-it was too risky. After staying a while at Waikiki, it was time to go back to the ship. On the way they passed many flower sellers, who had grea~ long strings of flowers called leis. Many people at the ship ha~ one or two of these beautiful leis around their necks-gifts from friends who had come to see them sail away. Soon the whistle blew, the gang plank was pulled up, and again . Imogene was out on the ocean. After a while they sailed away from the green Ha:waiian Islands. They · sailed and sailed; Imogene looked in every direction, and could not' see any land anywhere. Th-ay sailed on and on, u~til at last ·they again arrived at Japan. They stopped at Kobe, Japan. Then they had another voyage, and arrived at Hongkong. Imogene was glad when ·they sailed . from Hongkong, for the next stop would be at Manila-and she (Continued on the ne:r;t page.) Lei Sellers in Honolulu 66 THE YOUNG CITIZEN Februar11, 1939 would see Daddy. Finally one morning Imogene woke up to find that the ship was already in Manila Bay. After breakfast they went up on deck. The ship had passed the breakwater, and the big city of Manila lay before them. How close they were getting to that beautiful big pier! Now they were slipping alongside. imogene and her Mother looked and looked· with all their eyes. Yes, there he was, near them on the wharf! Her Daddy! Her ~other shouted, and then her Daddy sa~ them. How wonderful it was ·to get back to the Philippines! It was nice to be where there was· no more cold weather. Of course Daddy was surprised when he saw how much Imogene had grown while she was away. And how well she had learned to read in school ! They had a pleasant time in Manila, but Imogene thought it was too noisy to be as nice as her own town in Hawaiian Native Dancers Surf-Riding at Waikiki . . the southern islands. Then, too, in Manila one must always be dodgfog autos or calesas when crossi~g the streets. In a few days Imogene, Daddy, and Mother were ready to sail on another boat for the southern islands .. Soon they arrived at Cebu, but they did not remain there very long-they wanted to get to their own home. They left Cebu at night, and the next morning they saw the red roofs of Dumaguete in Oriental Negros. "Now I shall soon see my playmates, Daniela and Talina," said Imogene, ''and we can go swimming again, and watch the coconuts go floating down the water. And now I can speak Visayan and be understood !" At last they arrived at their own home. "Mother," said Jmogene, "the nicest thing about a trip is getting back home." And Mother agreed with Imogene. (The End)

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