In Search of Adventure
The sun has crept out from behind the mountains, and there is a scent as sweet as wild strawberries in the air. One tree after another extends its twigs towards the skies, as though they are each having a stretch. The birds tweet cheerful melodies and the insects and animals busily go about their day's work. All of them are bright as a button. All? Not quite. A little eagle is still lying half asleep in his nest.
“Good morning!” calls a squirrel as it scurries past, fully loaded with acorns. But the little eagle just mumbles to himself.
Suddenly he awakes with a start. Quickly he rubs the sleep from his eyes and shakes out his wings. His bad mood has vanished into thin air. He really cannot sleep in today because today is the big day! Aki, which is what the eagle is called, isn’t so little any more, and today he is going to leave his nest and find his own home.
“It’s so exciting! I wonder what will happen to me today?”
Full of the spirit of adventure, Aki looks out over the forest. Which direction should he go in?
As Aki is making up his mind, he hears voices in the distance. They sound bright and cheerful. This makes the eagle’s decision easier, since if something sounds like fun, then that’s exactly where Aki wants to be.
The little eagle spreads out his wings and, with a thumping heart, jumps from the nest. To begin with he feels a little nervous, but then the air carries him gently through the forest. Aki loves flying! It is the best feeling in the world, even better than chocolate ice cream!
The little eagle does not have to fly far before he spies a group of children through the trees. To begin with, Aki decides to perch on a branch and watch from above.
The children, five altogether, are not alone. A woman is with them and she seems to know the forest well.
“This here is a spruce. You can tell by its pointed, prickly needles. In contrast, fir needles are flatter and have two light streaks in the middle,” she explains.
The children look carefully at the needles. As they do so, they chatter loudly among themselves, with each having something to say. Only one small boy stands a little apart and examines the ground with a magnifying glass.
“I’ve found something! Come quickly!”
The other children run to him and the nice lady wants to know what the boy has discovered too. Full of pride he shows them a mark in the damp earth.
“Wonderful, Leon! That’s an animal track. To be precise, it is the footprint of a roe deer. You can tell from this. Can you see?” The woman shows them the two elongated marks that come together in a point in front.
“That isn’t any old deer! These are Franzi's tracks. She always runs this way!” says Aki, as if on cue.
Shocked, everyone looks in his direction. At first they cannot make him out, but then they spot the eagle high above them on his branch.
“Hello! Who are you?” a little girl waves at him.
“I’m Aki. And who are all of you?”
“We are from the resort not far from here. We are here on holiday with our families,” explains a boy with dark curls, as he points in its direction.
Aki wrinkles his forehead in confusion. “What is a resort?” he asks.
A girl with eyes as wide as saucers tries to explain to him. “You can play, swim, do crafts, climb and pet animals there,” she tells him.
“And there's delicious food too!” adds the boy who found the footprint.
Aki is amazed. “Wow! That sounds like a wonderful place. Can anyone go there?”
The children nod.
Suddenly Aki gets the same nervous feeling that he gets when flying. Could this be his new home? A place where every day promises new adventures? He definitely needs to take a closer look.
The eagle says goodbye and sets out to search for the resort. “Thank you children! Maybe we’ll see one another again soon.”
All ADLER Spa Resorts & Lodges
