with my new bestie.
‘How much longer?’ whined a voice behind me. It was BB, Izzy’s youngest brother. He was possibly the most annoying of Izzy’s three brothers, though there was stiff competition for that title.
The three boys were wedged in the very back seat of the car with all the camping gear. They’d been having a pillow fight almost the whole trip, with just a few breaks to throw tennis balls at each other. When one hit me in the back of the head it did nothing to improve my opinion of camping holidays.
‘We’re almost there,’ Izzy’s mum called back to us. ‘The Lost World is just up ahead.’
Izzy’s dad turned the car onto a tiny road that became a dusty dirt track.
The Lost World – how fitting , I thought. I just hoped we’d be able to find our way back again.
‘Say goodbye to civilisation, kids,’ said Izzy’s dad, grinning.
When the car pulled up, Izzy opened the door, but before she even had a chance to get out, her brothers somersaulted right over us and scrambled out. I got out of the car feeling bruised and slightly sick.
Mia’s family was already there. They were busy setting up camp next to us. Her mum and dad were unpacking tents and boxes of food. Her four brothers were supposed to be helping, but they were screaming and chasing each other around the camping ground.
I stood out of the way and looked around, taking in my home for the next week. Ahead was a cluster of tents and, past them, a row of campervans were facing the sea. The Lost World was actually a gorgeous spot – there was a dramatic mountain range behind us and the sparkling blue ocean up ahead. It was almost as lovely as Paradise Point, just without the shops and restaurants.
On the very edges of the camping ground were a playground, a trampoline and a big pool bordered by palm trees – all very promising signs. And there was something else more amazing. A big brick building that looked like … I walked closer to get a better look.
‘Communal shower block,’ I gasped, reading the sign on the building.
By then Mia was grinning madly. ‘Surprise!’
‘You mean, I don’t really have to dig my own toilet?’ I asked, looking around at Izzy.
She just tossed me a sleeping bag and laughed. I felt like throwing it back at her – right in her laughing face! She and Mia had really got me this time. I’d got myself completely worked up about this trip for nothing.
‘You’re really funny, you two,’ I said, scowling, ‘telling me I’d have to dig my own toilet.’
‘Come on, Kitty,’ Izzy said. ‘We did it because we love you.’
‘Funny way to show it,’ I grumbled.
‘No, really,’ Mia said. ‘The camping ground is much better than you thought, isn’t it? That’s because we said it would be terrible. If we told you how great The Lost World was, you probably would have been disappointed. Sometimes you have to be cruel to be kind.’
‘Hmm … great theory,’ I muttered. But really I was only half angry now. I had to admit that maybe Izzy and Mia had done me a favour. ‘So what about the campfire situation?’ I asked.
‘We can definitely do that!’ Mia said, pulling a double bag of marshmallows out of her backpack. ‘There isn’t really a fire ban.’
‘Enough chit chat, ladies,’ Izzy’s father said, passing Izzy a large bag. ‘The tents won’t put themselves up.’
Izzy took the tent bag to a flat piece of grass and emptied it onto the ground. I stared at the pile of poles, pegs, ropes and nylon.
We’re never going to make a tent out of that lot , I thought.
But a surprisingly short time later, we were sitting inside a perfectly comfortable structure, admiring our work. We’d pitched our tent, blown up our air mattresses, rolled out our sleeping bags and had the whole place looking cosy. Mia had even found some fresh lavender and tied a few sprigs together to make our tent smell nice.
‘Camping is actually pretty cool,’ I announced, lying on my mattress.
Mia winked
‘How much longer?’ whined a voice behind me. It was BB, Izzy’s youngest brother. He was possibly the most annoying of Izzy’s three brothers, though there was stiff competition for that title.
The three boys were wedged in the very back seat of the car with all the camping gear. They’d been having a pillow fight almost the whole trip, with just a few breaks to throw tennis balls at each other. When one hit me in the back of the head it did nothing to improve my opinion of camping holidays.
‘We’re almost there,’ Izzy’s mum called back to us. ‘The Lost World is just up ahead.’
Izzy’s dad turned the car onto a tiny road that became a dusty dirt track.
The Lost World – how fitting , I thought. I just hoped we’d be able to find our way back again.
‘Say goodbye to civilisation, kids,’ said Izzy’s dad, grinning.
When the car pulled up, Izzy opened the door, but before she even had a chance to get out, her brothers somersaulted right over us and scrambled out. I got out of the car feeling bruised and slightly sick.
Mia’s family was already there. They were busy setting up camp next to us. Her mum and dad were unpacking tents and boxes of food. Her four brothers were supposed to be helping, but they were screaming and chasing each other around the camping ground.
I stood out of the way and looked around, taking in my home for the next week. Ahead was a cluster of tents and, past them, a row of campervans were facing the sea. The Lost World was actually a gorgeous spot – there was a dramatic mountain range behind us and the sparkling blue ocean up ahead. It was almost as lovely as Paradise Point, just without the shops and restaurants.
On the very edges of the camping ground were a playground, a trampoline and a big pool bordered by palm trees – all very promising signs. And there was something else more amazing. A big brick building that looked like … I walked closer to get a better look.
‘Communal shower block,’ I gasped, reading the sign on the building.
By then Mia was grinning madly. ‘Surprise!’
‘You mean, I don’t really have to dig my own toilet?’ I asked, looking around at Izzy.
She just tossed me a sleeping bag and laughed. I felt like throwing it back at her – right in her laughing face! She and Mia had really got me this time. I’d got myself completely worked up about this trip for nothing.
‘You’re really funny, you two,’ I said, scowling, ‘telling me I’d have to dig my own toilet.’
‘Come on, Kitty,’ Izzy said. ‘We did it because we love you.’
‘Funny way to show it,’ I grumbled.
‘No, really,’ Mia said. ‘The camping ground is much better than you thought, isn’t it? That’s because we said it would be terrible. If we told you how great The Lost World was, you probably would have been disappointed. Sometimes you have to be cruel to be kind.’
‘Hmm … great theory,’ I muttered. But really I was only half angry now. I had to admit that maybe Izzy and Mia had done me a favour. ‘So what about the campfire situation?’ I asked.
‘We can definitely do that!’ Mia said, pulling a double bag of marshmallows out of her backpack. ‘There isn’t really a fire ban.’
‘Enough chit chat, ladies,’ Izzy’s father said, passing Izzy a large bag. ‘The tents won’t put themselves up.’
Izzy took the tent bag to a flat piece of grass and emptied it onto the ground. I stared at the pile of poles, pegs, ropes and nylon.
We’re never going to make a tent out of that lot , I thought.
But a surprisingly short time later, we were sitting inside a perfectly comfortable structure, admiring our work. We’d pitched our tent, blown up our air mattresses, rolled out our sleeping bags and had the whole place looking cosy. Mia had even found some fresh lavender and tied a few sprigs together to make our tent smell nice.
‘Camping is actually pretty cool,’ I announced, lying on my mattress.
Mia winked
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