Treasure on the Southern Moor; Chapter 8: Repairs and a Rest; Pgs. 196-198
. It was indeed warm. As they walked through the streets, the sun continued to beam down upon them, and the gentlemen were finally obliged to take off their outer coats. There seemed not a cloud in the sky from horizon to horizon, and the party was glad when they finally stepped into the shade under an overhang. It turned out to be none other than an entrance to a tea shop, with even English imported tea that they must have acquired from another merchant vessel. There was an English-speaking merchant there who could help them with their currency exchange.
. “Excuse me,” began the captain to the merchant, “’tis a lovely tea shop.”
. “Thank you, good sir,” said the merchant with only a slight Portuguese accent. “We sell the finest teas of China, and you couldn’t find better if you were in your own English shop back home.”
. “Some green tea would do nicely,” said the captain, “though what we are really in need of are long-lasting foods for sailing. Our ship is a little under-provisioned at the moment. We will also need wood, though I’m certain we can find that further inland.”
. “Yes,” said the merchant, “we have food shops, though it might be a little different to what you’re accustomed to. Look in the shop two buildings over, though you’ll have to go to more in provisioning that large vessel. It has been the talk of the town ever since its anchor has dropped only last evening, and I’ve already spoken to some who met you in the inn last night.”
. A small crowd had formed around the sailors and crew, and the doctor was speaking to as many of them as he could in their own tongue, telling them who they were, where they had sailed from, and mentioning transporting cargo, though most of the people had already heard their story from those they had spoken with the night before. The doctor was of course wise enough to leave out anything about treasure or fortune.
. “Excuse us, excuse us,” said the captain and chaplain as they tried to make their way through the crowd. Captain Underwood had to resort to using the broken bits of Portuguese he knew.
. Not all of the crew had entered the shop, but the cook had, and as he was closest to the door, he was the first to leave it. He made his way toward the shop the tea owner had mentioned and was soon inside it. Several barrels and counters filled with all sorts of food aligned the walls and were spread out in rows. There were coconuts, other tree nuts, apples, clams (and other small sea creatures that could be eaten), fish – lots of fish – some fruits the cook couldn’t recognize, and a type of hard cake biscuit. There was also meat hanging from the ceiling and freshly baked bread and strings of onions and sacks of potatoes. Mr. Moore was disappointed not to find any cheese, though there was some cow’s milk, and he knew there must be a cheese shop somewhere close by. No one in the food shop spoke English, and so the cook had to wait for the captain and doctor to arrive before even discussing prices. When the others did arrive, there was a lot of discussion on what they could afford.
Audio Continuation of Story; Pgs. 198-200
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