"Geoff Ryman - Everywhere" - читать интересную книгу автора (Ryman Geoff)

and kip with them. The Travellers go everywhere, so they sit around the fire
and tell about all sorts going on, not just in England but France and Italia.
One girl, her Mum let her go with them for a whole summer. She went to
Prague and saw all these Buddhist monks from Thailand. They were
Travellers and all.

Granddad used to tell the Travellers his stories too. When he was
young he went to Mexico. India. The lot. You could in them days. He even
went to Egypt, my Granddad. He used to tell the Travellers the same
stories, over and over, but they never seemed to notice. Like, when he was
in Egypt he tried to rent this boat to take him onto the Delta, and he couldnтАЩt
figure why it was so expensive, and when he got on it, he found heтАЩd rented
a car ferry all to himself by mistake. He had the whole thing to himself. The
noise of the engines scared off the birds which was the only reason heтАЩd
wanted the boat.

So, Granddad was something of a Traveller himself. He went
everywhere.

ThereтАЩs all sorts to do around Blaydon. We got dolphins in the
municipal swim-ming pool.

We dug it ourselves, in the Haughs just down there by the river. ItтАЩs
tidal, our river. Did you know? It had dolphins anyway, but our pool lured
them in. They like the people and the facilities, like the video conferencing.
They like video conferencing, do dolphins. They like being fed and all.

My Dad and I help make the food. We grind up fish heads on a
Saturday at Safeways. It smells rotten to me, but then IтАЩm not an aquatic
mammal, am I? ThatтАЩs how we earned the readies to buy me my watch. You
get everyone along grinding fish heads, everybody takes turns. Then you
get to go to the swimming.

Sick people get first crack at swimming with the dolphins. When
Granddad was sick, heтАЩd take me with him. ThereтАЩd be all this steam
coming off the water like in a vampire movie. The dolphins always knew
who wasnтАЩt right, what was wrong with them. Mrs. Grathby had trouble with
her joints, they always used to be gentle with her, just nudge her along with
their noses like. But Granddad, there was one he called Liam. Liam always
used to jump up and land real hard right next to him, splash him all over and
Granddad would push him away, laughing like, you know? He loved Liam.
They were pals.

Have a major water-fight on all floors of the Grand Hotel in
Newcastle.

Hear that? It just keeps doing that until something takes your fancy.

Hire Dad the giant bunny rabbit costume again and make him wear
it.