1 Olga was excited. She and her older sister, Inga, were going on a cruise. Olga had not seen her sister for six months. You see, her sister was several years older than Olga. Inga was married and lived in Sweden. Olga lived in the United States. She only saw her sister once each year. This year, Inga was coming to the states to visit. She was joining the family for a cruise on a huge ocean liner.
2 They would be gone for one week. They would see many islands in the Caribbean. Olga helped to plan the trip. It took several months. First, her family did research about cruises. They checked prices, rooms, and features. Cruises could be very expensive, so they began to save money months before the trip.
3 Finally, the day arrived to board the ocean liner. As they walked up the gangplank, they looked all around. Olga was amazed at the size of the ship. It looked like it was as long as three football fields! Her eyes widened as she stepped on board and felt the ship gently bobbing under her.
4 A steward directed them to their rooms. Olga would share a stateroom with her sister. Their parents would be in another room. The room was small. It had two twin beds, a dresser with several drawers, and a small closet. Inga and Olga spent about one hour unpacking. Then, they joined their parents for a light lunch.
5 They sat on a breezy deck eating tuna sandwiches and sipping icy lemonade. They enjoyed watching all the excited people coming onto the ship. The ocean liner would set off in about three hours.
6 "Let's begin to plan our week!" Inga suggested.
7 Olga was confused. "What's to plan?" she asked. "We're on the ship now." She thought all the planning was done.
8 "Yes," Inga explained, "but there is so much to do. I don't want to miss something."
9 Olga rolled her eyes. Sometimes her sister was too much of a planner. "Can't we just wander and enjoy what we find?" she whined.
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