Ch2-My Treat!

CHAPTER TWO My Treat! Jack heard people laughing and shouting. A brass band was playing a lively tune. He and Annie looked out the window. The tree house had landed in a cluster of trees. High above the trees were towers, turrets, domes, and spires.

"Are those castles?" asked Annie. "Did we land in the Middle Ages?" "Definitely not," said Jack. "Look at our clothes." In the dim light inside the tree house, Jack could see that he was wearing knee-length pants, a long-sleeved shirt, high socks, and lace-up boots. His backpack was now a leather bag. "You're right," said Annie. She was wearing a sailor dress and a pair of boots. "These are like the clothes we wore when we went to San Francisco." "Yep, in the early 1900s," said Jack. He reached into one of his pockets and took out a watch on a chain. "Look, I have a pocket watch now instead of a wristwatch. And"—from the other pocket, Jack pulled out a handful of coins—"a bunch of pennies!" "Just pennies? That's all?" said Annie. "Don't worry," said Jack. "I once read that a penny in 1900 was worth the same as a quarter in our time." "Cool, we're rich," said Annie with a laugh. "Here, take some," said Jack. He gave Annie half of his handful of coins.

"Thanks," Annie said, dropping the pennies into the pocket of her dress. "Okay! Let's find out what's going on here!" She headed down the ladder. Jack slung his bag over his shoulder and followed her. Jack and Annie stepped down into a walled garden lit by a string of tiny lights. They walked together down a pebbled path and over a small bridge that crossed a brook. Then they came to a wooden gate with a sign that said THANKS FOR VISITING THE JAPANESE TEA GARDEN. "We landed in a Japanese tea garden?" said Jack. "What's that about?" "Keep going," said Annie. She opened the gate, and they stepped from the shadowy garden into a

bright open space. "Wow!" they said together. Beneath the turrets and towers, thousands of electric lights lit up the evening sky. A big band played on a raised platform near a lake. Men in white suits and women in long white dresses strolled down a broad avenue. Children dressed like Jack and Annie darted about, shouting and pointing at different attractions: A TRIP TO THE MOON MOUNTAIN TORRENT The air smelled of salt water, roasting nuts, and popcorn. Vendors shouted: "Step right up! World's greatest ice cream! Strawberry! Vanilla!" "World's greatest pink lemonade!" "World's greatest hot dogs!" "What is this place?" said Annie. Jack opened their booklet and read:

Located in southern Brooklyn, in New York City, Coney Island is actually a peninsula—a piece of land nearly surrounded by water. Coney Island is world-famous for its dazzling amusement parks. "Of course, I understand," said Jack. "We landed in an amusement park." "I love it!" said Annie. "Let's get a hot dog!" "No, we'd better not," said Jack. "We should find Houdini first. Let's see if the guidebook says anything about him." He opened their booklet and thumbed through the pages. "Houdini… Houdini…" He ran his finger down a page. "Hey, here's an ad for his show!" Jack read aloud:

"Oh, wow," said Annie. "Our tourist booklet must be from 1908! And I bet Merlin wants us to see Houdini at Henderson's Music Hall! Excuse me," she called to a couple strolling by. "Is today by any chance June twenty-second, 1908?" The woman laughed. "It is indeed," she said. "Thanks!" said Annie. Jack pulled out his pocket watch. "It's six-forty right now," he said. "Oh, we have tons of time," said Annie. "C'mon. Let's get a hot dog." "No," said Jack, "I think we should get our tickets. They might—" "We have over two hours!" Annie interrupted. "It doesn't take long to eat a hot dog. My treat!"