HOW RAFI & ROSITA CAME TO MARTINHAL
Once upon a time, there was a little fox that lived in the countryside, in the national park near a little town called Sagres in Portugal.
That
fox
was
called
Rafi
and he was very friendly and playful.
One
hot
summer’‛s
day,
Rafi
went
to
the
lagoon,
where all the animals went to bathe and play. To his delight, he bumped into his best friend Rosita there.
While they splashed in the lagoon, they heard some birds talking about a beautiful beach with golden sand, crystal water
and
five
magnificent
islands
that
seemed
to be only one.
This
made
Rafi
very
curious
and
there
was
nothing
else he talked about on the way home. Rosita
couldn’‛t
care
less.
When
Rafi
arrived
home
he
could
bear
it
no
longer.
“Mom… Dad! Have you ever heard of a beautiful beach with
golden
sand,
crystal
water
and
five
magnificent
islands that seem to be only one?” he asked.
Father Fox and Mother Fox looked at each other as if they
weren’‛t
sure
whether
to
tell
him
or
not.
Finally
Father
Fox
told
Rafi,
“That
beach
you
are
talking
about …
… is not far from here. “Not long ago there were only animals there but then humans found its beauty and built Hotel Martinhal there so that other humans from all over the world could come and
enjoy
this
magnificent
place,”
said
Dad.
“I really want to go there! I could even stay at that … Rotel
you
were
talking
about,”
said
Rafi
with
excitement.
“Hotel,”
corrected
Dad,
“And
it’‛s
not
a
good
idea
to
go
there.
The
humans
won’‛t
let
you
stay
at
the
hotel
unless
you are human!
“Besides it can be very dangerous, you never know what humans can do to you!” said Father Fox. “All
right
Dad!”
said
Rafi,
visibly disappointed.
But
Rafi’‛s
curiosity
and
strong
will
got
the
better
of
him.
So the next day, he met up with Rosita and they went looking for the famous Hotel Martinhal. They walked and walked until, from far away, they spotted a beach.
As they got closer they saw the golden sand, crystal water and,
at
last,
the
five
magnificent
islands
that
seem
to
be
only one. “We
found
it!”
screamed
Rafi,
he
couldn’‛t
contain
his
excitement.
“This is so beautiful! I told you it was real!” he said.
“Yes
you
did
Rafi!”
said
Rosita.
“Let’‛s
take
a
closer
look…”
They kept walking towards the beach but then they saw Hotel Martinhal. They quickly realized that they would have to cross the hotel grounds to get to the beach.
“I
had
never
seen
a
hotel
before
but
it’‛s
almost
like
a
forest,”
said
Rafi.
“It has lots of plants and dens for the humans.” Rosita exclaimed.
“These dens are huge! And a lot prettier than ours!” chipped
in
Rafi.
Suddenly a little human voice shouted, “Foxes!”
Rafi
and
Rosita
dived
immediately
into
a
gap
between
some lavender bushes. “Now what do we do?” whispered Rosita. “Let’‛s
stay
hidden.
He
might
just
go
away,”
said
Rafi
nervously,
remembering
his
father’‛s
words.
However, they began to notice the wonderful smell emanating from the lavender bushes. “Humans
like
nice
smelling
shrubs
too,”
said
Rafi.
“Maybe
they’‛re
not
so
different
from
us
after
all,”
whispered Rosita, trying her best not to speak too loud.
“Wait! Don´t run away!” … their conversation was interrupted by the same little voice they had heard before. “You
don’‛t
have
to
be
afraid,
I’‛m
just
a
little
boy
and
I
would like you to come and play and dance with me,” said the boy.
Rafi
and
Rosita
exchanged
a
hesitant
look
and
realizing
that
they had been discovered, they came out of their hiding spot. “Hmm,
I
don’‛t
know.
Maybe
we
should
go
back
home,”
stuttered
Rafi.
“But I LOVE dancing!” shrieked Rosita.
“I’‛m
going
to
take
you
to
a
wonderful
place
called
the
Kids Club,” the boy said. “Are
there
any
big
humans
there?”
asked
Rafi,
visibly
concerned. “Adults? Yes, there are some. Mom and Dad call them “staff” but I know their real names. They are very nice, they
won’‛t
hurt
you
and
they
play
and
dance
with
us!”
And off the three friends went to the Kids Club. When they arrived at the Kids Club the Foxes were astonished. “So
many
colors!”
said
Rafi.
“So many children!” said Rosita. “So
many
games!”
continued
Rafi.
“So
many
toys!”
finished
Rosita.
They were both fascinated with all the children and even the big humans there.
They all danced and played until they were exhausted. In
the
end,
Rafi
and
Rosita
were
invited
to
come
to
Martinhal every day to dance with the children. And so they have, every single day ever since!
THE END
Story by Kids Club Staff @ Martinhal led by Sara Batista and Hugo Quintas Edited by Chitra Stern Illustrations and layout by Rik Dewulf (www.rikdewulf.com) All rights reserved Martinhal and Rik Dewulf