While on board, she couldn’t stop guessing. She had searched for information about this desert
on the Internet. Had Grandpa found a hidden goldmine in the Gobi Desert waiting for Crystal to
claim? Maybe Grandpa had found some dinosaur fossils, a priceless collection to dig out …
Crystal was caught in a whirl of excitement until a land of natural beauty struck her.
“So… this is the Gobi Desert!” Crystal exclaimed, completely under the charm of the landscape.
The Gobi desert, located in the southern Mongolia, is a very large area distinctive with its
mountains of sand. It’s hard to see anyone in such a barren place.
She looked to the front - there was sand!
She looked to the back - there was sand! And nothing else!
The air in the Gobi Desert was chilling Crystal’s throat, urging her to go home. She even could
not stand taking a deep breath as the wind carrying grains of sand would make it an unbearable
torture. As her vision started to blur, she knew that it was because of the soaring temperature.
Why would Grandpa hide her present here! The smile on Crystal’s face started to freeze, but
the thought of Grandpa’s unbeatable faith in adventures hit her in the mind.
“OK! Stop complaining! Go for it!” Crystal said to herself. Then she grabbed all her belongings,
ready to conquer the unknown. She felt like a traveller like her Grandpa! And it felt so cool!
On the first day, she planned to take a walk around the inn where she stayed. It was along
the famous Silk Road. As it was not the peak season of travelling, there were not many visitors
around. It was her first time visiting a desert; though there weren’t splendid pyramids in Egypt,
it was captivating enough for Crystal to explore. The mountains of sand touching the blue sky
formed a picturesquely stunning landscape. She was dumbfounded.
It was pretty hot at noon in the desert. Each and every grain of sand was heated by the
burning sun. Crystal was sweating all over her face and body and started to have difficulty in
breathing. She tried to make a deep breath to make herself feel better. But the suffocating air
choked her. The whole world started spinning. Every step she took started to turn heavy. Not until
she blacked out when she realized she’d had a heatstroke. She could recognize something was
moving towards her but finally it turned into a complete darkness.
After losing consciousness for a while, Crystal finally managed to open her eyes. She could
recognize the ceiling, the symmetrical patterns of which were same as what she saw inside the
inn. She also felt something cool on her forehead - it was a piece of soothingly cool wet towel.
“Are you alright, Miss?” A soft male voice whispered. It was like manna from heaven to her.
Crystal looked up. She saw a boy similar to her age. Her sixth sense told her that he was the
one who had carried her all the way back to the inn. She expressed her gratitude without delay.
His name was Franco, a traveller she was told. He had been chasing dreams in places of
unknown. Crystal threw Franco an admiring glance without her noticing it – how he shared the
same dream as Grandpa’s!
A conversation followed, as if they had been long-lost friends. And Crystal shared her story
after his.
“So, you’re finding a gift? Shall we go together? You don’t seem to be familiar with deserts.
It’d be kind of dangerous for you to go alone!” Franco offered.
“Aha, that’s exactly what worries me,” Crystal retorted playfully, “you’re after my Grandpa’s
gift. Right?”
In next to no time, a blush of uneasiness crept up his face. “Well, you may say so … But
… on the safe side, you’d better have someone guiding your way!” Franco, still caught in
