The driver told us that there would be a horse show we could watch first before looking at the sheep and goats. The ride was about an hour's drive away from Taoyuan, Taiwan, where we were living. When we arrived, it was very sunny. When we went to the front booth to buy our tickets, my mom asked the lady where the horse show would take place. The lady said that the horse show would start in just a few minutes and that we probably would not make it on time and miss half the show. We decided to just go visit the sheep and goats directly. When we walked in, we saw a vending machine from which visitors could get hay or food to feed the sheep and goats. My dad obtained two bags of hay that were each $30. After my sister and I got the hay out from the bottom of the vending machine, we kept on walking. We came across a few goats, and I fed them some hay. We kept going until we saw a fence. Behind it were some sheep and goats. At first, I tried catching a goat’s attention by throwing some hay in front of him, but he did not even notice my attempt. Then, I tried luring him with hay to the edge of the fence, and that worked. This was a tannish-colored goat. I grabbed some hay from my bag and fed him using my hands. However, my sister just directly opened the bag and let the goat bury his head in and eat from there. As the goat ate straight from the bag, some hay dropped to the dirty concrete floor, getting wasted. 

After we fed the goats at the fence, we kept on exploring. By now, my sister’s bag of hay was nearly empty and mine still had about three-fourths left. It started drizzling a little bit so we put on our hoods. However, the longer we walked the harder the rain poured. We opened our umbrellas and hid under a big tree to see if the rain would die down. I decided to walk on because I wanted to feed another goat. I climbed some stairs and spotted a white goat. I grabbed some hay to feed her and after a while, I had only about two handfuls left. I wanted to save the two handfuls for another goat so I trotted back to my parents. However, the goat did not want me to leave. I gave her two more skinny pieces of hay and turned away. She still did not want me to escape so she kept on following me. I sped up, and she started running slowly behind me. I wanted her to go away so I ran down the stairs as fast as I could back to my parents. Eventually, she gave up the chase because she was not good with stairs. It was starting to rain harder, so we went to a nearby gift shop to take cover. 

In the gift shop, everything was sheep-themed. I saw sheep bookmarks, keychains, mechanical pencils, and two wood crafts that I wanted. I only got the sheep bookmark and keychain at this gift shop because I was not sure if the other store at the entrance had these. For the other items, we decided to get them in the gift shop at the entrance, which was much bigger. After I made my selection, I went outside to this stage that had a small wooden house with a goat locked inside. This one was making bleating sounds very loudly so I fed him my remaining hay. When I was out of hay, he started kicking the door with his front legs because he wanted more. I ran back to the gift shop and asked my mom to get more food. This time, I got small grass pellets that were in a box. I dumped some on my hand and reached in to give the goat the food. He kept kicking the door whenever I stopped feeding him, and eventually, I used up my whole box of pellets all on this one goat. When I was out of food, we left to go to the other gift shop. I purchased a yellow sheep mechanical pencil and three woodcrafts. My dad got a special wooden pen and also three woodcrafts. My sister chose a windmill magnet, a mechanical pencil, and three woodcrafts as well. When we were done picking out what we wanted, my dad paid for them, and we went back into the driver’s car. The driver told us that he would take us to a hotel. 

We agreed to meet the driver at 10 AM the next morning. The hotel was not very big, but it had a beautiful garden with some beds and benches that guests could rest on to enjoy the view. If someone stood on the platform where the beds were, she could see a faraway castle like the one from Harry Potter. The castle was really beautiful because it was surrounded by mist as the entire city was very high up in the mountains. After we admired the view, we went into the hotel and checked in. The receptionist told us that for dinner we could order from a seafood place, which was the only restaurant that directly sent ordered food to the hotel. We elected to go to our rooms first and unpack our two bags. In our room, we were very surprised because there were spiral stairs leading to a loft! There was even a queen bed with a window upstairs. On the bottom floor, there was another queen bed with a TV and a small table with a mirror on it. After we unpacked our bags, we went downstairs to order our food–four bowls of rice, shrimp, clams, and other types of seafood. After we were done, my dad and I went outside to check out the garden. I saw a really cute cat and surprisingly when I walked towards him to pet him, he just stayed and did not run away. He was really cute and furry, and we decided to see if he would follow us, and he did! Eventually, my dad and I had to go back into our room and get ready for dinner. 

We went on the elevator and once we arrived on our floor, I chose to take a shower first because our food was not going to arrive for another 15 minutes. After I finished my shower, I blow-dried my hair and sat on the bed to relax and watch TV. While channel surfing, at first I could not find any movies, just random TV shows. I searched around and finally found a button on the remote control that looked like it would take a desperate viewer to the movie section. I pressed it and once the TV reacted, a bunch of movies appeared. I decided to watch a different version of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. After I had gotten through about 8 minutes of this random movie, my dad went downstairs to see if our food had arrived yet. When he came up he was carrying our food, and we proceeded to take it out to eat. My sister had fallen asleep, so we concluded that letting her rest upstairs on the second floor while we ate was for the best. Since we had purchased four bowls of rice, my dad devoured two of them because we did not think my sister would wake up anytime soon. My dad looked for a different movie and found one. The plot centered around how when people listened to the ringtone on their phones, they would instantly turn into zombies. The movie was really weird and also a little scary at the same time. I did not understand the ending but it was great to just watch it while eating. After we finished our food, I picked sleeping on the first floor. The bed was not the most comfortable but I fell asleep very quickly because I was so exhausted. I was also excited about what we would do the next day. 

Since it was raining the next night, my mom wanted to double-check if the firefly event would still take place. The lady in the front said that if the rain turned into a downpour, the event would be canceled, but if the rain stopped or became a drizzle, then the firefly event would go on. We waited and waited until finally, they made an announcement. They said that the firefly event would be canceled since it was raining too hard. However, when we stepped outside to see, it was not raining hard at all! My mom reported this development to the front desk, and the receptionist told my mom that she would go to the leaders of the firefly event to notify them. We were afraid that the process would take too long, so we chose to go up to the event meeting place ourselves. We walked down the road, and under a bridge, we saw another group that seemed ready to go. My dad asked if we could join their group, and the person at the booth said that we would have to pay extra since we did not live in that hotel. The lady also said that their group was special because it would go all the way to the top of the mountain, while other hotel groups did not. There would also be special leaders explaining the surroundings along the way, which would make the trip more interesting. My dad decided to pay extra, which came out to $800.

Once we paid, we gathered around the leader, and our group started trudging up the mountain. At first, it was raining a bit, but once we got to the entrance of the mountain, it was not raining at all. The man leading us told us that we would have to stick together since it was dark. Once he finished explaining all the rules and procedures, we began to climb the mountain. The mountain was not very steep, and we often stopped to look at other animals. For example, we stopped at a log that had some holes bored into the wood by a special type of worm with over 100 legs. The leader picked a worm up to show us and asked if anyone wanted to touch it. No one did. He also asked us if we wanted to smell it because it had this specific wood smell, but again no one wanted to. We continued walking and since the evening was getting even darker, we turned on our flashlights. The leader told us that once we reached the place where all the fireflies gathered, we would have to turn off our flashlights so that we could see their light. 

After trekking for a long time, we finally reached our destination. We turned off all our flashlights, and in the distance, we could see some glowing fireflies. The leader waved a laser flashlight at a big tree to show us that most of the fireflies were perched on it. As our eyes got accustomed to the darkness, we eventually saw even more fireflies. I noticed a firefly that was near my face and tried to catch it. I think I touched it, but I did not end up catching it since it flew towards a ditch on the side of the road. After looking at the fireflies, we started heading back to the hotel. On the way back, we saw a house that was old and decrepit and seemed as if no one was living in it. The leader went down to the abandoned house and returned with yet another worm that had two small horns sticking out on its head. Again, the leader asked if anyone wanted to touch it, and no one did. He also asked us if anyone wanted to hold it and, as expected, no one did. We continued hiking down the mountain, stopping at certain places to examine different creatures that no one wanted to smell or touch. Once we arrived back at our starting point, we strolled back to our hotel. We were all very tired and decided to take a shower and go to bed right away. Since my sister was the most exhausted, she took a shower first. While she was taking hers, I found a movie to watch and chomped on some small black eggs. I also tried the indoor swing and found it fun. However, when I pushed too hard on the swing, I would bump into the wall because the swing was angled towards the corner. Once my sister was finished, I walked into the bathroom and almost slipped from her tsunami. After I showered and contributed to the flood, I put on my pajamas and got ready for bed. 

The next day, the driver picked us up and drove everyone, including my grandparents, to a different type of water–the aquarium. Upon arrival, it was raining very hard, so we took our time getting out of the car. The driver also helped us with our luggage and held all our clothes for the next day since we would be sleeping at the aquarium overnight. Once we had everything we needed, we entered. At the entrance, a lady checked our names off her roster and gave each of us a lanyard to wear. On our lanyards, there was a clownfish to signify that we belonged to the “Clownfish" group. After we had gotten our lanyards, we scurried towards the aquarium. Just outside, we saw a whale statue spouting water in the middle of a huge fountain area for kids to play. Surrounding the water zone, there were also many food stands and small shops. As soon as we sauntered inside the aquarium, we saw some fake dolphins hanging from the ceiling. There was also a huge whale and a baby whale hanging from the ceiling. As usual, we went to the front desk to check-in. While my mom handled this formality, my sister and I spotted some stamps for our stamp book. All of the stamps had a different animal on them and were circular in shape. After check-in, we had to choose some lockers to put our luggage and whatever else we did not need. To use the locker, we had to pull the key out and then put in a ten-dollar coin. Once we returned the key to the lock, the coin would be returned. After we were done storing all our items away, we met up with our group in the middle of the aquarium. 

Our group leader led us downstairs to sit while he explained the rules and safety procedures for the boat cruise that we were going to go on. He gave each of us a handbook that we could use in case we got lost or had questions. By the seats, I spotted a lollipop machine. A player would press a button to start, and lollipops would fall down a hole and drop into the prize chute. These were attached to the moving conveyor belt, which carried the lollipops into the prize chute, where they detached in order to be picked up. My dad gave us each a turn, and in the end, my sister got one lollipop while I won two. My dad also saw some smaller kids just staring at us longingly and offered them a turn. When my dad handed them each a coin, the children acted as though they did not know what to do. I tried explaining to them in both English and Chinese, but they still stared blankly. After putting the coin in for them, I told them to press the button that would stop the machine. They eventually pressed it, and two lollipops fell down for them to take. After showing them how to do it once, they understood immediately, and each tried again. After our leader was done explaining everything, my mom took a type of medicine that would prevent seasickness. My dad asked if my sister and I wanted the medicine, but we both said no since we already had the lollipops. The man led us outside to go on the boat.

When we went outside, it was still raining but more gently than before; it was now only drizzling. We walked down the stairs to the ground level where the ocean was. Our leader showed us the boat and told us to be careful while climbing in and finding a seat. The boat was a blue and yellowish color with a small set of stairs leading underneath so people could see what was in the water through the glass bottom. That part of the boat also contained life jackets and emergency materials such as first aid kits. Our leader told us that we could sit anywhere we wanted, so my dad, sister, and I sat at the stern of the boat while my mom, grandma, and grandpa picked the port side. Before our ride, the pilot explained all the rules and emergency protocols. After he was done going over everything, he started the engine. The plan was to go a little past a nearby beach and stop on the way to describe some important sea animals and other life in the ocean. At first, the boat was at its highest speed setting because all we were doing was going straight. About five minutes in, some people who were sitting towards the front port side began standing up because the water that had accumulated from the rain before now started dripping down from the roof of the boat. As we kept going, our leader began explaining what animals we might see along the way. I looked across the water, but I spotted no animals. I could only see water and more water surrounding the boat. However, after a while I saw an animal–I think a type of turtle–go above the water for just a second. 

When we arrived near the beach, we decided to stop because we spotted a small ice cream shop where we could rest. Once we got off the boat, we fortified ourselves with a treat. My sister and I both ordered vanilla ice cream in a type of container with a small wooden spoon attached to the cap of the cup. Once I had finished and tossed my trash, I went back to my seat and listened to our leader as he pointed out a model submarine about two feet long in a glass container on the wall of the store. The model was half a submarine with the insides exposed to show people what the insides of a real submarine looked like. He expounded on the structure of a submarine. Once everyone was done resting, we all got back to the boat to return to the aquarium. On the way back, I wanted to go underneath the boat by climbing down the stairs and checking out what it looked like. Unfortunately, all I could see were some water bubbles and…more water. Once we returned, we had to do a required headcount to make sure nobody had illegally sneaked onto our boat. After we confirmed no refugees had joined our party, we all got off the boat and walked back inside the aquarium.

Our leader led us to a big room where there were many tables for us to eat lunch. Buffet-style, there was soup, rice, and other side dishes. My family chose to sit at a table near the window so we could see the view of the ocean. I decided to get soup, a bowl of rice, and some fries along with a cup of iced red tea. The food was delicious and as we enjoyed ourselves, our chief announced that we could meet him downstairs after we were done. Once we had cleaned up, we trooped downstairs for our next activity in the auditorium to hear some interesting information about sea animals and how we could protect them. The auditorium was very big, and there was also a stage with a screen above it. First, some people came up on the stage and introduced themselves. They explained that some habitats had been destroyed and many sea creatures endangered, and how we could help preserve the ocean ecosystem simply by picking up trash and not throwing it into the ocean. For example, they talked about how sea turtles liked to eat jellyfish, but they often mistook clear plastic bags for jellyfish and swallowed them. Unable to digest the plastic bags in their stomachs, the turtles died after swallowing the bags. After explaining the plight of a few endangered animals, the screen showed a QR code that people could scan to fill out a form to receive a prize. I scanned the QR code, and it turned out to be a very long form. I went through it as quickly as I could, and once I was finally done, I went up to a lady in charge, and she gave me the prize–a whale pen. 

Our leader then gathered our group together to proceed to our next activity, which was feeding some marine animals. He took us to a place where "supposedly" only crew members could enter. There were many tanks filled with sea animals and different types of coral. There was also a very large pool that had all kinds of marine animals, such as Zebra sharks and Stingrays. Our leader explained that the animals in this specific pool were injured, and we would feed them krill later. Our guide led us toward the back of the room to look at the coral first. There were many tanks filled with different types of coral. The first tank we looked at was filled with multiple types of coral both big and small. Even though some of them were only about two inches high, our leader said that they had been growing for over two years already. Next to this tank was a smaller tank with only about five types of coral in it. One of them was a green coral isolated in a cage. He explained to us that if the coral was not contained, it would expand too fast and break the other coral. To the left of this tank was a taller tank with baby clownfish on the right side and grown clownfish on the left. A small hole in the barrier allowed the baby clownfish to swim to the other side.

Finally, we walked over to a table, and our leader pulled out some krill for us to feed the animals. Once everyone had gotten some krill, we all went over to the pool and prepped to feed the animals. We were told that it would be easier for the creatures to eat if we grabbed some krill and dropped them from the edges of the basin instead of throwing the food into the middle of the pool. After everyone was done feeding and washing her hands, we went into another room to do some crafts with clay. The room was very long and narrow and had tables in rows of two. A lady was there to help us think of what to make and hand out the supplies. Each family got two packs of clay, which included about seven different colors. There were also some samples of designs that we could look at to figure out what to make and what colors we would need. After everyone received the clay, we started. 

I did not know what to make at first so I went to the box to see the samples. I decided that I would first make a clownfish with orange, white, and black. I started by shaping the body and then making the tail and the fins. I attached them and rolled small strips of white and black for the pattern. After I was done with all the strips, I attached them to the body and affixed the eyes. When I was done with this fish, I felt inspired to make a Snorlax with the following colors: blue, white, and black. I created the head and the stomach and then the hands and ears all in blue. Once I attached all the pieces together, I fashioned the feet and designed the eyes and mouth with black clay. The final step was to make the stomach area of the blue body a white color. Once I had finished that part, I elected to make a shell out of red and pink. There was no pink-colored clay, so I had to mix some red and white clay together. Once I completed the shell, it did not look as if there were two colors at all, only pink. After everyone was done with the project, we went to our lockers to store them. I made a box out of some paper to let our models dry. 

The last event before bedtime was looking at all the fish and other marine life. The leader took us to a part of the aquarium where there were all kinds of tanks with either coral or animals in them. There was coral in a circular tank with no edges. Outwardly, it just looked like plain old coral in varying shades of pink and red, but when our guide shined a UV light on it, parts of the coral glowed a green color. He explained to us that the reason for the greenish color was due to a special type of sea urchin attached to the coral. Our group then visited a bigger tank. We could not see anything at first, but once the leader shined the UV light, we could see that there were big lobsters and zebra sharks. Our guide told us that most of the zebra sharks were sleeping. However, he informed us that all marine animals only slept for about 7 seconds at a time because they wanted to be prepared in case of a predator strike. 

Our final destination was the belugas. The leader explained that each day there would be a different beluga in that tank because if the aquarium managers released all three of them at once, they would fight. Today, there was a male named Babu. Some of us would be sleeping here tonight. He also took us to the two other places where we could sleep. All three areas had different kinds of fish, such as zebra sharks or stingrays. I wanted to sleep in the second location because there were the most kinds of marine animals in the tanks. My family all agreed to pick the second location because unlike at the other locations, we would sleep in rows of two and not four. Sleeping in rows of 2 was better because it would not be as cramped, and we would get a better view of the sea creatures.

Our guide got out a list of last names to decide who would get to choose first on where to sleep. The first location was the smallest one because the place where people could walk and sleep was curved. The second location was a little bigger than the first one, and the third location was the largest one of all. First, the organizer asked everyone who wanted to sleep at the first location. A few people raised their hands and since it was the smallest location, that number was perfect. When he asked who wanted to sleep at the second location, a lot more people raised their hands, including mine. Our leader had to look at who signed up first to decide who would get to stay, and we happened to be the second family, so we got spots. The leader led us and another group towards the back of the room, and we grabbed our trash bags that each contained a big blanket, a small blanket, and a pillow. A commotion broke out. While another organizer was looking at who signed up first for the two remaining families who wanted to sleep at the second location, one of the families, consisting of a grandmother, mother, and two kids, just went directly to grab the trash bags without permission. This unruly family got to stay though because even though as it turned out, the other family had seniority and should have been allowed to stay, but that family let the other family remain. 

After the sleeping arrangements were completed, we all went to eat dinner, which was the same meal as lunch, and then downstairs to shower. The showers had cloth dividers that could be pulled down for privacy. There were also hair dryers for people to blow dry their hair and sinks to brush their teeth. I took a towel and some soap and then went into one of the shower stalls. After I was done, I blow-dried my hair and waited for everyone else to finish. My dad was already waiting outside because he did not have a towel. I gave him mine and then went back into the girls' restroom. While I was brushing my teeth, my sister and mom came out to blow dry their hair. They had taken longer than me since my mom had to shower both herself and my sister. After I was done brushing my teeth and my sister had her hair dried, I went into our lockers to get my sister’s toothbrush and toothpaste. She brushed her teeth while I sat outside waiting with my dad. When I went in again about five seconds later, apparently my sister was done brushing her teeth already. I told her to continue brushing, but she insisted that she had already brushed long enough. I informed her that I had seen her rinse her mouth out right after I walked out of the restroom, meaning her toothbrush had barely touched her teeth. Eventually, she brushed her teeth again as I stood watching like a police guard, and then when I told her she could rinse her mouth out, she immediately did. 

After my dad, sister, and I were done, my dad took my sister and me to bed first since it was getting late. I set up my bed by placing the small blanket, which was more like a flat but still cushy mattress, on the floor and then climbing on it. Then I spread out the big blanket, which would be used to cover myself and my mom. My dad also gave my sister and me flashlights to look at the fish. When my dad left to go back upstairs to wait for our mom, a kid started talking with another kid. I sat up and discovered that it was the two brothers who had taken the trash bags without permission. What a surprise. Eventually, they stopped talking to each other, and just as I was about to fall asleep, I heard a person snoring very, very loudly. I sat up again and figured out that the noise was coming from the mom and the grandma who had stolen the trash bags. What a surprise once again. I tried closing my eyes, but the snoring was too loud. Even after my mom and dad came back, I was still awake. Eventually, I fell asleep, too tired to even think about the snoring. 

I was awakened by an incessantly repeating announcement that ordered everyone to wake up and go eat breakfast. It was only around seven or eight o’clock. Eventually, I groggily crawled out of our nest and found that my sister was the only one still sleeping. I went to her bed to see if she would wake up, but she did not. My dad finally lifted her off the bed, and she opened her eyes at long last. After we put everything back into the trash bags, we all went downstairs to eat breakfast. The breakfast was buffet-style again, but this time they had a few different dishes such as soup and salad. I mainly grabbed the same dishes I had eaten the day before, along with some shrimp chips. After I had finished, I filled up a cup with iced red tea that was much better than the one provided the day before. Once everyone was done eating, we all went downstairs to look at the gift shops. In one of the stores, there was a really big penguin gacha machine filled with extra large plastic balls which had prizes as well as pieces of paper inside. It was 150 dollars per spin, and my dad gave both my sister and me a turn. I went first, and once I twirled the knob, a ball rolled out and I opened it. Inside was a piece of paper along with a pink narwhal plushie. Once my sister’s ball had rolled out, she also opened it and got the same thing. The slips of paper said something in Chinese. We gave it to the lady who was working, and she gave both of us a small package. My sister and I both opted to wait until the ride home to open these mystery gifts.

Then we decided to go to the main gift shop closer to the entrance. There were way more items in the main gift shop. I walked around and saw a lot of cute keychains, including ones that people could make themselves out of cardboard. There was a row of boba keychains that each had a different Chinese character on it. I looked for one with my last name, and I found it! My dad let my sister and me each get one. My dad also saw some cute T-shirts. We got matching white ones with a picture of a beluga on it. After walking around, I looked more closely at the kits people could use to make their own keychains. I picked out a Beluga kit, and my sister got a dolphin one. All the materials were provided. Both of our keychains would be able to spin. After purchasing everything, we were ready to leave the aquarium and head back to Taoyuan. We waited inside the aquarium for our driver to come and pick us up since it was raining outside. Once he arrived, we all walked outside with our luggage. The driver was going to take us to a train station where we would ride back to Taoyuan.

Once we dashed into the apartment after our long train ride, holding onto the dessert we had picked up on the way home, we ate the shaved ice, which had not melted at all yet. My grandma took out bowls so we could share and taste each other's toppings. All of us except my sister got some shaved ice along with some toppings. My sister chewed on the plain ice because she did not want to have any flavor in it and would not eat any ice that had touched the toppings. After enjoying ourselves, we agreed to go to the night market and get something for dinner there, instead of going to another restaurant. However, we all wanted to rest a bit first after the long ride and would go out afterwards. About an hour later, we headed downstairs. We had to walk a short distance because the night market was located in a bigger area. Once we arrived, we saw that there were a lot of people and many tents either selling food or set up with games to play. We walked around to look around and see what we could eat. We saw a man who had a leash tied to a pet hog. The hog was a dark brown, almost black color. We continued sightseeing and finally spotted a small tent that sold some octopus soup with noodles; it looked very good. We decided to sit down at this tent to eat. The octopus was really delectable because it was chewy and a little bit crunchy. Both the soup and the noodles were very delicious. However, my mom preferred another local restaurant that sold oyster pancakes instead. After she had gotten her oyster pancake, she started munching it, and just as I was about to finish my soup, the sticky sauce on her oyster pancake spilled off her plate and onto my shirt and the ends of my hair since she was standing right behind my chair. My dad wiped me off, but it did not help my hair, which had become really sticky and glued together. 

After everyone was full, we walked around to see if there were any appealing snacks. On the way, my sister and I spotted some pinball machines that we wanted to play. However, my grandparents were feeling a little tired so they chose to walk home first. My dad let us play a couple of rounds on the pinball machine. There were many different kinds of prizes, such as stuffed animals and toys. The plushies cost the most tickets, and most of them were Pokemon. The lady gave us each a basket that contained 100 coins. For each coin put into the coin slot at the top of the machine, a marble would appear for us to shoot up from the spring placed on the bottom, avoiding obstacles. Once the marble was at its highest achieved point, it would fall to a slot at the bottom, and the number of tickets received would be marked. Both of us kept putting coins into the slot and pushing the marbles up. When the coins were gone, the lady helped us count our tickets, which we combined in order to get better prizes. The lady told me that I could get a small plushie or two mini toys. At first, I wanted the small plushie, but then I realized that if I got it, my sister would not get anything. Eventually, both of us selected a prize. I ended up picking a gun that could shoot balls out, and it even included three ducks as the targets. My sister settled on a Pompompurin ring that could glow when pressing a switch on the bottom. We were satisfied with our choices.

The next day, when we woke up, we went to a claw machine place because my sister and I really like winning prizes from the devices. At the claw machine place, there were all kinds of prizes including small keychains and plushies which I really wanted. There were also mini claw machines near the door that were filled with Ghibli characters and small bags, which I wanted to try. My dad put some dollar bills into the machine and some coins dropped down from the machine which we would use for the claw machines. Each claw machine play would start once we put in one coin. I chose to go for the Susuwatari, which was also known as the black soot balls in the Totoro movie. They looked very fluffy and I wanted one! I tried a few times, but I could not obtain one because most of them were stacked towards the back and because they were fluffy, maneuvering the claw to actually pick one up was practically impossible. The next item I went for was a small banana plush. The claw machine for this one was better because all the bananas were spread out. Using the joystick, I moved the claw to one of the bananas and pressed the down button. The claw descended, picked it up, and dropped it into the prize chute! I grabbed the banana and decided to go for the small banana bag with a keychain. That way, I could put the banana plush I had secured in its own personal bag. I put a coin inside the machine and the game began again. I manipulated the claw and once I felt like it was in the right spot, I pressed the down button, and I won another prize! For the next hour, my sister and I both went for prizes, and sometimes we got them, but unfortunately not every time. After we had used up all our coins, we went to eat at a nearby restaurant before going home to rest. Soon, it was nighttime and we had not eaten dinner yet. We all went downstairs to one of the food tents that had been set up on the street. We drank some hot wonton soup, which was really delicious. After we were full from all the food, we went back to the apartment and ended the day. 

The driver would be back the next day to take us on another adventure. My trip to Taiwan was filled with many different activities and experiences. Staying overnight at the aquarium, it felt very fascinating to be sleeping under the sea creatures. Each one, just like all our experiences, was unique in color and the feelings each evoked within us.