Snapping back to reality from the jostling of the taxi – I’m sitting next to my friends and had not quite been paying attention to what they’re talking about. I’m in my own little world as we ascend up higher and higher through the mountains, with the ocean on the left we are climbing so quickly and with such reckless disregard for our lives.

Where am I, the French Alps? The mountains of Columbia? No, I’m in Taiwan, the land of bubble tea and the singing garbage truck.

Our taxi driver is driving like a maniac and we’re all laughing because it’s just insane how he is driving – weaving in and out of the traffic like a sewing needle through a piece of silk. We’re going to a place called Jiu-Fen

There are at least five things on my bucket list here surprisingly everything from gold to Studio Ghibli. Instead of boring you with everything that I’ve crossed off and their stories I’ll just have all of my things that I’ve crossed off at the bottom here.

Back to the taxi we are driving higher and I’m starting to feel excited, I could feel my heart beat a little bit faster and eventually we stop so abruptly my head hits the back of the seat. I was amazed at how quick he stopped and then I look around to realize I’m in literal paradise. Right on the side of the mountain on my left, there’s a beautiful temple and on my right, the mountain face is covered with beautiful houses.

I and my friends are walking around trying to figure out how we are going to find our hostel so we start casually walking in the town. Every single way I look there’s a beautiful house that I can see.

It’s hot so we go off to the side in front of a bubble tea place and order nice cold bubble tea. Eventually, after 15 minutes of being lost, we find our hostel!

It turns out that it’s full and we feel kind of shitty about that but the kind woman helps us find another hostel so we walked another 10 to 15 minutes to find this place that she contacted for us.

We eventually find it and it doesn’t look like one – it looks like it’s a club for gang members – outside the door is a heavy steel knocker which we knock on and a kind old lady opens the door.

We say that we’re the people who are looking for room because our hostel is full. She smiles and welcomes us in, and everything is covered with Spirited Away merchandise! I realise that Spirited Away a very important movie in this city.

I set down my bags and collapse on to my bed, realising that’ll be a wonderful week crossing things off my bucket list surrounded by friendly beautiful people.