Unit 4 A Sunshine Break
Wheels of Adventures
A month ago, I flew to San Francisco, feeling ____ and a little scared that I was traveling without my parents.
My only companions would be my best ____, Dan, and my wheelchair.
I wasn’t sure what kinds of challenges we ____ face, but Dan assured me that we would be the coolest travelers in Northern California.
When we finally landed in San Francisco, the Golden Gate City, Dan ____, “Let’s get rolling!”
Known for its rolling hills, the ____ has an extensive public transportation system.
I was disappointed to find out that the historic cable cars, which I had been looking ____ to riding, do not accommodate wheelchair users.
Therefore, we decided to take a city tour ____ with wheelchair access.
When Dan and I ____ on the bus, the friendly driver welcomed us aboard, and we were off.
Fisherman’s Wharf is popular for its pretty shops and ____ restaurants.
We were hungry, but it took almost an hour for us to look around and ____ what to eat for lunch.
We chose to ____ a roasted crab and clam chowder soup.
The sea lions peacefully lying on the floats near the pier looked like ____ chocolate.
They didn’t smell pleasant up close, yet their cuteness delayed our visit to the Golden Gate Bridge, the famous spot that appears in most movies and TV shows filmed in San ____.
We took a cruise, ____ the view of the city.
As we ____ the bridge, the summer breeze blew slowly, and we watched the beautiful sunset.
The next day,
The next day, we traveled to Yosemite National Park, a ____ four hours away from San Francisco and about five times bigger than Seoul.
The park is famous for Northern California’s natural scenery of grand waterfalls, valleys, and ____ forests.
Dan’s uncle Roy, ____ lives in San Francisco, kindly gave us a ride to the park.
While heading east in his car, we saw the scenery ____ changing from city to suburb, to forest, and finally, to mountain.
By lunchtime, we arrived at the ____, and each of us had a giant hamburger to fuel up for a hike.
While exploring a trail in Yosemite, we stopped frequently to appreciate the fresh air blowing through the ____ sequoias.
We passed some famous trees like the Grizzly ____, which is about 63.7 meters tall and is almost 3,000 years old.
It was massive, and I felt quite ____ in comparison.
Our ____ took a dangerous turn at one point.
As we made our way down a trail, we ____ a black bear.
I was so excited that I took ____ my camera to take a picture.
It must have ____ the cold cuts and chips we had packed because it began to approach us.
Thinking quickly, Uncle Roy grabbed a stone and threw it, yelling and ____.
After turning me around, Dan helped Uncle Roy push me ____ the way we came.
Dan said, “I guess it’s time to leave ____.”
That wasn’t a problem because I had gotten my ____!
Another memorable part
____ memorable part of the trip was the bike ride.
Dan found out that the National Park has a bike rental ____ and offers hand-crank bikes.
Dan persuaded me to try one, and soon I was able to ____ the hand crank pretty well.
We ____ a fun day riding along the trails in the park.
The Tunnel View in Yosemite Valley was ____ a masterpiece painted by Mother Nature.
The trail also led us to green fields and ____ where we saw some wildlife.
Watching people floating down the Merced River and hiking the ____ Dome was cool.
It was indeed a wonderful ____, with lots of laughter, joy, and sweat.
I am now in my room where I am organizing hundreds of photos, including one of the bottom half of a ____ bear to post on social media.
Of course, I have ____ memories too.
I was fortunate to have ____ like Dan and Uncle Roy during the trip.
There were obstacles to ____ and challenges to meet, but what adventure doesn’t?
I took a deep breath, dove ____ a new world, and faced challenges.
____ I needed to take with me was courage.
I am already looking forward to my ____ trip in the future.