Pet Taxis and a Coin Auction

News Bites

Hi there. It's time for an all-new episode of News Bites. I'm Nancy Sun. And I'm Kelly Kimura. In today's news… Pet-friendly taxis, and coins you can't spend. And in today's Tasty Tidbit Boing boing boing…it's not a rubber ball, it's a raw egg! Stay tuned for all that and more, coming up next! ________________________________ 台中市推廣寵物友善計程車 Taichung Offers Pet-friendly Taxi Service Are you ready to hit the road with your furry best friend? Taichung City is now offering a new type of taxi service. Some taxis in the city are now "pet-friendly". This means owners can ride with their pets. And they do not pay extra charges for their furry friend. 搭乘寵物友善計程車時，收費模式以跳表計費，不額外加收費用。 So how does it work? There are 16 taxi companies that have pet-friendly taxis. The companies are listed on the city government's website (網站). Pet owners can choose which one they like. And many of these taxi drivers own pets too! But hold on… There are a few rules (規則) that you have to follow. Before you hop in… Make sure your pet is safe in a carrier. And remember to help keep the taxi clean on your ride… Or you may have to pay extra cleaning fees. So what about the fare (車費)? Don't worry, it's just like any other taxi ride. You pay the regular metered fare. Isn't that "paws-itively" amazing? Just make sure to double-check for some special taxi types, or ones that provide special services. Sounds like life in Taichung is very nice for pets and their owners. And it's great timing too. Because government data shows that Taichung ranks second in Taiwan for the number of registered dogs and cats! 政府資料顯示，台中市犬貓登記數量達超過33萬4000多隻，數量占全國第2，僅次於新北市。 That's a lot of tail-wagging and purring! So, the next time you need to go somewhere with your pet in Taichung, why not take a pet-friendly taxi? It's a win-win for you and your furry friend! ________________________________ 等了100年！丹麥拍賣富豪錢幣收藏估值逾23億 Rare Coin Collection Up for Auction Would you like to have a super valuable collection of coins that you can't spend? Over 100 years ago, there was a man in Denmark, named Lars Emil Bruun. When he was a boy, he really liked collecting coins. After he grew up, he earned a lot of money selling butter. And with his wealth (財富), he kept collecting rare and valuable coins. These came from Denmark, Norway, Sweden and the U.K. In total, he collected around 20,000 coins, medals, and banknotes. That's a lot of treasure! But here's the coolest part. Bruun didn't just keep his coins for fun. He had a special plan for his treasure. You see, Bruun lived through World War I (第一次世界大戰). He saw the devastation (毀滅) a war like that brings. He wanted to protect his country. So in his will (遺囑), Bruun said his coins could not be sold or used for 100 years after his death. During that time, the coins must be kept as a reserve (儲備金) for Denmark. That means if another war breaks out, Denmark could use the coins for money. And Bruun says if 100 years passed by without Denmark fighting a war, the coins could be sold. And the money would be given to his children and grandchildren. Lars Emil Bruun passed away in 1923. Now, more than 100 years have passed since his death. And his amazing coin collection is finally up for sale. An auction house in New York is helping Bruun's family sell the coins. The auction house says it's the most valuable collection of coins ever! They think some may sell for around $50 US dollars… And some may sell for over $1 million! Altogether, the auction house thinks the collection is worth over $72 million US dollars. Most people did not know about this amazing coin collection. Many history experts say it's like finding a hidden treasure! ________________________________ So in today's News Bites, Taichung City is now offering a new "pet-friendly" type of taxi service. This means owners can ride with their pets. And they do not pay extra charges for their furry friend. But hold on… There are a few rules that you have to follow. Before you hop in…Make sure your pet is safe in a carrier. And remember to help keep the taxi clean on your ride… Or you may have to pay extra cleaning fees. ________________________________ And A man in Denmark, named Lars Emil Bruun collected around 20,000 coins, medals, and banknotes. And in his will, Bruun said his coins could not be sold or used for 100 years after his death. Now, his amazing coin collection is up for sale. Altogether, experts think the collection is worth over $72 million US dollars. ________________________________ 趣味小點 Tasty Tidbit In today's Tasty Tidbit, Raw eggs seem pretty fragile…but did you know you can actually make a raw egg bounce? The trick is to soak a fresh egg in vinegar for around 2 days. The vinegar eats away at the eggshell. Then take out the egg and carefully wash it with water. Now you can gently bounce the egg! But not too hard! Or…SPLAT! And that's it for today's episode of News Bites! If you have a fun fact, a joke or an interesting news story you'd like to share with us, record your message and send us your Tasty Tidbit to [e-mail], and you might hear it at the end of an episode. We'll see you next time for an exciting new episode of News Bites!