Travel Bits: August 2026

By -

Back from another tip to Japan....... 


I just came back from another trip to Japan, my second of the year. During this trip trip, I had the chance to travel to not just Tokyo, but also Fukushima. Visiting a new region, a new city and new towns is always a great experience. This though, was not solely a holiday trip, but a trip that mixed work and vacation.

Without dwelling on the work aspects of the trip, I did visit Fukushima for the first time. Arriving at the main train station via the Shinkansen from Tokyo, the landscape of nature and mountains in Fukushima city could not be more different from the urban jungle of Ginza. The crowds of Tokyo was also absent and the hordes of tourists was noticeably missing.

I enjoyed Fukushima; its simplicity, its quaintness, its nature, its mountains, its small towns and its people, even though I could only experienced much of these from the windows of a moving vehicle. But I shall be back to explore more of Fukushima in future, without work on my mind. 🌏

Fukushima Station, Fukushima City, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan (2026)


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Inflight Experiences - 'J' Class on SQ from SIN to TPE (Nov 2016)

By -
Image
I have always view air travel on Business Class as an exclusive privilege, one in which I can only indulge in on rare occasions. This is because the exquisite touches of Business Class travel on premium airlines made the flight itself a separate and unique travel experience.  This is a review of my experiences when I flew on Business Class (i.e. 'J' Class) on Singapore Airlines (SQ) from Singapore to Taipei in December 2016. Check-in While Singapore Airlines offer a seamless check-in experience both online and via its SingaporeAir app, I have always preferred and enjoyed the experience of checking in at the check-in counters at the airport in person. I loved the feel of that Boarding Pass in my hand. Add the fact that I collect my Boarding Passes as mementos of my trips and the reasons for my in-person check-in preference become apparent. As with all premium class travels, separate check-in counters for Business Class are allocated at the airport by Singapore A...
Read more

Bucket List: Mỹ Sơn Sanctuary

By -
Image
Mỹ Sơn Sanctuary ,  Quảng Nam Province,  Vietnam I have always been fascinated with archeological sites, probably inspired by the Indiana Jones movie series and Tomb Raider media franchise. Visiting the Mỹ Sơn Sanctuary in April 2025 was indeed a travel bucket list item for me. While this was a very short trip that lasted for just a couple of hours, it was a good introductory visit to the site for me. I joined an organised tour to the site and the information from the guide for our group was really very informative, especially for first time visitors like myself. Another archaeological site visited, another t ravel bucket list item fulfilled. ****************** On my cruise from  Singapore  to  Hong Kong  in  April 2025 , the ship had a Port Day at  Vietnam 's  Chân Mây . Taking opportunity of the day long port visit, I took a land excursion to  Mỹ Sơn Sanctuary , a  UNESCO World Heritage site . In Mỹ Sơn Sanctuary,  ...
Read more

Travel Bits: July 2026

By -
Image
Another trip completed while the next beckons .......  Mid-July 2026, I just returned from another short trip to Hong Kong, my third of the year to the southern Chinese city. During this trip, I had some time on my own and I discovered another fountain pen shop tucked in the Sham Shui Po district. I bought a pen from them to support local small business and also to justify to myself for making the effort to go all the way to look for the pen shop based on recommendations from friends who are into fountain pens.  I also enjoyed myself dining and sight-seeing, as usual. After achieving Silver Tier Status with my Cathay Pacific membership, I got to enjoy lounge access this trip, even though I was only flying Premium Economy. Enjoying the delicious food in the lounge, reading newspapers in the comfort of the lounge and getting myself freshened up with a nice shower just before boarding my return flight was certainly a travel experience to savour. Coming up on the first week of Aug...
Read more