TANKS Travel Tales - a travelogue.......

Japan, Niigata and Yamagata Prefectures, Kairi Joyful Train Ride This blog post describes my experiences taking a tourist train for the first time. The trip was in August 2023 when I traveled to Niigata Prefecture for the Nagaoka Fireworks Festival. A sign in Car No 3 of the Kairi Train, Tsuruoka, Yamagata Prefecture, Japan (2023) ****************** Watching train documentaries on Japan's NHK World Channel, I had always wondered what it would be like to experience a ride in one of Japan's so-called tourist trains. The opportunity to actually ride on one presented itself when I visited Niigata Prefecture in August 2023 to attend the Nagaoka annual Fireworks Festival. I extended my stay in Niigata by an extra day and night so that I can actually catch a ride on the Kairi Tourist Train. The icing on the cake was that my 7-day Japan Rail Pass allowed me to ride on the Kairi in Car 1 without any additional charges. I just need to make a reservation in advance. I orig...

In the midst of my Pan-Asia Trip 2023......  I am currently in the midst of my Pan-Asia Trip 2023. Today is Day 20 of my 27-day long journey across multiple countries and cities in Asia. As I sat in the cabin of my cruise ship writing this blog entry somewhere in the East China Sea heading towards the Taiwan Strait, I am still surprised that I am able to go on this trip despite my busy work schedule. If I had not pushed ahead with my travel plans, I will probably be back at home and office working. For the record, I still worked while traveling for the past 20 days. I took calls, answered work messages, replied to emails, conducted technical analyses and even managed to continue working on my next upcoming book. Thus, it had not been all fun and laughter for the past 20 days. I was heavily engaged in work and travelling at the same time. My point? Do not let your everyday affairs stopped you from traveling. Busy schedule? Try a work-around solution. Postpone the trip if you have to...