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

With some downtime at work due to the completion of several projects' milestones, I decided to go on a short 5 days/4 nights trip to neighbouring Kuala Lumpur in late November 2023. Flights between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur take only less than an hour each way, before factoring airport security and boarding times. City view from the platform of a Local Rapid Train (LRT) Station, Kuala Lumpur (2023) The aim was for a leisurely trip to visit Kuala Lumpur for the year-end festive mood and to do some shopping due to the relatively favourable forex rates of the SGD (Singapore Dollar) versus RM (Malaysian Ringgit). Festive mood at Pavilion Mall, Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur (2023) However, the short trip turned out to be a rather interesting one, by way of several unforeseen incidents. First up, my travel partner dropped his ring at the airport in Singapore. Taking it in our stride that such things do happen when one was not attentive enough, we brushed the loss aside.  Next, our plane o...

Year 2023 Personal Travel Wrap-up......  And so, 2023 is nearing its goodbyes and we are all looking forward to a brand new year in 2024. For travelers, a brand new travel year beckons. Personally, 2023 marks the first year when leisure travel truly resumes, after 2020 and 2021. Yes, I traveled a fair bit in 2022 compared to the two preceding years. But travel in 2022 was tentative, punctuated by the need to handle cumbersome vaccination certifications submissions prior to each trip, downloading official apps from individual countries and registering on these apps before embarkation, masks wearing, expensive travel insurance as well as limitations in where one can travel to. All these requirements were thankfully, slowly peeled away towards the end of 2022. Year 2023 is when we feel like normal again. Truth be told, COVID-19 is still everywhere, endemic. However, a combination of annual vaccinations and naturally acquired immunity from previous infections by previous strains of the...

Spontaneous Trip......  With the year-end festivity mood taking over, I decided to book a spontaneous trip to nearby Kuala Lumpur next week. Nothing fanciful, just a simple trip to eat, shop and relax. Since I returned from my month-long pan-Asia trip in August, I have been hard at work for the months of September, October and November, including working every weekend. With office schedule finally, and hopefully, clearing up a bit after those intense months of working almost non-strop, I decided to reward myself a bit with a short trip. Redeeming my air miles for the short 1-hour flight and booking a 4-night accommodation right in the heart of Kuala Lumpur, I am all ready to spend a few days sipping coffee at cafes, dining on delicious food and doing a little bit of shopping. I also plan to take some time off my mind to write. And of course, for the bookworm in me, I am definitely visiting bookstores to enjoy the ambience of being amongst books and will most probably buy a good rea...

Clocking my fourth trip of 2022, I visited Kuala Lumpur from 5th to 9th August. This trip was originally scheduled for March 2022 but I had to postpone it back then due to a myriad of reasons.  This trip marked the first time I travelled from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur by flight. I had travelled by bus between these two cities during all my previous visits and I am likely to continue the bus journeys for future trips to Kuala Lumpur. Air tickets are no longer cheap! 😂 During the trip, I met up with relatives and we spent time together, having meals and enjoying some local sightseeing and shopping. The five days that I spent in Kuala Lumpur passed by pretty fast; probably because I was enjoying the trip. While going around town for sightseeing and shopping, I noticed that the crowds were similar to those I saw in my previous visits prior to 2020. It felt good to see people out and about again, resuming their normal life.  My next trip destination is Bali in October of this year...

On a recent trip, I was at the Plaza Premium Lounge at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) waiting for my flight when I spotted this beautiful Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner in its special livery featuring the Manchester City Football Club (MCFC). The rich blue colour combination made this aircraft literally stood out amongst all the others that were parked around it. What a beauty! Spotting this aircraft in-person was one of those rare occasions when a plane with special livery appeared right in front of my eyes. 😀 Etihad Boeing 787-9, with MCFC livery, reversing from the Boarding Gate, Kuala Lumpur International Airport (IATA: KUL, ICAO: WMKK), Sepang, Selangor, Malaysia (2022)

In December of 2019, after an almost 10-year hiatus, I re-visited Kuala Lumpur (a.k.a. KL) for the first time. Despite the relatively short geographical distance between KL and Singapore (where I lived), I was surprised it took me so long to re-visit this wonderful city. Flights from Singapore generally took about 40 minutes or so. Tour coaches typically take about 5 hours, including stops for meals and toilet breaks. If I drive, it will take me a little more than 3 hours, if I shorten the time for my meals and toilet breaks along the way. Petronas Twin Tower, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (2020) Officially a federal territory, KL also serves as the economic, financial and cultural hub of Malaysia. It is the capital city of the country and was also previously the administrative capital until this function was moved to Putrajaya in 1999 to alleviate the increasing overcrowding and traffic gridlocks in KL. Still, the Greater Kuala Lumpur metropolitan area continues to grow both economi...