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

To date, my one and only visit to the Maldives had been in August 2014. During that trip, I had stayed in one of the locally inhabited island of Mahibadhoo. Accommodation was booked via AirBnB and everything about the stay was no frills right down to the prices. It was a great experience to be able to live amongst and to interact with the local people on a day-to-day basis, even if this is only for that few days of a short vacation trip. Such experiences can not be replicated if one chose to stay cocooned in an expensive and sanitized tourist island in the Maldives. During my visit, I was not confined to just the island of Mahibadhoo. I also got to experience visiting other smaller islands as well, both inhabited and uninhabited. Getting to some of the sand banks that appeared or disappeared with the coming and going of the tides were extremely awesome experiences. I will return to the Maldives again because I generally love the sea and everything about the Maldives has to...

Traveling and local food, a symbiotic relationship ....... While traveling, I usually prefer to try the local cuisines. This is to allow myself to be immersed into the local culture and customs because food is certainly one area where its preparation, flavour, taste and presentation are heavily influenced by the culture and customs of the people who created the cuisine. During my current vacation in Tokyo (yes, I am writing this article from the comfort of my hotel room in Shinjuku), I again went looking for delicious and authentic local food. And in Japan, there are no other food dishes more popular than seafood. Sashimi set, Ueno District, Taito, Tokyo, Japan (2017) While I do not always dine at expensive restaurants when I travel, I do occasionally splurged on dining when I felt an urge to spend some serious money. But more often than not, I usually dine at local eateries where food prices are affordable and I get the opportunity to mingle with the local crowd. ...

Nothing is more amazing then to literally "rub nose" with the magnificent Boeing 747-400! This photo was taken at Frankfurt International Airport at one of the gates at Concourse B on 18 February 2017. The glares of the lights from the terminal building can clearly be seen being reflected off the glass panels in the photograph. How I wish they had clean the glass panels more throughly. ;-) However, the dirty glass panels aside, the view of the handsome 747 up close and personal was and still is an amazing experience. Lufthansa Boeing 747-400, Frankfurt International Airport, Frankfurt, Germany (2017) Close-up view of Lufthansa Boeing 747-400, Frankfurt International Airport, Frankfurt, Germany (2017)

Traveling offers much in terms of widening our knowledge and outlook of life. I love traveling primarily because it offers endless opportunities to immerse myself in different cultures, languages, experiences, cuisines, histories, geographies and the list goes on....... My first encounter with the art of Kathakali was in 2016 when I visited India for the first time. Kathakali is one of the major classical Indian dance forms. It is primarily developed from and practiced in the state of Kerala of India. Kathakali's development can be traced back to as early as the 17th century. It is derived from the words " Katha " and " Kali " which mean " story " and " performance " respectively. Like all classical Indian dances, Kathakali involves lots of music and vocal performances. Body movements such as hand and facial gestures as well as footwork of the dancers are also key performances aspects of Kathakali. The dance is usually and tradit...

While on transit at Frankfurt International Airport in February 2017, I spent the relatively long layover time between my flights admiring the planes parked on the tarmac and the gates. This is a picture of a handsome A340-300 plane at the gate. The photo was taken from the McDonald's restaurant (B Concourse) with my trusty phone camera while I was enjoying my breakfast on a cold morning on 19 February 2017. On business trips, I seldom bring along my DSLR  camera as I prefer to travel light for work.  This particular Lufthansa plane bears the registration D-AIGN and is an Airbus A340-313 decorated with the Star Alliance livery. Lufthansa Airbus A340-313 at Frankfurt International Airport, Frankfurt, Germany (2017) Zoom-out view of the Lufthansa Airbus A340-313 at Frankfurt International Airport, Frankfurt, Germany (2017)

Publishing and posting online while travelling; the art of keeping in-touch I am late on this article for my regular Travel Bits series by almost 3 weeks! Reason being I was travelling for business from mid-Feb and only returned home yesterday. The hectic work schedules during the trip as well as the long flight times and exhausting layovers at airports while on transit simply sap most of whatever energy that was left in me. Thus, despite promises to myself to be regular in publishing my articles while being away, I somehow didn't manage to adhere to that self-imposed rule. ;-) Instead, what I usually do is just to post a couple of pictures of the interesting or inspiring encounters I had while travelling. These "moments' were captured in time and space by my trusty phone companion and are one of the little ways to stay in touch with my readers whenever I am on the road. Usually, these "moments" photos are accompanied by some short write-ups on how a...

Taking advantage of the weekend and a break from work during my current business trip in Israel, I visited the Negev Desert yesterday. It was my first ever visit to a desert anywhere in the world. And I was not disappointed. Our traveling party spotted several wild Nubian Ibex ( Capra nubiana ) during our short visit. One of these gentle animals in particular, approached within meters from us. But it has apparently grown use to the presence of humans as it showed no fear while it lingered, granting us ample time for photography. I must have taken as many as 90 photographs of this beautiful animal before it decided to move on into its desert home. A befitting experience for a first time visitor to a desert! Author's Note: There are 4 sub-populations of the Nubian Ibex in Israel. These are located in the Judean Desert, the Negev Highlands (Desert), the Eilat Mountain and the Golan Heights. The Nubian Ibex numbers only between 200-300 individuals in the Negev Desert. Over...