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

China, Hong Kong SAR, South Island Region This article was originally published in this blog in September 2020. Drawing inspirations from travel variety programs from Japan, I had always wondered what would the experience be like if I were to randomly choose a train or subway line, hop on the train and alight at as many stations as time permits, walk and explore around the locale of each station and than hop back onto the same train line, continuing until the last stop. In other words, experiencing a train journey without any fixed plans or maps. Since I will mostly be within walking distance of each station that I alighted at, no maps will be necessary and I can simply explore and enjoy the sights and sounds without having to worry about losing my way. This was what I did when I last visited Hong Kong in January 2019. I chose the South Island MTR Line because this was a line that extended out into the sub-urban regions of Hong Kong, away from the...

Sense of normality......  And so the first week of July saw me complete my third leisure trip of the year. Now, three short leisure trips in a year, undertaken within the same region where I live, is really nothing to shout about. But considering the myriad travel restrictions imposed in the past two plus years because of a global pandemic, three trips within three months certainly do count for something. Yes, the optimist in me will now dare to softly whisper that for leisure travel, we are slowly returning to a sense of normality. A photo to capture the memory of my first visit to the city, Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia (2022) While there are still additional paperwork and administrative matters required before one can travel, these requirements have gradually been watered down by many national and regional authorities, such that they are now at acceptable levels, at least to me. Some inconveniences, but tolerable. I am glad to say that after my three short trips, I had now clocke...

    "Always make your next travel spot, Your best travel spot. " -  Anonymous Lazarus Island (Pulau Sakijang Pelepah), Singapore (2022)

After more than two and a half years, I finally went on my first overseas trip when I drove to Malaysia's Cameron Highlands as part of my road trip from Singapore to Malaysia in May 2022. Here in Cameron Highlands, nestled next to a golf course, is the Smokehouse Hotel and Restaurant. I have never stay in their hotel before but I love the ambience of their old-english style gardens which surround the hotel and restaurant. Smokehouse Hotel and Restaurant, Tanah Rata, Cameron Highlands, Pahang, Malaysia (2018) In my previous visits, I usually had tea in the restaurant to while away a lazy afternoon in the cool temperatures of the place, thanks to its high elevation at about 1,400 metres above sea level. Here, they serve great tea, most probably sourced locally from the many tea plantations in and around the area. Besides tea, I also love the delicious scones, old-english style, of course!  During my visit in May 2022, I visited the restaurant as usual for the tea and scones and also ...

I finally got to enjoy my first ever cruise experience. A short 4-days, 3-nights cruise from Singapore's Marina Cruise Centre to Penang's Georgetown in Malaysia onboard Royal Caribbean's Spectrum of the Seas. Deck 15 of Spectrum of the Seas, Royal Caribbean Cruise, Straits of Malacca (2022) Maybe it was my first time on a cruise and also my first time onboard Spectrum of the Seas but everything was new and exciting to me. I watched two performances on the first night of my cruise; "Showgirls" and "The Silk Road". For me, the performances were good and I enjoyed both shows. Over the next three nights, I also managed to catch two movie screenings on Deck 15 of the ship, where the pools were located. These movies were "Gorilla vs Kong" and "Cruella". Watching the movies in an open-air area reminded me of the times when I was a kid and had watched movies in those open-air drive-in cinemas which were no longer available in modern Singapore...

After more than two and a half years, I finally resumed leisure travel again in May 2022. My first time travelling overseas for leisure in almost 30 months seemed like a dream came true. While I did not travel far, only taking a road trip from Singapore to neighbouring Malaysia, it was still a joy to finally be able to travel again. While there are a number of "new" procedures that I had to follow as part of the so-called new normal post-pandemic, I was glad that I still managed to successfully followed all these procedures and proceeded with my recent travels without any hiccups. Yes, new procedures meant extra cost and also more pre-travel administrative tasks unlike pre-pandemic leisure travel. But I was nevertheless thankful that leisure travel has now been made possible in many countries and regions of the world. As I look forward to a few more overseas leisure trips this year, I hope that most of my readers have also began to travel again, or at least start to make plan...

Switzerland, Interlaken, Valley of the Mountains This article was originally published in this blog in December 2018. This article captured my experience on what was my first visit to Switzerland and Interlaken in 2009. In this re-post, I had added more photographs taken during my trip. Most of these newly-added photographs had not been previously published in this blog or anywhere else. Excerpt from this blog post: "Staying in a valley amongst the mountains, even for only a few days, encapsulated visions that I had from my childhood years, to be able to live in the mountains and enjoy the beauty of nature. Goats, sheep, farms, wild berries, long hikes and rivers that run through valleys. In just a short few days at Interlaken, I experienced and truly enjoyed all these natural wonders and more. A personal bucket list item fulfilled." ****************** Located in a valley in central Switzerland, Interlaken its well-known as a resort town...