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

Switzerland, Obwalden and Bern, Mount Titlis The original article was first published in this blog in May 2017.  Even though I cannot claim rot be well-travelled, I had seen and on the rare occasions, climbed some mountains. Trekking the Annapurna Circuit in Nepal's western region had brought forth a love for this mighty mountains that towered over us mere humans. I had also using just leg power, climbed South-East Asia's highest peak; Mount Kinabalu in Malaysia's Sabah state.  When I had the chance to visit and ascend to the peak (or near the peak) of Mount Titlis during a visit to Switzerland in 2009, it was like a dream came true. Another peak to add to my travel list. The fact that I took a cable car up this mountain and didn't climb up my way up Mount Titlis did not matter to me. A peak conquered is a peak conquered! Apart from Mount Titlis, the fairy-tale like village of Engelberg which serves as the gateway to ...

Woke up today to the news that my favourite travel destinations in Asia, Japan and Taiwan, will soon reopen to leisure visitors. As part of the re-openings, strict and cumbersome anti-COVID measures will be dropped or scaled back. It has been a long while since I last visited destinations in these regions of Asia. I love the food, culture, sights and sounds of Japan and Taiwan. Even though other regions of Asia, which are also on my favourite list, continue to remain shut to leisure visitors, I can at least explore more travel options for 2023. Sakura viewings in spring, Japan's hanabi  (fireworks) festivals in summer, hiking in the National Parks of Taiwan and spending a couple of nights in the magical town of Jiuefen. I can't wait to plan and book my trips! Ema (small wooden tablets used by worshippers to write down their prayers or wishes), Ueno, Tokyo, Japan (2017) The magical and lovely town of Jiufen, Ruifang District, New Taipei City, Taiwan (2016) Next and hopefully so...

In only my second visit to Siem Reap in May 2022, I had the chance to go around town sampling local food.  It was a delightful experience as I dined at small eateries and cafes alongside locals, ate what the locals ate and of course, saved a lot of money compared to if I were to dine out at expensive and touristy establishments. For me, part of the travel experience is to sample local food. Whenever the chance present itself, it is local food that I will choose, wherever in the world I visited.  Sampling local food is one of the joys of travelling, Siem Reap, Cambodia (2022) 

Travel parsimony......  After having all forms of leisure travel curtailed for the past thirty months or so, taking four overseas leisure trips was a luxury for me. And that luxury comes with a cost. Totalling up my travel spendings for these four trips, I realised that I had spent quite a lot of cash. Considering that all my travels this year were short regional trips, nothing fanciful, certainly not once-in-a-lifetime bucket list items, how did I end up spending so much? I bought nothing expensive, fanciful or branded during any of these trips. Truth is, compared to my previous trips, pre-2020, I had actually bought nothing on my trips this year. The question "what did I spent on?" repeatedly comes to mind again as I kept asking myself how did I spend so much for what were supposed to be low cost and low expense trips. Now, I don't have a habit of writing down everything I spent on because I am certainly no miser. Thus, the only brief records I had of my travel spending...

  "Stop taking photos with the phone, Start taking in the sights with the eyes. " -  Timothy Tan, author of this blog - tankstraveltales Wheel cart barrow, Swan Valley, Swan District, Western Australia, Australia (2018)

Japan, Gifu Prefecture, Okuhida The original article was first published in this blog in June 2020.  I am a firm believer that trekking, hiking or going about on foot are among the best ways to explore and experience a destination. Taking time out to explore a place on foot allows me to see more, feel more and enjoy more of a place than any other travel alternatives such as sight-seeing from a tour bus, car, tram, train or any other modes of transportation. Thus, whenever possible, I will always go on foot to explore a place that I am visiting. This article featured a personal bucket list travel item when I went hiking on trails around Okuhida during a stay at a wonderful local ryokan (traditional family-run Japanese inn) during a trip to Takayama.  ****************** Hiking on foot when we travel has many advantages. We get to see and experience stuff that would otherwise bypass us if we are in a vehicle or some other form of transport. Hiking trail, ...

Getting in the travel groove......  Travel wise, things are slowly but surely getting back in the groove. Having completed four trips this year compared to just one in 2020 and zero for 2021, I can say that my travel experiences are beginning to look "normal" again. Normal when compared to 2019 and earlier. I have two more trips planned for this year, both in the months of October. After which, I am taking a short break from travel for the rest of 2022. My travel budget has its limits! For next year, I have nothing concrete planned for now. But I should at the very least, be able to go on at least three trips. Hopefully, one of these will be to Japan in August to watch the famous fireworks festival in Nagaoka in Niigata Prefecture. Whether Japan will be opened to leisure travellers by this time next year remains to be seen. Despite talks about being in the forefront of opening up, together with the rest of the G7 nations, Japan's doors remain shut tightly to foreigners. I...