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

All Nippon Airways (ANA) currently has two A380-800s in service as of the date of this blog post. Deliveries of the new A380 Superjumbo began in March 2019. A total of three of this aircraft type will eventually be in the service of the Japanese airline. Each ANA A380-800 comes in a 4-class configuration featuring 8 seats in First Class, 56 seats in Business Class, 73 seats in Premium Economy and 383 seats in Economy; a total of 520 seats. The aircrafts currently only serve ANA's route from Tokyo to Honolulu, with flights departing from Narita Airport. I was overjoyed to see one of these A380-800 in its special Turtle Livery at Narita Airport on 9 June 2019 and again on 17 June 2019.  Airbus A380-800 with Turtle Livery at Narita Airport, Tokyo, Japan (2019) Airbus A380-800 with Turtle Livery at Narita Airport, Tokyo, Japan (2019) Airbus A380-800 with Turtle Livery at Narita Airport, Tokyo, Japan (2019) Airbus A380-800 with Turtle Livery 1/200 scale

"We travel not to escape life but for life not to escape us."  -  Anonymous Hiking trail, Okuhida, Takayama, Gifu Prefecture, Japan (2014)

While on transit at Los Angeles International Airport (IATA: LAX, ICAO: KLAX) during my recent trip to the United States, I have had the opportunity to walk around the Tom Bradley International Terminal as I waited for my connecting flight. The Tom Bradley International Terminal (also known as Terminal B) is where most arriving and departing international flights to and from the United States operate from. Terminal B was opened in September 2013 and is structured such that it is easy to locate the boarding gates even for passengers visiting for the first time. While the number of shops here are not as numerous as those found in some international airports in Asia of similar size and scale, the shops-mixed here do offer a wide-enough range and depth of merchandise to satisfy the shopping needs of most passengers. I was particularly impressed by the large LED display panels located throughout the terminal. There were at least 3 that I counted and these large electronic billboard

After a day trip to Loch Ness, our small tour bus turned into the vicinity of beautiful Perthshire. While most members of my travelling party were more keened on a late lunch after spending the better part of the day visiting Glencoe and Loch Ness, my attention was more focused on the beautiful countryside. Lunch had to wait. As the group settled down for a hearty lunch, I opted for a quick sandwich and soon ventured off with my cameras to capture the beautiful moments of the surrounding picturesque fields. Wide open fields with bales of hay being prepared for the coming of winter, Perthshire, Scotland, UK (2011) Wide open rolling hills in the countryside never fail to enthral me. Growing up and living in a compact city of bricks and mortar, I have always love the countryside, with its wide open fields, trees,  wild birds, farm animals and such. On the day that I was in Perthshire, there were no singing birds and grazing farm animals to be seen. Probably because a he

First Impressions My first view of the city was when the hotel bus rolled into the city over the scenic Biwako Ohashi Bridge over Lake Biwa. I had boarded the free shuttle provided by the Lake Biwa Marriott for hotel guests at Katata Station on the Kosei Line. With those first views, the initial apprehensions that I might had chosen the wrong location to stay in for the next 2 days of my trip vanished like footprints in the sand. The scenic  Biwako Ohashi Bridge as seen from the eastern side of Lake Biwa from Moriyama, Shiga Prefecture, Japan (2018) Moriyama is located in Shiga Prefecture, just north-east of the famous city of Kyoto. My accommodation at the Lake Biwa Marriott offered me a panoramic view of Lake Biwa. The several small parks in the vicinity of the hotel, which itself is located on the shores of Lake Biwa and relatively near to the Biwako Ohashi Bridge, provided good options for my evening strolls to enjoy the peace and tranquility of the area.   My

Travelling at your own pace....... Apart from business trips where are usually characterised by fixed timelines for flights and strict agendas to adhere to, I always love to take it slow and easy at my own pace whenever I travel on personal vacations. For this reason, I typically prefer not to travel with a large group on vacation. A smaller travelling party allows me to adjust the pace of the trip and to modify the itineraries as and when needed. Solo travelling of course means I have only to seek agreement with myself for any changes in travel plans. My vacation trips are usually loosely based on a simple itinerary which only outlines the flights I am taking and the cities I will be visiting. Apart from these, the daily itineraries for the whole travel period are not decided upfront. I usually decide where to go and the sights to explore on the day itself. This flexibility is especially useful when unexpected travel road blocks crop up such as inclement weather. When I w

After having my intended visit to Rottnest Island disrupted due to inclement weather, I suddenly found that I had an extra day on my itinerary during my visit to West Australia. As the weather was not very friendly on that said day which led to the cancellation of ferry services to Rottnest, it also meant that I had to find some place where I could still enjoy the day and yet be shielded from the elements. A quick check on the map from my location at Sorrento Quay revealed that there is a large shopping complex just north of where I was. I decided to hop into my rented vehicle and drove to this shopping complex located in Joondalup. Outdoor view of Lakeside Joondalup where I spent a whole day shopping, eating and relaxing during my trip, Joondalup, Western Australia, Australia (2018) Upon reaching Lakeside Joondalup, I had no trouble finding parking for the vehicle even though this was my first time there. I then proceeded to go on a shopping spree which resulted in me b