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

Japan, Shiga Prefecture, Otsu, Home of Historical Sites, Temples and Shrines This article was originally published in this blog in January 2020. It captured the memories of my first visit to Otsu, capital of Japan's Shiga Prefecture. My visit to Otsu was unplanned. I had arrived from Takashima, another area of Shiga Prefecture and was enroute to my hotel stay in Moriyama. What was supposed to be a transit stop in my trip became a memorable visit that made it into my travel Bucket List. I will always fondly remember my walking tour of the city, dining on the tasty Omi Beef which was absolutely oishii (delicious in Japanese), visiting the many temples and shrines I came across during my city walk and the beautiful views of Lake Biwa as seen from Otsu. ****************** It was my first time visiting Shiga Prefecture. I had arrived at Otsu from Takashima. It was spring and cherry blossoms (a.k.a.  sakura ) season and I was in Takashima specifically for the purpose of viewing cherry bl

January 2022 and I continue to stay all cooped up in my tiny apartment in my tiny city to avoid the pantomime that I will (without a doubt) experience when travelling overseas during a worldwide pandemic. Why? Because cross-border rules for travellers are changing faster that one can blink one's eyes. Even so, thanks to the wonders of modern technologies, I am certainly not cut-off from the rest of the world. My many overseas friends, continue to send me photographs of street scenes of daily lives in the cities they live in. Of course, I did likewise, sending them photographs of the street scenes of my city on the rare occasions that I ventured out of my humble abode. This is our unique way of "travelling" to different cities without actually physically travelling. Just a couple of days ago, a friend living in the Japanese city of Kawasaki sent me photographs of the heavy snow that his city is currently experiencing. Looking at the photographs of snow covered streets made

Running out of Greek Alphabets....... 2 years and counting and the world is still in the midst of a pandemic caused by the nasty COVID-19 and its variants. The latest twist in the story of this current pandemic is Omicorn. At the rate this is going, we may soon be running out of greek alphabets for all the various variants that may be coming our way... 😓 After 24 months, we seem to be still at Square One of our Snake-and-Ladders tussle with the dreaded virus. To be honest, nobody has a good answer to when this may all end or subside to a level when the world can resume its normality pre-year 2020. For me, I had obediently followed all public health guidelines including receiving my full 2-dose of mRNA vaccines as well as an mRNA booster jab (3 jabs in total), observing social distancing and working from home whenever possible, never leaving my home without a mask worn properly over my nose and mouth and limiting social events to the barest minimum. My passion for travel had not featur

"Experience Traditions, Explore Cultures, Expand Horizons, Travel the World... . "  -  Timothy Tan, author of this blog - tankstraveltales   The author sailing on Lake Ashi, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan (2018)

The Panama Canal is a man-made water way for maritime vessels to transit from the Atlantic to the Pacific Oceans. Spanning slightly more than 80km, the canal literally serves as the dividing line between North and South America. Half a world away from where I lived, these are pictures of a journey through the Panama Canal as seen through the lens of a mobile phone camera that were sent to me. Gatun Locks  is the gateway for ships to enter the Canal, Panama Canal, Panama (2021) Gatun Locks is the gateway for ships to enter the Canal, Panama Canal, Panama (2021) Gatun Locks is the gateway for ships to enter the Canal, Panama Canal, Panama (2021) Gatun Locks is the gateway for ships to enter the Canal, Panama Canal, Panama (2021) Puente Centenario is one of the 3 major bridges spanning across the canal and is the one closest to the Pacific Ocean, Panama Canal, Panama (2021) Boat along the waterway, Panama Canal, Panama (2021)

I skipped my annual Bucket List review for 2020 last year because an international leisure travel lockdown means there were no bucket list travel achievements to review. Even though 2021 had been another no-go year for leisure travel, I decided to write about my travel plans and hopes for the coming new year in 2022. My last trip before the pandemic-triggered leisure travel lockdown was to Kuala Lumpur in January 2020. Since then, I had not travel out of my home city for the past 23 months and counting. With the doors to leisure travel being opened slowly but cautiously by the Authorities in my part of Asia, I decided to book a trip for March 2022. This will be my first overseas trip in 25 months, if no hiccups crop up to scuttle it. But this is no leisure trip. Instead, this trip to Kuala Lumpur is to reconnect with family and friends since we last met in the first month of 2020. Can this trip be considered a Bucket Travel List item? I would say "no" in normal times but &quo

Christmas is almost upon us again. This is usually the time of the year when life slowed down and working folks like myself take a well-deserve break to unwind, gather with family and friends to celebrate the end of another year and also to take some time to review the happenings of the year and plan ahead for the new year. In "normal" times, I would typically had already planned a trip to enjoy winter and the Chirstmas-ty festivities in North America or Europe. But this year, just like the year before, is not "normal" times. So no leisure travel for me. Instead of visiting Christmas markets in winter, I have to contend myself with celebrating a tropical Christmas at home right here in South-East Asia. For the past 2 years, I had saved much on travel and those savings had been wisely, poured into long-term investments. But given a choice, I would rather spend some money on travel now instead of trying to save more for that proverbial rainy day. I am no spendthrift b