For just a moment today I thought I was in heaven. Many years ago I traded my first patch with a member of the Pakistani Special Forces along with a few from the pilots we flew with during the Hunanitarian relief for the flooding in 2010. Those were the first of many I've collected over the last decade. The cool thing about patches are their portability, ease of storage, and their usability! It's not always easy to find what you're looking for and we certainly got lucky with this place. When we asked the lady at the front desk where we should go, she randomly suggested "Tiger Patch" which was a name that certainly piqued my interest. After visiting the mall, we grabbed a taxi to a slightly sketchy alley where most of the store fronts were closed (the driver didn't know where this was and even after showing him on Google maps he had to consult a fellow cab driver to figure it out). I can't begin to imagine how much thread and how many needles they go through on a daily basis! Needless to say, the hour we spent digging through endless piles of gold wasn't nearly enough time! Unfortunately I'm guessing this will be my one and only opportunity to visit this place. It will forever hold a piece of my heart. ❤️
The first thing I noticed after landing in Japan was the cars. This is also the very first country I've ever been to where they drive on the opposite side of the road and it's throwing me off! We passed an accident at one of the intersections on base as well so apparently I'm not the only one! Also, the BATS! 😳 I did not expect to see those... they're everywhere! And I'd guess their wing spans are around 3-4 feet. (I'm probably exaggerating... maybe closer to 3'?) 🤔 Either way, they're huge! I was told the snails and rats are enormous as well.
The Rockwell B-1 Lancer is a supersonic variable-sweep wing, heavy bomber used by the United States Air Force. It is commonly called the "Bone" (from "B-One"). It is one of three strategic bombers in the U.S. Air Force fleet as of 2018, the other two being the B-2 Spirit "Stealth Bomber", and the B-52 Stratofortress. I don't remember ever seeing one of these in person so it was a pretty cool sight. There's a Transair 737 turning to final in the frame as well!
