Time for another one of those World Tour type things, you know the drill by now, jump on a plane fly a lot, see some people, do some Hapkido, rinse and repeat. Ok there is a little more to it than that, but you get the general idea. So some up front statistics for this years global lap: 90 Days Long with 24 Flights on 9 different Airlines (Qantas/Finnair/Iberia/Iceland/Scandinavian/American/United/Delta/Aeromexico) through 8 Countries (Thailand/Spain/Netherlands/Finland/Norway/Iceland/USA/Mexico) using 6 Currencies (Baht/Euro/Peso/Dollar/Krona/Krone) and taking 3 Bags (Backpack + 2 large bags).
My first flight is with Qantas but on a Finnair plane that is being leased to them. Finnair has extra capacity and Qantas needs a few more jets, so it rents them, the pilots are Finnair, but the in-flight entertainment, food and other items are all Qantas, the frequent flyer points are earned at full Qantas rate as this flight is counted as a pure Qantas one regardless of the interesting situation. Just to make it even more international the crew on this flight are all Thai (Finnair Crew, cheaper hiring out of Thailand).
Flight #1 Finnair A330-300 Sydney – Bangkok
Flight Time 9 hours 30 minutes – Total Time 9 hours 30 minutes
The flight is relatively smooth with only a few bumps, the crew are excellent from the normal service, through to walking through to offering drinks and snacks during the flight. An enjoyable trip to Bangkok, no real lines at immigration and again I am through in almost record time, lets hope this sets a trend for the world tour. When you travel a lot to the same places it is good to experience new things and look around, but at the same time there are also those return to comfort places. Breakfast story on Sukhumvit Soi 11 is one of those, good coffee and good food.
Appropriate coffee art for the road warrior
This was some of the tastiest bacon I have ever had
I always try to put a couple of days downtime at the beginning of the world tour to make sure I have switched from being at the HQ Dojang to being in travel mode. During that time in Bangkok, I do work on Video Signatures for testing or completing Instructor levels, and respond to numerous regular queries, however I also try to have a nice meal, of course how can you go past the foot massages, and a regular visit to my dentist. Bangkok is hot averaging 37c (99f) but it is dry heat so bearable, a good stop getting ready for the cooler Euro weathers.
Still the best way to get around Bangkok’s Traffic
Where else would you buy your next Rolls from but in a shopping mall – Siam Paragon
One floor of my Dentist, I know we all enjoy getting a filling.
The Qatar check in desk was very quiet due to current air space closures
My flight like most European ones, skirting to the north of Iran
Also skipping below Ukraine and Russia
Welcome to the frozen north, Moi Finland
So why am I flying from Bangkok to Finland then connecting back down through Europe to Spain. Dollars is the easiest answer. Finnair offers some great prices on their tickets, adding into the mix as a One World Frequent Flyer I get bonuses, the extra travel time far outweighs the huge cost differences to go more direct. My flights are smooth, the Finnair and Iberia crews are good, and I arrive in Madrid some 23 hours after waking in Bangkok, time for a good night’s sleep. I have a day in Madrid to change into the Euro time zone, update the trip report and enjoy a nice meal before my next short flight in Seville and some mat time with Team Espana.
Flight #2 Finnair A350-900 Bangkok – Helsinki
Flight Time 12 hours 30 minutes – Total WT Time 22 Hours
Flight #3 Iberia A321 Helsinki – Madrid
Flight Time 4 hours – Total WT Time 26 Hours
Due to rising economics, the fine dining this trip will be aimed at either lower-level Michelin stars or those without stars but still on the guide. I have gotten creative with a couple of bookings where a higher end restaurant features a far more affordable lunch or bar seating menu. So, for those wanting some food pictures, never fear your intrepid road warrior diner is still on the job. The stop in Madrid allowed me to catch up on the local time zone and get ready for a Hapkido week in Seville.
Flight #4 Iberia A321neo Madrid – Seville
Flight Time 1 hour – Total WT Time 27 Hours
The flight is a quick hour, and everything is going smoothly until its luggage time. Normally Seville is on the slower side of luggage delivery but today it was a special moment when a very minor bag jam stopped everything for almost 20 minutes. So some 45 minutes of waiting for bags later I got mine and head out.
Airport Chaos – Yeah/Nah
I get picked up by some of the Black Belt team at the airport and head into Seville to my Airbnb. I am staying at a mix of places this tour, a few more Airbnb’s due to Hotels growing in cost, on my Airbnb list is Seville, Iceland, Lapland and Guadalajara. This one is not far from the ITS Hotel area and in a good location to get to food and amenities.
Airbnb Studio style, the bed folds out of the wall.
The nice entryway to the Airbnb apartment
After dropping my bags at the apartment, it was time to head to the Dojang for the first session of the Hell Week and as normal the seminar classes would be held between the 2 major Dojangs, KJN Jose’s and BSBN Eloy’s. On the first night there was both a seminar class followed by senior testing with 4 candidates for 2nd degree and BSBN Eloy testing for 4th Degree.
First night group
Tasty Steak
KJN Jose had a bunch of posters from the previous world tours, and these were to be autographed and given to the students who worked the hardest over the hell week. The week continued with a focus on junior requirements for the coloured belts and Black Belt weaponry as the seniors focus.
Poster competition
Keep on fighting
Churros, not the best I have had but a popular venue
Hell Week survivors
The weeks mat time culminated with the Spirit test, 4 candidates on the mats working for their IHA first degree. Congratulations to team Spain on the addition of 4 new black belts.
Congratulations to the new 1st Degree’s
After the test it was time to head to dinner to both celebrate the new Black Belts and then announce the results of the senior testing held earlier in the week. Another good moment for Team Espana with the addition of 4 new 2nd Degree Black Belts and one new SBN, Sir Eloy 4th Degree.
Congratulations seniors
A standard local Breakfast (Bread + Tomato, or + Pate, or +Olive Oil)
The local team had a surprise for the next day and we ended up at a local Go Kart facility for some hot laps, it was a fun time even if the power to weight didn’t favour some seniors…..
Go Karting Hapkido style
Thought I better add a tourist type picture of Seville.
Monday was a free day, so I headed off to do some laundry, finding the ITS one the best located to my apartment, completing a bunch more video signatures and finally updating the trip report. Tonight, I will chat with the new Black Belts before getting back on the road tomorrow on my way to The Netherlands. It was looking like I might hit some colder weather when I travel back into the North of Europe, most definitely in Iceland and Lapland so off to a local store to get at least a Beanie to help, well I might also look for a scarf, this road warrior tries to travel light.
Team Spain helping me get pimped out for the Cold
Time to wrap up Spain and get on the road for The Netherlands, so back to my old friend the airport, where even with my many flights something new must happen. Today I am flying with Iberia into Madrid and then connecting to Amsterdam. It was the first time they had started boarding before the people on the arriving plane had departed, we all ended up queued along one wall of the jet bridge, while the other passengers got off.
2-way boarding traffic
Colourful Jet Bridges are a thing in Seville
Surprisingly good Beef Cheeks in the Iberia Lounge
It wasn’t enough to be boarding group 1 now there is a 0.
Time to get the smaller jet for the next hop
Flight #5 Iberia A321neo Seville – Madrid
Flight Time 1 hour – Total WT Time 28 Hours
Flight #6 Air Nostrum CRJ1000 Madrid – Amsterdam
Flight Time 2 hours – Total WT Time 30 Hours
An easy flight into Amsterdam where I am picked up by SBN Marcel for the smooth drive back into Eindhoven. Plans would see me getting into the hotel around 9pm and I had a Podcast interview on the schedule for 10pm, so there were no problems there. My phone pinged to let me know that the podcast was starting, apparently there was a time issue or change at some point, so it was a hurry to run into the hotel, get access to the Wi-Fi and dial in. The podcast was an interview with myself and GM Dorsey about DJN’s passing and it went very well, scheduled for an hour it went 90 minutes. The podcast team were impressed enough to invite me back for a solo interview which will happen in April when I am in North Carolina. The hotel also decided to upgrade my room to a studio, the room was huge but the beds were still singles, a normal thing in most of Europe. My room was a little strange through as it had a smaller attached room with nothing in it. Still I would rather the space to spread out than not.
Studio Room in Eindhoven
The place to be for coffee in Eindhoven
IHA Best Kids Group
In between seminars there are always some signature videos to be done
A local scenic shot taken in Best, The Netherlands
The week was going to be a busy one with Hell week sessions in the morning and afternoon each day. With testing planning in the evenings which include a senior belt test, a coloured belt grading and a Spirit test before the weekend’s seminars. First one to test was CGN Ron aiming at 2nd Degree, who would then find out his results during the weekend seminar. During the week SBN Marcel added a colour belt grading and on Friday night a Spirit test for Ma’am Evelijn.
Congratulations CGN and welcome to the Black Belt family!
Each day SBN had a preplanned lunch and dinner location planned and the restaurants all turned out to be quite good. The weekend was here and time for the seminars, we had some parents join the first days, so I kept the focus on easy-to-use techniques covering Angry White Belt, Finger locks, Clinch Defence and some Hook Punch counters. Master Henrie also joined the fun with a couple of his students; it was good to catch up with him on his latest plans. At the end of the day, it was time to award CGN Luka (who tested at the ITS) his Official IHA Certificate and Belt.
Seminar Group
Sometimes translations can hit hard
As the final seminar day was just IHA family I changed things up to focus more on the local student’s progression and worked on the clip boards hard for signatures. SBN Marcel has a coloured clip board system (White – Coloured Belts, Black – Black Belts and Blue – Instructors Course). Each of them was in use so it was good to see the number of different signatures being worked on. Both Master Henrie and SBN Marcel got a chance over the weekend to work on some senior material with 3D locks and then on Sunday more work on the Military material. I wrapped up the visit with the successful promotion of Sir Ron to 2nd Degree as well as Senior Instructor.
KSN Ron, 2nd Degree and Senior Instructor
A nice dinner at a local Italian restaurant with some of the seniors to complete this excellent visit with the Dutch Team. SBN picked me up early in the morning for the drive to the airport for my Oslo flight and some traffic issues meant I had to get creative and change my flights so instead of the direct option I was now flying later in the day via Copenhagen, it means I am still able to join the Vikings today and the weeks schedule will stay on track. The extra time at the airport gave me the chance to update the trip report.
Flight #7 SAS A320 Amsterdam – Copenhagen
Flight Time 1 hour 3 minutes – Total WT Time 31.5 Hours
Flight #8 SAS A320 Copenhagen – Oslo
Flight Time 1 hour – Total WT Time 32.5 Hours
It is always good to see your bags loading
The flight into Copenhagen was slightly late and the transfer was just over 30 minutes now, the walk was going to be 13 minutes to the new gate, so I was moving and basically walked over and straight onto the plane as boarding had already begun. It is always at this moment that I wonder if your bags are at the same speed, I checked my tracker app and they seemed to have moved, but moments later I could see both bags being loaded from my window, that is always a good moment. SBN Erik picked me up when I arrived and we headed into town to my hotel. It was noticeably cooler in Norway compared to the Netherlands, that beanie from Spain will come into good use.
The room here is slightly smaller than my last one
The hotel is a nice one, located very centrally near the main train station, comfortable bed/pillow if the room is just on the smaller side. First up this visit was a class with the local students where I got to help fix small errors, and to wrap up the night I was able to present CGN Nicolai with his official IHA Certificate and Belt, KJN Carlos had the honour to tie it on. A good start to my visit.
Congratulations CGN Nicolai and Team Viking
The next day I was on the mats for some senior training, and it was good to see the local leaders getting signatures and moving forward. SBN Erik wrapped up his signatures to earn his Senior Instructor promotion, but we haven’t finished as he is only 2 signatures away from Chief, so I know those techniques will get a workout this week. I was feeling like a good meal, so I tried a last-minute booking at one of the nicer restaurants in town, I was lucky enough to sneak in for a very good dinner.
One of the four Amuses
Some Tasty Reindeer
Over the week I helped during the normal nightly Hapkido classes and then working with the senior team during the day. SBN Erik completed his instructor signatures, and I was very pleased to recognise his promotion to Chief Instructor. Next up is SBN Terje who is also working steadily thought his signatures, hopefully looking to wrap things up later in the year at the ETS.
Chief Instructor SBN Erik
Seminar Group
The weekend seminars went well, and I covered a bunch of different topics including: Penkido, Belt, Dan Bong, Lock Flows, Locking variations and more. It was a smaller group, but everyone worked hard and the weekend was a fun one. There is a good buzz on the mats as they work towards hosting the ETS in September. A must visit for IHA Europe. Monday morning, I get a lift to the airport from CGN Nicolai who is one of the Airport Security supervisors and after a good chat over lunch grab my next flight with both a new airline (Iceland Air) and to a new country (Iceland). It just started to snow as we arrived at the airport, so I am expecting some cold weather ahead in Iceland, duh you say it’s in the name. Iceland will be country number 67 that I have visited. I am here for a few days over the Easter break to be a tourist before returning to Europe and Finland towards the frozen north of Lapland.
Side Note: A couple of extra travel thoughts why do almost every airport has flooring that isn’t bag friendly, I will include a picture of some ripple strips from Oslo that are simply enemies to any rolling bag and they are everywhere. However, it isn’t just Oslo, it seems most airports have flooring that is not bag friendly, it is like hotels with carpet that are not roller bag friendly. Oh, a cool addition I noticed only in the SAS airlines app, it shows what percentage of the plane is loaded as your board, good to knowing when to move and grab that empty seat….
Bag grabbing ripple strips at Oslo airport
Flight #9 Icelandair A321neo Oslo – Reykjavik
Flight Time 3 hours – Total WT Time 35.5 Hours
It is well known that Norway is possibly the most expensive place to visit in Europe, but after my research I would say that only applies to mainland Europe, and Iceland takes the crown for prices. The one-way airport taxi trip to the city is $120Usd plus, onto the bus I go. A smooth flight and the Icelandic team did a great job on the flight, I even noticed one of the flight attendants wiping down areas around the entrance door to keep the plane clean, that was a first. The airport bus was about a 45minute ride to the main temple where they had smaller buses to take people to their final closer destinations, my dropoff was about a block from the airbnb.
Iceland lives up to its name (Country #67)
Airbnb Iceland
The apparently famous rainbow street in Reykjavik
Of course, it’s cold here in Iceland, the actual temperature hasn’t been too bad hovering in the low single digits, but the added water and wind in the air have made it bitter at times. I make sure to put my recently acquired beanie and scarf to the test along with my Hapkido jacket. Overall, it’s bearable if you aren’t holding your phone out in the wind waiting for a Geyser to randomly erupt. The plans for the visit are mainly to see the Northern lights, but along with those I had a couple of tours and a few restaurants booked. The first day is free so I wander around the city a bit, wandering can be limited with the snow falling at random times, and yes, it looks so nice, but hey folks its still cold and wet. Enough of that and you get to be cold and miserable, so some walking in between snowfalls. The city seems nice, people seem friendly, and there are a lot of tourists from all over. Everything is cashless and the general advice is you don’t need any, by day 3 I hadn’t needed any and don’t expect to before I leave.
Lamb – Almost $100Aud a kilo
Now take a moment to appreciate how expensive this place is. They are a major producer of Lamb with jokes that the Sheep out number the people, and its almost $100 a kilo, rather average coffee’s are all $9-10, meals in a café will cost $70+ and dinners at a semi nice place are $150+ the Michelin places (there are some 1 stars here) are all $500-$800 for dinner, so I gave all those a miss. Over the first couple of days, I did the Gold Circle Tour, enjoyed a visit to one of the hot lagoons and sampled some Icelandic fare. I did have a Northern light tour booked for night #1, cancelled due to weather, moved to night #2, cancelled, and now I type this waiting for night #3 where it is now apparently going ahead even though it has not stopped snowing all day. Thumbs crossed, still enjoy a range of pictures so far and hopefully by the time I leave Iceland I can add some more “light” to the report.
Postcards on the way (Had to have the Chuck one)
Hallgrimskirkja Church
My Airbnb is right near the water, and this is the harbour view
Smoked Puffin
Horse Tartare
Thingvellir National Park (where the tectonic plates meet)
Strokkur Geyser
Random wrestling stature near the Geysir Geothermal area
Gullfoss Falls (Wind Chill off the charts here)
Sky Lagoon (No inside pictures, phone went into a locker)
VIP (The return coach from the Lagoon all to myself, the driver even did a door to door for me)
Well, the final night delivered and I got to see some lights, a couple of pictures below. I enjoyed Iceland and would recommend it if you are in the neighbourhood but save up as its pricy and I was here in the cheaper season (apparently). Of course, having the Northern lights tour moved to the last night compounded an already early departure. I got back to the Airbnb at 2:30am and had to meet my airport ride at 4am, argh. The combination just doesn’t work, still a sleepless night was worth the view.
Northern Lights #1
Northern Lights #2
Time to leave Iceland and head to somewhere even colder if that’s possible, today I am flying into Helsinki and connecting to Rovaniemi or Lapland as most call the area. I am there a few days to possibly catch some more light, and to also teach a class for our Dojang under the leadership of CGN Petri. I will get to enjoy a few of the local experiences as well before heading south in Finland for the Helsinki Hell Week.
Flight #10 Jettime (for Finnair) 737-800 Reykjavik – Helsinki
Flight Time 3 hours 30 mins – Total WT Time 39 Hours
Flight #11 Finnair A321 Helsinki – Rovaniemi
Flight Time 1 hour – Total WT Time 40 Hours
Side Note: Iran chaos. I mentioned at the beginning of the report how the flights were skirting the airspace on the way to Europe, but what has happened since. The general effects on the ground here are mainly fuel related, the same as everyone everywhere it seems. Pricing in Norway was nudging 3eu a litre or $5Aud a litre or $12Usd a gallon. The effect of fuel issues was also affecting flights with over 1000 being canceled in Europe over April, many airlines are reducing flights (mainly regional) to keep fuel stocks for longer more lucrative flights. So far, all my flights are locked in, but we will see if anything happens to the regional ones.
The bus ride was 4am and I was at the airport just after 5am to find out the Finnair flight bag check didn’t open until 6am, argh, that hour could have been some sleep. Bags checked in and back on track for the flights, boarding goes smoothly, but something is holding us up. It seems that one of the ground staff didn’t know the correct paperwork to give the captain (about flight loads or something) and until the captain had the paperwork we weren’t flying. That took an hour and basically made my 1 hr. connection in Helsinki Null and Void. The rest of the flight was smooth and as we were landing, an announcement was made that certain connecting flights were being held for us. Finnair decided to hold 6 flights for connecting passengers and mine was one of those, I hoofed it over and boarded straight away. Of course, doubts now creep in on my bags, and the trackers showed they didn’t get to the plane. I landed in Rovaniemi and got an email from Finnair that basically says we have your luggage and it didn’t make the flight. Some wrangling later it looks like they might be delivered tomorrow. CGN Petri picked me up and we took the almost 2hr drive to my Airbnb before dinner. I am staying in a cabin/cottage in the woods during my stay.
Airbnb Kemijarvi
CGN Petri tries Reindeer Pizza
I have the classic Reindeer and mashed potato
Sir Petri lets me know that there might be some Northen lights tonight so I should head outside after 11pm (when its dark) and take a look. He also makes sure I have some cold weather gear on hand if needed (boots/jacket/gloves/pants). Even though sleep calls, I stay awake to check if my bags make the 11:30pm flight and then to possibly see some lights. I enjoyed the Icelandic lights, but the Finnish ones are next level, incredible lights just on my doorstep. Enjoy just a few of the pictures I took.
Finnish Northern Lights #1
Finnish Northern Lights #2
Finnish Northern Lights #3
Finnish Northern Lights #4
Finnish Northern Lights #6
Finnish Northern Lights #7
That truly made sure it was ticked off my bucket list. Later I was able to get much-needed sleep and in the morning, I was met by Sir Petri and Jutta (one of his students). They presented me with a gift of some handmade local winter items, very nice, they included my name in Hangul woven into the design.
Pelkosenniemi Hapkido gifts
Now properly winter proof it was time to take a drive to a local walking track and climb one of the small hills to visit a Hut specific to Northern light viewing, it was an interesting walk, enjoying the snow and somewhat slippery challenge of staying upright. After the trek it was time for lunch and the good news was that my bags had been dropped off at the Airbnb.
A view from the top
Bags back in hand
That night I got to have a very nice dinner with Sir Petri at one of the nicer restaurants in the area, featuring a lot of the local produce as highlights on the tasting menu. A standout dish for me was the Beetroot and Berry soup, very tasty, it could almost be either a savoury or desert type dish. One thing that was different with the restaurant is that everyone had to take off their shoes and wear a set of felt slippers, probably due to the snow and water that gets tracked in.
Snacks to kick off the dinner
The next day it was time to enjoy some of the local pastimes as well as a Hapkido class. First up was a visit to a Reindeer farm to feed some of the free-range herd, some were friendlier than others. A couple had escaped the butcher’s blade as the owner kept them as they were friendly, almost like a herd of Reindeer pets. After feeding some reindeer we moved onto the frozen river to drill some holes and attempt some ice fishing, one of the local experts pulled up 7 fish, GMG 2 and CGN Petri 1, so everyone caught something at least. A fire was set up on the ice for some Camp Coffee and snacks to enjoy some down time.
Team Rudolph
Ice Fishing
Camp Coffee
As much as this visit was primarily a break over Easter there was some Hapkido to be had, and I got to visit the sport hall where CGN Petri runs his classes, a mini seminar of Bag Fu for the local students who all seemed to enjoy the session. Afterwards it was off to one of sir’s students’ house for a home cooked meal. On the menu was Morel Soup, Moose Stew, and Blueberry pie with most of the ingredients being hunted or gathered from around the area. A very tasty meal and some good company for the evening.
Bag Fu with the local IHA family
Time for some Moose
In the morning another home cooked breakfast and some local experiences, first up time to chainsaw a tree near the house, then a ride in a trailer attached to a snow mobile, some cranberry picking, and I got a chance to almost kill us all driving the snow mobile, 1000cc and a beast of a machine, but not much snow and thin trails. Trip survived it was off to a ski lift to check out the view and wrap up my visit with the local group in this part of Lapland. CGN Petri and his students have been excellent hosts and made sure I had a great time and enjoyed a whole host of local experiences. Tomorrow I am back on the road for the short flight into Helsinki and the next hell week.
Riding the Snow Beast
Ski lift time, queue James Bond music
The view from the ski hill, hello Russia
On the drive to the airport we did stop in briefly at Santa Claus’s village which is a large tourist attraction, not so much to enjoy all its offerings but to check out the Marttiini shop (A very high-end Finnish knife maker).
Knives R Us
Crossed the Arctic Circle apparently
Rovaniemi airport is very small with only 4 gates, so I was surprised by a couple of things, firstly an ATM machine that offered Thai Baht, and then it has a Passport/Immigration control section. I wonder how often it gets used if ever, the board today showed 3 departing flights when I checked in.
Thai Baht anyone?
Immigration to Lapland
Flight #12 Finnair A321 Rovaniemi – Helsinki
Flight Time 1 hour – Total WT Time 41 Hours
An easy one hour flight into Helsinki, I grabbed my bags and met up with Emil (one of the Spirit Test candidates) for the drive into town. The last couple of visits to Helsinki I have been using Airbnb’s as they have been cheaper, but this time around I found an amazing price for one of the nicer hotels which was actually cheaper than the Airbnb options, it pays to check out a few different search engines while looking for travel related bookings.
The next morning it was straight onto the mats for day #1 of Hell Week and there was a good group, with quite a few grading for Black Belt levels. This trip we had 2 for the Spirit test, 4 for 2nd Degree, 3 for 3rd Degree and SBN Pertsa aiming for 5th Degree and KJN. Definitely a good way to have some positive hell week mat energy. I did ask for a local restaurant recommendation and a few settled on Muru so I made a reservation to enjoy a nice meal there.
Hell Week group
Muru Restaurant #1
Muru Restaurant #2
Helsinki at Night
Floating Knife Defence
The first 3 days of the training were at Sisu gym in Jarvenpaa and the final 2 at Master Tapio’s dojang HMAC near to Helsinki. We had some guests join us during the week with CGN David from Minnesota doing the week, and on the weekend the Vikings arrived with SBN Erik, SBN Terje and CGN Nicolai. It was a very positive and hard-working group.
Sisu Hell Week Group
25 years already?
As the photo shows this visit marks the 25th year of Finland being a IHA member, an incredible achievement. With the weekend events at HMAC there was also testing happening and first up was the senior test, followed by the Spirit test in the afternoon. I am very pleased to welcome 2 new Black Belts into the family, CGN Emil and CGN Lotta.
Senior Testing Group
Spirit Test
Seniors on deck
KSN Ville and his IHA pimped out ride.
That night we had a nice family meal at the local Burger/Steak place to celebrate our 2 new Black Belts and catch up with the visiting Internationals, lots of talk about the ETS in Norway and quite a few more Finns looking to make the short trip across to join the fun. The next morning was the final training day, and the seniors would also find out their results. I spent the morning working on some Kwan Nyom Science and the afternoon double strikes as well as some handshake defence. It was then time to award the senior promotions, congratulations KJN Pertti Varjola (5th Degree), BSBN’s Arsi, Marko & Satu (3rd Degree) and new KSN’s Sami, Lars, Petri S and Petri K (2nd Degree). With the promotion there followed some instructor promotions: BSBN’s Arsi, Marko & Satu – Chief Instructor and KSN Petri K – Senior Instructor.
Hell Week Group – HMAC
Senior promotions
After the promotions I had a chance to talk about one of our recently passed Black Belts, Ma’am Eija who was one of the few original Black Belts from 2001 still active, sadly she lost her battle with Cancer last year and was unable to be with us at this milestone. Many did not know that she had worked hard throughout her health challenges to still complete the requirements for 2nd to 3rd Degree, she was unable to test at the ITS due to Dr’s orders. I made the choice to honour her efforts, hard work and dedication with a posthumous promotion to 3rd Degree which also completed her qualification as a Chief Instructor within the IHA. It was an incredibly emotional moment for both me and many of the local Finnish team.
Master Tapio and SBN Hans with BSBN Eija’s certificates
A nice dinner that evening with Master Adrian and BSBN Mira at the newly opened Gaucho restaurant (Brazilian churrasco style) to wrap up this visit with Team IHA Finland before my flight out the next day to the USA. This wraps up the European leg of the 2026 World Tour.
Flight #12 Finnair A330-300 Helsinki – New York
Flight Time 9 hours – Total WT Time 50 Hours
SSSS does not mean special.
The recently promoted CGN Emil dropped me off at the airport and I checked in for my flight to New York, I noticed that I had been “randomly” tagged for extra security, the SSSS on your boarding pass is the giveaway. I found it strange as I had only recently undergone a 12-month process to get a KTN (Known Traveler Number) for the USA which should allow me to enter effectively as an American. It was a trace residue check on my bag, laptop and shoes, all clear and onto the flight. A smooth trip into New York and I was now looking forward to testing out my new entry process, it started well and with Finnair and on arrival the global entry scanner had no queue, straight through to the officer, but wait, you need to get your documents checked, sigh, that line was short and I was still through faster than the normal large line. Hopefully this was either an aberration or just a first time I was using it check. More updates as I hopefully get through my USA travels with my shiny new TSA precheck in place.
Easy to guess where I am now
I met my booked transfer and headed into the city towards my hotel. I was planning to be a tourist, so no day-by-day description, just a list of stuff I was able to do/go/see and some miscellaneous photos. So, what did I do? Haircut (at an old school Barber shop), Lunch @ Le Bernadin (3* Michelin, lunch 1/3rd the cost of dinner, good), a movie in Times Square, Times Square, a visit to the Intrepid (aircraft carrier, also has the space shuttle Enterprise and a Concorde), walked through Hell’s Kitchen, tried a hot Pastrami/Roast Beef Sandwich, Central Park, the 9/11 memorial, One world trade centre (tallest US building), had a Slice at Joes Pizza, Chinatown, and Dinner @ Eleven Madison Park (3* Michelin, bar menu half the cost of dinner and Amazing!), oh also got some laundry done (cheaper than Finland).
So overall thoughts on New York, its manic, people are moving fast and have less patience, the horns are beeped aggressively not politely, you can find ok coffee if you look, there is a huge amount of things to see and do here, and its expensive, maybe not Norway/Iceland level but still its pricey. Still well worth a visit at some time in your life, now some pictures before we resume our normally programmed services.
Le Bernadin – Salmon
Le Bernadin – Desert
Times Square
USS Intrepid
Exhibit in the Intrepid
Space Shuttle Enterprise
Intrepid Bridge (or the Island as it’s called)
Concorde – British Airways (It is the fastest commercial aircraft to cross the Atlantic, holding a record time of 2 hours, 52 minutes, and 59 seconds.)
Pastrami and Roast Beef Sandwich
Where else do you eat in Hell’s Kitchen?
Central Park #1
Central Park #2
Central Park #3 (Friends anyone)
Central Park #4 (John Lennon Memorial)
Coffee Menu and Prices (some interesting choices)
Oculus at the World Trade Centre
Oculus – Inside
South Tower Pool (Memorial to 9/11)
One World Trade Centre
View from One World Trade Centre #1 (Squint and the Statue of Liberty is there)
View from One World Trade Centre #2 (Uptown)
View from One World Trade Centre #3 (Bridges)
Pizza slice @ Joes
Chinatown
Eleven Madison Park #1
Eleven Madison Park #2 – Honey Lavender Duck
Eleven Madison Park #3 – Kitchen
Time to get back onto the Hapkido part of the World Tour and ifs off to La Guardia airport for 2 flights today as I head south toward the Korean Martial Arts Festival (KMAF), I am one of the Keynote seminar presenters this weekend. Check in was smooth and I was looking forward to testing out my shiny new TSA precheck. The idea was great, but the line had to have several hundred people in it, almost seemed the precheck line was longer than the normal one, still it flowed smoothly and I was only queued for around 45minutes.
Flight #13 American Airlines Embraer 1785 New York – Washington
Flight Time 1.5 hours – Total WT Time 51.5 Hours
Flight #14 American Airlines CRJ900 Washington – Pensacola
Flight Time 2.5 hours – Total WT Time 54 Hours
2 quick flights later I am on the ground in Pensacola and picked up by Barbara (Master Gordon’s wife) for the ride to the Dojang and night #1 of the KMAF. It was more a catch-up night with some of the other seniors, with the bulk of the training tomorrow. BSB Stephanie and KSN Ben had made the 8hr drive from North Carolina for the event and to help keep me in line.
KMAF Hotel, very nice
I was kicking off the day with the first session, where I worked on Haymaker defence. The group enjoyed the techniques and possibly my ‘Aussie’ approach to teaching, a good start to the day. Each hour a senior took a session and over lunch some of the Master’s took turns as well. I enjoyed the chance to spend some time with the other seniors, GM Timmerman, GM McMurry, GM MacKenzie and Dr Kimm.
My Seminar Group
KMAF Instructing line up
That evening was a Phantom of the Opera themed evening and each of us Key Notes were honoured with a letter of recognition from the US Congress. There was also a small Hall of Fame induction ceremony for 4 instructors and the promotion of one of the local TKD Instructors to 8th Degree Black Belt. A nice relaxing evening and a good way to wrap up a filled day.
KMAF Celebration Dinner
US Congress Recognition
Sunday morning wrapped up the KMAF with a couple more Masters taking sessions before finishing just before lunch. I got the chance to spend some time in the afternoon with Master Gordon, the host, catching up before a good steak dinner.
Gordons Martial Arts Academy
Some interesting Drinks
Hopefully!
Monday was a free day, but I still had a chance to grab breakfast with Master Ellis before he headed out, and then some time to get the trip report up to date, complete some signatures, and get ready for my next 2 flights this time into Yorktown, Virginia for the Hell Week with SBN Brian and his team. I was expecting an early morning ride to the airport, but a ping from my travel apps let me know my flight had been delayed, several notifications later the flight was pushed back two and half hours. So, some extra time to enjoy at the hotel or at the airport. Of course, it helped shorten the planned 6hr connection time in Washington so overall it didn’t really affect plans too much. One of the more boring parts of the world tour is the travel gap times, whether it’s before a flight or between connections, way too much time is spent sitting around an airport.
Flight #15 American Airlines CRJ700 Pensacola – Washington
Flight Time 2.5 hours – Total WT Time 56.5 Hours
Looks like Washington
Flight #16 American Airlines CRJ900 Washington – Norfolk
Flight Time 1 hour – Total WT Time 57.5 Hours
I was met at the Airport by SBN Brian and a team from Wolf Martial Arts for the 45-minute drive back to Yorktown. On this trip I was going to be trying a different hotel as the standard one had some booking problems. I will have to say it was an interesting stay starting with the night manager telling us that they were fully checked in and full so we could just leave, It turned out the earlier manager had already checked me in. I would normally say the hotel was on the cheap and cheerful side, but not so cheerful this time and finding each of the ‘features’ was quite entertaining. Ask me about them when you see me in person.
Red Roof Inn Yorktown #1 – The room looks ok
Red Roof Inn Yorktown #2 – The elevator needs help
Red Roof Inn Yorktown #3 – The elevator definitely needs help
After surviving the night, it was time to hit the mats for day #1 of the Hell Week and a schedule that was going to keep me busy from 9am through to 9pm. SBN Brian had a full schedule with topics every hour, a senior technical review (CGN Abby testing for 2nd Degree), the official opening of the new location and a Sun Bae. There were good groups on the mats for each session, and I got to touch upon a lot of both the coloured and Black Belt material. This was my first visit to SBN’s new Dojang and it is a great space with several floors for training and the potential for even more training areas. I know everyone will enjoy visiting the Dojang during NATS 2027.
Wolf Dojang and Bus
Attack of the Clones
During the training I had the chance to present 3 of the candidates from the ITS test group with their Certificates, with SBN Brian tying on their Black Belts and issuing their official Black Belt Doboks. It is always good to see the change from the Black Student uniform into the White first degree one.
Black Belt Certificate presentations
Old School Charm
Hell Week group
I had the chance to visit the American Revolution Museum to take a walk through some of the history that occurred in this area during the fight for American Independence. For those travelling here for the NATS next year, it is a nice museum to visit with both indoor and outdoor displays. One of SBN Brians students who works part time here had arranged for us to get access and helped us with some tour guiding. As a surprise she had also set up a special moment, where I got to fire the canon, talk about some kick back.
American Revolution Museum – George
American Revolution Museum – Hapkido does Rock
American Revolution Museum – Canon time
American Revolution Museum – Shootin’ Time
Drive Through ATM (It still has Braille)
Saturday was going to be a busy day starting with the official opening and ribbon cutting for the new Dojang. Many local dignitaries attended and gave speeches before the action moved inside for a lady’s self defence seminar. After lunch it was back onto the Hell Week topics and at the end of the day a chance to present KSN Abby with her promotion to 2nd Degree Black Belt. To celebrate the successful day and grading a large group of students headed to a nearby finer dining restaurant for a tasty dinner.
The New Wolf Martial Arts Dojang
Official Opening Group of the new Dojang
Congratulations – KSN Abby 2nd Degree
Trying one of the new Starbucks flavours
Surf and Turf (Steak/Crabcake)
Sunday was my last day on the mats here in Yorktown and it was Sun Bae Day with a chance to work on some senior ideas, the focus was increasing power in both kicks and strikes. I also got a chance to run the local seniors through Tan Jun breathing and Meditation. Then off for a tasty Barbecue lunch before the 6hr road trip from Yorktown, Virginia to Denver, North Carolina and my next Hell Week, this time with Team Causby.
Sun Bae Group
Anyone want a Hunk of Pizza?
The drive into Denver went smoothly, and we were in time to grab a later dinner before wrapping up the day. Team Causby had planned for my visit with the VIP suite ready (otherwise known as the spare room) and some appropriate eats (Crumpets and Crepe Mix).
Good preparation for a GMG visit
The next day had some free time, and I hit the road to the outlets to do some shopping, BSBN Stephanie was on stylist duty and KSN Ben on transportation. You know how it works when a VIP goes shopping, we need our entourage to make it an even better experience. Seriously though it is far cheaper to buy clothing either here in one of the outlets or through Amazon in the US than at home in Australia. The shopping was successfully completed, and it was time to get on the mats for a week of training. There would be a few different classes over the week starting with the kids and then followed by adults.
One of the Hell Week Groups
Kids’ Seminar Class (Bully Defence)
Each day we would start with some Crumpets, team Causby are also fans of the trusty Australian staple, even if they did prefer different toppings, peanut butter and chocolate chips anyone? I ventured into the experimental with a Peanut Butter and Jelly (Jam) topping, bringing a combination of the US favourite with the humble crumpet. A little too sweet for me, but a success for the local team.
Testing a new Hybrid, Peanut Butter and Jelly (Jam) Crumpets
Classes were going well and it was good to cover some of the curriculum in more detail with many of the local students keeping notes and keeping the information. Thursday was a busier day with a kid’s class, then the youth Hapkido team and wrapping up the night with a class for the Tang Soo Do students. I covered some of the more interesting Hapkido kicks along with some Kick Defence which was well received.
Kids’ Seminar Class (GMG Secret Techniques)
Hapkido Youth Group
Tang Soo Do Mixed Seminar Group
BSBN Stephanie’s Hapkido Mobile
As the weekend rolled around, I had the chance to finish presenting the last of the Certificates from the ITS Black Belt team and to also recognise BSBN Bluie with his Senior Instructor promotion. I was looking forward to the evening as the Team Causby had a special event planned, everyone was keeping quiet on what it actually was, but apparently a few of the local students were looking forward to it.
ITS Certificate presentations complete
Congratulations Senior Instructor Bluie
Time for the fun evening and we were off to the, queue drum roll, local travelling rodeo. Well, it would be an experience as I had never attended one up to this point. There were well over 1000 people in the parklands where it was set up, seating was hard to find and the show was interesting to say the least, some aspects were entertaining and some others strange. The people in attendance were a different breed with cowboy hats, belt buckles and general style.
Time to Rodeo it up
Funnel Cake at the Rodeo
Sunday was the final Hapkido day in North Carolina and still a good day with a Black Belt recognition test and then the Sun Bae. Recognition testing is an opportunity for outside Hapkido Black Belts who join the family to be formally recognized within the IHA. CGN Jeremy did a great job and was successful in earning his official 1st degree recognition, welcome to the IHA Black Belt family.
Black Belt Recognition testing
Sun Bae Group
During the week KSN Ben had randomly bought an item on Facebook marketplace and the seller had a very nice Ferrari in his garage, after some chatting he managed to schmooze us with a visit to check it out, which also turned into us getting a ride, and that became a chance for both of us getting a drive. It was a 430 model with less than 6500kms so in pristine condition, it was fun taking it for a spin and having the owner choose a straight stretch of the road so I could give it ‘a hit’ as he called it. A fun experience and good afternoon as well chatting with the owner Tim, a true car guy.
Time to Ferrari it up
Some call it Fondue, others a melting pot
A good way to wrap up the week’s training
The week was wrapped up excellently with a dinner at the Melting Pot restaurant for a modern take on the classic Fondue, followed by a relaxed evening soaking away in the Hot Tub. The next morning one of the local students who was also a Fireman had arranged for us to get a tour of his station, which was a hybrid with both traditional fire trucks and also some boats for lake work.
Bring the heat
The lake fire station, a scenic workplace
Fire Boat
Firing the water cannon
Possibly my best visit with the North Carolina team, and it was time to get back on the road for the short flight into Minneapolis and my next stop with Master Corey and Team Minnesota. BSBN Stephanie dropped me off at the airport and I got to try out not only my shiny new TSA Precheck along with the touchless ID, so it was a simple stand in front of a scanner and go through, no physical ID or boarding pass needed. Delta were flying a relatively new A220 and the flight was quick even with some bumps and a hard headwind. Master Corey met me at the airport with the customary coffee in hand before the drive into Hutchinson.
Flight #17 Delta Airlines A220-100 Charlotte – Minneapolis
Flight Time 2 hours – Total WT Time 59.5 Hours
Master Corey had recently had to move due to some work happening at the shopping centre the Dojang is in, it meant a bigger space in a much better position. I got the tour and whilst there are still some touches to come the Dojang looked great and is arguably the nicest one to date.
CSD Hutch 1
CSD Hutch 2
It seems the Wiley Wallaby range is growing
Today is a quieter day with a chance to update the trip report, grab a coffee and then give 2 kids seminars. The topic tonight was something new as BSBN Kris asked me to turn a backpack into a weapon for the kids, it worked well and everyone enjoyed the new material.
Is this the World Tour, Starbucks thinks so
Kids Seminar #1
Kids Seminar #2
Each day, the plan was to have the Hell Week training start in the midafternoon into the evening, this would allow people to still get some work done or wrap up school before the training. There was a varied list of topics ranging from the standard-coloured belt material (with some variations) as well as Black Belt Concepts and senior level Aspects. On the mats were students from Master Corey’s Dojang (Hutchinson, MN), KSN Mary’s Dojang (Minneapolis, MN), BSBN Stephanie/KSN Ben (Denver, NC) and Master Dave, a good mix of Team USA.
Hell Week team
Sushi at the Regular haunt – Tokyo Grill
After seeing the Crumpets pictures from my North Carolina stop, Master Corey placed an order, and we had some delivered here. Luckily, he also is one of the few Americans who likes Vegemite and we could enjoy them the way they should be done. Vegemite was the first choice, followed by Honey and a couple with Jam. A benefit of staying with Master Corey is the home cooking, as he specialises in the smoking and barbecuing of fine meats, ribs, pork belly, brisket, chicken and more. The Asparagus in the pictures was picked from his actual garden moments before being cooked.
Crumpets with Vegemite, ahhh
The Hell Week rolls on
Home cooking done right
The weather was on the cooler side, but still nice, so it was good to be out during the day for some odds and ends. The coffee choice is limited locally, and the best choice locally was a café near Master Corey’s work, with Starbucks filling in the void. Of course, the culinary highlight each day was the home cooking as it was the standout. As mentioned, Master Corey had recently moved into this larger location which had some interesting spaces out back, one was a well-lit alcove and as a bit of fun there was currently one of my portraits hanging there. I called it the Shrine and each day a student was bringing in some snacks or similar offerings. At the end of the week the offerings were shared to the senior disciples, well the senior belts got to snap up the snacks.
The Hell Week team keeps the mats warm
A GMG Shrine?
Another fun part of staying at Master Corey’s house is Clyde, who is a Mastiff that weighs just on 100kgs (220 pounds). For fun he walks up to you and leans on you as a sort of fun way to test you, no luck pushing me around Clyde I have you out massed, but nice attempt. He is friendly to most and only gets excited about chasing moving cars to bite the tires, it makes you wonder what would happen if he ever caught one.
Final Hell Week Team
Master Corey and Clyde
The week went exceedingly well, with lots of good work on the mats, with many of the seniors getting signatures done. It looks like a big year next year for testing locally. As is out custom Master Corey and I headed into Minneapolis for a Brazilian Barbecue lunch before I settled into my hotel near the airport for my flights into Mexico tomorrow. When I was checking in, I noticed that Minneapolis airport has a reserve your spot at security feature where you can book a time. Not recommended for those like me who have TSA precheck.
Side Note: Frequent Flyer points are an interesting currency, many people accrue them through nonflying related activities and then spend them accordingly, but do you actually know the return for point value? Things like movie tickets, gift cards, are working about .5c any shopping items are at best worth around 1c, to get some real value you need to use them on flights or the best value on upgrading an existing flight which nets you a return of around 5c a point, far better than ½ a cent.
I had to mention the point values above as I had put in a request for a holy grail upgrade into Qantas First Class on the 17hr flight home from Dallas, keeping my fingers crossed that it comes through, expect a full report if I manage to score the upgrade at 81,700 points, the ticket to purchase with current fuel issues is listed at $17k Australian (One Way). A got a few hours free at the hotel to get the trip report up to date before jumping on my next 2 flights, this time Southern bound on my return to spend some time with the Mexican Familia.
Flight #18 United Airlines 737-800 Minneapolis – Houston
Flight Time 3 hours – Total WT Time 62.5 Hours
Flight #19 United Airlines Embraer 175 Houston – Guadalajara
Flight Time 2.5 hours – Total WT Time 65 Hours
The flight into Houston went smoothly and I got to spend just over 5hours in the United Lounge, it gave me a chance to catch up on some Video signatures and watch the podcast that was recently posted. I have posted links to the podcast on my Facebook and in the IHA members Group. It was then time to grab the next in Mexico and meet up with Master Hugo and team IHA Mexico. All went well for the boarding but then there was an issue, and we taxied back to the terminal, there were issues with the backup radio communication, so we got a 2 hour stop while the technicians repaired the issue. The delay meant an arrival into Guadalajara just before Midnight, and I got the green light on the customs button to meet up with Master Hugo for the ride to my hotel.
First up for this visit would be the Sun Bae and Senior Testing, with Just KSN Citlalli aiming for 3rd Degree it was a relatively quick grading with everything going smoothly. KSN will find out her results at the end of the week just before the Spirit test. Also on the mats for grading this week were 2 candidates from KJN Luis’s Dojang, The Honey Badgers, a good name choice but soon it would be time to test it out.
Hell Week Group
Did someone say Guacamole?
The Honey Badgers 1
The Honey Badgers 2
It was quite warm in Guadalajara with temperatures sitting in the 30’s (High 80’s), but once you added the metal roof of the Dojang and a bunch of hard working local IHA team, the mats turned into Sauna. Truly living up to the term Hell Week. I knew everything was on track when I went out to dinner with Master Hugo and we had some great Tacos, only wrapped up perfectly by some Lemon/Sugar Crepes, no picture to share the food miraculously vanished almost instantly
42c in the Dojang (108F)
Enjoying some of the local flavours
Car Shopping, hmm, Porche or Mclaren?
The week went well and BSBN Stephanie flew in from the US to join the fun for the weekend. She had a chance to spend some time on the mats with the local kids giving them some BJJ action, and then took part of the evenings seminar to let the adults have a taste. To wrap up another good night it was off to Zapopan to see the area and end some very old school tacos. I admit seeing the suspension sign outside the kitchen did give me moments pause, but the food was excellent.
BSBN Stephanies Kids BJJ Group
Tacos, anyone?
World Cup is coming to town
Zapopan Arch
Saturday morning and time to change locations, today the seminars were being held at the Jaquar Workgroups new Dojang, which I was getting the honour of officially opening after the seminar. I got to see the space last year when it was an old shop space, and now it has had a lot of work to be a good Hapkido home for the local students. One surprise was the somewhat large portrait on the wall, hmm, not sure I would choose the same subject. Apart from the main floor, there is also a first floor set up with mats which doubles the space as well an open roof top that can be used.
Jaguar Dojang – Outside
Jaguar Dojang – Inside
Jaguar Dojang – Mural revealed
What chu lookin at
Jaguar Opening Group
Time to grab a quick snack and then head back to Master Hugo’s Dojang for the testing of the Honey Badgers. Before we started the test It was time to announce the grading results and I am very pleased to say we have a new 3rd Degree and Chief Instructor with Citlalli being successful in her testing.
Congratulations BSBN Citlalli
They start them young in Mexico
The spirit test went to plan and ran smoothly with the local Black Belt team doing a great job under the control of SBN Saul. I am proud to welcome 2 new Black Belts to the IHA family, CGN Guadalupe and CGN Eomer
Congratulations CGN’s
The Senior Team on deck
Off to celebrate it was time for some Korean BBQ while we caught the end of the Guadalajara vs Mexico City match and then the Rhonda Rousey fight. The next morning was my final Hapkido event for Guadalajara with a Meeting with the local Representatives, with lots of good plans being made for not only the local future but for Mexico joining us at more international events. The afternoon was open, so I caught the new Mortal Kombat movie with Master Hugo, it’s a laugh if you don’t take it seriously, and to wrap up the day it was family dinner time with SBN Selena preparing some local delicacies and then a quick trip to the crepe man.
Vip Mortal Kombat experience
Crepas, yes please
Monday was free so time to wrap up some admin (Personal and Hapkido) which means getting a haircut and chatting about future plans with Master Hugo. To wrap up another great visit we headed to Alcalde (Number 51 on the World’s Top 100 restaurants) for a fine dinner. Both Master Hugo and I had been here before, but this visit was a good one, we agreed that every course was good, with of course a couple of stand outs, the A5 wagyu which had Mexican and Thai influences was one of those. It turns out the chef here has recently opened another restaurant in Bangkok, Thailand, so that will go on my list for a future visit. The flights from Guadalajara to Mexico City and connecting to Cancun went smoothly with Aeromexico.
Alcalde 1
Alcalde 2
Alcalde 3
Cancun in sight
Flight #20 Aeromexico 737 Max 9 Guadalajara – Mexico
Flight Time 1.5 hours – Total WT Time 66.5 Hours
Flight #21 Aeromexico 737 Max 9 Mexico – Cancun
Flight Time 2.5 hours – Total WT Time 69 Hours
BSBN Jonathan picked me up for the ride to my hotel, after some work meeting up. I will say Cancun airport is modern and clean, however it is also an incredible tourist trap as they funnel you into an area where you can only choose a Taxi to the city, the actual exit for a friend’s pickup is cleverly hidden and easy to miss. A small hiccup at the hotel when they confirmed I have but then wanted to charge me as it hadn’t been paid for by Agoda. It was sorted by the morning, and my cash deposit was returned. Dinner was on the beach at a nearby seafood restaurant with BSBN Jonathan and one of his students, a good start to the visit. The next day we met up for brunch, and I was able to change one of the menu items into more crepes, then it was time to check out one of the local markets, before some coffee and time in the afternoon to update the trip report before the night’s seminars.
Crepas 2
No 28 Markets
I couldn’t afford the cars in Guadalajara, maybe something I can afford in Cancun?
Time to hit the mats for my last seminars of the tour, first up the local kids followed by the adults, both classes went well and the group enjoyed the different topics I worked on. I think the adults especially liked some of the concept linking and belt techniques. After the class it was time to grab a bite at a nearby restaurant for a chat with some of the local members. This wraps up the official training part of the 2026 World Tour, there should be a few more notes on the coming days travelling home via the USA.
BSBN Jonathan’s Dojang
Kids Group
Adults Group
Thursday was a free day, a nice breakfast with BSBN Jonathan to cover some future plans for his Dojang and an open afternoon with a nice dinner at a local Japanese restaurant to wrap up the day. Of course, it just got a whole lot better with a text message from Qantas about my now successful bid to fly home in style. It will be my first time experiencing Qantas first class, which is only offered on the A380 flights, and the I am sure it will make the 17hr final world tour flight a dream. Expect a full report on what its like!
The Text you do Want to get
American Airlines Check In take their tools seriously!
Sometimes it’s worth looking out of the window
The check-in at Cancun went smoothly, and apart from a Caesar salad costing $35 it was a nice enough place to wait for my flights today. A quick hop to Miami then onto Dallas for the evening before my flight home tomorrow. It is about now that it would be good to simply be home, but maybe not so fast this time with the flight experience to try. Transfer and second flight was smooth, a brief walk to find the rental car shuttle and I am now ready to roll. I took a new Hyundai Sonata over Nissan or Toyota, at least it’s red.
Flight #22 American Airlines 737-800 Cancun – Miami
Flight Time 2 hours – Total WT Time 71 Hours
Flight #23 American Airlines A321 Miami – Dallas
Flight Time 3.5 hours – Total WT Time 74.5 Hours
The Dallas rocket ship, red = faster, right?
With 24 hours to kill in Dallas, I decided to catch the new Mandalorian movie at a nearby cinema boasting an impressive theatre, both the cinema and the movie were just ok. Now what else should I do in Texas? Oh of course, enjoy some Barbecue, and the lunch was great!
XD Cinema was only average
BBQ time in Texas
BBQ, yes please
But we all know I was just passing time until my first-class experience with Qantas on the flight home, so bear with me as I share a bunch of photos from the flight. The check was smooth; my TSA Precheck saved almost 30 minutes at security and I enjoyed a snack and a shower in the American Airlines Flagship lounge. Nothing extra for being in First Class there, my Platinum One World status gets my access normally. At the gate there was a separate entry for First Class passengers, and we were called to board before they announced the official boarding. The seat is huge and pivots towards the screen and reclines into a huge bed that the flight attendants make up using a reasonably thick topper, arguably the best flying bed I have experienced to date. The service was friendly but on point, the food was all tasty and the experience was excellent, would I have paid $20k USD for the one-way ticket, no way, and it is hard to even consider it worth that. Still, as an experience it was well worth the Frequent Flyer points I used on it.
Qantas First Class – Seat
Qantas First Class – Pre Departure Snack
Qantas First Class – Seat, showing the space sitting
Qantas First Class – Amenities for the flight
Qantas First Class – Dining Menu
Qantas First Class – Caviar tart for the Amuse
Qantas First Class – Tuna Starter
Qantas First Class – Decent Steak
Qantas First Class – Cheese course
Qantas First Class – Now that’s a bed in the sky
Qantas First Class – The view up to the lounge on the A380
Qantas First Class – Breakfast
A smooth 17 hours of flight later, it even drags in First Class, of course not as bad though and I was on the ground home in Australia, a quick walk-through immigration and my bags were out in moments, almost a new record from plane to curb.
Flight #24 Qantas A380 Dallas – Sydney
Flight Time 17 hours – Total WT Time 91.5 Hours
That wraps up the 2026 World Tour which was overall a good one, some hiccups to be expected but on the Hapkido side it went very well. All the Instructors and students were motivated and worked hard during each of the visits. I enjoyed each of my stops and look forward to making next year an even better one. Thank you to the hosts, the team at home and all those involved behind the scenes who made the 2026 World Tour one of the best ones to date.