sgusers2的部落格

（森美蘭 芙蓉7日訊）森美蘭精明消費人俱樂部主席拿督譚玉強表示，迷你倉新蒲崗俱樂部籌募經費印刷了《精明消費人指南》供消費者免費索取，也讓大家瞭解和行使消費者權益，但一行人在逐戶上門向森州各地商家解說時，卻遭到冷漠對待及排斥。“我們走訪森州各地商家，向他們講解我們的用意，並推介《精明消費人指南》所要傳達的資訊，但很多人都拒絕讓我們入店，相信是誤會我們來自政府部門。”他指出，森州的消費人對權益不甚瞭解，也不清楚政府部門運作，促使消費人面對不少麻煩，俱樂部接獲不少消費者求助案例，也盡力協助解決。俱樂部一行人昨日在新聞發佈會上，針對精明消費人指南遭人們冷待，作出上述回應。森州精明消費人俱樂部是於2012年1月17日註冊，並希望扮演政府部門與消費者之間的溝通橋樑，也向公眾傳達消費者權益資訊，俱樂部也呼吁更多民眾加入俱樂部。盼商家登廣告支持對於《精明消費人指南》，譚玉強指出，俱樂部希望獲得商家以刊登廣告的形式支持，讓指南順利出版，成為消費者“投訴有門”的指南。“這本書籍印刷好後，我們將分佈在森州各大政府部門，讓公眾免費索迷你倉出租；其實這份指南在沙巴已經出版第二冊，而且反應熱烈。”推出自家優惠卡許多家商店可享折扣森州精明消費人俱樂部也將推出自家的優惠卡，聯同貿消部以前推出的6款一起進行推介，凡持有7款優惠卡的任何一張，皆可在全馬多家商店享有折扣，包括在《精明消費人指南》內刊登廣告的商家。“我們的優惠卡只優待會員，加入會員只需繳付一次性20令吉註冊費及每年50令吉的會費；而我們的理事職務分成16個單位，希望在森州各地成立50個支部，更有效地為大家服務。”他披露，俱樂部服務範圍包括監督價格、衛生、環境、教育、福利、資訊、反毒、消費人投訴、婦女事務、企業、宗教及陸路安全等；各單位將直接與相關部門接洽，現有3部巡邏車在全森展開流動式服務。籌備拍教育短片“另外，俱樂部正在籌備拍攝共長13集的教育短片，每集以不同的主題呈現，包括刮刮樂、購置房地產及報窮破產等時事課題，而此計劃經費已獲得贊助。”他說，俱樂部是個沒有政治背景、維護消費人權益的非政府組織，需要各界人士的支持，若人們有任何方面的詢問，可聯絡俱樂部熱線011-28622799。;迷你倉

　　昨天上午，長江路與天通路交口某樓盤售樓部的工作人員發現，院子里廣告桁架上的廣告布不見了，於是立即撥打了110報警。　　布上已經噴繪了廣告圖案，誰會偷呢？轄區派出所民警接警後立即趕到現場調查，在監控錄像中發現，就在7日22：06，一名身著小馬甲、緊身褲的年輕女子徑直來到廣告桁架旁，用隨身攜帶的小刀將展架上的廣告布割下，卷起帶走，離開時還小心翼翼地朝四周張望。　　至於該女子為何盜去桁架上的廣告布？售樓部工作人員也百思不得其解，目前轄區警方已經將監控錄像拷貝帶走，正在調查盜割廣告布的女子身份。(安徽商報 記者 紀在學 許家權）標簽：桁架 紀在學 許家權 噴繪 盜割迷你倉

RENNES, France, Sept.新蒲崗迷你倉 9, 2013/PRNewswire/ --Thomson Video Networks today announced that HISPASAT has launched a trial demonstration of Ultra HD content delivery using the High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) compression capabilities of the ViBE(TM) VS7000( https://.thomson-networks.com/en/products/video-compression/multiscreen-hevc-encoder ) multi-screen encoding platform. HISPASAT, a leading satellite transmission operator with a strong presence in Europe and South America, is deploying the VS7000 to deliver HEVC-encoded Ultra HD content to air via its HISPASAT 1E satellite platform. At IBC2013 in September, HISPASAT will demonstrate live Ultra HD video streams using the Thomson Video Networks technology."This demonstration plays an important role in our plans to promote the deployment of the most cutting-edge compression and delivery formats - giving our customers the ability to offer their viewers the absolute highest-quality viewing experience," said Ignacio Sanchis, chief commercial officer at HISPASAT. "With the Thomson Video Networks technology, we are hoping to create awareness within our customer base and deliver live Ultra HD streams that can be used in many different ways, such as demonstrating interoperability among manufacturers of TV sets and set-top boxes."Facilitated by Thomson Video Networks' exclusive MediaFlex video operating system, the ViBE VS7000 is one of the first worldwide implementations of the emerging HEVC compression standard - designed to lower operators' OPEX for delivery of a wide range of convergent TV services including WebTV and OTT, as well as traditional broadcast applications. The ViBE VS7000 video system combines Thomson's renowned next-generation compression platform for outstanding picture quality in an all-IP environment with live, broadcast-quality encoding; innovative video preprocessing; and faster-than-real-time file transcoding.Thomson Video Networks has been participating in a proof-of-concept mini storagerial with HISPASAT that ends this summer to demonstrate how its technologies can form an ecosystem to drive future commercial Ultra HD service offerings based on HEVC compression. The ViBE VS7000 will provide 4K file transcoding in HEVC, and Thomson Video Networks' Sapphire transport stream server will play out the Ultra HD HEVC-encoded content. The open-source GPAC or VLC HEVC-enabled media players will decode the HEVC content for display on TV sets.This trial demonstration is also one of the first steps in the H2B2VS and UltraHD4U Eureka research projects where partners set up a satellite 4K HEVC transmission, paving the way for HEVC-based broadband and broadcast services."By adding our own implementation of the new HEVC compression standard to the ViBE VS7000, Thomson Video Networks is paving the way for HD and Ultra HD content on any kind of device and any kind of network. HISPASAT is providing an important service to the media industry by proving that the technology exists today through the ViBE VS7000, and that it can be harnessed to encode 4K content in HEVC for actual Ultra HD delivery," said Christophe Delahousse, president of Thomson Video Networks.In addition to this HEVC trial demonstration, Thomson Video Networks and HISPASAT have signed a wider cooperation agreement to jointly promote Ultra HD TV. As part of this agreement, Thomson Video Networks will be a partner to the HISPASAT 4K channel, which will be launched at IBC this year.More about HISPASAT at .hispasat.com.More about Thomson Video Networks at .thomson-networks.com.More about H2B2VS at h2b2vs.epfl.ch.About UltraHD4UUltraHD4U is a Eureka Catrene research project aimed at investigating the complete UHDTV chain, from picture origination through to display devices. Composed of 14 partners, the consortium, which includes HISPASAT and Thomson Video Networks, is funded by five countries: Belgium (IWT), France (DGCIS), Spain (CDTI), and Turkey (TUBITAK).Thomson Video Networksself storage

Nationwide registration system will keep track of patients better By Shan Juan shanjuan@chinadaily.文件倉com.cn More than 3 million Chinese patients with serious mental disorders have been registered under a nationwide network of hospitals and heath administrations so that they can get better care, according to a senior official at the National Health and Family Planning Commission. The network, launched two years ago, is still being developed to cover as many mentally ill people on the mainland as possible, said Yan Jun, director of the mental health division at the commission’s Disease Prevention and Control Department. “Such a system can help mental health providers better keep track of the patients and take care of them, which serves not only public health, but also social stability and public safety,” she told China Daily in an exclusive interview. In 2009, more than 100 million Chinese had some form of mental disorder, and 16 million of them were severely mentally ill, according to the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention. To speed the registration of such patients, the commission issued a circular requiring that people with any of six types of serious mental illness were to be recorded in the national database. The six categories include schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, persistent delusional disorder and paranoid schizophrenia. Doctors were required after making the diagnosis to report to the hospital any patients with the serious mental illnesses. The hospital would then record the patient in the national system or submit a report to a county-level mental illness prevention and treatment agency no later than 10 days after the patient was discharged from the hospital. Collecting such information helps improve cooperation between hospitals, civil affairs departments, disabled persons’ federations and public security bureaus, to reduce any harm to others and society, Yan said. The network record存倉 such information as personal background; medical treatment and follow-up services; said Ma Hong, deputy director of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center of Mental Health. Ma helped design the network and the training of doctors at the grassroots level who use it. Zhang Mingyuan, vice-chairman of the China Disabled Persons’ Federation and a veteran psychiatrist trained in the US, urged health authorities to fine-tune the network and improve mental health services on the mainland. Before 2010, only about 10 percent of seriously mentally ill people received psychiatric treatment, he said. In cities, about half of the patients who needed hospitalization could not afford it, and the situation was even worse in the countryside, he said. In a recent, widely reported case, a mentally ill man in Shangban, a village in Jiangxi province, was found to have been “kept in a locked cage” by his family for about 11 years. The plight of such patients has to be addressed, Zhang said, adding that taking proper care of them is also important to public safety. “Without good care, such patients might physically attack other people,” he said. According to media reports, China has on average 10,000 cases a year of mentally ill people threatening public safety. In about a third of those cases, people are killed. The cost of treatment in an inpatient unit can be partially covered by health insurance policies. However, there is little coverage for outpatient care or the long-term rehabilitation at communities, Yan Jun said. But some places have done a good job addressing the coverage gaps. Shanghai has introduced a policy to provide free outpatient care to needy patients. Last year, Jiangxi province began to subsidize community rehabilitation of the seriously mentally ill, she said. Community mental health clinics in Jiangxi now receive 100 yuan ($16.30) a year in state subsidy for each patient they take care of. 迷你倉

With HK firmly under its sway, Facebook aims to build on its success in the tech savvy city with targeted pitches, especially on mobile devicesWhen Sony Mobile Communications chose Facebook as the Hong Kong launch pad for its new Xperia smartphone in October last year, the campaign became one of the company’s most successful social media initiatives in the city.儲存The mobile phone maker said the Xperia vaulted to the top of the best-selling Android smartphones in Hong Kong about three weeks after the campaign was started, driven by the interest generated on Facebook.“We reached 3.5 million Facebook users within three weeks. It proves that quality content on social media is an effective way for a brand to engage consumers and achieve good business results,” said Michelle Au, Sony Mobile’s general manager for Hong Kong and Taiwan operations.Facebook, which has more than 1 million active advertisers worldwide, aims to step up development of online and mobile marketing campaigns in Hong Kong, where it estimates more than 60 per cent of the population access the social network each month.Jayne Leung Yau-mui, the director for North Asia at Facebook, said: “We see a lot of opportunities to work with advertisers in Hong Kong. Mobile is a big trend.”That optimism stems from Facebook’s strong market penetration in the city, which made it the biggest social network used in Hong Kong. Its internal estimates show about 4.3 million active monthly users as of June 30, of which about 3.5 million accessed the social network on their smartphones and media tablets.Asked about competition from fast-growing social messaging platforms such as Tencent’s WeChat and Line, Leung said: “Facebook is not just a communications tool.”She pointed out that the site’s users express themselves in various ways and have a wide breadth of connections.Citing data from research firm eMarketer, Facebook calculated about 2.9 million people in Hong Kong on average visit its site every day. Of that number, about 2.4 million do so on their mobile devices.The company’s worldwide numbers are loftier. It estimated 699 million daily active users on average as of June 30, with 469 million using the site on their mobile devices. It also recorded 1.15 billion monthly active users as of June 30, with the number of people logging on with their mobile devices reaching 8新蒲崗迷你倉9 million.In July, Facebook reported that mobile advertising accounted for 41 per cent of its US$1.6 billion global advertising sales in the second quarter. Its revenue in the past quarter grew 53 per cent to US$1.81 billion from US$1.18 billion a year ago.Leung, who runs operations in Hong Kong and Taiwan, said Facebook’s direct engagements with advertisers and advertising agencies in the city started in February 2011, when the company set up shop in Quarry Bay. It was the second office that Facebook opened in Asia after Singapore in September 2010.She declined to provide the number of advertising clients Facebook has in Hong Kong, but said the company typically worked with four types of clients: e-commerce firms, mobile application developers, small and medium-sized enterprises, and large brands.E-commerce site Reebonz has used Facebook to target a specific demographic in Hong Kong: female, between the ages of 18 and 35.CottonWork, which sells custom-made shirts online, is one of Facebook’s active local SME advertisers, as is Hong Kong-based 6waves, an independent publisher of games for mobile app platforms and social networks.Leung said campaigns by large brands, such as Sony Mobile and Ocean Park Hong Kong, relied on the broad reach of Facebook to engage the large audience they want.“We are getting good traction in Hong Kong because marketers are now following where the eyeballs are,” she said.Last month, media-monitoring firm admanGo reported that advertising spending in online media in Hong Kong rose 37 per cent to HK$297 million in July, up from HK$216 million a year ago.However, campaigns targeted at mobile device users grew larger, at 583 per cent to HK$46 million last month from HK$7 million a year earlier.Advertising spending in the city rose 10 per cent to HK$3.71 billion in July, from HK$3.37 billion a year ago.Jennifer Ma, the director of sales and marketing at admanGo, said digital advertising had risen significantly in recent years. “Cosmetics and skincare products have been mostly promoted in print media, especially magazines, but more marketers have shifted their focus to online and mobile campaigns,” Ma said.She cited as an example Biotherm, the French luxury skincare brand owned by L’Oreal, which invested about 85 per cent of its HK$5.3 million advertising spending in July on digital campaigns.mini storage

Source: Tulsa World, Okla.新蒲崗迷你倉Sept. 08--The issue: Sounds of the cityMayor Dewey Bartlett began his State of the City speech on Thursday with a riff on his harmonica."Some of you may have heard that I occasionally embarrass my family by playing the harmonica in front of a bunch of people," he said before starting. It was a launching point for a larger message, one that celebrated the city's rich musical history."Playing the blues harmonica reminds me of our city -- of the musical heritage that is unique to Tulsa," Bartlett said. "It reminds me of J.J. Cale, who recently died, a Tulsan who was an inspiration to many of today's legendary musicians: Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, George Harrison and Leon Russell, to name a few."Bartlett loves music enough to stand before hundreds of people and play a tune. He's done it before at Cain's Ballroom and the Guthrie Green.So as incongruous as it might have seemed to see the mayor, dressed in a gray pin-striped suit and red tie, standing before hundreds of other nattily dressed movers and shakers with a harmonica to his lips, it made sense for Bartlett.And it gave him the perfect lead-in to promote one of his favorite initiatives: the Mayor's Film & Music Advisory Board.Bartlett told the crowed gathered at the Cox Business Center that he created the board "to bring together our musical heritage with the creativity of the Tulsa music and film industry; to create jobs and opportunity; and to tap into the creative and the sometimes nontraditional side of our city."This from a man many would describe as a traditional Republican.And maybe that was the point. It's election season, after all, and Bartlett -- like any politician -- doesn't want to be narrowly defined.Then again, he may have just seen an audience and couldn't resist the urge to play.He did, after all, end his speech with another riff on his harmonica.Quotable"Elected people start drooling."- City Councilor Blake Ewing, describing how elected officials respond to Engineering Services Director Paul Zachary's well-organized requests for street repair funding, during a council meeting on economic development"We budgeted for the worst-case scenario, thankfully."- City Councilor G.T. Bynum, explaining that the city included $19 million in funding for Riverside Drive improvements in its proposed capital package before it was announced that the city's application for a $14.8 million federal grant to help fund the work was rejected"It appeared that a majority of the funding went to public transportation projects, freight rail and port projects."- James Wagner, with the Indian Nations Council of Governments, explaining who did receive TIGER grant funding"It could be in a tent as far as I am concerned."- Mayor Dewey Bartlett, speaking about his proposed aviation and aeronautics facility for high school students, during his State of the City speechLooking backCity's grant request rejected: The city of Tulsa will not be receiving a $14.8 million federal TIGER grant it applied for this year to help fund proposed improvements to Riverside Drive, city officials learned Thursday.The city hoped to use the grant to help pay for $40.1 million in improvements along Riverside Drive from 24th Street to 33rd Place in conjunction with A Gathering Place for Tulsa, which envisions amini storagelarge park on the east side of Riverside Drive and significant changes to River Parks on the west side.The area will be linked by two land bridges.Thursday's announcement does not mean that road work will not happen.Funding for the work has been included in the city's proposed $918.7 million capital improvements package set to go to voters in the Nov. 12 elections."It would have been great to get the funding," said Paul Zachary, director of the city's Engineering Services Department."That was $14.8 million out of the $19 million that is in the sales-tax package that could have been freed up for other projects or just not spent," he said. "But as far as our (capital improvement) funding package, we are not going to have to scramble."Among the projects to get funding is Oklahoma City's Intermodal Transportation Hub, which received $13.6 million.Taylor touts transparency: Former Mayor Kathy Taylor on Tuesday unveiled a plan to improve transparency and accountability at City Hall.Taylor, who will face Mayor Dewey Bartlett in the Nov. 12 general election, said the city lags behind other large municipalities when it comes to sharing information with residents."It is about creating easy-to-understand, easy-to-access, user-friendly information so you can understand in real time where your tax dollars are going," she said.Taylor's "Transparency and Accountability Plan for Tulsa" includes implementing the correct policies to ensure that government puts transparency first; improving the open records request process to provide information more quickly; making the city's website more user-friendly; updating the city's financial and information systems so that more information can be put online; and keeping information up to date so that residents can access it in real time.Discussing development: The city would benefit from having a single-action plan for spurring economic development, a working group exploring the issue concluded Tuesday."The process makes tons of sense to me that there be a community working list of projects so that when these projects or capital improvement packages come and go it isn't an afterthought to go: 'Oh, we should also be doing things to generate new revenue,' " said City Councilor Blake Ewing. "To me, that should be the first thing we're talking about so we can figure out how to pay for those roads the next time."Ewing is the chairman of the working group, which met for the second time.On Tuesday, representatives from the Tulsa Regional Chamber, the Indian Nations Council of Governments, the Economic Development Commission and the city's Planning and Economic Development Department presented their lists of the obstacles to economic development.They included a lack of structured parking, housing and hotel rooms downtown, too few transportation options citywide and not enough skilled laborers.Looking ahead6 p.m. Thursday: City Council meeting, City Council chambers of City Hall, Second Street and Cincinnati AvenueFollow us on TwitterFollow Tulsa World City Hall reporters Kevin Canfield (@KevinCanfieldTW) and Zack Stoycoff (@ZackStoycoffTW) for the latest news on the City of Tulsa.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 Tulsa World (Tulsa, Okla.) Visit Tulsa World (Tulsa, Okla.) at .tulsaworld.com Distributed by MCT Information Servicesself storage

In these days of cross-border finance amid massive job cuts, a key question for the unemployed in the banking world is how to penetrate the next frontier – the great financial wall of China.迷你倉新蒲崗The good news is that a little crack may have just opened, in the form of the Qianhai special economic zone, which dreams of becoming the “Manhattan of Guangdong” by packaging itself as the renminbi (RMB) trade settlement centre. The bad news is that, without much differentiation from other financial-capital wannabes across China, Qianhai may just be another mad mainland scheme.“I haven’t seen any immediate differentiator yet,” says Chris Chan, a professor of Ivey Business School in Asia. “Qianhai can borrow from Hong Kong’s expertise, but it needs to differentiate itself, especially vis-�-vis other zones, such as Shanghai’s Pudong.”Chan cites “positive speculation” about Qianhai’s prospects, especially as it can benefit Hong Kong with its potential to offer “profitable channels for offshore RMB deposits. However, similar zones have been set up, such as those in Tianjin and Bohai in the past 5-10 years,” Chan says, adding that these cities have not really taken off as financial capitals. “Qianhai must be careful in positioning itself.”As announced in June 2012, Qianhai – a 15 square-kilometre special economic zone built largely on reclaimed land in Shenzhen and near Hong Kong – will serve as a testing ground for free RMB convertibility. This means that, if all goes according to plan, companies registered in Qianhai can buy and sell RMB-denominated financial products between the special zone and the rest of the world, thereby bypassing China’s notoriously closed capital-account regime.On the jobs front, property and construction are expected to lead the way in Qianhai, followed by hotels and tourism. Not far behind are the financial engineers.“We think Qianhai will become an established onshore platform for most Hong Kong and international financial institutions currently operating i迷你倉出租 the region and I’m sure it will attract others that aren’t yet,” says Shenzhen-based Mark Tibbatts, director for southern China at Michael Page International. “It will also be a key platform for Chinese institutions to invest in Hong Kong and overseas and, as such, we expect to see a strong mix of both.”Tibbatts and his team expect to see the usual population of investment and commercial banks, asset managers, securities houses and investment funds all establish operations in Qianhai initially. “We also expect to see both front and back office operations located there over time,” he adds. Not that Qianhai will be giving Hong Kong a run for its money anytime soon. “With Qianhai still very much in an embryonic stage, there is no comparison to make,” Tibbatts says.Chan, the Ivey professor, also sees Qianhai as an attractive option for people familiar with investment, fixed-income and equity markets on the mainland. “It may offer specialised job types, such as in commercial banking or foreign exchange trading,” he says.To attract even more investors and talent, Qianhai will offer a corporate income tax of 15 per cent compared with 25 per cent for the rest of China and 16.5 per cent in Hong Kong. Personal income tax will be ‘equalised’ for an effective rate of 15 per cent, similar to Hong Kong. It will also drop business taxes on certain insurance income and offshore outsourcing services.These developments mark another chapter in the economic integration of southern China and the motherland’s prolific birthing of Hong Kong clones. And that, in the final analysis, can only be good for the city’s daring and enterprising financial talent.“Hong Kong is a global financial hub, and while it’s proximity to China has been hugely advantageous, the development of Qianhai isn’t going to jeopardise its reputation among financial-service industry professionals worldwide,” Tibbatts says. “If anything, it should enhance the strength of Hong Kong’s capital markets significantly.” Rex Aguado迷你倉

Media calls for end to expensive ‘gifts’ for officials as high-priced festival treats go underground to avoid the party’s radarThe Mid-Autumn Festival might be part of China’s “intangible cultural heritage”, but it is the more tangible aspects – bribes in the form of vastly expensive mooncakes – that have corruption watchdogs howling.迷你倉出租Ill-gotten wealth is most likely to change hands during auspicious festivals, not just for good luck, but because these events provide an opportunity to easily disguise the costs as business expenses. For this reason, it is not just the gifts that are precious, but also the receipts that lend credibility to corrupt dealings while offering fringe benefits.It is a time when mooncakes have as much value as gifts as they do to eat. Mooncakes are an expensive treat and those grabbing the attention of the wealthy – and, increasingly, the authorities – are the “sky-high-priced” versions that come decorated with gold, silver, crystals, or stuffed with shark’s fin and abalone.Last week, the Communist Party’s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection published remarks President Xi Jinping made in his visit to Liaoning province, calling for an end to the use of public funds for such gifts, travel and other “unhealthy tendencies”.During a visit to Tianjin last Friday, commission head Wang Qishan said habits such as squandering money on mooncakes and hairy crabs during the Mid-Autumn Festival had tainted the image of Chinese traditional festivals.The remarks were reprinted by the mainland media to “blow the wind of clean politics”. Only weeks earlier, a handful of news outlets exposed examples of ultra-expensive mooncakes. Other media followed suit, running editorials calling them “props of corruption”, as the average person could never afford them. By their reasoning, high-end mooncakes were bought by companies as “gifts” – bribes – for officials. And the higher the pri迷你倉e, the larger the bribe.Mainland media also pointed out that the elite mooncakes had gone semi-underground this year. High-class hotels or other institutions, including banks, put in special orders for discreet production.Many high-class hotels in Zhengzhou , Henan province, for example, sell mooncakes packaged with champagne and rare matsutake mushrooms for 1,999 yuan (HK$2,500) and 2,999 yuan. The more expensive package was especially popular, Beijing Evening News reported, noting that the packaging and accessories that came with the mooncakes were luxury items in their own right that could be used for other purposes, such as more gifts to officials.Receipts for such items also entitle whoever holds them to further gifts, dining, lodging or conferences that can be filed as expenses for reimbursement.“How can we put an end of these ‘deformed’ mooncakes after they’ve been packaged?” Beijing Evening News asked. “The key may not be in controlling production of the mooncakes, but rather putting an end to extra benefits people obtain through their purchase.”Southern Metropolis Daily said sending gifts during the festival or on National Day was essentially an abuse of power and that, because using public funds to pay for the gifts harmed the public interest, a crackdown was needed.The Changjiang Daily asked readers to re-examine the meaning of the Mid-Autumn Festival, a traditional family festival that had nothing to do with money. It called on government departments to stop wasting public funds, and restore mooncakes to their original intention.Beijing Youth Daily suggested officials make better use of the paper trail to find out who was behind the illicit mooncake purchases: “Who wrote false receipts for ‘sky-high-priced’ mooncakes? Which units used what names to reimburse the payment? These are facts contained in documents that can be investigated. Then we can stop it,” it said.nan.wu@scmp.com儲存倉

“我看仲偉他們名頭不小，mini storage又是‘社會焦點網’‘今日焦點網’什麼的，頂著全國人大、中紀委一大堆中央部門主管網站的頭銜。而且我們企業形象好不容易做起來的，雖然知道他們純屬捏造虛構，但花錢買平安吧，我們還是服軟了……”9月6日，江蘇徐州。坐在記者面前的受害人代表、徐州經濟開發區某地產公司經理魏某言語中充滿憤慨，又透出幾分無奈和懊惱。日前，公安機關集中打擊網絡有組織製造傳播謠言等違法犯罪專項行動持續發力——公安部統一部署下，江蘇警方在徐州偵破“8·19”系列網絡敲詐勒索案，4個涉嫌實施網絡敲詐勒索的犯罪團伙被打掉，虛構“中央主管”背景的“社會焦點網”等11家非法網站被查處，仲偉等16名犯罪嫌疑人被繩之以法。透過這起涉及全國7省27市縣的系列案件，審視其爆料、炒作、發帖刪帖、敲詐一條龍的犯罪鏈條，剖析其屢屢得手的原因，我們在警醒之外，顯然還應有更多追問。網絡敲詐竟源自熟人幕後爆料“今年6月初，我突然接到一份傳真，是一份要求核實稿件的來函。”魏某說。這封標注為“社會焦點網”發來的函中寫道，你公司正在開發的地產項目是違規建設，請儘快聯繫我們，否則在網上曝光進行負面炒作，並留下了聯繫人趙某的名字及手機號。“一看就是假的，因為我們沒這方面的問題，就沒理睬。”魏某說。不料，過了幾天，他及公司多位管理層都接到了這位趙記者的電話，大意為來北京“談談你們公司的問題”，不然就在網上把公司的形象搞臭。十分愛惜企業形象的魏某有些害怕，決定帶著合法手續去趟北京，跟這個趙記者說明情況。哪知在北京見面後，趙某對各種證明材料根本不感冒，看都沒看就問魏某想怎麼解決問題，隨即明言“你們這種問題我處理得多了，用錢才能解決”，開價20萬元。多次討價還價後，魏某給了5萬元錢，趙某答應不在網上發負面帖文。魏某的麻煩並沒有結束。半個月後，他又接到電話，一個自稱姓韓、是“今日焦點網”記者的人表示，魏某企業存在違規建設問題，已在“今日焦點網”上頭條刊登。此人言語更惡劣、威脅更直接，揚言要炒得企業做不下去，如果給10萬塊錢就可以刪帖。魏某點開“今日焦點網”一看，企業的負面新聞果然在頭條上。不知所措的他找到了一個熟人——經常自誇“本事大、能擺平媒體”的徐州經濟開發區政宣辦幹部竇玉剛。竇答應幫他用5萬元解決此事，並帶他一起再赴北京見韓某。“竇玉剛拿著錢去見對方，沒讓我一起去。”魏某說，幾個小時後，竇玉剛就表示“搞定了”。如釋重負的魏某多次向竇致謝。一個多月後，警方端掉這一犯罪團伙，連帶偵破這起案件。直到此時魏某才知道，“趙某”和“韓某”都是犯罪嫌疑人仲偉等假扮，且與竇玉剛是一伙兒的，設計讓自己一步步落入圈套——警方查明，2013年5月，身在徐州的竇玉剛“爆料”給在北京的仲偉，說魏某公司的項目屬於違規建設。仲偉問是否屬實，竇表示不用問了，材料已經準備好。幾天後，竇去北京將材料交給仲偉；仲偉又到徐州實地“調查”一番，拍了一些照片以增強可信度。隨後，仲偉以“社會焦點網”趙姓記者的身份發傳真、打電話要挾，敲詐了魏某公司5萬元。竇玉剛得知後，告訴仲偉“錢給得太少了，這件事情可以再發帖”。仲偉安排人發帖後，以“今日焦點網”韓姓記者的身份再次敲詐魏某公司。此時，竇玉剛應邀出面，他向仲偉謊稱，仲偉第一次拿錢被魏某錄音了，還說魏某有黑社會背景，嚇唬仲偉不敢拿錢。於是，魏某第二次給的5萬元被竇獨吞。這是仲偉團伙最後一次作案，還沒來得及依約刪帖，就被悉數抓獲。警方查明，2010年以來，該團伙在江蘇、安徽等地作案61起，敲詐200余萬元；僅在徐州經濟開發區一地就得手7起，獲利73萬元。“魏某的案子反映出一個典型的網絡敲詐勒索犯罪鏈條。”辦案民警說。敲詐帖文一般是爆料人提供或從網上搜尋，並由專業寫手進一步修改。然後以兩種方式敲詐：一是向被敲詐單位發核稿函，或告知負面新聞在網上發表；二是發帖後再利用網絡推手大肆炒作，以此敲詐錢財。如敲詐成功，則刪帖或不予刊登，事後集體分贓；如不成功，繼續擴大炒作，以報復被敲詐單位。警方介紹，仲偉團伙分工明確，且專業性很強：首犯仲偉經營網站，有多年網絡敲詐“經驗”；負責爆料的竇玉剛等人或能接self storage政府內部信息，或四處搜集負面信息；負責撰寫、加工帖文的阮某是中學教師，文筆較好，還充當網站編輯出面談判；負責網站管理、發帖刪帖及組織網絡“水軍”炒作的黃某是軟件工程師，具有較高的網絡信息技術水平。 仲偉團伙是被打掉的4個團伙之一。該4個團伙還彼此勾結，相互爆料、分別實施敲詐。警方查明，他們近年來在各地大肆作案120余起，涉案金額300余萬元。目前，相關工作尚在進一步進行，案情還在不斷擴大。三兩個人編造“中央背景”為何屢屢得手？辦案民警介紹，45歲的團伙首犯仲偉是江蘇金湖人，原先在《今日中華》雜誌（中國今日焦點網）工作，期間接觸到了網絡這條生財之道，便開始借敲詐大賺“黑錢”。特別是2010年8月敲詐徐州經濟開發區某機械有限公司時，仲偉與前來協調的宣傳部門工作人員竇玉剛結識，竇便成為仲偉團伙的核心爆料人之一。“第一次見面時，仲偉說他的網站很牛，是中央部門主辦的，要是在他的網站上發負面新聞，肯定會讓上級部門下來查。”竇玉剛供述。那次敲詐中，仲偉到手5萬元，當他把其中1萬元作回扣給竇玉剛時，作為受害方代表的竇欣然收下。這樣，原本站在對立面的兩人，發現彼此臭味相投，於是決定結成團伙，大家一起發財，開價根據每次事件的大小來定。因為幾乎每次都能順利解決，竇玉剛在當地的名氣越來越大，被看做“能擺平媒體”的能人，這也是魏某被敲詐時找竇玉剛幫忙的原因。但是，除了“一起發財”，竇玉剛還有其他目的：他養著兩名情婦，敲詐所得大部分都用于此；他屢屢“爆料”再出面“滅火”，是為了打造一個“有本事”的形象，為自己將來提拔積累“政績”。仲偉沒想到，“中國今日焦點網”後來被依法取締，為了繼續敲詐，便開始自建網站。2010年、2012年，他通過虛假注資，分別註冊了南京卓訊文化傳媒有限公司和緯業焦點（北京）文化傳播有限公司，還在北京公司名下註冊了“社會焦點網”“社會網”“時代焦點網”“今日焦點網”“今日視點網”和“現代焦點網”6家網站。然而，這6家網站其實只有黃某一個網管，所有事務由仲偉一個人說了算。“我就是想通過報道社會上的負面新聞和賺取點擊量來賺錢。”仲偉向警方承認，自己並沒有記者證，許多“爆料”也基本不核實，但卻能屢屢得手。這是為什麼呢？警方指出，一個重要原因就是內外勾結。仲偉團伙中有竇玉剛這樣的政宣辦工作人員；另一個以樊宇肖為首犯的團伙中有一名江蘇宜興宣傳部門幹部。這些體制內的人掌握一些企業、單位違規的線索後，便爆料給體制外的團伙成員，一邊從外部威脅施壓，惡意炒作、誇大事實；一邊通過政府內部周旋協調，軟硬兼施脅迫就範。同時，這些犯罪團伙刻意虛構“顯赫身份”，極力顯示自己“能量很大”。例如，仲偉團伙為了唬人，給自己的名片、核稿函都印上了“全國人大常委會、中紀委等單位主管網站”的字樣，偽造“全國人大辦公廳”相關批復的公函；在談判時，屢屢提及全國人大、中紀委、最高人民檢察院等國家機關。樊宇肖團伙則偽造大量“新聞工作證”，編織記者身份。這讓社會公�一般很難辨別，受害單位甚至想不到去核實。“這些虛張聲勢的伎倆確實能騙倒很多人。”另一家受害單位、安徽淮北某項目公司負責人彭某說，當時他就是被仲偉等人的“名頭”嚇到了，以為中央部門要下來查，趕緊破財消災了事。專家說法>>>網絡監管必須探索新的手段人民大學法學院教授陳衛東表示，當前需要進一步規範各類網站的權責歸屬及管理制度，各有關部門要切實負起責任、密切協作、形成合力，堵塞監管漏洞，而不能出了問題一關了之，必須探索新的管理手段，實現對網絡監管和治理常態化、機制化、法制化。中國社會科學院研究員周漢華建議打防並舉，加快網絡立法步伐，加大行政執法力度和依法懲戒力度，以高壓嚴打態勢給違法犯罪分子形成強大威懾。多位專家指出，還應當引導廣大公�和企業單位，一方面要遵紀守法，身正不怕影子斜；另一方面要形成正確的網絡觀，不能將網絡片面地視為洪水猛獸，避之唯恐不及。政府有義務著力提高民�的網上鑑別能力，告知如何辨別非法網站，受到網絡敲詐如何應對；同時，要加強典型案例曝光、剖析，讓公�看清敲詐勒索者的真面目，自覺加入譴責、舉報、闢謠的行列中來。據新華社迷你倉

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Source: The Pueblo Chieftain, Colo.迷你倉Sept. 07--SALIDA -- It won't be a star-studded affair, but stunt drivers will rev their engines and cameras will roll as "Fast & Furious 7" filming takes to Monarch Pass this month.Although the films stars like Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham won't be present, the filming will be a boon to Chaffee County, said Greg Ralph, Monarch Mountain director of marketing. Set up for filming started Thursday."It's going to be filming of action scenes in the forest and its not much to see -- a lot of standing around and setting up shots and the whole area is secured," Ralph said. "It is a pretty good economic boon with (film crews using) 150 hotel rooms, so it's going to put some money in Salida coffers -- a little bit of action at a slow time of year."U.S. Forest Service director Ben Lara said the forest service has issued a permit for commercial filming on Old Monarch Pass and within the Monarch Mountain ski area boundaries. The permit requires a "nominal" fee, he said."My staff will monitor the process and the impacts will be nominal and minimal. It is amazing what they can do with special effects and computer generation," Lara said.Lara and Ralph said staging for the film crew will take place at the paved parking lot at Monarch Mountain where all the equipment trucks and meals will be stationed."They will be shooting stuff on Pikes Peak in Colorado Springs and at Monarch depending on where the weather isfrom page 5A ________________________________________________ more suitable. They will be in the state for abou儲存倉 a month," Ralph said.Heart of the Rockies Chamber Executive Director Lori Roberts said she was told about 275 people will be involved in the filming."It will be an obvious boost -- a plus for the hotels, the restaurants and the gas stations," Roberts said. "I think the hotels are going to be filled, which is unexpected this time of year."Chaffee County Visitors Bureau Director April Prout-Ralph said the boost to the economy is welcome even as the county is coming off a good summer with a 6 percent increase in lodging tax revenue."It is exciting to get this kind of business as it slows down and anything to help put us on the map is welcome," Prout-Ralph said. "It will be fun to be part of the Hollywood scene for a few weeks."Colorado Film Commission Chair Donald Zuckerman said the state Economic Development Commission voted to give the Fast and Furious franchise $700,000 worth of incentives to film in Colorado. In turn the movie producers will drop quite a bit of cash in Southern Colorado."We are talking over $5 million in direct expenditures in Colorado," Zuckerman said. They intend to use 4,000 hotel room nights each in Salida and Colorado Springs over the month.""They also have pledged to give us footage, at the appropriate time, which we could use to promote Colorado," Zuckerman said.The film is scheduled for a July 11 release, according to the IMDb website. tharmon@chieftain.comCopyright: ___ (c)2013 The Pueblo Chieftain (Pueblo, Colo.) Visit The Pueblo Chieftain (Pueblo, Colo.) at .chieftain.com Distributed by MCT Information Services迷你倉價錢

Source: The Philadelphia InquirerSept.文件倉 07--Insanity was contagious at Ajax, the madness by the experimental Attis Theatre from Greece, which adapted in maddening fashion Sophocles' play about the bewitched warrior who slaughters animals, believing they're his human enemies.Such delusions are induced by the gods, making Ajax a manipulated fighting machine.Director Theodoros Terzopoulos zeroed in on the play's violent kernel, the slaughter scenes, with purposeful repetition guided by minimalist aesthetics -- taking a sliver of material and mining it relentlessly.Ajax isn't meant to be enjoyable, but this version was time best spent by theater professionals in the audience, some of whom had attended acting workshops Attis held this week at the Wilma Theater, which copresented the production.During the prologue, one admired the physical stamina of the three shirtless actors -- Tasos Dimas, Savvas Stroumpos, and Meletis Ilias -- who maintained laughter (from giggles to maniacal cackles) throughout the utterly static first 15 minutes. But to what end? We know Ajax is mad. The laughter suggested the actors were unhinged. And the audience could have felt similarly crazy by the end.The story was related存倉rather than enacted, the same section told three times by each of the actors, one with knives, one with meat cleavers, and the third with red stiletto heels. In effect, the play's moments of maximum action unfolded with minimum movement.Nothing was casual here. Even the rips in the actors' trousers revealed a blood-red lining. The performance ended with the Pink Floyd song "Get Your Filthy Hands Off My Desert," a protest of modern military invasion only roughly analogous to the Ajax section played here.By that time, the production had failed to create the cumulative tension it seemed to be after. As in the similarly repetitive stage works of composer Salvatore Sciarrino, this seemed more about obsession than artistic vision. I was left desensitized to the horrors of Ajax in ways that made the state of the world seem more hopeless, and my own role in it even more ineffective. Thanks a lot, guys.Contact David Patrick Stearns at dstearns@phillynews.com.8 p.m. Saturday at the Wilma Theater, 266 S. Broad St. Tickets: $20-$35. 215-413-1318 or fringearts.com.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 The Philadelphia Inquirer Visit The Philadelphia Inquirer at .philly.com Distributed by MCT Information Services迷你倉

Now 83, renowned calligrapher Li Duo has chronicled life, history and society, Yang Feiyue reportsIn the autumn of 2011, famed calligrapher Li Duo held a poetry and calligraphy exhibition at the military museum in Beijing and created quite a sensation in China’s art circles.儲存倉The exhibition featured more than 140 works of poetry and calligraphy by Li, the fruit of his 70 years in the art business.It attracted an audience of more than 300,000 and hundreds of leaders and senior officials from the Central Military Commission and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference. All spoke highly of his work. The exhibition also received a letter of congratulations from Liu Yunshan, a member of the Party’s top leadership body.In the letter, Liu said the prosperity and progress of calligraphy depends on both heritage and innovation. Li achieved both and made extraordinary contributions to the art form, he wrote.Li received a lifetime achievement award at the second Chinese Calligraphy Lanting Pavilion Awards in 2006, the most prestigious honor in Chinese calligraphy. He also won a special award in 2001 for his contributions to calligraphy.“I have long heard of Li’s talent in poetry, but I was still deeply impressed by his exquisite exhibition,” said Sun Jiazheng, chairman of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles.The strokes of Li’s calligraphy perfectly blend with the content of his poetry, which reflects well on his vast learning and perfectly defines a cultural atmosphere, said Sun.When the 81-year-old calligrapher showed up at the exhibition, introducing the background and details of his creations in his booming voice, everyone was absorbed, Sun recalls.Li also has profound attainment in classic poetry. His verses are brisk, like a breath of fresh air, with every single word a reflection of the light of his wisdom, said Sun.His works are filled with love and compliments to China’s magnificent landscapes, as well as to the social community and life, Sun added.“His poetry is filled with revolutionary heroism and romantic color, and reading them broadens my outlook,” said Sun.“We have to look at Li’s poetry when studying his calligraphy, which will give us a clear view of the trajectory of his artistic development,” said Sun.His 377-word Long Live the Motherland depicts a senior Party member’s patriotism and dedication to his country, said Sun.Since 2011, Li has been very responsive to the Chinese government’s campaign to get in touch with grassroots people, and improve work ethics and writing. He went to classrooms, rural areas and military bases to talk with students, farmers and soldiers and to share his work and enrich their cultural activities.A collection of his poetry Qinghuaiyincao that came out in the summer attracted wide attention from other poets and calligraphers.The compendium published 263 of more than his 500 works created from 1973 to 2012 and covers his military life. His poetry gives full expr迷你倉價錢ssion to his love of China, his interest in the country’s grand landscapes and his refined cultural temperament.Born in 1930, Li enlisted the army in 1949. He now works as a consultant at the Chinese Calligraphers Association and a professor at the Military Museum of the Chinese People’s Revolution.“Li’s poetry collection has set an example for calligraphy art circles in the future and will be a perfect teaching material for the younger generations,” said Kong Lingyi, curator of the military museum.The collection fully showcases the charm of classic Chinese poetry, according to Zhang Daocheng, president of the Beijing Century Celebrity International Painting and Calligraphy Institute.Works composed after Li turned 70 comprise a majority of the collection, including more than 40 works from 2004 when the poet expressed his ambition for greater achievements in his late years.“Li’s poetry is a true reflection of his character. He has paid special attention to the healthy growth of young people, and often does charity work for society, especially for people at the grassroots level,” said Zhang, who also expressed his gratitude for Li’s painstaking efforts in the development of the institute.Li loves traditional culture and has an acute artistic perception, and his approach to creativity is full of life and very popular with the public, said Zhang Kunshan, member of the Chinese Calligraphers Association.Some of his works recount major historical events such as the return of Hong Kong and the Launch of the Shenzhou spacecraft. Some were created as he traveled around the country, such as at the Longmen Grottoes and the Lijiang River.Li also created many works on landscapes, bird-and-flower paintings and figure paintings using concise language in harmony with the scenes, said Zhang.In 1995, Li finished his rendering of Sun Tze’s The Art of War. Stretching more than 220 meters, the manuscript went on display at the military museum the same year, receiving very good reviews from the State leaders of the time including Jiang Zemin.InnovationIn recent years, Li has focused on innovations in the art of calligraphy, working on the development of theories in the art and education.Studying various works by famous calligraphers in China’s history since he was in his youth, Li maintained a critical eye for magnum opuses and gradually developed his own style.His works are widely regarded as unassuming and aesthetic, delicate yet in touch with life, and are very popular in China and abroad.Some have made their way to the United Nations, other places in the United States and Europe.On the home front, many of his works can be found in newspapers and magazines, and many are enshrined in noted museums or inscribed at tourist attractions for visitors to enjoy and appreciate.Li has also been invited to Japan and Southeast Asian countries on many occasions for exhibitions and lectures on calligraphy.Contact the writer at yangfeiyue@chinadaily.com.cn迷你倉

Source: The Post-Crescent, Appleton, Wis.儲存Sept. 07--Revived negotiations this week could signal that a resolution of the six-week dispute between Time Warner Cable and Journal Broadcast Group is near.Or not.By Friday night, retransmission fee issues had not been resolved and the switch had not yet been flipped to return the WGBA-TV Channel 26 signal to cable subscribers.But the end could be near.The good news: The dispute doesn't affect Sunday's Green Bay Packers opener against the San Francisco 49ers, which is broadcast at 3:25 p.m. on Fox.The bad news: NBC's "Sunday Night Football," pitting the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys, is blacked out for Time Warner Cable subscribers unless an agreement is reached.Both sides said negotiations took on a new tone this week."The negotiations are much more active than they have been," said Joe Poss, general manager of WGBA, the NBC station in Green Bay. "Our goal is to get this resolved as soon as possible. This is a football town an新蒲崗迷你倉 we want it done. There's a potential that this will be done, but there's no guarantee I can give you."Time Warner Cable's Midwest spokesman Mike Hogan also commented on changes in negotiations this week."We are in active discussions with Journal, and we're working hard to reach a fair agreement to restore its stations to our lineups," he said in a midday email Friday to Post-Crescent Media."In fact, we met for the very first time this week with actual Journal employees, instead of only their third-party consultants."Subscribers by this point are familiar with their alternatives to watch NBC, including installing a high-definition digital antenna or seeking out the station on satellite or other cable systems.-- Maureen Wallenfang: 920-993-1000, ext. 287, or mwallenfang@postcrescent.com; on Twitter @wallenfangCopyright: ___ (c)2013 The Post-Crescent (Appleton, Wis.) Visit The Post-Crescent (Appleton, Wis.) at .postcrescent.com Distributed by MCT Information Servicesmini storage

Source: Pittsburgh Post-GazetteSept.迷你倉 07--"We providing a service to the community. We ain't just giving rides to people. We providing a service."-- August Wilson's "Jitney," 1979Pittsburgh has a unique attachment to its illicit transportation system. While other cities stamped out jitneys 100 years ago or saw the emergence of illegal "dollar vans" for immigrant populations, the Pittsburgh area still has nearly the same system of unregulated private cars servicing low-income neighborhoods that playwright August Wilson dramatized in his first major work three decades ago.It has persisted because residents of such neighborhoods say they cannot depend on authorized taxi services. Such neighborhoods also have low auto-ownership rates, making them especially dependent and hurt by cuts to mass transit. So jitneys persist as a cheap and convenient transportation alternative, despite being dangerous.On Wednesday morning, two men pulled up next to jitney driver Cornelius Swinton in Homewood on the day after his 92nd birthday and shot him in the neck, shoulder and hand while targeting his back-seat passenger. In April, two men in Wilkinsburg called a jitney in order to rob it, police charged, and fatally shot driver Monica Proviano in the head and stole her car. In May, 59-year-old jitney driver John Haas was fatally shot in the head at a McKeesport housing complex when police said the shooter misidentified him as a rival gang member. The same month, a jitney passenger told police a driver robbed him at knife point in Banksville.Drivers think about crime "constantly. You have a world where war is prevalent," said a young jitney driver on the North Side, who took up the trade three years ago after working for a licensed limousine service. "You try your best to be careful."Another North Side driver, who is 82, said the key for both jitney drivers and passengers in staying safe is to develop ties to people you trust. He has a customer list developed over five decades on the job while the younger driver -- who is in his 30s -- is just collecting his."You have to know what you're doing, or you get caught in the web," the older man said.The jitney industry emerged in cities nationwide in the 1910s as an alternative to streetcars but was largely wiped out within the decade by government regulation and subsidies for authorized providers. Through the rest of the century jitney services were kept alive by underserved populations: from blacks getting restricted access to buses in the pre-Civil Rights Era South to immigrants today in such cities as New York and Miami piling into vans (called "immi" vans or "camionetas") to get to work or the store.There are good reasons to take cheap -- if illegal -- transit. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, transportation accounted for 17 percent of spending by the average American family in 2011, the second largest expense after housing. That spending increased by 8 percent over the previous year, the biggest jump in any category.An estimated 120,000 people use jitneys every day in New York, which if legitimate would make them among the nation's top 25 transit providers. There, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority briefly regulated jitneys after bus routes were reduced in 2010, and residents elsewhere have leaned on the illicit cab systems after cuts in their cities.In St. Louis, the Metro Transit system cut its routes by a third in 2009, before voters approved a new transit tax the next year. In the meantime, bus rides from low-income communities to work centers increased to two to three hours -- but jitneys got workers to the same centers in 45 minutes to an hour, one study showed.In Allegheny County, the Port Authority eliminated 29 bus routes and trimmed 80 in 2011. It has warned another 35 percent in cuts is looming without increased state funding.In Pittsburgh, jitney drivers congregate at grocery stores and the Downtown Greyhound station, or at jitney stations sprinkled around the city and suburbs. They are usually storefronts or garages where drivers pay dues to take calls for jitney pickup, just as they do in the late Wilson's play -- the stati儲存n he dramatized is still on Wylie Avenue in the Hill District, relocated a couple of blocks away. Some drivers are trustworthy and safe, though some others use their cars to sell or transport drugs.In the city, residents of the Hill, Homewood, Garfield and other neighborhoods without supermarkets depend on jitneys to get to Giant Eagle stores on the North Side, South Side and in East Liberty. Store managers rarely send them away."The store needs us as much as we need them," said one driver, who like others would not identify himself.Local law enforcement knows that, too. There are areas in the city and county, said Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr., where "cab companies quite frankly have said, 'We're not going to go there.' So there is a need for jitneys."His office is more concerned about a spike lately in fake cab drivers picking up intoxicated women on the city's South Side, and plans to install license plate recognition technology in the entertainment district to track them and other lawbreakers.Comparatively, "to run a jitney is not that serious of a crime," Mr. Zappala said. "... There's a niche and people have filled that niche. I don't know that it's a good thing, but people have to get around."Realizing jitneys fill a transit gap, government agencies around the country have tried to regulate them but almost always fail. Jitneys service specific markets so when government agencies begin treating them like regular transportation providers -- requiring them to service designated routes, obtain licences and so on -- ridership decreases and so does interest by drivers.Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco and Miami have all tried over the past few decades to create regulated jitney markets and failed, according to research by Columbia University's David King. He said Miami has had the most success largely by licensing its private van operators but then leaving them alone.Cities are wrestling with regulating a new wave of Web services -- such as Uber.com -- that coordinate shared rides over social media, while also studying how to rein in some old-fashioned jitneys and buses. In the greater New York area, calls have increased this summer for regulation of illicit "dollar bus" services after one struck and killed an infant July 30 in northern New Jersey."Taken together, what we have is a tremendous interest in what is a very old but very newly visible type of transit. The regulatory environment is unclear," said Mr. King, an assistant professor of urban planning."The regulatory calls you're hearing now are the same regulatory calls we've been hearing for a hundred years."Cab services in Pennsylvania (except in Philadelphia) are overseen by the Public Utility Commission. To be licensed, drivers have to pay a $350 fee and submit to a background check and drug testing, have their trips and calls logged, and be priced by a meter. Dome lights have to be affixed to the cab's roof and a PUC number to its fender.Jitneys typically have none of those things, and the PUC agents will periodically go undercover and pose as customers to charge drivers with violations. Investigators cited 21 Western Pennsylvania jitney drivers from November 2012 through January 2013, the last period for which data was available.The commission also investigates regulated taxi services -- if they are licensed to cover an entire city, by law they cannot refuse service to any neighborhood in that city. It collects complaints about refusals at its website, .puc.state.pa.us, or toll-free at 1-800-692-7380.The commission "often gets complaints that in neighborhoods such as Homewood you cannot get a taxi," PUC spokeswoman Jennifer Kocher said. "We encourage people to use certified carriers, and if they refuse to come out to a community where they are licensed, to file a complaint with us."Officials from the city's largest taxi company, the Yellow Cab Co., could not be reached for comment.Tim McNulty: tmcnulty@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1581.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Visit the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette at .post-gazette.com Distributed by MCT Information Services新蒲崗迷你倉

Source: Pioneer Press, St.文件倉 Paul, Minn.Sept. 07--A St. Paul police officer was driving up to 70 mph on Grand Avenue, heading to assist fellow officers, when she collided with another car last year.The driver in the other car, which had pulled in front of the squad car, was knocked unconscious and critically injured in the crash. After an internal affairs investigation, St. Paul's police chief issued a 15-day suspension to the officer and ordered her to go through "retraining in police driving protocols," according to her discipline letter.In St. Paul, the police department's Accident Review Board deemed 48 squad car accidents last year "preventable" out of a total of 84. That was the highest number of accidents since at least 2008. On average, there were 36 preventable accidents each year between 2008 and 2011, a Pioneer Press analysis found.Each day, police officers make decisions that balance the need to respond quickly to emergencies with the risks to others on the roads. St. Paul police spokesman Sgt. Paul Paulos said officers usually do so without incident -- "99.9 percent of the time, we get from point A to point B safely," he said.That was not the case in Minneapolis in May, when an officer was heading to a deadly shooting with his squad car's lights and siren on. He went through a red light at 16 to 17 mph, and a motorcyclist, Ivan Romero Olivares, struck the rear of the squad car, according to Minneapolis police. Olivares, 24, was killed.On Aug. 21, a 101-year-old pedestrian died after being injured when a St. Paul police squad car backed into her. The officer had responded to a complaint about a juvenile and was slowly backing up when her Ford Explorer SUV hit Roza Sakhina on Aug. 16, police have said. Both that case and the Minneapolis one remain under investigation.In the St. Paul police statistics about squad car accidents, not all crashes resulted in injuries, and some accidents were minor, such as a squad car scraping a fire hydrant or garbage can, Paulos said."Any timeyou see somewhat of an increase (in the number of accidents), it raises a question, but at the same time, our chief is very proactive in looking at how to solve issues, get the officers the best training out there and make everyone as safe as possible," Paulos said.'UNSAFE AND DANGEROUS'In the squad car accident that ended in serious injury on Grand Avenue last year, officer Jennifer Mink told the police department she was trying to provide backup to officers who were stopping a vehicle wanted in a gun-pointing incident, though no police radio transmissions indicated the officers needed help, according to the internal affairs review, which was among public information released by police at the Pioneer Press' request. The department also released video from Mink's squad car that shows the officer's driving behavior before the crash and the accident.During the internal affairs investigation, a sergeant questioned Mink about the speed she was traveling and why she wasn't aware that other officers were providing backup.The sergeant wrote in an internal affairs report: "I asked Officer Mink why she was not able to hear squads responding on the (police) radio as she responded. ... Officer Mink did not have an answer. I asked if maybe the reason she could not hear the (police) radio was because her stereo was on. Officer Mink said no and that it was because she was focused on driving."Mink drove up to 87 mph while responding to the call, the police investigation found. The speed limit at the accident site on Grand Avenue near the Ayd Mill Road exit ramp was 30 mph, though police responding to emergencies are not bound to the posted speed limit.State law says officers have "the duty to drive with due regard for the safety of persons using the street." Prosecutors reviewed the accident involving Mink and found no basis to file criminal charges against her.But Police Chief Thomas Smith suspended Mink for violating department policy, including driving vehicles with "reasonable care."He wrote in Mink's discipline letter: "As a police officer you have a responsibility for the public's safety. This includes making sound decisions and operating an emergency vehicle in accordance with department regulations and training with due regard for the safety of other persons and vehicles operating on the same streets. Your actions in this instance were unsafe and dangerous to others and yourself."CAR PULLS INTO LANEPolice reports and a report about the internal affairs investigation give the following account of what happened in last year's squad car crash:It was Jan. 30, 2012, when Mink was on patrol in a marked cruiser and heading to a call. She was driving south on Snelling Avenue, in the area of Highland Parkway, when she heard over the police radio an officer requesting assistance on another call -- stopping a vehicle involved in an earlier gun-pointing incident.Mink told the police department she recalled reading an alert, which said that "if that car was located to use caution because there could be guns in the car," a police report said.Though Mink said she knew she wasn't near the suspect car (she was 2.4 miles away when the car was stopped near Lexington Parkway and Concordia Avenue), she noted that the call came during a shift change and said "she believed there was an inadequate number of squads responding, because of the nature of the call," according to the report in the internal affairs investigation.Mink turned on her emergency lights and siren and made a U-turn to head north on Snelling Avenue. Mink was alternating different siren sounds along with the squad's air horn, reports said.She went east on Grand Avenue and, near Kowalski's Market, the officer said, she saw a silver car on Ayd Mill Road halt at the stop sign and then slowly pull onto Grand Ave存倉ue. The Toyota Camry stopped in the middle of Grand Avenue. Mink said she made eye contact with the driver.Mink said she applied her brakes mildly to moderately because she thought the car was going to continue crossing her lane and turn left onto Grand Avenue, but the car didn't move."Officer Mink also indicated seeing a vehicle to her left and wasn't sure if the silver car would have been able to turn onto W/B Grand because of the vehicle that had pulled over," a police report said. "She (Mink) then said she tried to turn her steering wheel to the right to try to go around the car to the right but when the car stopped she crashed." The accident happened about 4:40 p.m.Lidia Pavitova, then 28 and a River Falls, Wis., resident, was knocked unconscious from the impact; St. Paul firefighters had to extricate her from the car.A letter dated April 2012 said that as far as the Ramsey County attorney's office knew at the time, Pavitova was still in Regions Hospital's intensive-care unit. At that point, she'd been put into "a medically-induced coma while doctors waited for swelling to go down to do further assessment and treatment," the letter said.More recently, Pavitova's sister said in a message that her sister is doing well and improving every day, but otherwise didn't respond to Pioneer Press requests for comment.Neither Mink nor the St. Paul police union's president responded to requests seeking comment.NO 'RECKLESS DISREGARD FOR ... SAFETY'Mink told the department that she hadn't looked at her speed while driving because "her attention was focused on the road," a police report said. Mink had reduced her speed as she approached intersections and sped up in between, "reaching speeds of 60, 65, 70, 75, with the top speed of 87 mph," the internal affairs summary said.An internal affairs sergeant questioned Mink about whether "87 mph was a reasonable speed to respond to the traffic stop that possibly had weapons in the vehicle," the internal affairs report said. "Officer Mink said yes." She added that "she needed to get there as quick as she could in case something 'really really bad happened.' "Before the accident, when Mink began braking, she was traveling between 64 and 70 mph, according to the collision analysis and reconstruction report. The maximum speed the squad car "could have been traveling and had sufficient time to perceive, respond, and brake to stop" within the approximately 178 feet between it and the Camry was 44 mph, the investigation said.The Ramsey County attorney's office and Minneapolis city attorney's office, which reviewed the case to avoid a potential conflict of interest for their St. Paul counterparts, declined to file charges.The county attorney's office memo declining charges said "65-70 miles per hour in a 30 mph zone is very fast; however, one cannot ignore the fact that this officer was responding to a serious call using appropriate lights and emergency sounds. Her driving as a whole looked appropriate under the circumstances."The city attorney's memo said Mink's decision to exceed the speed limit "falls within the statutory exception for the use of an emergency vehicle and is not inherently criminal in nature solely because of the tragic consequences of this case. Rather, the proper standard for review is whether Officer Mink exhibited a reckless disregard for the safety of others." The letter concluded, "the evidence does not suggest a reckless disregard for the safety of others by Officer Mink."MORE TRAINING ORDEREDMink, who joined the St. Paul Police Department academy as a police trainee in October 2009 and became an officer in January 2010, had not been disciplined before this case. Her personnel file noted nine thank-you notes for her work.Five days of Mink's 15-day suspension are to be held in abeyance for one year, and the discipline is to be reduced on paper to a 10-day suspension after one year if "there are no same or similar actions," Chief Smith's December letter said.Smith wrote in the letter that Mink had to go through "retraining in police driving protocols."All peace officers in Minnesota are required to complete an eight-hour course in emergency-vehicle operations and police pursuits every five years.The St. Paul Police Department puts its officers through the training every three years, Paulos said. In addition to driving on a closed course, St. Paul added an online component to training this year for all officers. The mandatory computerized training showed officers various driving scenarios that they had to respond to, and they had to pass a written test after each unit of the training, Paulos said.The department added this additional training because, Paulos said, "We're always seeking new ways to train and how to operate our squad cars during emergency situations."Last year, during an arbitration hearing for another officer disciplined for a squad car crash, the union representing St. Paul police officers "submitted evidence purportedly showing that Chief Smith had become concerned with the number of recent costly accidents and had instructed the ARB (Accident Review Board) chair and senior command staff to come up with ideas to reduce the number of accidents and injuries," according to an arbitrator's ruling on the union grievance over the officer's discipline.But Smith testified during the arbitration hearing "that he did not direct the ARB chair to make an example of" the officer in that case "in order to further this objective," the ruling said.MaryJo Webster contributed to this report.Mara H. Gottfried can be reached at 651-228-5262. Follow her at twitter.com/MaraGottfried or twitter.com/ppUsualSuspects.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 the Pioneer Press (St. Paul, Minn.) Visit the Pioneer Press (St. Paul, Minn.) at .twincities.com Distributed by MCT Information Services迷你倉

Source: Tulsa World, Okla.迷你倉Sept. 06--Most are familiar with the insurance company commercial on television that features an attractive young woman who believes that if it's on the Internet, it has to be true.She tells a friend that she has just been swept off her computer screen by a charming Frenchman.And here he comes now, eager and ready for his date powered by the Internet.The obvious question in this scenario is: Is this guy really French?He appears to have stopped on the way to this date to browse through a Dumpster. He seems to be about as French as Paris, Texas.As the eager and attractive young woman strolls off with the alleged Frenchman, most viewers would express concern for the well-being of the female.Here's what I think happens. It's the woman running a con game on the poor slob, and not the other way around. Once out of camera range, she pins him against a fence and mugs him, leaving him roughed up in a pile of leftovers.The Internet is often a field of illusion.Get smart: The technological miracle of the week is the Dick Tracy watch, the smart watch, the world on your wrist for about $300.The smart watch will enable the wearer to get messages, take pictures, and drive through more red lights.Whereas it might seem to some to be technology for technology's儲存sake, the smart watch could improve manners. Instead of somebody rudely looking down at a smartphone during person-to-person conversation, the smart watch screen is so small that the wearer will have to bring it to eye-level and near the nose to see who is asking what's up.Smartphone, smart glasses, smart television, smart pad, smart watch, dumb weekends alone.Convicted in a free trial: The best Internet con ever is the free trial for a short period of time.Free nutritional supplement, free credit check, free trial subscription, simply click here.But opting out is like a game of Where's Waldo's Phone Number?No matter how big-time a website appears, the home office can be in the back of a station wagon in Curacao.The Contact Us phone number is seldom the opt-out phone number.To get out of a free trial, you might have to know a 37-digit account number that you didn't even know you had.In a conversation today, my attempt to cancel a free trial featured this request numerous times, "Please, I beg you, don't hang up."Before you take anything free, chart the road to cancellation.Out there on the Internet, they want your money.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 Tulsa World (Tulsa, Okla.) Visit Tulsa World (Tulsa, Okla.) at .tulsaworld.com Distributed by MCT Information Services新蒲崗迷你倉

LONDON, September 6, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --UK based SUISSE BANK PLC closes bank guarantee debut with INGTRADE FINANCE specialist SUISSE BANK PLC has entered into a landmark EUR5million trade finance agreement with global financial institution ING.mini storageWorld leader ING joined the SUISSE BANK PLC trade finance network with the acceptance of a multi-million euro bank guarantee instrument.A spokesperson for SUISSE BANK PLC said: "We are very pleased ING accepted our bank guarantee instrument and made the decision to join our trade finance network.""This is a clear demonstration that SUISSE BANK PLC is focused on providing value for our customers and evidence of our interest in properly understanding the needs of the global trade finance market," the spokesperson said.SUISSE BANK PLC supplies comprehensive trade finance instruments from its secure online platform allowing speedy adoption of guarantees (BG), standby letters of credit (SBLC), documentary letters of credit (LC), proofs of funds (POF) and warranties (avals).Through its website .suissebank.com, the bank is focused on facilitating quick data transformation while guaranteeing security, legal certainty, and document oself storageiginality."The considerable amount of financial institutions already linked to SUISSE BANK PLC proves that companies are demanding our technological skills in relation to speed of deployment of our various trade finance instruments," the SUISSE BANK PLC spokesperson said.SUISSE BANK PLC's sister company FARGO BANK LIMITED provides further products and services - not only in the private banking sector such as cash management, capital markets and account management, debit cards and E-Banking - but also in the corporate banking sector such as international payments, leasing and trust services.ABOUT SUISSE BANK PLC: SUISSE BANK PLC is a company incorporated in England with a registered office in London. Its primary competencies are in the fields of trade financing including guarantees, standby-and/or letters of credit and warranties. A lean and efficient organisation with high mobility and absolute confidentiality, SUISSE BANK PLC offers its services only to its shareholders and not to the general public.FOR MORE INFORMATION: Please log on to .suissebank.comand fill in our contact form. In the alternative, you can call us in London on +44-(0)20-3159-5052.SUISSE BANK PLC迷你倉

This story was first published in The Sunday Times on Sept 1, 2013London and Paris just do not cut it anymore: An increasing number of Singaporeans are eschewing traditional European tourist hotspots for the continent's less-visited countries.迷你倉出租Travel agencies are reporting an increase of 30 to 35 per cent in bookings to more exotic European locations so far this year, compared to last year, but the agencies decline to reveal absolute numbers.Such up-and-coming destinations include Portugal, the Vatican City, countries in Scandinavia and Eastern Europe, as well as the less-traversed towns of Italy.Ms Alicia Seah, vice-president of CTC Travel, says: "The strong Singapore dollar against the euro now means Singaporeans have more spending power in Europe." The Singapore dollar is $1.69 to the euro.Many Singapore travellers have already been to Central Europe and are now looking for destinations beyond the major cities in countries such as Switzerland and France, she adds.Administrator Mary Lim, 54, returned last month from a 12-day tour of Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Finland with ASA Holidays. The weaker euro influenced her decision to explore Scandinavia, says Ms Lim, who has previously toured Italy, Paris and Switzerland."I've been eyeing the region for a while now," she adds. "Since the exchange rate is favourable, I thought it would be a good time to travel and explore a new place."Similarly motivated by the attractive exchange rate, finance manager Veronica Low, 69, booked a 13-day trip to Eastern Europe with CTC Travel at the recent travel fair organised by the National Association of Travel Agents Singapore or Natas."I had been watching the currency exchange rate for a while and exchanged some of my money for euros even before I had booked my holiday. When I saw the rate fall so much, I decided I had to act immediately," she says.Ms Low, who has visited France, Italy and Switzerland on previous trips, says she was attracted to the tour of Eastern Europe - with stops in Austria, Hungary, Czech Republic and Poland - because she had read that it was very different from Central Europe."The cities I saw in Central Europe were more familiar and looked like places I had seen before. The pace of life, culture and architecture of Eastern Europe are completely different and that really attracted me," she says.The currency depreciation has also meant that travellers are keen to get to know a particular country well, says MsEileen Oh of ASA Holidays."Many Singaporeans have been to the usual suspects of Central Europe and are taking advantage of the favourable euro to visit other parts of Europe, or to tour Europe in depth," she says.As an example, she cites how at least 15per cent more of ASA Holidays' customers this year are choosing to spend time in a single European destination - as opposed to visiting multiple countries in a "touch and go" fashion - compared to last year.Italy, one of the most popular destinations for Singaporean tourists, is still yielding new-on-the-radar cities and towns. These include the "tranquil and quaint" Orvieto, a city in south-western Umbria, which sits on a rock of solid volcanic ash; and Greve in Chianti, in Tuscany, with its many mediaeval buildings, says Chan Brothers' spokesman Michelle Yin.The Italian hill town of Montepulciano has become popular lately as well, says CTC Travel's Ms Seah, probably because scenes in one of the blockbuster Twilight movies were filmed there.Mr David Chang, 61, decided to spend two weeks last year exploring southern Italy with his wife and three other couples - all seasoned travellers."I didn't want to do one of those trips where you cover the whole of Europe in 14 days. We decided to focus on one country," says the retired owner of a manufacturing company, who has visited more than 10 European countries on multi-city tours. These included Britain, Germany, Holland and France. He had also been to big Italian cities such as Milan and Rome."Even then, two weeks was not enough to get to know the whole country, so we further narrowed it down to the south of Italy," he adds.Their trip last year with Chan's World Holiday, a bespoke travel agency owned by Chan Brothers, included the ancient town of Pompeii and the island of Capri."I much preferred the slower pace of exploring just one region," he concludes.jennanid@sph.com.sgThis story was first published in The Sunday Times on Sept 1, 2013To subscribe to The Straits Times, please go to .sphsubscription.com.sg/eshop/Spitz is one of the historic towns near Vienna.AUSTRIAThis small, landlocked country can often be overlooked as it borders eight other European nations. Its capital Vienna, however, is a cultural and economic hub, and is known for being the home of the father of psychoanalysis Sigmund Freud.Highlights:Visit Schonbrunn Palace and its gardens (Schonbrunner Schlosstra?e 47 1130 Vienna, tel: +43-1-8111-3239, .schoenbrunn.at/en.html), the former summer residence of the Habsburg imperial family. The rooms are mainly decorated in the 18th-century Rococo style, with white lacquered walls and ceilings, crystal chandeliers and gold leaf ornamentation. In 1772, child prodigy Mozart, then six, gave a concert in the palace's Hall of Mirrors.Visit Sigmund Freud Museum and see the famous shrink's former apartment and office, as well as an exhibition showcasing his life and work. Finish your visit with coffee at Cafe Landtmann (Universitatsring 4, 1010 Vienna, tel: +43-1- 2410-0120, .landtann.at), Freud's preferred coffee house, where a cuppa costs around S$6.Visit the Hofburg Palace (Michaelerkuppel, Hofburg, 1010 Vienna, tel: +43-1-5337-570, .hofburg-wien.at/en.html), the official residence of the Austrian President, which has housed the Habsburg royal family and served as their principal winter residence. Built in 1279, it has been expanded over the centuries, since the 1200s to include museums, the treasury, the national theatre and a riding school.See St Charles' Church (Kreuzherrengasse 1, 1040 Vienna, tel: +43-1-5046-187, .karlskirche.at), an impressive building in the Baroque style erected in the early 1700s. It is one of the city's iconic buildings, with its distinctive dome and bas-relief columns.Best time to visit: May to October when Vienna's gardens and parks get busy as the cold thaws. Street cafes come to life once it is warm enough for outdoor seating.Go with: CTC Travel's 13-day Eastern Europe Spectacular, which covers Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic and Germany. Prices start from $2,388. To book, call CTC Travel on 6536-3995 or go to .ctc.com.sg.SOUTHERN ITALYThe South of Italy has been gaining popularity with tourists, with its quaint small towns such as Montepulciano and Greve, vibrant landscapes, and rich history.Highlights:Take a cable car ride up to the mediaeval hilltop town of Orvieto. See the Duomo, an elaborate church in the middle of town with a Gothic facade, before exploring the town's underground caverns and cellars.Visit the small town of Greve, known for its wine and olive oil, and try samples of both at La Cantine di Greve.Travel to Cinque Terre, a Unesco World Heritage Site, where five villages run across the coastline above the Gulf of Poets. Explore the villages of Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza and Monterosso via old footpaths that run through the vineyards and olive groves between the villages.Best time to visit: Mid-March to early May, when the weather is mild enough for visitors to walk and cycle around leisurely.Go with: Chan Brothers' 11-day Italia Infinito tour, which covers Siena, Greve, LaSpezia, Bologna and Parma. Prices start from $3,438. To book, call 6438-8880 or go to .ChanBrothers.com.A view of Bratislava city centre from the Danube river.SLOVAKIASlovakia's capital city, Bratislava, has its fair share of ancient and religious history to be explored.Highlights:Stroll through Old Town, where the traffic-free streets and centuries-old buildings, squares and churches seem out of a fairy tale.Visit St Martin's Cathedral (Rudnayovo namestie 4549/1, 811 01 Bratislava - Stare Mesto-Old Town, tel: +421-2-544-313-59), built in a stark Gothic style, where 19 Hungarian kings and queens were coronated.Lose yourself in one of the city's many quirky museums. There is the Museum of Clocks (Zidovska Street 1, tel.:+421-2- 5441-19-40), wh迷你倉ch showcases the history of clock-making and has many unique sun-dials, wall clocks and alarm clocks. The Pharmacy Museum (Michalska Street 26, tel: +421-2-541-31-214) shows the history of pharmacy in the city, as well as the oldest tools for preparing medicine and laboratory ware.See Bratislava castle, which stands on a hill directly above the Danube river (Zamocka, 811 01 Bratislava Old Town, tel: +421-2-544-114-44), from which you can see not just Bratislava, but Austria and Hungary as well.Best time to visit: Late August, when the tourist crowds have thinned and hotels are cheaper. Those who can brave the cold may want to go from late November to December, when a Christmas market opens in Hviezdoslavovo Square, Main Square and Frantiskanske Square.Go with: CTC Travel's 13-day Eastern Europe Spectacular, which covers Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic and Germany. Prices start from $2,388. To book, call CTC Travel on 6536-3995 or go to .ctc.com.sg.Sistine Chapel.VATICAN CITYThink Singapore is small? Take a trip to the smallest country in the world, with an area of 44ha - compared to more than 70,000ha here - and a population of 840. More than just a place of pilgrimage for Catholics, the Vatican City also boasts impressive Renaissance architecture and delicious food.Highlights:Housed inside St Peter's Basilica (Piazza San Pietro 00120 Citta del Vaticano, tel: +39-06-6988-3731) is Michelangelo's famous Renaissance sculpture Pieta. The sculpture depicts Jesus lying on the lap of his mother Mary after his crucifixion.Visit the Sistine Chapel (Viale Vaticano 00120 Citta del Vaticano, tel: +39-06-6988- 4676), famous worldwide for its iconic ceiling showing nine scenes from the Book of Genesis from the Bible, painted by Michelangelo between 1508 and 1512.Chow down at the Pizzarium (Via della Meloria 43, tel: +39-06-3974-5416), a 15-minute walk from St Peter's Basilica. Opened by famed pizza chef Gabriele Bonci, the joint is thought by foodies to serve up the best pizza in the city, with a chewy dough different from the classic thin-crust Italian pizzas.One cannot leave Vatican City without visiting St Peter's Basilica, the burial site of the first Pope, St Peter and many others since. The current Pope, Pope Francis, speaks twice a week at the Basilica, drawing crowds of up to 80,000 people in St Peter's Square. The Pope speaks on Wednesdays and Sundays. To see him on a Sunday , you will have to arrive early in the morning to find a good spot for his noon address.Best time to visit: September, when it is not too cold to stand outdoors in St Peter's Square and the queues are not as bad as in the summer.Go with: Most travel agencies offer trips to Vatican City as part of an Italy tour, including CTC Travel's 13-day Best of Italy, Switzerland and France tour. Prices start from $3,988. To book, call 6536-3995 or go to .ctc.com.sg.Bruges Market Square.BRUGES, BELGIUMCheck out the picturesque Bruges (say "broo-sh") in Belgium. Referred to as the "Venice of the North" because of its many canals, the city almost stole the show in the 2008 crime drama In Bruges, starring Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson as Irish hitmen on an enforced holiday. The city centre is also a Unesco World Heritage Site.Highlights:Visit the Market Square, where you will see eateries, gift shops, horse-drawn carriages and bicycles. In the centre of the square is the 83m-tall Belfry, with a steep, narrow staircase of more than 300 steps.See the Church of Our Lady (Mariastraat, 8000 Brugge, tel: +32-50-34-5314), the tallest structure in the city, which has one of Europe's highest spires at 119m. It houses Michelangelo's 1504 marble sculpture Madonna With Child.Sample two of Belgium's proudest exports, chocolate and beer. Visit Chocolaterie Sukerbuyc, a family-owned chocolate- maker (Katelijnestraat 5, 8000 Brugge, tel: +32-50-33-0887), known for its 90 types of artisanal chocolate; and Belgian brewer De Halve Maan (Walplein 26 8000 Brugge, tel: +32-50-44-4222), for its local brews.Best time to visit: April, around Easter, when the city comes to life with blooming flora. Go in November for the Brugge Chocolate Festival.Go with: Chan Brothers' 10-day Best of Holland, Belgium and Paris tour. Prices start from $2,638. To book, call 6438-8880 or go to .ChanBrothers.com.View from a river cruise along the Douro River in Portugal.PORTUGALSpain's western neighbour is home to one of the biggest Catholic shrines in the world. The country also holds a number of fascinating historical sites.Highlights:Visit the Shrine of Fatima in the town of Fatima, where the Virgin Mary is believed to have appeared on six occasions in front of three children in 1917. The square that houses the shrine also has a wax museum (Rua Jacinta Marto, tel: +351-249-539-300) recounting the story of the apparitions.See the Jeronimos Monastery (Largo Jeronimos 3, 1400-210 Lisbon, tel: +351-21- 362-0004) and the Belem Tower (Avenida Brasilia, 1400-038 Lisbon, tel: +351-21- 362-0034), both designated as Unesco World Heritage Sites. Both sites, which are close to each other, are built in a distinctive Manueline style of architecture, also known as the Portuguese late-Gothic style.Best time to visit: Between March and May or September and October, as the weather is still warm, but the city is not as crowded as it is in the summer.Go with: CTC Travel's 14-day Splendours of Spain, Portugal and Gibraltar tour. Prices start from $2,538. To book, call CTC Travel on 6536-3995 or go to .ctc.com.sg.Greek islands of Mykonos.GREECEFrom its ancient capital city of Athens, the birthplace of the Olympic Games to the volcanoes of Santorini, Greece is diverse in its offerings. Take time to explore the entire Hellenic Republic at a leisurely pace.Highlights:Take a city tour of Athens, stopping at the Pan-Athenaic Olympic Stadium, where the first Olympic Games of modern times were held in 1896. Also visit the Acropolis, an ancient citadel comprising the remains of several old buildings including the iconic Parthenon.Take a boat to the Greek islands of Mykonos and Santorini, which are a beach lovers' paradise with their deep blue waters and golden stretches of sand.Visit the city of Olympia, the site of the Olympic Games in classical times. See the Sanctuary of Olympian Zeus, where Greek athletes first met two millennia ago to honour the Greek God Zeus.The Games were held here every four years before being moved to Athens in their modern incarnation, and the Olympic flame is still lit in this sanctuary to this day.Best time to visit: Peak holiday seasons are July and August, when the weather is warmest, but travellers can enjoy the beaches without the crowds in June or September.Go with: Chan Brothers' nine-day Mythical Greece tour. Prices start from $2,588. To book, call 6438-8880 or go to .ChanBrothers.com.Northern Lights.FINLANDFinland is said to be the home of Santa Claus, making it an especially popular winter destination for Singaporeans at the recent Natas fair. The Nordic country next to Sweden and Norway has an eclectic mix of wintry attractions - a definite change from tropical Singapore.Highlights:Visit a reindeer farm in the Arctic Circle. The owners of Arctic Circle Reindeer Farm, 7km from the centre of the circle, herd the reindeer on their own farm and introduce guests to reindeer herding culture.Visit one of the many Santa Claus- themed attraction. Santa Claus Village, Santapark and Santa Claus Main Post Office are among the sights dedicated to transporting visitors to the magical world of Father Christmas.See the Northern Lights, or Aurora Borealis, a natural light display in the sky. Scientists from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa) of the United States have predicted that this December will be the best time in the next decade to see the Northern Lights, as solar activity is expected to peak.Some hotels in the Lapland area of Finland offer guests the chance to stay overnight in a traditional snow igloo or a glass igloo, where they can see the Northern Lights through the glass ceiling.Best time to visit: December this year, for the Nothern LightsGo with: ASA Holidays' 12-day Spectacular Scandinavia package, which covers Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Finland. Prices start from $4,088. To book, call ASA Holidays on 6303-5388 or go to .asaholiday.com.儲存倉