http://www.epilepsyfoundation.org/efforums/forum/index.cfm?forumid=1 FuseTalk Standard Edition http://www.epilepsyfoundation.org/efforums/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=12&threadid=87125 2009-08-31T04:47:20 -05.00 doneysr 1 if anybody has that it would be the "sailing club"... and the food there is always good.... as is the food at "coco palms".
Take a drive to a beach 30 km off town, seafood nice tasty there
See pix here http://www.traveljournals.net/pictures/vietnam/mui_ne/
You can find more info about Muine beach in:
lonelyplanet
vietnam beaches and travel guide
http://www.travelpod.com
Travel to Hanoi
Travel to HoiAn
Travel to HCM]]> http://www.epilepsyfoundation.org/efforums/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=12&threadid=87124 2009-08-31T02:50:09 -05.00 vicky159 1
Highlights of the plan include more media blitzes in large West Coast cities, seeking greater airlift from Korea and China to Honolulu, attracting business incentive meetings, and creating buzz via social media channels.

The focus is also on greater marketing collaboration between state agencies, quasi-private organizations such as the HTA-funded Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau and its island chapters, and travel wholesalers and agencies.

The highlights, which were announced at the Hawaii Convention Center on Thursday, come as total visitor arrivals to Hawaii through July are down 8.1 percent to 3.8 million, as compared with the same period last year, while spending by visitors who arrived by air is down 16 percent to $5.7 billion.

The HTA's mission is to generate short-term business in proven markets in order to shore up the sinking tourism numbers, but also to try new approaches and nurture long-term growth in other markets.

More details on the HTA's 2010 marketing plans are to be unveiled Friday morning at the Hawaii Convention Center, but what follows are brief summaries of plans for key markets:

. North America

HVCB believes a new, comprehensive marketing model that blankets a single city or geographic region is showing results in attracting visitors. The model, which was used in San Francisco in March, is now being applied in Los Angeles. A similar branding exercise in Seattle, Portland, Ore., and Vancouver, B.C. is planned this fall.

The targeted forecast for North American arrivals in 2009 is 4.6 million. That's down from the 4.8 million who came in 2008 but a promising figure, say HVCB executives, given the 15 percent drop in air seats between Hawaii and the Mainland that came when Aloha and ATA airlines when bankrupt in spring 2008. The forecast for 2010 is up slightly to 4.65 million.

. Japan tour

Officials with Hawaii Tourism Japan say 2009 has been a tough year for Japanese outbound travel, primarily because of the H1N1 flu outbreak. Japanese arrivals in Hawaii this year are expected to total 1.13 million, about 400,000 less than forecast and down significantly from the 1.5 million who came in 2005.

While the honeymoon segment remains strong and Japanese still express a strong desire to visit Hawaii, Japan Airlines has been losing money and cutting international flights (though not to Hawaii). While All Nippon Airways will add flights this fall, both carriers are expected to reinstate a costly fuel surcharge in October.

HTJ's plan is to continue its "Hawaii in My Life" campaign that ties in with Hawaii's 50th statehood anniversary this year, to spread online content about Hawaii to bloggers who appeal to hard-to-reach younger Japanese, and place slick travel brochures in travel agent offices, where more than 80 percent of Japanese still book their trips.]]> http://www.epilepsyfoundation.org/efforums/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=12&threadid=87123 2009-08-31T02:41:12 -05.00 vicky159 1
The cut is just half the amount paid by President Arroyo and her party for one dinner in a New York restaurant.

The disclosure came amid criticism of the expenses for Mrs. Arroyo's foreign trips. A congressman reportedly shouldered the nearly $20,000 bill for dinner at Le Cirque during the visit of the President to the US a month ago.

While the President's travel budget has been reduced, similar allocations for other agencies have been hiked based on the P1.54-trillion national budget submitted by Malacañang to Congress last week for approval.

Budget Secretary Rolando Andaya emphasized yesterday that the OP did not top the allocations for travel, rather the Department of Education with P1.02 billion. The Senate and the House of Representatives will have a combined P738 million for 2010.

They were followed by the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) with P860 million; Department of Agriculture (DA), P632 million; Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), P571 million; Department of National Defense (DND), P533 million; and Department of Finance (DoF), P484 million.

Andaya said Mrs. Arroyo would not be able to use up the allocations for her local and foreign trips as she is stepping down on June 30 next year.

The OP budget travel covers local travels and "she has been crisscrossing the archipelago to ground break, inspect or inaugurate projects."

For the whole government, the total travel budget was set in the proposed 2010 national expenditure program at P8.495 billion, he said, adding the allocation is not that huge, as it is due to the size of the bureaucracy.

Andaya said the 2009 travel budget is about only P90 per Filipino per year or P7.50 per month.

"If you look at it at per government employee and we have 1.220 million permanent positions, my staff says it's about P580 per employee per month on the average," he said.

He said a Philippine Air Force general told him that the flyby of the Air Force One of US President Barack Obama in New York for a photo shoot cost about $320,000 or P16 million. "I thought that amount is already one state visit for us," he said.

The budget chief said his department also made cuts in the allocation for trips at the Department of Environment and Natural Resources from P614 million to P390 million or a P224 million reduction.

The same allocation for the Department of the Interior and Local Government was reduced from P252 million to P231 million while for the Department of Transportation and Communications from P122 million to P95 million.

Other agencies, however, were given significant increases for travel, such as the Commission on Elections (Comelec), from P37 million to P203 million or an increase of P166 million.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development will have its travel budget doubled from P82 million to P157 million. The DFA's allocation was hiked by about P35 million for the country's diplomats. The said budget for the National Economic and Development Authority was increased from P182 million to P253 million because of the many surveys the National Statistical Coordinating Board and National Statistics Office will conduct.
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Japan tour
Japan holiday]]> http://www.epilepsyfoundation.org/efforums/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=12&threadid=87122 2009-08-31T02:36:01 -05.00 vicky159 1
Koichiro Yamaguchi and Tetsuya Hamano, who formerly worked at UBS Securities Japan Ltd. and various hedge funds, in March set up Akito Capital Co., which advises the Cayman Island-based fund. The fund started on July 24 with initial capital of 1.4 billion yen ($15 million) and has maximum capacity of about 30 billion yen, according to Yamaguchi.

Akito's entry to the Japanese hedge fund market, estimated at about $13 billion at the end of July, comes as large banks and investment funds scale back trading amid the worst market rout since the Great Depression. Based on simulation of its trading strategy, the fund had gross returns of about 30 percent since March through prior to starting, according to Yamaguchi.

"Fundamental analysis is at the core of our strategy," Yamaguchi, 29, said in an interview in Tokyo on Aug. 28. "Mid- to-small cap stocks tend to have less consensus views, so there are more opportunities to invest in surprises."

The fund will employ a so-called market neutral strategy, which seeks profits regardless of the market's direction, said Yamaguchi, who ran a hedge fund at Horizon *****et International Co. before founding his firm.

Akito's 14 percent gain since inception through Aug. 28 compares with a 5.9 percent advance for Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average. Japan-focused hedge funds have returned an average 7.6 percent through July, after posting a record 11 percent loss in 2008, according to Eurekahedge Pte, a Singapore- based data provider.

Geo, Yellow Hat

The fund monitors corporate events such as earnings and monthly sales figures of about 500 Japanese companies and invests in 100 to 200 stocks, according to Yamaguchi. To reduce risks, it doesn't take any bets on industries, themes and the direction of the market, and has average positions of about 2 percent in each stock it selects. For hedging purposes, the fund also uses index futures and options, he said.

In August, the fund bet that declining capital at Geo, an Aichi prefecture-based DVD and CD store operator, will lead to higher earnings even as monthly sales figures had been falling, Yamaguchi said. The company on Aug. 7 reported net income of 1.19 billion yen in the first quarter, rebounding from a 481 million yen loss a year earlier. The stock has risen 30 percent this month.

Yellow Hat, a Tokyo-based retailer of automotive products, helped boost Akito's performance on wagers that discounted highway charges will encourage more car travel and lift demand for auto-related products, Yamaguchi said. The stock has jumped 14 percent so far this month.

About 250 new hedge funds started globally in the first six months, according to Eurekahedge.

The fund expects to grow its capital to 1.9 billion yen next month through performances and new allocation from investors including high-net-worth individuals, Yamaguchi said.

Hedge funds are mostly private pools of capital whose managers participate substantially in the profits from their speculation on whether the price of *****ets will rise or fall.

To contact the reporters on this story: Japan holiday]]> http://www.epilepsyfoundation.org/efforums/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=12&threadid=87121 2009-08-31T02:34:32 -05.00 vicky159 1
Typhoon 11 (Tropical Storm Krovanh) details

According to the Japan Meteorological Agency (as of 9:50am, August. 29th JST), the typhoon is expected to travel north, north-west directly towards the greater Tokyo area. It will reach Japanese shores sometime during the morning of the 31st.

Tropical Storm Krovanh is currently traveling north at about 15 knots (17 mph), with average wind speeds as strong as 40 knots (46 mph) and wind gusts reaching 60 knots (69 mph). Wind speeds are expected to reach an average of 55 knots (63 mph), with wind gusts up to 80 knots (92 mph) when it arrives to Japan on the 31st.

Japan tours

Travelers and people living in the area should take precaution. Heavy rains may cause rivers to swell, flooding, and landslides. Public transportation, including local trains and Shikanshin bullet trains, in the affected areas may be slowed or stopped completely. Events might be postponed or canceled. Flights may also be delayed or canceled.]]> http://www.epilepsyfoundation.org/efforums/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=12&threadid=87120 2009-08-31T02:26:57 -05.00 vicky159 1
While Aso initially spoke words of reflection in his speeches over the failure to keep the unity of the LDP, he has turned to stress his ''achievements'' in helping the economy recover in the final stage of the campaign.

Yukio Hatoyama, who leads the main opposition Democratic Party of Japan, traveled 12,633 kilometers across 32 prefectures, where his party candidates have waged bitter runoffs with their rivals, according to the DPJ documents.

Hatoyama cheered candidates of the Social Democratic Party and the People's New Party, his envisaged coalition partners after the DPJ wins power.

Akihiro Ota, leader of the New Komeito party, LDP's coalition partner, traveled 6,314 kilometers in 11 prefectures in the early stage of the campaign, but has focused on his own single-seat constituency in Tokyo as he himself faces an uphill battle there.

The Japanese Communist Party's Kazuo Shii traveled 9,656 kilometers, targeting mainly large cities in 19 prefectures with an apparent aim to win support in proportional representation constituencies, while Social Democratic Party leader Mizuho *****ushima moved 9,964 kilometers in 24 prefectures.

People's New Party's Tamisuke Watanuki traveled 5,500 kilometers in six prefectures, while both Yoshimi Watanabe of Your Party and Hideo Watanabe of the Japan tour went on stumping tours of more than 7,000 kilometers.

Yasuo Tanaka of the New Party Nippon, meanwhile, traveled 3,500 kilometers in seven prefectures.]]> http://www.epilepsyfoundation.org/efforums/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=12&threadid=87114 2009-08-28T02:40:54 -05.00 vicky159 1
Nonetheless, visitor spending declined, because the 621,590 travelers who arrived by air spent less - $150 per person, down from $176 per person in July 2008, according to the Hawaii Tourism Authority.

The U.S. West led the top four visitor markets, with air arrivals rising for the third consecutive month, up 7.7 percent from July of last year. Air arrivals from U.S. East were down slightly.

Despite a spike in visitor arrivals surrounding the mid-July visit of Japan's Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko, Japanese air arrivals ended the month down 9.2 percent. Arrivals by air from Canada were 3.5 percent lower compared to July 2009.

"Continued growth in arrivals from U.S. West benefited all islands in July," State Tourism Liaison Marsha Wienert said. "Increased arrivals reflect the attractive pricing being offered by Hawaii hotels, travel partners and other visitor industry businesses, which is stimulating travel. However, the byproduct of this aggressive pricing is reduced visitor spending.

"Per person per day spending year-to-date, through July, has not only decreased in lodging but food and beverage, entertainment and recreation, and shopping are also victims of decreased visitor spending," she said. "However, transportation, primarily for inter-island travel and rental car purchases, increased in all market segments except Japan.

"Moving forward, tourism's recovery cannot be measured by arrivals, but relies on increased spending by our visitors."

HTA President and Chief Executive Mike McCartney said he was encouraged by the increase in arrivals from Hawaii's biggest market, U.S. West, for the third consecutive month, and was optimistic that the trend will continue with aggressive marketing efforts planned for the fall.

"We are also putting a lot of marketing resources toward the high-spending Japan market where we are seeing an increase in independent travelers," he said.

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Japan tour]]> http://www.epilepsyfoundation.org/efforums/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=12&threadid=87113 2009-08-28T02:37:44 -05.00 vicky159 1
A woman shades herself with an election poster as she listens to a speech Japan's main opposition Democratic party of Japan leader Yukio Hatoyama. Photograph: Dai Kurokawa/EPA

The prospect of a crushing defeat in Japan's elections this Sunday has left some grandees from the incumbent Liberal Democratic party feeling a little vulnerable.

Gone are the heady days when they could afford to roam the country speaking on behalf of younger candidates or spend long, emotionally draining evenings in expensive ryotei horse-trading over the formation of the next cabinet.

Rumour has it that in recent days some, including the former prime minister Yoshiro Mori, have even been witnessed talking to their constituents.

Mori, a 13-time winner in his rural Ishikawa prefecture constituency, has decided to stay among his people as polling day approaches, lest his fiefdom fall into the hands of rival party the DPJ.

Mori's opponent is Mieko Tanaka - a 33-year-old former travel agent and member of the "princess corps" dispatched by the DPJ to marginal constituencies - who cycles around the constituency in a pink polo shirt.

It would be hard to think of an LDP politician who better personifies the complacency of the ruling party than Mori, who as prime minister elected to finish his round of golf after being informed of the Ehime Maru fishing boat tragedy.

His equally thoughtful verdict on Tanaka: "She was picked only because she is young and has a nice body."

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Japan tours]]> http://www.epilepsyfoundation.org/efforums/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=12&threadid=87112 2009-08-28T02:35:21 -05.00 vicky159 1
On February 23, 1945 U.S. Marines died in order to secure Mt. Suribachi, located on a Pacific Island held by the Japanese. The memorial in Newington was dedicated on February 23, 1995, the 50th anniversary of the original raising of the flag.

When visiting the memorial park, or driving by on Route 9, your eyes will be drawn to the familiar bronze soldiers standing on rocks and raising the American flag. However, this memorial park has much more to offer. You will also find an eternal flame on a black marble pedestal and American flags boarding the walkways. When constructing the memorial a rock resembling the shape of Iwo Jima was found and is now displayed as part of the park. Sand from the landing beach was also mixed in with the concrete base of the bronze monument.

Visiting the Iwo Jima Memorial Park is free for all visitors. It is located on Ella Gr*****o Boulevard in Newington, CT. Take exit 29 off of Route 9 and turn onto Route 175. Follow the brown signs displayed on the sides of the street to find your way. For more information look here http://www.dragonflytours-japan.com]]> http://www.epilepsyfoundation.org/efforums/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=12&threadid=87111 2009-08-28T02:32:36 -05.00 vicky159 1


To be sure, gifting in Japan can be complicated, with some dos and some don'ts that will make or break the effort and positive effect for which you are aiming.



That said, following are some helpful tips and hints on gift-giving in Japan:



1. Presentation is very important. Always wrap your gift before you give it, but don't use white, black, or red paper. These colors carry unsavory connotations. When in doubt, seek out your friendly hotel concierge to help you properly prepare the present.



2. Business travelers: It is gauche to give gifts carrying your company logo in Japan. Instead, stick to a memento that's strictly American -- be that maple syrup from Vermont or a bottle of California wine.



3. Do not offer a knife to your Japanese counterpart as that gesture is tantamount to severing a friendship, not building one.



4. Don't be too eager to give your gift. Rather, present the present after your get-together not before.



5. When giving the gift, make a slight bow, presenting the present with both hands.



6. Don't give up if your gift is not accepted during the first try. Many Japanese are known to refuse a gift the first (and sometimes even the second) time it is offered.



7. If at all possible, give the same gift to each person present. If you cannot arrange for that kind of uniformity, be sure to give the best (most valuable) gift to the most senior person in the group.



8. Don't be extravagant. If you decide to give a present in Japan, realize that the recipient may feel he or she has to reciprocate with something of equal value


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