To be sure, I am not an expert on rifle and pistol cartridge ballistics, nor do I regularly hunt with my 9mm carbine. I did however have a recent hunting experience that I would like to tell you about that has proven to me that the 9mm cartridge is indeed a capable hunting cartridge.

I was invited to go wild boar hunting just outside of Rockdale, Texas with my buddy Shawn S. This was an “at the last minute” invite as Shawn was in route when I got the call. Avid hunting that I am, I could not to pass up the chance to get some hunting in, so I dropped what I was doing and headed to Rockdale. I knew that my chances would be slim since all I had with me at the time was my Hi-Point Arms 9mm Carbine. It didn’t matter. It was a nice day and it would be fun.

Shawn has a ranch that has been in his family for quite some time and being the avid hunter that he is, has it set up for deer hunting in a way that would make any hunter proud. His deer blind sits about 16 feet in the air and overlooks his deer feeder that is about 150 yards out. There are two large office type chairs inside that recline and have nice arm rests. Very comfortable accommodations to say the least. The only problem is that his place is being over run by wild hogs. Just in case you didn’t know, Texas has a feral hog population that is in excess of 3 million. So there we were trying to do our part in reducing those numbers. So we waited, and waited but there were no pigs in sight.

It was just by chance that as I was grabbing my gear before heading out of the house that I had grabbed one of my predator calls and stuffed it into my front pocket. So, after waiting and watching and enjoying good conversation with Shawn for about an hour, I suggested that we give my call a try. I pulled the call out and after blowing off a little pocket lint, gave it my best. To our amazement after only a couple of minutes, two coyotes broke through the concealment of a mesquite thicket and stood at the edge of the pasture with ears perked up, look right in our direction. They stood to our right about 70 yards out. They never saw us in the blind but instead were scanning the area below and all around us in the attempt to locate and easy meal.

I love to shoot and target practice and do so often at my little farm just outside of Taylor, Texas and could easily obtain good groupings out to 100 yards or so with iron sights but, there I was, not really prepared to shoot a wild boar at 150 yards with a 9mm but would certainly try to take a coyote at 70. While still blowing on my call to keep their attention, I swiveled around in my chair with my Hi-Point in hand and drew a bead. Bang…A clean kill. After this hunting trip, my Hi-Point has earned a higher place on the gun rack and has made a believer out of me in the capabilities of the 9mm as a hunting cartridge. As for the wild boar, with 3 million of them running around, our day will come.

Happy hunting.

Questions regarding Samba instruments have been a constant since we started to write about the Brazilian Carnaval. I guess there is a fascination upon the subject, which can be easily understood. When we think of a regular orchestra or band, we might know by the top of our heads a few of the instruments like saxophones, clarinets, piano, etc. We have been listening to them, learning about them, seeing people play since very early stages of our lives. Samba instruments, by the other hand, are very specific and some of them only “exist” formally since the 1950s.

Another possible reason for this curiosity is probably due to the fact that many instruments simply were not industrialized or used on a large scale outside of Brazil. They are truly very recent samba phenomena, we could say. For this reason, we are writing two specific sections on the entire samba instruments used at the Brazilian Carnaval; one relative to what we call the “Light Samba Instruments” and the other commonly called “Heavy Samba Instruments”. As you may have read, most of them have African roots and slowly were adapted to samba-school use. On this page you will review the heavy samba instruments group. Let´s see their descriptions!

Surdo de Primeira (First surdo):

This is the largest surdo (bass drum), the one that gives the crucial ‘boom’ sound marca [the second, stronger beat] to the samba, the base. The Surdo de Primeira is responsible for the primary beat, so everyone could concentrates on. The singers are guided by this surdo so as not to speed up or slow down. In general, there is a surdo de primeira right next to the principal singers as a guide. It has a higher tone, a stronger tuning than the surdos de resposta (the responding bass drums, second and third surdos). A large bateria has from 8, 10, or more big surdos.

This double-headed bass drum is perhaps the most recognizable of all of the samba instruments, with its deep ‘doom’ sound providing the fundamental beat of the samba rhythm. The surdo is played with a soft-headed mallet and a bare hand (to dampen the head and change the pitch of the drum), or with two mallets (as in samba reggae and other styles from the north-east of Brazil). The word surdo literally means ‘deaf’ and it is the heart-beat of the bateria.

“Bum Bum Paticumbum Prugurundum” – the name of a theme-samba that made Serrano champion in 1982 was the onomatopoeic expression used by the great samba composer Ismael Silva to show how the beat of the surdo should be.

Surdo de segunda (Second surdo):

This is the response to the surdo de primeira. It sustains the samba rhythm while the surdo de primeira is at rest [in equal note values], it’s the counterpoint. The Surdo de Segunda is also smaller and tuned higher than a primeiro surdo. The second surdo plays on the first beat of the samba, (the downbeat) providing a counter beat for the first surdo. Physically, it is the same drum itself.

Surdo de Terceira (Third surdo):

The “Surdo de Terceira” chimes in between the other two (a little before the surdo de segunda). It gives a special sauciness to the cadence, breaking through the rigidity of the other two surdos, and a swing to the rhythm. The beat varies by each samba-school, but each one has its own way of adding the third surdo, sometimes called the surdo de corte.

Mangueira’s bateria doesn’t have surdos de resposta (second or third). It only has the first and a certain surdo de corte, also called the surdo-mor, that isn’t a response exactly, but swings the first.

Caixa de Guerra (Snare drum of war):

This is what gives character to the samba. The Caixa is a double-headed snare-type drum which is played with two sticks. Unlike the snare drum, the Caixa has its snare composed of 2 or 4 wires/cables on the top head of the drum. It generally plays in a variety of different ways to produce interesting cross-rhythms within the bateria. This drum can be played at navel level, “em baixo” or held with one arm at head height, “em cima”. They are what I call the “soldiers” of a samba drums section! If you have plenty of them, the Bateria will be vibrant.

Only through the sound of the caixa can you really identify a certain school. The way you play the caixa also varies from school to school: in some the player puts the drum at waist level, playing with two hands; others place the caixa higher, using one hand as a support and the other free. A Tarol is a smaller snare drum, and the sound and size are equivalent to the so-called meia caixa [half snare].

Repique:

The repique is a 12″x 14 sized drum. Played with one stick and a bare hand, or with two flexible plastic sticks, the repique is a small, double-headed drum that is tuned very high. This instrument leads the bateria, signaling breaks and internal cues, and playing improvised solos. It is equivalent to the tom-tom in the non-Brazilian drum kit or to the tenor drum in marching bands. It is tuned very high to produce a tone that cuts through the sound of the rest of the bateria.

Typically its body is made of metal. The heads, made of nylon, are tightened through the use of metal tuning rods. The instrument is usually smaller in diameter than the Brazilian Caixa (snare drum) but several inches longer in height and lacking a snare. It is carried using a shoulder strap attached to one of the tuning rods. The Repique is definitely the master of the paradinhas and turns of the samba, it’s the signal for the return of the other instruments. In the past, the Repique dominated the paradinhas. These days, shakers and other small drums [tamborim] are allowed while the rest of the bateria stays silent. This samba instrument is normally played by the top samba percussionists!

Repinique

Similar to the Repique, two drum heads, but it’s skinnier, but the function is about the same. In schools like Salgueiro, Unidos da Tijuca, Vila Isabel, Mangueira, the sound of the repique is prevalent. Portela, Tradi, Caprichosos e Mocidade Independente Samba-School from Rio, highlight the repinique.

Now you know a little bit more about samba instruments, give yourself a try! Join your local samba-school and have some samba fun!

At the beginning of the year I looked at the list of events and tried to find some that suited my training plan. This is harder than you would think, especially as I am training for a marathon at the moment so most of my weekends are taken up by long runs. But the York Leeds York event was quite early season and, on a Saturday, so meant I could travel up on Friday after work and still be back for a long run on the Sunday!

Friday night we drove up to York (we being me and Adam who had kindly agreed to come along with me). Bikes on the roof of the car, boot packed with tons of kit as the weather had been a little unpredictable, on Thursday it had snowed in both York and Leeds, this could be a very cold event! Luckily the snow had passed, however this was replaced by some quite persistent rain and it rained for the whole drive, poor bikes got very soggy on the roof of the car. We eventually arrived in York at 10.15pm on Friday, checked with the hotel that we were OK to take the bikes up to our rooms, unloaded the car, then ordered a Chinese takeaway (well we can’t do a sportive without fuelling). All in all, this made for a rather late night.

Up just before 6am the next morning to pack up, have breakfast and check out.

Jenni had also driven over from Southport to ride with us and arrived at the hotel quite late. Unfortunately she was rather ill on Saturday and was then unable to join the event, so this left it with just me and Adam riding together.

We headed to the start at the York Auction Centre and there were already so many people there. The car park was packed solid, and there were so many people around. I hadn’t quite expected such a massive turnout to a sportive so early in the season, especially as the weather was not great. It was raining when we arrived at the start, not too badly but it was destined to be a damp ride!

Adam and I headed in to registration and collected our rider numbers before heading over to the Primal Europe stand to introduce ourselves. This was the first time I had met any of the team in person and it was lovely to finally put faces to names and meet James and Ben. I used this opportunity for a cheeky selfie with James and then it was time to get the bikes and ourselves ready for the ride ahead.

Once ready we joined a queue of riders ready to start, the queue snaked round the outside of the auction centre as the race itself was starting from inside the building. Everyone waiting to start seemed in good spirits and we spoke to quite a few people who had done the event the previous year (it is always a good sign when people go back for a 2nd time). One poor gentleman had managed to forget a wheel as he had to dismantle his bike to pack it in the car and hadn’t remembered to put the wheel in the car. The organisers did call over the tannoy to see if anyone had a spare but unfortunately no one did, so he had to head off to have breakfast and wait for his friends and family to finish.

Quick race briefing and we were off. Almost as soon as we started so did the rain, it was varying in intensity from heavy miserable drizzle, to angry sideways heavy rain. But this didn’t appear to deter any of the riders. Some of the roads were incredibly flooded, at one point I came around a corner at the front of a small group and shouted ‘swimming pool’ there was no other way to describe the large puddle that spanned the entire road. Luckily it was only a few inches deeps and we made it through to drier land! (I do love a triathlon but taking my bike for a swim was not on the agenda!)

After some initial flooded and muddy roads, the roads towards the midpoint were a bit easier, less mud and surface water but it was colder! As we got towards Leeds the temperature dropped noticeably and there were still patches of snow banked up at the side of the roads. We arrived at Harewood House rather cold and damp. It was an absolutely stunning location and I am sure on a summers day I would have stayed a little longer, sat on the grass and taken pictures of the house, but I was pretty cold and my fingers weren’t too keen on trying to take photographs, I do feel like I might need to go back one day just to appreciate how lovely it really was.

I did however manage to take photos of some participants bikes racked in the snow!

We queued for a very welcome hot drink and I ate a very sweet and tasty flapjack before a mass undress operation to try to go to the bathroom. Cyclists – I am sure you all sympathise. I had to take off layer after layer of clothing to be able to get to my Onyx Thermal bib tights.

Then we set off on the 2nd half, not wanting to hang around too long or get any colder than we needed to be. Once again, all cyclists seemed to be in good spirits on the ride back, even a poor lady whose hub in her rear wheel had died, she was cheerfully waiting to be picked up by the mechanics and we stopped to chat to her for a few mins and check she was OK.

I also managed to ride for a while with some ladies from the Yorkshire Lass Cycle Club. They were really lovely and friendly, and it was so nice to spend a while chatting to some new people as the miles passed by. One of the ladies’ husbands was a triathlete and had done Ironman Vichy last year!

65 miles later (we did the medium route) we arrived back in the auction centre to be presented with our medals, have our photo taken and the all-important post ride snack – an actual BBQed sausage in a bun! This is possibly the best post event food idea ever and was most welcome as a warm filling food item after quite a cold event.

Bikes back on the car, quick change in the carpark – thanks to Dryrobes – they really do make post event routines so much easier. Then a quick goodbye to the Primal team and it was time to begin the long journey home. We arrived home approximately 10pm that night. A crazy long weekend, exhausting but fabulous! I loved every minute of it, now where is that Velo29 events list, I need a new target!

Introduction

India stands second in the world in cement production. The cement industry in India then naturally becomes a major aspect of the Indian economy, as it employs over a million people. The Indian cement industry drew massive investments from within India and also from other countries, after 1982 when it was deregulated.

The cement sector is likely to benefit in a big way from India’s enormous potential in construction and overall infrastructure development. Major government plans like the ones in which it proposes to develop nearly 100 smart cities will definitely prove to be an enormous boost to the sector.

Anticipating these developments in the country, backed by related foreign policies by the Indian government, investments by many foreign cement giants are getting attracted. Ready accessibility to raw materials like limestone and coal to produce cement is a factor that is majorly driving growth of the cement sector.

Market demand

In India, the demand for cement is expected to increase due to government’s push for large infrastructure projects, leading to 45 million tonnes of cement needed in the next three to four years.

By 2025, the demand for cement in India is estimated to be nearly 600 million tonnes per annum. The housing sector, among all, drives the highest demand for cement in India, as it takes 67% of the total consumption. The rest of the cement is almost equally consumed by commercial and industrial constructions, and infrastructure.

Cement companies have a big responsibility to increase their capacity to nearly 56 million tonnes to cater to the growing demand. By the end of 2016, India’s cement capacity may grow eight per cent to 395 MT. The capacity is further expected to increase to 421 MT by the time 2017 ends.

Some 20 companies dominate the cement industry of India as they produce 70% of the total cement in the country. Take a look at the scenario in India:

– 97% of total installed capacity – 188 large cement plants

– Rest – 365 small plants

The large plants are majorly located in Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu.

Investments

The country’s cement sector has recently drawn heavy investments as more and more construction and infrastructural activities are leading to continuous rise in demand.

During the period from April 2000 to December2015, US$ 3.101 billion of FDIs were drawn by cement and gypsum products, says the data released by India’s Industrial Policy and Promotion department.

Major investments have been made by best cement manufacturing companies in India, which are recognized as producers of best cement for construction.

– UltraTech Cement in the process to acquire Jaiprakash Associates factories for Rs 16,500 crore.

– Birla Corporation Ltd to acquire Lafarge India’s 2 cement assets for Rs 5,000 crore.

– Dalmia Cement (Bharat) Ltd expanding business in the North East with an investment of Rs 2,000 crore.

– JSW Group plans to expand its cement production capacity to 30 MTPA from 5 MTPA by setting up grinding units closer to its steel plants.

– UltraTech’s Greenfield grinding units in WB and Bihar.

Government initiatives

The Government of India, in its 12th Five Year Plan, planned to increase the cement industry’s capacity to 150 MT by investing huge amounts in infrastructure.

Similarly, the main objective behind constituting the Cement Corporation of India in 1965 was to make the country’s cement production self-sufficient. The CCI has 10 units across India. At the same time, the government is approving various investment schemes introduced by the private sector to encourage their growth in the cement industry.

Here are the highlights of some such government initiatives:

– A slew of measures to augment investments in infrastructure in Budget 2016-17, as demand for cement will be directly proportional to growing spends on infrastructure.

– Allocation of Rs 7,296 crore for Urban Rejuvenation Mission which includes smart city development.

– The allocation for Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana raised to Rs 19,000 crore for FY17.

Apart from the central governments, some states have also taken major initiatives to promote cement production.

– Launching of low-priced cement by Tamil Nadu Government. The sale begins at Rs190crore a bag.

– A bulk cement handling unit has been set up at Kochi Port, sanctioned by Kerala Government, at an investment of Rs 160 crore.

– Proposals worth Rs 9,200 crore have been approved by the investment promotion board of Andhra Pradesh. These include 3 cement plants and a few other projects’ concessions.

Economic growth and environmental protection are not at odds. They’re opposite sides of the same coin if you’re looking at longer-term prosperity. – Henry Paulson

To reduce energy consumption and find innovative ways to produce cement in a more efficient way, India needs to push for energy efficient measures. A water positive cement manufacturing company, for instance, achieves two things. First, produce best cement for construction, to stay in the competition. Secondly, it establishes a way of saving water even in such massive production.

India has over the time realized the need for newer methods to cut down on energy consumption. For this it is collaborating with Switzerland to bring technology and systems of more efficient cement production. India’s ability to meet the ever increasing demand for cement from the infrastructure sector depends on the success of this step.

The cement industry in India has been appealed by the government to abide by its decision to avoid bitumen for all the new road construction projects and instead adopt cement. The reason given for this is that cement is not just durable but also cheaper in the long run, plus it is a low maintenance product.

The road ahead

For the best cement manufacturing company/ies in India, the states in the eastern region of the country are emerging to be fresher unexplored markets. These regions can create the cement demand for future. On an even larger scale, in the coming decade, a lot of developing nations, including Middle East and Arica, are likely to look at India as a significant source for importing clinker and gray cement. This will lead to a better preparedness of the cement industry in India. Amongst the hundreds of cement plants within the country, the ones located near the ports at advantageous positions will have to be prepared to stand a tough competition from plats that are located in the country’s interior. For instance, the cement plants on Visakhapatnam and Gujarat ports which are located on the sea shores, will need to be logistically well armed.

Besides, the cement industry in India is expected to attract a large number of foreign cement production companies. The major lure for the foreign players is the constant demand for cement and superb profit margins the cement business brings. Looking at the current cement market scenario, the domestic cement companies too look poised to go for global listings through GDR or FCCB.

While the Government of India is taking so many measures to improve the support the cement market by creating friendlier laws such as increased infrastructure spending and lower taxation, the sector is showing a lot of results by growing with leaps and bounds. This makes it remain a major part of India’s economic development story. And while seeing its own growth, the cement industry, due to its sheer industry size and efforts to make more water positive cement manufacturing companies, is also contributing to environmental sustainability effectively.

It was quite amusing when the vendors tried to outdo each other while selling copies of the Kamasutra in multiple languages and erotic magnets that make you wonder “is that even possible?” Sure, it was awkward at first. Growing up with conservative Indian sensibilities, I didn’t know how to react when a middle aged hawker tried to sell the regalia of erotic art. And that’s when I first heard Chhavi say “Welcome to Khajurao”.

I had always wanted to go to Khajurao, since it is so close to Delhi and is a UNESCO heritage site. But I had never gotten around to it. So when I set foot on the clean and compact station, I felt a mediocre sense of achievement.

We started off with the Ken Ghadial Sanctuary, which to be honest, I wasn’t too keen on. I don’t mean to brag but I’ve been to several sanctuaries as a kid and had access to areas where normal tourists aren’t allowed. But I would’ve definitely missed out on the supposed Grand Canyon of India, had Chhavi, my travel partner, not been insistent. The area was vast and had a massive green cover. Our guide, the polite Mr. Pyarelal, happily clicked our pictures with the Raneh waterfall in the background. The rain gods hadn’t been too kind this year so there wasn’t much water in the river and the waterfall wasn’t as heavy. The blazing sun might have burnt my skin too. Nonetheless, the wide range of landscape that the place offered ensured that the visit wasn’t a disappointment.

After not buying any souvenir (surprisingly, since I’m a shopaholic) from Ken, we headed off to the Western Group of temples only after stopping at Beej mandal for a while. This unfinished temple, which looks almost exactly like the ones in the Western Group of Temples, apparently has the biggest foundation among all temples at Khajurao. But after being destroyed at the time of construction, it just serves as an excavation site for archaeologists. Having been to just one excavation dig in our entire life, we tried to make sense of the tools used for excavation that were displayed on the board. We looked at it for less than a minute and decided to move forward.

We were famished by the time we reached the main market and so we decided to eat something quickly. The market is full of enterprising salesmen who are keen to draw your attention to their shops. It’s quite distracting really, at least for a person like me who likes to buy things that I don’t even need. But I guess I was hungrier than I thought since I headed straight to Madras Coffee House for a hot meal.

I must say the food was quite delicious and after eating just the right quantity of egg dosa, fried idli and filter coffee, I was ready to see the temples, something Khajurao is famous for. But being the person that I am, I was tempted goodies the vendors offered. But it definitely wasn’t a waste. I not only brought magnets and playing cards, I even bought two beautiful sarees made out of bamboo cotton which happens to be a speciality of this place. Before now, I had no idea fabric made out of bamboo existed.

After going crazy with the whole shopping, we finally step foot at the temple. Matangesvara Temple was the first one that we covered since it did not require any entry ticket and it is the only temple where people come to pray. It is definitely a brilliant work of art. The astrologer, who sits outside the temple offering to read your future for a small price, adds a nice touch to it. While it more famous for having the largest lingam, towering over eight feet, in North India, I personally liked how intricate the exterior architecture was.

I was already impressed by the Matangesvara Temple and then I got acquainted with the Western Group of Temples. They made Matangesvara look quite dull in comparison and I’m not talking in terms of erotic illustrations. The details carved out in the sculptures are just marvellous. These temples have illustrations on all the sides of various events in life that includes war and celebration and erotica just forms a small part of the larger illustration.

It is amazing how skilled the architects must have been to build such amazing structures without the usage of any modern conveniences. The sculptures definitely paid attention to minute details and every fold is beautifully carved out in the entire wall. In comparison, the interior is quite plain, damp and almost all of them smell like bats. I did get used to it after a while though.

The whole tour of these temples took us almost two hours and at some temples, the guards were kind enough to tell us stories about the temple and how they came to be. The complex is quite clean and the garden looked pleasantly green. I was glad that there wasn’t any littering and people threw all their trash in the dustbins.

I do appreciate the complex temple architecture but I’m really not a keen observer. So after a point, the effect of the hot sun and exhaustion combined, it got a little repetitive. But we did see the entire Western Group of temples.

Since we just had one day, we decided to skip the Eastern and Southern Group of temples and jump straight to the Sound and Light show. Since we had almost two hours before it started so we headed to the Blue Sky Café. It was quite an average restaurant but we just wanted to kill time. It did have a nice view of the temples and we saw the sunset while sipping nimbu paani. It also had a cute little treetop hut with just one table where we could’ve sat by paying a little extra. But it wasn’t really worth it since we had the entire restaurant to ourselves. We actually spent the first 10 minutes trying to find someone who would take our order.

Before this, I had only seen the Sound and Light show at Golcounda fort at Hyderabad and even though I was around 10 at the time, I still thought it was impressive. So I guess I had the same expectation from this one. But I was disappointed, partly because the sound system was not very clear and partly because of the crying babies who made it hard to hear and annoying mosquitoes that were busy sucking the life out of me. Time passed really slowly and I doubt anyone else would’ve been happier than I the minute it was over.

Before heading to our guesthouse, we decided to have dinner somewhere. We headed to Raja Café since it looked popular and half the crowd from the show was heading there and it did turn out to be quite delightful. Even though we had ordered different dishes, they tasted exactly the same. But I did not mind at all. Based on my previous experience of visiting MP, I didn’t think I would be eating non-vegetarian food at all. I was just glad there wasn’t any poha sprinkled with pomegranates, which I had eaten for breakfast every day the last time I had visited MP. The ambience of the restaurant was pretty cosy as well.

We called our faithful autowala who had driven Chhavi around on her previous trips to Khajurao and headed to our guesthouse, Yogi Ashram. It’s ideal for people looking for a cheap and safe place to stay. But I don’t think I could have stayed here with my mother or my sister since they happen to be OCD about cleanliness. The polite owner with his friendly dog kept us company and told us about the bigger plans he has for the guesthouse which includes conducting yoga sessions to eventually train certified yoga trainers. I guess if everything else fails, I can always come here to train to be a certified trainer. The rooms are comfortable and the food is decent. It seems a little secluded but the well maintained garden with healthy looking trees gives it a very homely feeling. And it’s barely a kilometre away from the main market.

Even though we spent just one day in Khajurao, I did not feel like I was leaving too early. Yes, one more day here would have been great. I could’ve had more masala chai under the big tree, wasted more money on souvenirs that I would’ve eventually stashed in some corner of my cupboard and visited the other temples as well. And I haven’t discounted the idea of coming back again for the Dance Festival in February. But no matter how lovely and peaceful the place was, one day was enough for me. So after having delicious paratha and chai, Chhavi and I headed to our next destination – Orchha.

It was a chilly morning on the 5th of Feb’ 2017 and everything around had an air of excitement as we headed to a hill station for a quick get away at the weekend. At just one beck & call, children were up and as excited they were about the adventure, got ready with their treasure of games.

With our sweaters and caps, we decked up ourselves and in a Qualis vehicle started our journey at 7am from Bangalore.The driver (hired taxi) was to be blamed for late-coming and we set off to join with a friend’s family.

Breezing past the highways of Bangalore and the hustle and bustle of the crowd, we soon found ourselves engulfed in the serene beauty of nature. The coconut trees, the plantains and the green pastures welcomed us on the route to Tirupattur. Gliding through 11 hairpin curves, we made it to the hilltops of “Yelagiri” and were mesmerized by the beauty and the calm. The fresh air filled our nostrils and we reached our destination by 11.30am. With the excitement at its peak, children longed to go for boating. The ‘Punganoor Lake Park’ offers paddle boating as well as row boating and the scenery around is breath- taking. We opted for Row boating and went the length & breadth of the lake. This was just the beginning as more adventures awaited at the “Wild Adventure Zone”. Here, the children lost themselves completely with numerous games – Archery, car riding, wall climbing, zip-lining etc. Before they could venture more, it was a much-needed lunch break. Having savoured the local specialties paddu, mirchi, vada and several varieties of fruits – litchi, jackfruit, bell fruit, panir, Guava, etc, we headed to a farmhouse. A beautiful place to unwind and the perfect place to rest was a huge room with 2 double beds that was kingly in size.

Children got their Shuttle bats and Frisbee to play, while two of us settled for chess on the cozy bed. Evening came, with a plan to the Murugan temple and Venkataramana temple, after which we had to go to the nature park. After fulfilling prayers to the deities, it was getting dark and we cut short the nature park to the musical fountain. With the colourful water sprinting to the songs of popular music, children had a good time munching candy and chips. After a long day, it was time to call it off with a quick dinner almost half asleep.

The next morning, we woke up re-energized for a much awaited trek to the Swamimalai Hills. With a cup of hot tea/coffee and bournvita, all of us tied our shoelaces with the trek pants and water bottles to climb up to the peak of these famous hills. Starting at 8.30am the way led us deep into the forest, surrounded by huge trees, with steps, rock stones and a muddy path. By 10 am, we successfully reached the peak to have experienced this feat of climbing the hills and feel the beauty around us. The happiness and the pleasure felt can only be experienced. Having spent almost an hour, eating snacks, biscuits, watermelon, papaya, raw mangoes, we took a bow at the temple and started our trek down the lane. Balancing the uneven ground, we reached around 12 p.m to the base.

It was time to check out from the farm house and we readily did so, because the next thing was the waterfall. Dreaming of waters in the hot afternoon, brought smiles on the children and at the same time they were tired of the long trek. The Jalagambarai waterfalls was situated around 40 km from Yelagiri and we fell asleep as soon as we headed our vehicle. The afternoon nap did wonders, as could be seen with children and adults equally excited to jump and soak in the falls. A neat flight of 80 stairs took us to the waterfall and everyone willingly drenched.

We returned from the falls and after a small tea break, we said ‘goodbye’ to Yelagiri and started back to Bangalore.

A wholesome family package with the best of refreshing change. Recommend anybody for a quick getaway (170 kms from Bangalore).

There are many savvy investors in Singapore who are always on the lookout as to what is the next best investment. There have been plenty of ups and downs in the local property market and currently, it appears to be that we are headed for a dip in the property cycle. Based on that, many investors are cashing out on their residential properties because of the numerous measures in place to curb or slow down the rapid rise in prices in the recent years. With all that cash in the pocket, the question is: where should we invest next?

Commercial, industrial and overseas options look like a safe bet. With prices headed on an upward trend with no signs of slowing down, they are an attractive investment option. With the upcoming launch of a new freehold development, Hexacube, it is time for investors to be excited.

Here is why Hexacube looks like the best investment option in Singapore now:

1) Rare freehold office space and retail space

Land in Singapore is scarce. It is difficult and very expensive for business owners to consider owning their own properties when it comes to offices or retail shops. With the addition of rare strata-titled offices and shops in the market, it is an opportunity to buy into the commercial segment of Singapore at a new launch price.

2) Good location

When it comes to investing in properties in Singapore, location plays a huge part. More often than not, developments that are near the train stations have shown the largest increase in prices over the years. This is because many people are willing to pay a premium just to have the convenience. Located just 300 metres away from the Eunos MRT and Bus Interchange, it is indeed a prime location that is rare. Not only that, with the upcoming shift of the nearby Paya Lebar air base, the redevelopment in the area will also bring up all the prices of properties in the area.

3) No cooling measures or stamp duties

Many investors have shunned away from buying residential properties in Singapore due to the steep stamp duties in place. Depending on the quantum you buy your property, you can definitely expect to pay at least five to six figures just in property taxes alone. However, there are still no property taxes in place when it comes to commercial properties. Hence, it is an attractive buy as the money can be put to better use or translate to better rental yield.

There are plenty of reasons why Hexacube is the best investment option in Singapore right now, but the above three reasons can justify any investor going for it. It is an opportunity not to be missed.

The least mentioned “Secret” of Affiliate Marketing Success is you, because no one else determines your level of Accomplishment. Making Money online may prove a little more challenging than is often suggested with some Affiliate Marketing Programs, leading to misdirection resulting in failure as a result of the wrong Mind Set. Another so called “Secret” is Search Engine Optimization or SEO, which usually send shivers down the spine of many a newbie and with good reason. But Getting Google Traffic through SEO and Keyword Placement is the undisputed champion of High Quality Traffic, and it’s as simple as telling Google what your Blog is about.

The Basic Most Important part of SEO – Search Engine optimization and Blogging is nothing more than a series of Objective Steps toward a Primary Goal, driving Google Traffic to your Site or Video. With Video Ranking for instance, you simply include the Search Phrase you wish to Rank for (The Audience You’re Targeting) at least twice within the first 160 Characters of the Video, Blog or Blog Post Description.

The most important part of getting recognized by Google, be it Video or your Blog comes down to Heading and Description. The first 160 Characters of any Description, Blog Post Body and even Meta Description determines the direction your work will take. Focusing on H1, H2, H3, and H4 Headers with regard to Titles and Headings you want to always keep within 15 – 65 Characters, also counting spaces. The same goes for Image Title or Alt Attribute.

Identifying the H1 Heading – May sometimes also be a Post or Blog Page Title but this usually refer to the Blog, Site or Video Title. The H1 Heading is where you include the Primary Search Phrases you wish your Site or Video to Rank for in Google within 15 – 65 Characters. It is important to preferably keep the H1 Heading within 60 Characters, because the H1 Heading will appear at the top in Google Search Result pages. Make the H1 Heading both Easy to Read and to Remember.

Identifying the H2 Heading – This is usually the Blog Post Title and once again the desired Search Phrases and Keywords need to populate this Heading. Numbers play a huge role with H2 Headings, and strangely enough uneven numbers have a more striking effect, combine this with a “Reason Why” kind of suggestion and you have a winner H2 Heading.

Identifying the H3 Header – Post Titles often also make up the H3 Header, along with Widget Descriptions within the Blog Side Bar. When you use the Text Widget to load HTML code, then the “Alt=” Attribute usually appear as an H3 Header.

A Blog post Title also appears as an H3 Header when you use an SEO Plugin like “All in One SEO Tools” and your Blog Post Title appears after the forward slash (/) to the Primary Domain. Using an SEO Plugin will allow you to submit all your individual pages, posts, tags and categories as individual site maps.

Identifying the H4 Header – This can be defined as something like the Tagline to you Blog Title Tag or H1 header. A Logo image is also often accepted as an H4 header within certain Plugins which may display a logo icon.

Add Descriptions to Tags and Categories – When you open your Posts from within the WordPress C-Panel, the drop down menu provide you with the option “Tags” and “Categories“. This is where you add descriptions to the tags and categories, keeping the description within 160 Characters while including keyword search phrases within context.

In fact any Description, Tag Line, Title, Category, Header or single Tag must contain the keywords within context because that’s what Google is looking for. Just a bunch of keywords crammed together in a desperate attempt to Rank faster will just result in the opposite, as sites with better content and keyword placement will Rank above you.

The Site Map Description – Your Blog Site Map is extremely important, and for this you simply install the Plugin “Google XML Site Maps”. This Plugin will share an updated your Blog Site Map to the Google Search Console each time you make changes, but the changes may take a while (Normally 2 – 3 Weeks) to show up in Search Results.

It is however important to manually check for the Site Map Acceptance from inside the Google Search Console, even with the Google Site Maps Plugin Activated. There may be times when certain errors occur with your Blog Site Map inside Google, which means Google cannot find your Blog.

You have to then test the site map with the tools provided from within the Google Search Console, fix the errors found from inside your Blog C-Panel and test the Site Map again. When the results return with Zero errors found, you simply delete the old site map and upload the new site map.

Accessing the Google Search Console you will need a Google account, as with all the Free Tools Google gives you and it’s a Lot. You simply need to look in the right places and then take your time getting to know how to use the tools. Simple Search your Browser (Preferably Chrome) for the search phrase “Google Search Console” and simply follow the instructions after opening the link on the search result page.

The Blog Site Map is what Search Engine Spiders use to Crawl your Blog so it can be categorized correctly, sending the right visitors your way. This is why the presence of Keywords and Search Phrases are so important throughout all content on your Blog, just the right ones in the right positions.

It’s all about Direction and Precision with Search Engine Optimization because it’s a Numbers Game, but nothing on Earth equals the Volume of Quality Traffic from Search Engines. Google alone processes over 40,000 Search queries every Second and over 3.5 Billion per Day. Adding all other Major Search Engines like Bing and Yahoo just increases that exponentially.

If you still need to start your own Blog, then you will need the required Training for guidance on how to leverage these tactics to your advantage. This is Search Engine Optimization, using keywords and Plugins to drive Interested Visitors to your Blog.

MAKING THE MOST OF A CHANCE

Nebraska wasn’t the first choice for this Chicago Mt. Caramel High School star. “I was recruited by George Kelly who was a coach at Marquette University,” Judge McGinn said. McGinn didn’t stay very long at Marquette and followed a call to the seminary but soon found the priesthood wasn’t for him.

“I sent out some letters to different universities,” McGinn explained. His direct mail approach got a response from an old friend. George Kelly was now one of Devaney’s coaches at Nebraska. “Kelly told me they had a scholarship for me and to come on out.”

McGinn packed his bags and headed for Lincoln. It was 1962 and the excitement was high in Lincoln. His first day at Nebraska was a little stressful however. “I flunked the physical,” McGinn said. “I injured my shoulder in high school and it needed to be fixed.”

McGinn didn’t have much time to feel down about the problem, however. “Coach Devaney came up to me and told me not to worry, they would get things fixed.”

“Pre-season practice wasn’t as tough at Nebraska as it was in high school,” McGinn recalled. “We were allowed some breaks when it was hot and they even had saltwater and orange and lemon slices for us.

Even the regular season practices were lighter. We didn’t do a lot of calisthenics. If you played on Saturday, you didn’t have to scrimmage the next week.” Football was fun for this running back now switched to guard on offense and defense. Yes, he played on both sides of the ball.

McGinn concentrated on his studies and his goal of becoming a dentist. But that soon changed, too. “I got a D in chemistry so I dual matriculated in Arts and Sciences and Teacher’s College,” McGinn explained. He was going to be a coach.

McGinn didn’t get to go to the first bowl game of the Devaney era because he was ineligible due to the transfer. The Huskers headed for the Gotham Bowl in New York City and beat Miami in a freezing weather squeaker, 36-34.

The next year, he was part of an Oklahoma style 5/4 defense. “There were five down linemen and 2 linebackers over the guards,” he explained. Nebraska was also using an alternating squad method where McGinn would come in to sub for All-American Bob Brown.

“There were some opposition players who were happy to see me come in after having to deal with Brown for a while.” Brown was 6′ 5″ and 270 and McGinn was right at 6′ and 205, almost exactly what he is today. Not everyone on that team was a giant. There was even a tough little guy from Cleveland in the backfield by the name of Frank Solich.

McGinn went to work on his own strength and size. The famous Husker Power strength program was still a few years off.”In those days there was a set of Sears weights in the field house and a big bar in the basement of the Coliseum,” he explained.

The excitement was building at a record pace and along with it, seats for the sea of red started pushing out of the ground on the south end of the stadium. “By the time I was a senior, the South Stadium was done,” he remembered. Along with new room for the faithful came some warmer and sunnier bowl appearances. Nebraska beat Auburn in the 1963 Orange Bowl, 13-7.

“We played Arkansas in the 1964 Cotton Bowl and had them handled for most of the game but they started hitting on the little out patterns and we just couldn’t adjust,” he remembered. “I recovered a fumble but it wasn’t enough, they beat us 10-7.”

The football coach-to-be with a major in English and Philosophy was now a Nebraska graduate. The real world called. “I went to work at a Firestone recapping plant in Aberdeen, South Dakota,” he said with a big grin. “Then I got interested in law school.”

McGinn enrolled in Nebraska’s Law School and clerked for county attorney Paul Douglas. When he graduated, he was offered a position with the country attorney’s office and stayed there for eleven years until his appointment to the District Court by Governor Charles Thone.

“I hope I do some good by making an effort to protect society with my judging,” he said. “I like the variety of experiences.” But there is one type of experience that clearly troubles him. It is when a young man stands before him.

If he had his way, he would prefer that young men stand in front of people like Devaney, Osborne, and Solich rather than have to stand before him. “Kids need supervision and attention and sometimes they just don’t get it,” he said. “Sometimes they just don’t have a chance.”

Retired Judge McGinn doesn’t attend all of the Husker home games but you may see him once in a while with some of his old friends. “Fred Duda and I went to the Notre Dame game and a bunch of us get together every summer.

“Chances are, they probably talk about having a chance to play football for Nebraska. Bernard McGinn made the most of his chance.

You may not be aware of it but your website may be missing one of the most fundamental, and most beneficial tags in web design. Most web designers know the importance of having good quality content on their website and they are aware of the importance of having a relevant search engine title tag in order to boost their website rankings. This article discusses the importance of having a H1 tag in each of your web pages and why a H1 tag is a web design must have.

First of all, I’ll start out be explaining exactly what a H1 tag and other header tags are.

A heading element is basically an html element who’s content describes the topic of the section that it introduces. Information found in heading tags can be used to construct a table of contents for a document.

There are six levels of heading tags in HTML. H1 is the most important and H6 is the least important. Browsers usually render more important headings such as H1 in much bigger fonts than the less important ones. This sometimes discourages inexperience web designers from using header tags. The display of heading tags can, however be manipulated using CSS as can any other tag in HTML so there is really no reason not to use them.

So Why Is Having A H1 Tag Important?

The reason it is so important is that semantically a web page will have just one level one heading and ideally this heading will accurately describe the content of the web page that follows. When a search engine visits your webpage and analyses its content in order to determine what the web page is about it will look for important tags such as the H1 tag and any other heading tags that are present in order to find their content. A search engine visits a lot of web pages and for each page it must figure out what the page is about and what key words and key phrases are relevant to that page. You can help search engines to rank your web pages more highly by considering the placement of your keywords into various levels of header tags, particularly the H1 tag. Put simply search engines give a lot of weight to key words and key phrases that are found in heading tags.

For this reason, you can look upon the H1 tag as a major opportunity to promote your target keywords and target key phrases in search engines. For example if I were trying to optimize a page for the key phrase ‘web design doncaster’ I could use H1 tags to mark up a page heading that ideally would contain this target key phrase.

Conclusion:

Because a logically structured HTML document contains numerous heading elements to structure the information, search engines place a lot of importance on content found within heading tags. For this reason, heading tags, particularly H1 and H2 can be looked upon as a golden opportunity to optimise your HTML pages for your target keywords. If you aren’t paying attention to the content that you put in your header tags or worse still, don’t have any header tags, you are missing a golden opportunity to help the search engines determine what your web pages are all about.