Murcia

    I have spent about 8 months living in Murcia and I feel that I should put it as number one on my list. On my return from exploring other cities, I always feel like I'm returning home when I set foot in Murcia. The city centre is full of life and energy and has an incredible atmosphere all year round. Although the accent takes you a little time to get used to at first, you will adjust to it. Murcia is also home to some gorgeous(壮丽的) beaches and amazing coastal views. So it really does have the best of both worlds!

Gibraltar

    I visited Gibraltar during the Easter holidays and I was totally surprised by the beauty of Gibraltar! From a short cable car riding up to the top of the rock you are met with splendid views over the coast and the adorable monkeys which curiously come to greet you on your arrival. Make sure to hide all your food because they think it's a gift for them!

Valencia

    Valencia is beautiful. It's as simple as that! The river-area is so exciting and full of life, all the way up to the science museum and beaches. However, I was a little confused by the fact that the river had long been filled in and turned into a park, yet people still referred to it as The River.

Alicante

    I have spent many a weekend in Alicante, making the most of the beautiful beach in low season, before all the tourists arrive. May is the high season here, so I'd definitely recommend a visit in April, September, or October, just before or after the holiday season.

    At a daycare center in Texas, children were playing outside. One of the children was Jessica Mc Clure. She was 18 months old. Her mother, who worked at the daycare center, was watching the children. Suddenly Jessica fell and disappeared. Jessica's mother screamed and ran to her.

    A well was in the yard of the center. The well was only eight inches across and a rock always covered it. But children had moved the rock. When Jessica fell, she fell right into the well.

    Jessica's mother reached inside the well, but she couldn't feel Jessica. She dialed 911 for help. Men from the fire department arrived. They discovered that Jessica was about 20 feet down in the well. For the next hour the men talked and planned Jessica's rescue.

    “We can't go down into the well,”they said.“It's too narrow. So, we're going to drill a hole next to the well. Then we'll drill a tunnel across to Jessica. When we reach her, we'll bring her through the tunnel and up through our hole.”

    The men began to drill the hole at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, October 14, 1987. The men had a difficult job; they were drilling through solid rock. During her days in the well, Jessica sometimes asked for her mother. Sometimes she slept, sometimes she cried and sometimes she sang.

    All over the world, people waited for news of Jessica. Everyone worried about her.

    At 8 p.m. on Friday, October 16, men reached Jessica and brought her up from the well. She was soon sent to hospital. Jessica was dirty, hungry, thirsty and tired. Her feet and forehead were badly injured. But Jessica was alive.

    After Jessica's rescue, one of the rescuers made a metal cover for the well, saying,“To Jessica, with love from all of us.”

    Bike Share Toronto is the city's official bike share program, designed to give locals and visitors a fun, affordable and convenient alternative to walking, taxis, buses and the subway. There are 200 Bike Share Toronto stations and 2,000 bikes across the city, making Bike Share the most accessible way to get around and explore.

    How it works

    Become an Annual Member or buy a day Pass to access the system.

    Find an available bike nearby, and get a ride code or use your member key to unlock it.

    Take as many short rides as you want while your pass or membership is active.

    Return your bike to any station, and wait for the green light on the dock (停靠点) to make sure it's locked.

    Choose a plan

    For visitors

    Day Pass: $ 7. Unlimited 30-minute rides in a 24-hour period. 3-Day Pass: $ 15. Unlimited 30-minute rides in a 72-hour period.

    For locals

    Monthly Pass: $ 25. Unlimited 30-minute rides for a month.

    Annual Membership: $ 90. Unlimited 30-minute rides for a whole year. The Annual Membership is the best deal for locals of Toronto and other frequent riders.

    The first 30 minutes of each ride is included with the membership or pass price. Avoid extra fees by dropping off your bike every 30 minutes at any other station. If you keep a bike out for longer than 30 minutes at a time, you will be charged all extra $ 1.50 for the first 30 minutes, $ 4 for the next 30 minutes, and $ 7 for each additional 30 minutes after that.

    Contact us

    Customer Service: (855)898—2388

    Repair Service: (855)—2378

    Corporation Partners: (855)898—2398

    Employment Opportunities: (855)898—2498

Eco-Resort Management

    Ecotourism is often regarded as a form of nature-based tourism and has become an important alternative source of tourists. In addition to providing the traditional resort-leisure product, it has been argued that ecotourism resort(度假村) management should have a particular focus on best-practice environmental management. Couran Cove Resort is such a tourist attraction located on South Stradbroke Island, Australia.

    Sustainable(可持续的) Practices of Couran Cove Resort

    South Stradbroke Island is separated from the mainland by the Broadwater, which is home to a wide range of plant communities. Located on the offshore island, the Resort is only accessible by means of water transportation. It provides hourly ferry service from the harbour on the mainland to and from the island. Within the Resort, transport modes include walking trails, bicycle tracks and the beach train. The reception area is the counter of the shop which has not changed in 8 years at least. The accommodation is an octagonal(八角形的) building. These are large rooms that are clean but the equipment is old and in some cases just working. The ceiling fan only works at high speed for example. Beds are hard but clean. There is a television, a radio, an old air conditioner and a small fridge in each room.

    As an ecotourism-based resort, most of the planning and development of the attraction has been concentrated on the need to co-exist with the natural environment of South Stradbroke Island to achieve sustainable development.

Water and Energy Management

    There is groundwater at the centre of the island, which has a maximum height of 3 metres above sea level. The water supply is recharged by rainfall and is commonly known as an freshwater aquifer(含水层). Couran Cove Island Resort obtains its water supply by tapping into this aquifer and collecting it through a pipe. In order to narrow the water uses, all laundry activities are carried out on the mainland. The Resort uses LPG power station rather than a fuel oil station for its energy supply, supplemented(补充) by wind power, which has reduced greenhouse emissions by 70%. Hot water in the eco-cabins and for some of the Resort's vehicles is solar-powered. Water efficient fittings are also installed in showers and toilets. Visitors who stay at the Resort are encouraged to monitor their water and energy usage by an in-house television system, and are rewarded with prizes (such as a free return trip to the Resort) accordingly if their usage level is low.

    Evaluation

    In three years of operation, Couran Cove Island Resort has won 23 international and national awards. It has effectively implemented contemporary environmental management practices. However, the Resort's growth will eventually be limited by its carrying capacity, and quantity control should be incorporated in the management strategy of the Resort.

    Scientists recently discovered three tyrannosaur (霸王龙) trackways in Canada. The trackways suggest the meat eaters traveled and hunted in groups. The 70-million-year- old footprints are the first tyrannosaur trackways ever found.

    Tyrannosaurs were a type of meat-eating dinosaur that included the strong Tyrannosaurus rex and Albertosaurus. “Groups of tyrannosaurs may have stuck together as a group to increase their chances of bringing down animals and individually surviving,” study coauthor Richard McCrea says. He works for Canada's Peace Region Paleontology Research Centre. It's believed that tyrannosaurs were solitary creatures. The newly discovered trackways could change the way scientists look at these frightening beasts.

    Trackways can uncover a lot about the social behavior of a species. Unfortunately, very few tyrannosaur footprints have ever been found, and until recently, the only ones known were single prints discovered in Mongolia, the western U.S., and western Canada. But in October 2011, a hunting guide named Aaron Fredlund found two tyrannosaur track marks near Tumbler Ridge, an area in the foothills of the Canadian Rockies. Over the next year, McCrea and his team searched the site and found the remaining trackways.

    The footprints are at about the same depth, which suggests the tyrannosaurs moved through the area at the same time. Impressions of the dinosaurs' rough skin are even visible in the prints. The prints are also in near-perfect condition. That's because the ground had a high clay (黏土 ) content when the dinosaurs walked through the area. The land was later covered by a thick layer of volcanic ash, which kept the marks intact (完整). "This is the most ideal situation you could ask for," McCrea says.

    Researchers aren't sure of the exact species of tyrannosaur that left the prints. But the historic findings show a great deal about how the beasts moved and behaved. “We have extremely convincing evidence that tyrannosaurs traveled in groups,” says McCrea. "This is probably the most important evidence to come out to date on that topic."

    Working with a stressed mind is like swimming with a jacket on, while a mind free from work stress is light like the wind and it can help you accomplish your daily tasks easily. To relieve (缓解)stress and lighten your mind, you must first understand the nature of stress and the reasons why it builds up. Then you can easily beat stress.

    Talk it out

    Talking to others helps relieve work stress especially when you and the person you talk to are in the same boat and under the same work stress. Your worries will be divided! If you are your own boss, you need some good advisers around you, who know your trouble and talk sense. If there is no such persons at your workplace, let there be one at home, who is a friend, a family member or a guide that you can talk to.

    Let music calm your mind

    Music has the power to take you into a new world, away from your worries. Taking a break to listen to some favorite music is also a great way to relieve stress.

    Take a walk

    If there is a park around, go and have a walk there. You can eat some snacks sitting on the grass. Move around, look at the world around you and forget your work for a while. Let your body get some exercise. A walk works as it also clears your thoughts. You can listen to music while going on a walk.

    Have a life beyond the workplace

    If you keep thinking about nothing other than work all the time, there is bound to be stress. So, throw away your thoughts about work after you leave your office and get a life beyond it. Have a life beyond the workplace, and you can relax after work.