Travel and Leisure

Koh Samui is a large island in the Gulf of Thailand that has grown in popularity over the last 20 years as a holiday destination. A huge part of the reason for Koh Samui’s popularity is obviously the beautiful white sand beaches and year round great weather (except for the month of the monsoon), but also a big part of why people go to Koh Samui is that there is plenty to do and see on the island. Below are details about popular activities in Koh Samui and sightseeing spots.

Water sports

Being an island surrounded by warm tropical waters Koh Samui has naturally lots of water sport options. Several beaches including Chaweng, Laem Set and Coral Cove Bay all have coral reefs near the beach that are suitable for snorkeling.

Most beaches have a dive school. These schools offer PADI courses and for the qualified diver day trips to both local dive sites and other sites in the Gulf such as Sail Rock, Chumphon Pinnacles and Ang Thong Marine Park.

Sailing enthusiast can hire a catamaran and other yachts at Saard’s Watersports Center in Bophut. Those who enjoy kite boarding can enjoy the sport at Laem Set. There is no surf in the Gulf but during the months from September to February there is often enough swell to body board near the shore.

Other sports

There are a number of golf courses and driving ranges on Koh Samui. The best (and the most expensive) is Santiburi Country Club which has the only full size course. For those still nurturing the inner child there is a go kart place near Bophut which has some powerful carts to drive.

Muay Thai is the national sport of Thailand. There are several spots around the island where you can see fights including the spectacle of lady boy s fighting in Lamai. There are also several gyms around the island where you can learn the martial art or just enjoy a good work out.

More gentle activity is available at the bowling alleys at Tesco Lotus on the Chaweng Road. For those who want to see something of the interior there is Canopy Adventures (based in Chaweng) that has a series of tree houses joined by zip lines.

Nightlife

For those who want to party the night away there are some great nightlife options in Koh Samui. Chaweng has the largest selection of bars, restaurants and night clubs. They have Brazilian samba at Zico’s, several discos, places that have live music and of course strip joints. Lamai also has a similar night life scene with more of an emphasis on discos. Bophut is famous for its beachfront bars and pubs overlooking the harbor. You can find Guinness, pub grub, live sports, Irish bars, Auzzie bars and also the infamous ‘beer bars’ on Koh Samui.

Sightseeing

The main tourist attraction on Koh Samui is the iconic 12 meter-high Golden Buddha at Bang Rak. It is perched at the top of a grand staircase that leans out over the bay. It has become a symbol for the island. There is also an impressive Thai temple or ‘Wat’ at Plai Laem. For those who like the strange and curious there is a 30 year old mummified monk at Wat Khunaram near Baan Bang Kao.

Even from this brief survey of things to do and see in Koh Samui it is clear that the visitor will never be at loss for something to do when he or she visits Koh Samui.

You are a tennis player, but have only ever played on one type of court: the hard court.  This is quite common because hard courts are the most used courts in all of tennis.  Even though clay courts and grass courts have major tournaments on the professional tour, they are more specialized and usually not suitable for places like a public park.  Installation and maintance of these surfaces is much higher than a traditional or synthetic hard court and cost is most often the motivator for installing one over the other.  If you reside in the United States it is very unlikely that you will see a true red clay court from crushed brick.  The most common imitation in the states is a green clay called Har-Tru.  The surface is somewhat like the red clay, but all of the changes that you will see in a normal clay court are minimized.

How to Play on a Clay Court

If you do get the lucky chance to play on one of these crushed brick surfaces you will notice that there are a lot of differences.  The biggest thing that you’ll need to get the hang of is movement on a clay court.  You really slide around on this surface, so when you run to get a shot the only way to stop properly is to actually slide into the shot.  If you don’t do this you will end up sliding far beyond where you actually hit the ball and your opponent will laugh at you while he hits a winner into the open court.  Once you’ve grasped the movement on clay the next big challenge will be to adjust for longer points.  Loose tennis surfaces causes a lot of friction on the ball causing it to slow down and jump up.  This means it becomes much harder for you to end the point quickly.  You will have to become adept at playing long base line rallies and not getting impatient when you are unable to end the point.  Don’t bother trying to serve and volley on this surface either, the ball sits up for the opponent to hit an easy passing shot.

Benefits of the Clay Court

One great thing about the clay court is that it is much easier on your body than a traditional hard court.  Hard courts are just piles of concrete and asphalt that can really tear up your legs over time.  The clay is a lot softer and provides more cushion.  Tennis is never going to be an easy sport on your body, but if you can play on clay rather than a hard court it will help.  The catch here is that points on clay courts are generally longer and more physical so you might actually have to push your body harder.

The different major tournaments in tennis play on all these different court surfaces. TennisShoeView talks about the grand slam tournaments and how the effects of the court can change the dynamics of a match.  As you learn more about tennis try to get the opportunity to play on all the different surfaces.

The Dolomites are made of dolomite, the rocky remnants of coral reefs that thrived in ancient shallow seas. The Dolomites’ claim to fame is not great height: the tallest peak in this part of the Italian Alps, Monte Marmolada, reaches up only 10,964 feet (3,342 meters). What makes the Dolomites memorable is their incredibly bold contours, with stark, sheer-walled massifs rising straight up from gently inclined lower slopes.

The contrast is especially striking in winter, when snow blankets the valleys and slopes but not the somber walls of stone. Looming against the horizon are massive rock formations that resemble needles, spires, castles, and fortresses. Saw-toothed ridges tower over distant valleys, while vertical walls rise straight up for 3,300 feet (1,000 meters) and more.

The dramatic contours of the Dolomites attract rock climbers and walking tours from all parts of the world. Intersecting the mountains are a variety of well-marked trails for every level of expertise. Some of them, accessible by chair lift or cable car, are equipped with built-in handholds, ladders, and other safety features. But a few trails, especially in the Brenta (the rugged southwestern part of the range), are more challenging. Winding across glaciers, they require the use of ice axes, crampons, and other specialized mountaineering equipment.

A visitor trekking across a glacier in the Dolomites may find it hard to believe that the mountains originated in a warm, shallow sea. Some 200 million years ago water covered the region, and a coral reef developed atop much older beds of shale and marl (a clayey rock). Over the millennia the coral was compressed into a distinctive type of limestone that contains magnesium. Known as dolomite, it was named after the 18th-century French geologist Deodat Dolomieu, who first described the rock. Dolomite occurs elsewhere in the Alps and in many other places around the globe, including parts of the American Midwest and some places in the Appalachian Mountains.

During a period of mountain building that began 65 million years ago, the Dolomites were uplifted along with the rest of the Alps. Many believe that the Alps formed as a result of the movement of continents—specifically when two great landmasses, Africa and Europe, collided and their margins were heaved upward into crumpled mountainous relief.
Even as the mountains were rising, the forces of erosion began their work of wearing down. Valleys developed where the softer, more easily eroded shale and marl were exposed. The harder dolomite, in contrast, wore away much more slowly. As a result, great masses of dolomite remain more or less intact, forming the stark massifs that now typify this part of the Alps.

The human history of the Dolomites is as intriguing as the landscape itself. Ruled by Rome for hundreds of years, the mountain people developed their own version of Latin—a language called Ladin that is still spoken by some of the residents. Eventually the region became part of Austria, and German took over as the official language—until the area was ceded to Italy at the end of World War I. As a result, many of the mountain features now bear both Italian and German names Torre Undici is also called Elferturm (both names mean “Eleventh Tower”), Croda Rossa is Rotwand (“Red Wall”), and Val Sasso Vecchio and Altensteintal both refer to the same “Old Stone Valley.” But by whatever names, the formations all contribute to the scenic beauty that makes the Dolomites a popular tourist resort around the year.

The Olympics is an event that happens every four years. It pits every country against each other to determine who has the best players among each sport. There are two kinds of Olympics and that is the summer and winter Olympics. These two events happen two years apart from each other every four years. The same kinds of medals are given for both events. Olympic medals have been given away to the top 3 players of every sport. There are 44 sports involved in the summer Olympics and 15 for the winter Olympics. The summer Olympics is so much bigger because of the number of sports played and the country compete among each other by counting the number of medals that they have.

A lot of countries have never won gold medals in the Olympics games. For those countries who have already won a number of medals, especially those players who have multiple medals, their medals are made in part of pure gold, silver and bronze; whichever medal they won. There have been a number of Olympic medals in the past that have shown up in auction sites like eBay and people are willing to pay a lot of money for it.

Gold medals from the Olympics are said to be gilt by at least 6g of pure gold. It is not entirely gold but only a part of it. It is colored gold to indicate that it is a gold medal but there is only a very small amount of gold in it. The rest is made of silver which is still an expensive metal. Six ounce of gold will amount to about $200 depending on the price of the gold as it constantly fluctuates. The remaining amount of silver would also be about $200 dollars which brings the total to around $400. The medal with the most amount of gold is from 1908 with 25g of pure gold which would make it cost about $1,000 at present time. Even so, most people are willing to pay more for it. They are not buying it for the gold but because it is a piece of history that will live on forever. The most expensive Olympic gold medal ever sold was at $82,000 and it was done for a charitable cause. People who sell their medals because they need money can still count on the medals to cost at least a $1,000.

Silver medals in the Olympics are made of 92.5% pure silver which still makes it quite expensive. This will cost about $200 minimum to make the medal itself. Hoping to find one for around the same price online will be impossible though as purchasing the medal includes a sentimental value that will bring its price much higher that you will expect.

Bronze medals are made of pure bronze but they are not that expensive to make. Bronze does not really cost much but for people who wish to own a piece of their countries’ history, buying one can still cost more than it is really worth.

Sometimes people aren’t exactly sure how they end up in a situation where they’re about to sing onstage. They may go to a karaoke bar after being convinced by friends, but they might not even have an intention of singing in front of strangers. There’s just something about the atmosphere and energy of a karaoke bar that draws people in. Don’t be surprised if you intend to go for a quick drink but end up on stage under the spotlight. If you are singing at a karaoke bar for the first time, there are a few things to remember so that your performance is not a disaster. You have to keep in mind it’s not as easy as it looks, but it shouldn’t be as scary as it seems either. Here are some tips to make the experience a positive one.

It’s important to pick a good song when you sing karaoke for the first time. This is not the time to try something new, especially when you are not completely familiar with the lyrics. It’s in your own best interest to take something that you know backwards and forwards so that you don’t have to constantly stare at the lyrics scrolling on the screen. This will leave you free to put a bit more energy into your performance and play to the crowd. You should also pick something that will be popular for the audience so that they will be excited about your performance when the music first starts.

It’s essential to realize that karaoke is not necessarily all about how your voice sounds. After all, if karaoke fans had voices like professionals then they would all be recording artists. This is a hobby designed for everyday people which is why you should have reasonable expectations for yourself. Your energy and attitude will make up for a shaky voice in almost every situation. Go into your song with a positive frame of mind and don’t be afraid to flash a smile. Give the audience a great show without over doing it at the same time.

Keep in mind that singing is a physical process that involves your lungs in addition to your voice. Make sure to maintain a straight posture so that you can get proper airflow throughout your performance. Hold the microphone and a comfortable distance from your face, and remember there’s no need to shout into it. At the same time, you have to project your voice in a comfortable manner so make sure that you listen to the sound of the overall performance as the song plays. Before your song, make sure not to smoke, or eat deep fried or spicy food because they can have a negative impact on your throat and voice. Most importantly, never go up on stage drunk because it only increases the chances that you’ll make a fool of yourself. True karaoke fans appreciate their time on stage so you should never take it for granted or waste it by being inebriated or giving a drunken performance.

After you have tried karaoke for the first time, don’t be surprised if you become instantly hooked. It’s a great hobby that will give you hours of endless entertainment if you choose to incorporate it into your home entertainment system. For more information and advice, you can read about purchasing a home karaoke system.

I have been go karting for several years and have experience in all the different forms of racing, but enduro racing is my favorite. Also known as endurance racing, the enduro form of racing is really the mother of all go kart races. When compared to other races, there are several things that make enduro racing the preferred go kart racing for me.

Big League Racing

Enduro racing simulates professional motor sports better than any other type of go karting. Many of the enduro races take place on full-size motor speedways. I love the adrenaline rush I get every time I step out onto the track. With some longer enduro races we even have a pit crew and have to time our pit stops. Other races require us to work as part of a team. This is much more advanced than the sprint go kart racing I used to do. I feel like I have really stepped up into the big leagues when I go out for an enduro race.

Challenge The Limits

If nothing else, enduro racing is very challenging. It is called “endurance” racing, because it really tests my stamina. I have to lay almost flat in my enduro kart, which is a big difference than sitting up in the standard racing go kart. This is more aerodynamic and results in faster speeds, but it certainly isn’t more comfortable. Although it is challenging, I like the fact that I feel like I am really working for something when I am racing an enduro kart. It certainly makes the win that much sweeter.

Showcase My Go Kart

I have invested a lot of time and money into building my go kart. In fact, I looked at used racing go karts for sale, but instead decided that I wanted to create my own from go kart kits. The enduro race not only tests my ability as a driver, but it also tests the durability and performance of the go kart I built. I get immense pride when my kart performs well, because I know that I had a hand in every step of the kart building process.

Although I like all forms of go kart racing, I have found that the enduro races are what keep me coming back for more. While not for the faint of heart, the enduro races challenge me and my kart better than any other form of go kart racing.