Dr. Mark Nan Tu

I have been playing seriously since Aug. 2008. It has been three years. Here is me hitting. Looks like 4.0NTRP player?

Mount Kinabalu (Malay: Gunung Kinabalu) is a prominent mountain on the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. It is located in the east Malaysian state of Sabah and is protected as Kinabalu National Park, a World Heritage Site.

Its summit, Low’s Peak ist 4,095 metres (13,435 ft) above sea level. It can be climbed through the main climbing route without mountaineering equipment.

Climbers must be accompanied by accredited guides at all times due to national park regulations. There are two main starting points for the climb: the Timpohon Gate (5.5 km from Kinabalu Park Headquarters, at an altitude of 1866 m), and the Mesilau Nature Resort. The two trails meet about two kilometres before Laban Rata.

Accommodation is available inside the park near the headquarters. by Sutera Sanctuary Lodges (also known as Sutera Harbour). Sutera is now requiring hikers stay one night at their lodge near the entrance, in addition to a required stay at Laban Rata. The cost to stay is considerably higher than at lodging just outside the park, and includes a mandatory purchase of meals, etc. The higher price means a good view of the mountain at night. If money is a concern, there are plenty of private lodging just outside the park.

Climbers usually arrive in the afternoon and register at the park heard quarter and stay one night at the foot of the mountain. They get up early the second morning. After get the climbing permit and the guide (porter) at the park head quarter, proceed to the Timpohon gate at 1866 m (6,122 ft), either by minibus (most people) or by walking, and then walk to the Laban Rata Resthouse at 3,270 m (10,728 ft). Most people accomplish this part of the climb in 3 to 6 hours. Since there are no roads, the supplies for the Laban Rata Resthouse are carried by porters, who bring up to 30 kilograms of supplies on their backs. Hot food and beverages, hot showers and heated rooms are available at Laban Rata.

The guest house in Laban Rata provides limited space (booking through Sutera Harbour is a must) to ensure space. The room offers two r double deck beds. Climbers usually get to bed around 8pm and prepare the next day summit push.

Climbers usually wake up at 130am the third day. After a buffet breakfast, they will cover he last 2 km (2600 ft), from the Laban Rata Resthouse at 3,270 m to Low’s Peak (summit) at 4,095.2 m,. They will reach the summit before dawn. The last part of the climb is on naked granite rock..

How to get there:
From Kota Kinabalu bus station, there are mini bus that runs to the Mt. Kinabalu park entrance. The cost is 20 RM. The ride is 1.5 hours with the view of the mountain insight.
After getting down the mountain, you can wait for the passing mini bus at the park entrance to either back to Kota Kinabalu or to Poring Hot Springs. However, the waiting time may be extremely long.
Taxi can be called from park head quarter. It costs 200RM to Kota Kinabalu or 160RM to Poring Hot Springs.
Tips:
You can stay outside the park for the first night. Private lodgings are significantly cheaper than inside the park.
You may also choose to arrive at the Park entrance early in the morning by taking an early bus directly from Kota Kinabalu and start hike right away.
There is a possibility that you can climb up and get down the mountain in one day and saving all the lodging and food costs (very expensive). In good physical condition, one can reach climb the mountain in 4-5 hours and get down in 3 hours. The world record for such an activity is slightly over 2 hours. Wow!

Chaozhou (Chinese: ??) is a city in eastern Guangdong province of the People’s Republic of China. It borders Shantou to the south, Jieyang to the southwest, Meizhou to the northwest, the province of Fujian to the east, and the South China Sea to the southeast.

Chaozhou is a famous historical and cultural city in the country. The city’s feature is known as “Classic Tourist City” which receives numerous tourists both from abroad and home. The following is the guide for this �classic city tour�. You can hire a human powered tricycle which will take you to a few historic relics in the �old city�. You can also rent a bike or walk to enjoy the relics and unique culture of Chaozhou. The �old city� is well preserved. Many local people still lives in those old houses along the narrow alleyways.

The tour starts in the Kaiyuan Temple (???) and ends in the same spot. Therefore, you may choose to visit the Kaiyuan temple last.

Stop 1: The first stop is the Ming city wall (???) which is rebuilt in the 1990s. There is a section of the old wall remain. You can compare it to the newly build wall. You shall walk up the wall in Guangji Men (?????). From the top of the wall, you will get a good view of the Guangji Bridge (???) and the Mazhu temple (???). You can also see the Han River which was named after the great Chinese poet lived in the Tang dynasty. The Guangji Bridge connects the Ming city wall with the Hangong Shire.
1. The Ming city wall (???), 2.6 kilometers long.
2. The Mazhu temple (???)? built inside the Ming wall worships the Mazhu who is a goddess lived in Chaoshan region who was believed to performed many good deeds for the locals. She is worshipped as a goddess after her death mainly in the southeast China and for Chinese in Southeast Asian countries.
3. Guangzi Bridge (???), built in the Southern Song Dynasty (1170 A.D.) was reconstructed in the 1990s.
4. Hangong Ci(???) is located along Hangjiang river and west of Bijia mountain. This shrine had been constructed since Song Dynasty and become the oldest existing and the most completed reservation memorial of Han Yu, who is the great poet in Tang Dynasty.
In the year of A.D.819, for some political reason, Han Yu was exiled to Chaozhou, a backland at that time. But he was not depressed by this, he helped local people to develop education, agriculture, irrigation and release slaves. To memorize what he had contributed to the development of Chaozhou, people constructed this shrine and name him �Hanwengong� respectfully. ??
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Stop 2: After an easy stroll on the Ming city wall, you can follow the trail through the old alleyways of the �old Chaozhou city�. The next stop is: Haiyang County Confusion Temple (??????) or Chaozhou Museum and Changli Old Arch (?????).

1. Haiyang County Confusion Temple (??????) was built in the Song Dynasty (1278AD) and was destroyed in a fire. It was rebuild in the Ming Dynasty (1369AD). Its architecture is heavily influenced by the east Guangdong style with intricate and colorful carvings decorate the ceiling joints. The Chaozhou Museum is located inside the temple.
2. Changli Old Arch(?????) is located just opposite the gate of the Haiyang County Confusion Temple. This arch was built in Ming Dynasty. There are carvings both in front and at the back. Changli is the other name for Hangyu. This arch is built in memory of the Tang dynasty poet Hangyu.

You may choose to rest and chipping the Gongfu tea in many stores in front of the Haiyang County Confusion Temple. There is no obligation to buy. If you wish to purchase, please be sure to bargain.

Stop 3: The next stop is Huang Jilue Temple (?????)
Huang Jilue Temple (?????) is famous for its intricate wood and stone carvings. It was built in Qing dynasty. It is a great example of the architecture style of the East Guangdong.

Stop 4 (last stop): Back to the beginning is the Kaiyuan Temple (???)
Kaiyuan Temple (???) is a Buddhist center embodied with the quintessence of the architectural art of various dynasties such as the Tang, the Song, the Yuan and the Qing. This temple is over 200 years old. The temple is also home to the most influential Buddhism Study Institute in Southeast China. Inside, handsome calligraphy and inscribed steles remind visitors that this temple once functioned as the record keeper of the city.

Still want to see more? There is also another place worth visit: Xu, Imperial Son-in-law, Mansion (????). I will leave that to you to find out the location. It will give you a bit more adventure in this trip.
Xu, Imperial Son-in-law, Mansion (????), which retains the basic pattern of the architecture of the Song Dynasty.

How to get there:
By Air: Chaozhou has no airport. The closest airport is located in Shantou which is only 30km to Chaozhou city. Every 10 minutes, Shantou bus station has an express bus to Chaozhou.
By train: Guangzhou has 3 trains that connect to Chaozhou
By bus: This is actually the preferred ways to go to Chaozhou. It is very easy to find buses that connect Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Xiamen and many other cities.
By boat: Chaozhou is connected to Hongkong and Xiamen by boat.

Travel in the city:
Taxi: Chaozhou old town is very small. The Chaozhou railway station is close to the Kaiyuan temple. The taxis are metered.
Bus: The public bus system is well developed. However, the signs are in Chinese.
By tricycle: this human powered tricycle is another way to enjoy the city. The drivers will usually explain to you the �secret stories� of the Chaozhou. The �old city tricycle tour� costs 30RMB for 1.5 hour round trip that starts in Kaiyuan temple.
By bike: Bikes are offered for rent in many small shops.

Wutong Shan Mountain (???)

Wutongshan has several hiking routes to choose from if you want to reach the top. If your Chinese skills aren’t quite good enough to translate the route map, you can simply do what most people do; namely follow the central route.

This central route will take you by a number of small pretty waterfalls and streams. There are also some really beautiful forests along the way. The different forests each have their own individual splendor and charm, which makes the hike even more interesting and varied. For adventurers interested in this route there is plenty to explore, but be cautious and get a map from the front gate as it is easy to get lost. Maps are usually given out for free.

Location: East side of Shenzhen, Stretching over Luohu, Yantian and Longgang districts. ?????????????????

Getting There:

Take bus no. 201 from Luohu to Wutongshan Bus stop which is about a 30 minute bus ride from the city. You will eventually end up in a small village. The signs to the entrance are obvious and you usually see lots of other hikers walking towards the entrance. There is convenient parking at the bottom which should only cost around 10RMB for the duration of the trek.

Hiking Danan Shan is a popular hike in Shenzhen. It is on Nantou Island (??) in Nanshan District. The mountain is 336-meters high and is surrounded by Shekou’s industrial area. The climbing is not tough. It takes about an hour and a half to the top.

The path is well paved (which seems to be popular in China) and has dense tropical vegetation. There are some great views of the surrounding area.

Location: On Nantou Island, Nanshan District, Southwest of Nanhai Dadao, Shenzhen

Getting There:

There are three routes up Danan Shan. The first starts from the road along Minghua Hotel at Shekou, near Guishan Villa. You can take buses 113, 204, 105, 217, 226, 332, 22, 229, 231, 232, 233, 31 or 331 and get off at Sea World bus stop.

The second route starts from the intersection at Shekou Customs building. You can take buses 113, 230, 232 and get off at the United Hospital bus stop.

The third route starts from Jingshan Garden at Nanyou (??). Take bus 113, 204, 105, 210, 226, 332, and get off at Nanyou bus stop.

Whether you’re hiking on Wutong Shan or Danan Shan, it is highly recommended that you try to go during the weekdays, simply because these places are packed with people on the weekends. Overcrowding can really hamper your trekking experience, especially if the whole point of going there is to enjoy nature and get away from the crowded city. If you absolutely must go at the weekends then Wutong Shan is the slightly less crowded option. However, if it’s a serene country trek you’re after then make sure you come here mid-week.

Fenghuangshan, which is also known by some as Phoenix Hill, is situated on the border of Shenzhen and Dongguan districts, only a 45 min drive from the HK-mainalnd frontier crossing at Huanggang.

Tang Lang Hill County Park Entrance

Tang Lang Hill Country Park, is located in Nanshan District, Shenzhen. PRChina. With elevation 430.8 meters, Tang Lang Mountain is the third highest peak in Shenzhen. The other two are big Nanshan at: 336 meters above sea level and Wutongshan of 960 meters.

A 3 -4 hour 5 mile easy walk up and down the Tanglang Hill. The trail is paved and well marked. There are short cuts through stairs. The trail is about 3 miles to the top. On the top of the mountain, you get a panaramic view of the Shenzhen city. In a clear day, you can see the Hong Kong Shenzhen Bridge and the high raise buildings in Hong Kong.

Entrance is free.

How to get there:
By car: Follow “Beihuan” express way, exit on “Longzhu”, turn right on “longzhu #6”, 400 meters to the entrance.
By bus: Get off on “Taoyuan village” bus stop. Walk to “longzhu #6” road and follow the sign to the entrance.

MetaGPS Geotagging Unit for Nikon DSLR Cameras Demo Video showing now MetaGPS unit works on a Nikon D90 with reference to an iPhone 4

I started playing tennis seriously 2 years ago. I played around a bit in colleges 18 years ago. I also play other sports such as swimming and basketball. My goal of Sept. 2008 was to achieve 4.0 in 2 years.

To reach this goal, I have done the following:
1: Hired 3 private couches through out the 2 years and had about all together 40 private lessons.
2: Work out in the Gym twice a week to build up upper body strength (which was my weakness).
3: Practice matches with various hitting partners during the weekends, often found through internet postings.
4: Practice at least 3 times a week during the week with regular hitting partners.
5: Join local NTRP matches and tournaments every few month to check progress and find weakness in the game and set up development goals.
6: Video tape myself and improve technique.
7: Watch a lot of video instructions such as FYB and those from youtube.

Results: I am a strong 3.5 player (backed by NTRP match play results). I am confident that I can reach strong 4.0 in about year. I need to work on the following:
1: Reduce double errors by developing a reliable second serve (kick and slice).
2: Develop a better front court game such as volleys and mashes.

Looking back, I think that with determination, practice and proper instructions, most of the adults can reach 3.5-4.0 in about 2 years. Some exceptional ones can reach a solid 4.0 in 2 years.

I am really curious how long it takes for me to reach 4.5.

Here is me hitting with a 3.5 partner. I am the one in black and close to the camera.

I just returned from a 8 day trip to South Vietnam. I flew in to Ho Chi Mihn city from Hongkong. Toured the city and went for a two day Mekong Delta trip. I then returned to HoChiMihn and took a bus to Mui Ne, Da Lat and then Nha Trang. I flew back to HoChiMihn city at the 7th night. From there, I flew to Hongkong and came back to Shenzhen yesterday morning.

In general, I was very pleased with the trip and the companion (I went with other 2 friends). I lost my Nikon camera in a hotel. But I blamed myself for careless behavior (I left my hotel door unlocked for the night, went out drinking and came back found my camera gone).

The highlights are:

1: A night out at the Gossip bar (one of the most local popular bar) in HoChiMihn
2: Resort only 10 meter to the seashore at Mui Ne
3: Seafood feast in Mui Ne
4: Motorcycle riding in Nha Trang.

Here are more pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/drnantu/sets/72157625114053876/

Vietnam, Nha Trang