March 16th, 2010
Drenched into royal grandeur the Indian state of Rajasthan is one of the most charming and captivating states of the country. The state has numerous catchy attractions to offer its visitors. Cities of Rajasthan are very popular among tourists from all over the world. There are several historic cities in the state having several heritage attractions like forts, temples, palaces, havelis, etc. Almost all the cities of Rajasthan were once the princely states in themselves. Thus there are several magnificent forts, elegant palaces, terrific temples, lovely lakes and gorgeous gardens in the cities. All these depict the royal and glorious past of the cities and the state. Almost all the famous cities of the state are well connected with the excellent road transportation network. So traveling in the state is worth enjoying.
A luxury car drive can make you delightful experience of travelling to the famous cities of the state. Tourists or travellers can hire a car of their own choice with any one of reputed Rajasthan car rental agencies. There are several car rental agencies in the state offering city wise car rental services in the state. A chuffer driven car can give you a pleasant experience of Rajasthan tours and Rajasthan city tours. Famous cities of Rajasthan are Jaipur, Udaipur, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Ajmer, Pushkar, Mount Abu, Bikaner, etc. These all are considered as must visit destinations of the state if you truly want to enjoy real charm of Rajasthan travel and tourism.
Jaipur is the capital city of Rajasthan and fondly described as the pink city of India. It is one of the most beautiful cities of India. There are several attractions of tourist interest in the city deserving the attentions of tourists from all over the world. City Palace, Jantar Mantar, Amber Fort, Nahargarh Fort, Jaigarh Fort, Hawa Mahal, Jal Mahal, Albert Hall Museum, Birla Temple, Govind Dev Ji Temple, etc are worth visiting attractions of Jaipur city tours. A visit to Jaipur city also provides tourists to take excursion trips to nearby fascinating places like Ajmer, Pushkar and Samode. So, tourists should not miss to visit Jaipur on their Rajasthan tours.
Udaipur – the city of lakes – is one of the most charming and captivating cities of India. It is one of the star attractions of Rajasthan. City Palace, Jagdish Temple, Pichola Lake, Fateh Sagar Lake, Lake Palace, Fateh Prakash Lake, etc are prime attractions of Udaipur city tours. A visit to Udaipur also provides tourists to explore famous Ranakpur Jain Temples and magnificent fort at Kumbhalgarh.
Jodhpur is the second largest city of the state having attractions like Mehrangarh Fort, Umaid Bhawan Palace & Museum, Mandore Garden, Sardar Market, Jaswant Thada, etc. The city is fondly described as the Blue City of India. Jaisalmer is very popular among tourists for its magnificent Golden Fort, Jain Temples and Havelis. A visit to Jaisalmer city also provides tourists to explore rippling sand dunes with camel ride. Tourists can plan a visit to Desert National Park from Jaisalmer.
Mount Abu is the only hill stations of Rajasthan and considered as a must visit destinations of Rajasthan tours and travel. Dilwara Jain Temples, Wildlife Sanctuary, Scenic Beauty, Nakki Lake, Honeymooner Point, Sunset Point, etc are attractions of Mount Abu visit. Other worth-visiting cities of the state are Kota, Bundi, Chittorgarh, Bikaner, Ranthambhore, Bharatpur, etc. There are several travel agents in the state offering travel and tourism packages. Choose a reputed Rajasthan travel agent, book your tour package and explore famous cities of Rajasthan. Well, visit to the royal state of Rajasthan and get ready to treasure cherishable experience of lifetime.
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Tags: City, Rajasthan, Tours | Comments Off
March 14th, 2010
If you are looking for the excitement of Las Vegas, the cool charm of a city like Boston, and the romance of Paris in your next vacation then you may want to check out Atlantic City. Atlantic City is a great town that is nestled along the Atlantic seashore with its famous boardwalk for you to wander down.
Atlantic City is actually filled with resorts and tons of activities for you to enjoy.This city is much like Las Vegas that never sleeps. You can find something to do at any time of the day.
During the day, you can find all sorts of activities to keep yourself busy. There are wonderful golf courses throughout Atlantic City, and you should be able to enjoy a great game on the green.Another great idea for the daytime in Atlantic City is to take a trolley ride through the city. This will allow you to ride through the city to take in the sights. The Boardwalk is a great place to walk along to take in the sights of the seashore, and you will certainly want to make it there for sunset with your special someone. There is something that is incredibly romantic about standing on the busy boardwalk looking out at the rolling waves of the Atlantic Ocean while watching the sky change colors, and the sun sinking into the horizon.
Additionally, you will not want to miss the Absecon Lighthouse. The Absecon Lighthouse is really the famous landmark of Atlantic City, and if you miss it, you will regret that you were not able to fit it in to your vacation. You will also want to try to find time to take in The Atlantic City Historical Museum. If you are interested in learning about the history and culture of Atlantic City then this is a must see location for you. And if you want to take in one of the classic sights of Atlantic City then you will have to take time to go see Lucy, the Elephant.
Atlantic City does not die out as the sun sets. Instead, it is the east coast version of the “city that never sleeps.” If you want to stay out late the Boardwalk will stay up with you. There are great souvenir shops for you to browse through. The boardwalk is also lined with some of the hottest dance clubs and most eye catching shows that the City has to offer. And it does not go without saying that if you are a gambler at heart then you will be at home in Atlantic City. There are opulent casinos at your fingers for you to enjoy. And though you are not in Las Vegas, you may feel like it!
Atlantic City is a city that will never run out of things for you to do. The key is for you to take the time to investigate what activities you want to take in while you are there.
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March 12th, 2010
Assessing Satisfaction With Municipal Services and Municipal Government – and Being Responsive to Voters
Many cities and towns are run well, some aren’t. All cities and towns can be governed more effectively, regardless of how well they may already be governed. A large part of governing cities and towns effectively is to listen to residents and to be responsive to them, taking action where appropriate.
Municipal opinion surveys / community surveys enable residents and business owners/leaders to share their perceptions and suggestions about municipal government, specific public issues, and the various services provided to them with their mayor/city manager and city/town council. The results of municipal surveys can also be shared with residents and business owners/leaders.
Mayors, city managers and city/town council members often have to make important decisions with limited information and input from residents and businesses. Residents often do not have the time or inclination to attend town council meetings to express their opinions. Unfortunately, as countless mayors and city/town council members have experienced too late, the first opportunity constituents often have to voice their opinion is in the voting booth, unless municipal surveys are conducted first and the results are acted upon..
Municipal surveys are designed to gather perceptions about many important issues and to aggregate the results to get the pulse of the city/town. Surveys are usually customized to meet the information needs of municipal leaders.
Mayors and town councils are able to learn from municipal survey results and establish priorities and budgets based on feedback from residents, taxpayers and businesses. Municipal surveys provide an easy, proactive and very cost-effective way for municipal government leaders to gather feedback and suggestions from and be more responsive to all of their constituents.
Municipal Opinion Survey Metrics
Survey ratings provide a clear indication of current and ongoing levels of city and town resident satisfaction. Verbatim comments and suggestions provide critical actionable information and insight for achieving results and being responsive to constituents and voters.
Following are some of the municipal services and issues that can be included in municipal opinion surveys.
Overall satisfaction with services provided by cities/towns
Adequacy of public recreational facilities Maintenance of public recreational facilities Availability and effectiveness of youth programs Parking availability in the business district Road maintenance Trash removal Frequency of street cleaning Snow removal Leaf removal Police department performance Fire department performance EMS performance Effectiveness of traffic control Effectiveness of the elementary school Effectiveness of the middle school Effectiveness of high school Responsiveness of the mayor and town council Control of municipal finances and spending Adequate public notice of important issues/decisions Responsiveness of zoning board Effectiveness of municipal clerk’s office Effectiveness of attracting and facilitating/supporting businesses Results broken down by resident/business demographics Enforcement of zoning regulations
Examining Municipal Opinion Survey Results by Resident Demographics
We recommend including demographic questions in municipal opinion surveys, enabling residents to identify the section of the city or town where they live, their age range and other pertinent demographic information. This makes it possible to get survey results reports not only for the city or town overall, but also by demographic criteria.
Reasons for Conducting Municipal Opinion Surveys
Municipal opinion surveys provide significant benefits for mayors, city managers, city and town councils and their constituents, the residents and business owners/leaders: Enable all municipal constituents to easily and cost-effectively voice their opinions and suggestions Mayors/city managers and city/town managers are able to be more responsive to their constituents and be more confident that they know the opinions of their constituents Municipal budgets and priorities can better reflect the opinions of voters Surveys let constituents know their opinions are valued Acting on municipal survey feedback increases popularity of mayors/city managers and city/town councils Increase value of municipal budget dollars spent Sample Municipal Opinion Survey Reports
The best way to understand the value of municipal opinion surveys is to look at the results from an actual survey. Survey reports including graphs presenting ratings results and comments reports are available at http://www.quantisoft.com/Surveys/VeronaResults.htm
Information about Quantisoft’s Surveys http://www.quantisoft.com/Index.htm
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Tags: Assessing, City, Community, Enhancing, Government, Municipal, Opinion, Performance, Surveys | Comments Off
March 10th, 2010
Years of economic reform ranged from the political relaxation of foreign direct investments to the promotion of entrepreneurship, China has emerged as one of the world’s top economies. As such, Beijing Olympics 2008 serves as a new chapter milestone that signifies the beginning of China’s third wave of economic growth – Industrial consolidation.
As such, it is a good time to examine how the Chinese cities have developed according to the traditional tiered city system. If you highlight all the first and second tiered cities in China, you will understand how the Chinese government plans to develop China into the world’s largest economy.
In the 1980s, instead of opening up the whole of China, China, as part of an economic risk reduction strategy decided to develop special economic zones and open up cities near the coast for foreign investments. Coastal cities aid imports and exports. In addition, agglomerating the “test” cities can develop economies of scale relating to transportation infrastructure. Furthermore, resources from western China were drawn and consolidated to support these strategically positioned coastal cities prominently for Beijing in the north, Shanghai in the midst, and Guangzhou in the south, with Shenzhen acting as a gateway from Hong Kong.
As a result of shorter and improved transportation and communication infrastructure, economic development proliferates to the nearby cities, gradually moving westwards into China. Concurrently, the Chinese government also developed pockets of economic drivers especially in different provincial capitals in order to timely introduce economic growth at different regions. As such, cities begin their economic reform at different stages and thus with time, this became known as the Chinese tiered city system with cities given the connotation as first, second, third or fourth tier cities.
The Chinese tiered city system is characterized by the city’s population size with Shanghai topping the China’s city population chart at 20 million, followed by Beijing and Guangzhou with 17 million and 12 million respectively. These large cities, fuelled by own domestic demand and consumption provided the platform for improved living standards, better business and job opportunities and an international showcase to the rest of the world. However, these cities now faced a population ceiling challenge with stiff business competition which may reduce high exponential growth that was seen in the past.
The third wave will see more of the second tier cities in action. With over 20 cities in this category, China is set to develop these cities as the backbone of China’s future economy. It is important to note that China will not remain as a low cost sweat shop and is definitely set to move up the value chain, focusing its efforts on high end industries and at the same time eliminating or pushing low-medium end industries into its lower tiered cities particularly with the third and fourth tier cities.
Already armed with a relatively medium to high disposable incomes and an average GDP per capita of RMB30000, these second tiered cities provide a lucrative option for firms to apply blue ocean strategy on Chinese domestic markets. Due to the Chinese emphasis on “Mian Zi” or “face” plus the lack of variety for luxury and branded goods in their cities, the rich and affluent from lower tiered cities often make short trips to Beijing and Shanghai for their luxury shopping. Therefore, having your presence in the second tier cities can provide greater proximity and convenience for these target groups.
China in the past 20 years is akin to a baby dragon playing around its nest, testing and trying out new ways of doing things, showing the world her head and wings. Now it is ready to emerge more of her to the world – the backbone akin the second tiered cities.
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Tags: Business, Chinese, Cities, Tier, Understanding | Comments Off
