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Microsoft first reached out to game publisher Activision Blizzard about a possible tie-up the same week a media report landed asserting that Activision CEO Bobby Kotick had known for years about alleged cases of sexual assault at the company, according to a regulatory filing released on Friday.To get more microsoft latest news, you can visit shine news official website.
The filing indicates that the companies began negotiations in November, two months before agreeing to a $68.7 billion deal that would be the largest purchase ever for a U.S. technology company. For Microsoft, the timing was opportunistic.
On Nov. 16, the Wall Street Journal reported that women had accused Kotick of mistreatment. While he knew about allegations of misconduct, he didn’t share all the relevant information with the company’s board, the Journal said.
Activision shares sank 11% in the four trading days after the story. That’s when Microsoft called, the new filing with the SEC shows.
Kotick told employees in a video message that the Journal’s reporting included “an inaccurate and misleading view of our company, of me personally, and my leadership.” Prior to that, a California state agency had filed suit against Activision Blizzard over what it described as a sexist culture.
Phil Spencer, Microsoft’s head of gaming, addressed the harassment issue internally, because of the company’s existing relationship with Activision, according to a Bloomberg story on Nov. 18. The next day, Spencer told Kotick, while speaking on “on a different topic,” that Microsoft wanted to talk about strategic opportunities between the two companies, according to the filing.
Initially, Microsoft was looking at an offer of $80 per share. That’s what Spencer relayed to Kotick and Activision Chairman Brian Kelly on Nov. 26. The price would have represented a premium of almost 32% to the prior day’s close.
Negotiations evolved, and the two sides ultimately agreed on a price of $95 per share, which Microsoft announced on Jan. 18. Activision Blizzard stock closed at $81.05 per share on Friday.
Kotick reached out to a handful of other companies before the announcement, the filing said. Kelly also received an email from a person, not named in the filing, who expressed interest in a purchase of the Blizzard segment or a move to take part or all of Activision Blizzard private.
Microsoft expects to complete the transaction in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2023. The deal could help Microsoft add customers to Game Pass, its service for accessing hundreds of games on Xbox consoles and PCs.
Intel Corp's self-driving car unit Mobileye confidentially filed for an initial public offering in the United States on Monday, setting the stage for what is expected to be one of the biggest stock market flotations of the year.To get more intel news, you can visit shine news official website.
The move to list Mobileye is part of Intel's broader strategy under Chief Executive Officer Pat Gelsinger to turn around its core business.
Investors have made big bets on new technologies in the business of global transportation over the past few years, and Intel is aiming to take advantage of the demand for autonomous vehicles by listing Mobileye's shares.
Technology powering driverless cars has been gaining traction even among legacy automakers such as Ford Motor Co (F.N), General Motors Co (GM.N) and Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T), which have been investing on models with features such as driver-assist and self-driving systems.
Intel, however, is looking to test capital markets at a time when investor interest in IPOs has waned significantly due to recent stock market volatility amid fears of looming rate hikes and geopolitical tensions.
Traditional U.S. IPOs have raised about $2.33 billion since the beginning of the year, compared to $26.67 billion during the same period last year, according to Dealogic. In recent weeks, several companies have postponed or scrapped their plans to go public.
Intel did not disclose more details about the IPO, but it had previously said it would receive the majority of the proceeds from the share sale. Some of those funds will be used to build more Intel chip plants, Gelsinger said in December.
The chip giant will also retain a majority stake in the unit after the IPO, it had said previously. In December, Reuters and other media outlets reported that the IPO could value Mobileye at more than $50 billion, although Mobileye may now struggle to get the same valuation given the recent market volatility, people familiar with the matter said.
Mobileye, an Israeli company that Intel bought for about $15.3 billion in 2017, uses a camera-based system with adaptive cruise control and lane change assistance in driverless cars.
The company, founded in 1999, plans to eventually build its own "lidar" sensor to help its cars map out a three-dimensional view of the road. It is currently using lidar units from Luminar Technologies on its initial robotaxis in the meantime.
Gelsinger has been under pressure from activist investors to consider spinning off Intel's chip operations, but the company still plans to invest billions to expand its chip-manufacturing capacity in the U.S. and grow its market share.
With the New Year just around the corner, the catering industry in Shanghai is celebrating with new dishes and witnessing a booming number of reservations.To get more news about shanghai special dishes, you can visit shine news official website.
The time-honored Xing Hua Lou restaurant in Huangpu District, the oldest Cantonese-style eatery in the city, has all its private dining rooms and tables fully reserved for New Year's Eve and the first two days of the three-day New Year holiday.
The restaurant has recently undergone a renovation, and its old menu has been overhauled after nearly six months' development by chefs.
The new dishes embody an innovative approach. The stewed chicken is stuffed with seafood such as abalone, fish maw and sea cucumber, and the chicken bone is removed in advance and stewed in abalone sauce for more than an hour.
Changfen (rice rolls), a Cantonese-style classic snack, is mixed with beetroot, spinach and pumpkin juices while barbecued pork is sprinkled with rose wine.
"We have adjusted the distance between chairs and removed some tables to prevent gathering amid COVID-19 prevention requirements," said Zhi Jing, deputy general manager of Xing Hua Lou.The 95-year-old Sunya Cantonese Restaurant on the Nanjing Road Pedestrian Mall said there is no vacancy in its private dining rooms and tables between New Year's Eve and the holiday.
The New Year holiday is traditionally one of the most booming times of the year for restaurants in the city with gatherings of families and friends driving the rush, said executive chef Huang Renkang.
Hotpot restaurant chain Haidilao has launched seven new dishes, including mutton, peas, fried cream sticks and a new hotpot soup, before the holiday to tempt diners.
The enriched menu provides diners with winter nourishment with diverse flavors like mutton and brings popular food and snacks from places like Sichuan and Guangdong provinces to dining tables in Shanghai.
One of the new mutton dishes utilizes a type of scallion widely used as an ingredient in Inner Mongolia in mutton to balance the flavor.
The new hotpot soup, with a mixture of beef tallow and boiled oil and a unique proportion of three peppers, enables diners to adjust the soup to their own tastes, choosing the degree of spiciness and saltiness and the proportion of oil and water.
There has been a significant increase in diners since winter began, coupled with the holiday effect, as Haidilao locations in Shanghai and Beijing each welcomed about 250,000 diners between December 24 and 26, the hotpot chain revealed.
The restaurant requires all diners to have their temperatures checked and travel history code shown before entry as measures to curb COVID-19.The Pudong Shangri-La hotel said that about 70 percent of seats at its restaurants serving Chinese-style meals, buffet and Japanese-style meals have been reserved for New Year's Eve.
A Huaiyang cuisine of shizitou (stewed meatballs) is innovatively stuffed with seafood such as abalone and will be served to diners at its restaurants as a new dish for the New Year.Huaiyang cuisine, along with Cantonese, Shandong and Sichuan cuisines, comprise China's four great culinary traditions.
An increasing number of diners are spending more on expensive set meals and focusing on healthy cuisine, said Gao Xiaosheng, Chinese executive chef of Gui Hua Lou restaurant at the hotel.All diners need to have their temperatures and health QR codes checked.
Local resident Yang Mingwei began looking for a table for himself and his girlfriend on New Year's Eve one week in advance, and found that several popular buffet restaurants were fully reserved.Yang finally made a reservation at a restaurant on the Bund for its nice view of the Huangpu River."We both like sashimi, and the buffet is a good option," he said. "In fact, these restaurants were already full on Christmas Eve when I called for a booking before.
Brittany Charboneau set a marathon record on Sunday, and she did it dressed as her favorite Disney characters.To get more disney latest news, you can visit shine news official website.
Charboneau swept all four of the Walt Disney World Marathon weekend races, becoming the first person to top the 5K, 10K, half marathon and marathon finishers in the event’s 29-year history. That’s a combined 48.6 miles of running on consecutive days known as the “Dopey Challenge.”She completed the 26.2-mile marathon in 2 hours, 45 minutes, beating runners from all over the world who competed in Disney-themed costumes.
The 33-year-old aspiring Olympian from Denver said she decided to tackle the Disney races after suffering an injury in training and enduring a difficult run at the Boston Marathon in October. She wanted something fun to look forward to after a tough race.
“I feel amazing,” she said Sunday. “This was such a mental-win weekend for me. My goal was never to win all of these. My goal was to go out, wear costumes and have an amazing time.”She won the 5K dressed as Elsa from “Frozen” and the 10K as Bing Bong from “Inside Out.” For the half marathon, she led the pack as Joy, another character from “Inside Out.” She crossed the finish line for the full marathon as Cruella de Vil from the “101 Dalmatians.”
She faced another setback over the holidays, but it didn’t derail her victories. Charboneau said she tested positive for COVID-19 around Christmas despite being fully vaccinated and boosted, but she was cleared to run in time for the event.
Thousands of runners participated in the races, which feature courses winding through the Magic Kingdom, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Disney’s Hollywood Studios and EPCOT. Runners were back on the track after the pandemic forced last year’s race to be held virtually.
Charboneau started running when she was 13, competing in cross country and track in high school and as a walk-on her junior and senior years at Colorado State University. It took her 15 years to win her first race. She finished first in the Chi Town Half Marathon in 2015 in Chicago.When she won a marathon in Denver in 2017, she quit her sales and marketing job and focused full time on running. In 2020, she finished 13th in the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials, recording her personal best marathon time of 2 hours, 33 minutes.
The reason I wanted to do this is to remind people you can have big goals, but you can have fun with it,” she said.When she’s not running, Charboneau enjoys doing improv and sketch comedy. Her nickname is “The Funny Runner.”
In April Verizon said its top priority for 2021 is to prepare its network for its C-band spectrum, and it has begun installing C-band equipment from Ericsson and Samsung in its Ultra Wideband network — this is the company’s 5G network built mostly on mmWave spectrum in urban metros to date. But Verizon will boost Ultra Wideband with its new C-band spectrum as quickly as it can.To get more ericsson news, you can visit shine news official website.
Under this new $8.3 billion agreement, Verizon will deploy Ericsson's 5G solutions in its Ultra Wideband 5G network. Those solutions include Ericsson's Radio system portfolio, Massive MIMO, Ericsson Spectrum Sharing and Ericsson Cloud RAN.
In 2020, Verizon was the first communications service provider to receive a commercial 5G mmWave Street Macro base station from Ericsson's new factory in Lewisville, Texas. And that technology is also part of the new contract.
Ericsson said its solutions support both Verizon’s 5G standalone (SA) and non-standalone strategies. Both Ericsson and Verizon declined to comment on the status of Verizon’s SA core network.
A year ago, Verizon sounded as if it was about ready to shift to a 5G SA core. But then it began hedging on its timeline for that shift. AT&T also kept pushing out its timeline for its 5G SA core.
In a big announcement timed to coincide with Mobile World Congress 2021, AT&T recently said it was putting its 5G SA core on Microsoft Azure’s cloud. Dish Network has also said that it will run its core and RAN functions on a public cloud — AWS in its case.
The fifth generation (5G) of cellular networks has given us enhanced connectivity, low latency and greater bandwidth to usher in unparalleled opportunities for industries and society. It’s the platform that’s enabling Communication Service Providers (CPSs) to thrive and reach new milestones in an increasingly competitive ecosystem.
In 2021 more service providers launched and switched on 5G networks, but many are still waiting to see its true potential so they can grow their revenue with agility and speed. While every CSP’s strategy is unique, the evolution from 4G to 5G networks requires a transformative point of view. It’s not enough to just replicate a 4G network with newer technology. The build out of 5G is fundamentally different to how networks have traditionally been built with previous generations.
In order to get the full power of 5G and deliver on its promises, CSPs need to deploy and adopt 5G Core into their networks. Designed to handle all network demands, 5G Core performs many of the central operations in a mobile network. It’s where all the magic happens that will give CSPs the right capabilities to scale up or down their operations. Without a 5G Core, advanced 5G use cases such as multiplayer augmented reality gaming or virtual factory maintenance, will never materialize.
.Today, many CSPs begin their 5G journey with Non-Standalone (NSA) architecture, which uses existing 4G LTE radio access to support new 5G services. However, this approach has made it challenging to unlock 5G’s full potential because 4G network architecture is not able to withstand the expectations of mobile networks needed to meet the requirements from new applications emerging today with enterprise and industry business opportunities . While the technology still plays a critical role in our day-to-day lives, it does come with certain limitations for CSPs looking to step into the future they were promised with 5G.
Transitioning to a 5G Standalone (SA) network not only evolves the existing network in place today, but it also upgrades it so transformative elements can be introduced for new business opportunities or vertical needs. The technology allows service providers to simplify their planning and execution process, and connect to 5G quicker.
Last year, the theme park announced that it would be ending its shuttle service from the Orlando International Airport at the start of this year. Now that the new policy has gone into effect, some reports are claiming that the cost of getting an Uber from the airport to the theme park has increased.To get more disney latest news, you can visit shine news official website.
In January of last year, Disney World announced on the Disney Parks Blog that Disney’s Magical Express, a service that guests of the Walt Disney World Resort hotels could use. Prior to this year, guests arriving at the Orlando International Airport could book this service to transport them from the airport to the hotel.
The service also provided an option to have luggage checked from the flight directly to the hotel through participating airlines.
Last year, the official Disney Parks Blog announced, "Vacationers have more options to choose from than ever for transportation, including ride-share services that save time and offer more flexibility to go where they want, when they want. In light of this shift, when Disney Resort hotel bookings open for stays in 2022, we will no longer offer Disney’s Magical Express service for airport transportation, starting with arrivals Jan. 1, 2022."
According to recent reports, the cost of taking an Uber from Orlando Airport to Disney World increased when the Magical Express Service ended.
Prior to the service ending, the cost of taking an Uber from the airport to the resort would cost between $10-20 and could increase to $30-40 during surge pricing periods.Now, a recent report from Inside the Magic, a fan site devoted to the theme park, says that surge pricing has seen costs increase to up to $60.
Pricing for Uber rides, however, is not set in stone and various factors can contribute to an increase in ride costs, even momentarily. For example, if only a small number of drivers were available during the first weekend of January, that could have resulted in abnormally high prices.Around noon on Monday, Jan. 3, the cost of an Uber X from Orlando International Airport to Disney World was about $35. Most travel sites say that surge pricing for trips near Disney World typically occurs near the park’s opening and closing hours.
Telefonica has bought 5G network equipment from Swedish manufacturer Ericsson to replace some of the Huawei gear it has rolled out in Spain, a source at the Spanish firm said on Monday, confirming a report in Expansion newspaper.To get more ericsson news, you can visit shine news official website.
The replacement of the next-generation mobile network equipment is part of Telefonica's strategy announced in 2019 to diversify suppliers, according to the source.
Expansion said the telecoms company has initially rolled out some Huawei equipment that it had already bought before seeking to secure alternative supplies.The source at Telefonica declined to say how much equipment Telefonica bought from Ericsson or when the purchase was made.
Huawei and Ericsson's Spanish unit did not immediately respond to requests for comment.Telefonica's 2019 decision came at a time when China's Huawei, the global market leader in network equipment, had been drawn into the centre of political tensions between Washington and Beijing.
The United States has alleged the company's equipment could be used by the Chinese government for espionage. Huawei and Beijing have repeatedly denied the allegations.
When Telefonica's announced its strategy two years ago, it said its decision to diversify was purely technical in nature and that it had seen no evidence to support the American allegations that Huawei gear posed a security risk.
Novartis is again turning to acquisitions to build up its gene therapy pipeline, this time committing up to $1.5 billion to buy Gyroscope Therapeutics, a clinical-stage company with a lead candidate addressing a vision disorder that leads to blindness.To get more novartis latest news, you can visit shine news official website.
According to financial terms announced Wednesday, Novartis is paying Gyroscope $800 million up front. Depending on the progress of Gyroscope’s therapies, that company’s shareholders could receive up to $700 million more in milestone payments.
London-based Gyroscope develops gene therapies for eye disorders. The company’s most advanced program is an experimental treatment for geographic atrophy, an advanced form of dry age-related macular degeneration in which a part of the retina called the macula deteriorates, leading to vision loss. That condition can progress to geographic atrophy, which causes the loss of a patient’s central vision.
There are no FDA-approved therapies for geographic atrophy. Gyroscope aims to treat the disorder by addressing overactive immune system activity associated with the progressive vision loss. A subset of geographic atrophy patients have genetic variants that drive excessive activity of the complement system, a part of the immune system.
The Gyroscope therapy, GT005, is designed to get retinal cells to produce more of a protein key to restoring balance to the complement system overactivity that’s associated with the progression of age-related macular degeneration and geographic atrophy. By increasing production of the key protein and reducing inflammation, the goal is to preserve a patient’s eyesight.
GT005, intended to be a one-time treatment, is currently in Phase 2 testing. It’s delivered into retinal cells by an adeno-associated virus. AAV-delivered medicines have risks, and safety concerns have led to pauses and discontinuations of other gene therapy clinical trials. In April, Adverum Biotechnologies reported that a diabetic macular edema patient treated with its experimental gene therapy had complications, including vision loss. After more patients in the study also developed eye problems, Adverum stopped further development of the gene therapy for that indication. Earlier this week, the FDA placed a clinical hold on Pfizer gene therapy for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, an action taken after the report of a patient death.
Novartis’s gene therapy pipeline is largely the product of acquisitions. The division of the company now known as Novartis Gene Therapies came to the pharma giant via the $8.7 billion acquisition of AveXis in 2018. The spinal muscular atrophy gene therapy Zolgensma was AveXis’s lead program, though the company also brought to Novartis additional programs in earlier stages of development.
Other acquisitions have filled out Novartis’s gene therapy pipeline. Last year, the company paid $150 million up front to buy Vedere Bio, a preclinical biotech developing vision loss gene therapies. In September, Novartis paid an undisclosed sum to buy Arctos Medical, a startup with a preclinical gene therapy candidate as well as proprietary technology with potential for addressing many types of inherited retinal dystrophies. The Swiss pharma giant also has experience with eye gene therapies through a co-commercialization agreement for Luxturna, a Roche gene therapy for an inherited vision loss disorder.
“With our own pioneering research in ocular gene therapies and our experience gained from bringing Luxturna to inherited retinal dystrophy patients outside of the U.S., Novartis has a well-established expertise in ocular gene therapies that will position us well to continue developing this promising one-time treatment” said Marie-France Tschudin, president of Novartis Pharmaceuticals, said in a prepared statement.
China Finance Online Co. Limited, a leading web-based financial services company that provides Chinese retail investors with fintech-powered online access to securities trading services, wealth management products, securities investment advisory services, as well as financial database and analytics services to institutional customers, today announced its unaudited financial results for the first half ended June 30, 2021.Net revenues were $14.8 million, compared with $19.6 million during the first half of 2020 and $20.5 million in the second half of 2020, respectively. In the first half of 2021, revenues from financial services, the financial information and advisory business, advertising business and enterprise value-added services contributed 35%, 36%, 19% and 10% of the net revenues, respectively, compared with 37%, 42%, 12% and 9%, respectively, for the corresponding period in 2020.To get more China finance news, you can visit shine news official website.
Revenues from financial services were $5.1 million, compared with $7.3 million in the first half of 2020 and $5.8 million in the second half of 2020, respectively, mainly due to reduced revenue from the equity brokerage business which was affected by the softer Hong Kong stock market.
Revenues from the financial information and advisory business were $5.3 million, compared with $8.1 million in the first half of 2020 and $9.3 million in the second half of 2020, respectively. Revenues from the financial information and advisory business were mainly comprised of subscription services from individual and institutional customers and financial advisory services. The decreases in revenues from the financial information and advisory business were mainly due to the slow-down of our advisory services for individual investors as dramatic policy changes and resurgent of COVID Delta cases dampened retail investors' confidence. However, during the first half of 2021, subscription service from institutional customers posted solid growth with an increase of 28.6% from the first half of 2020 and an increase of 13.8% from the second half of 2020.
Revenues from the advertising business grew 19.3% to $2.8 million from $2.3 million in the first half of 2020 and compared with $3.2 million in the second half of 2020.
Revenues from enterprise value-added services were $1.6 million, compared with $1.7 million in the first half of 2020 and $2.0 million in the second half of 2020, mainly due to the weaker market condition which deterred corporates' decision on marketing spending.
Gross profit was $8.3 million, compared with $12.1 million in the first half of 2020 and $13.6 million in the second half of 2020. Gross margin in the first half was 55.9%, compared with 61.7% in the first half of 2020 and 66.6% in the second half of 2020. The year-over-year decrease in gross margin was mainly due to lower advertising revenue and softer enterprise value-added services business.
General and administrative expenses were $4.1 million, compared with $4.5 million in the first half of 2020 and $6.9 million in the second half of 2020. The year-over-year decrease was mainly attributable to bad debt provision in our equity brokerage business.
Sales and marketing expenses were $6.3 million, compared with $7.5 million in the first half of 2020 and $10.0 million in the second half of 2020. The year-over-year decrease was mainly attributable to effective cost control measures we adopted.
Research and development expenses were $4.1 million, compared with $4.0 million in the first half of 2020 and $4.1 million in the second half of 2020. The year-over-year increase was mainly attributable to one-time non-recurring severance expenses associated with downsizing the R&D team. In the past few years, the Company has completed the development of its fintech capabilities and related products.
Total operating expenses were $14.5 million, compared with $15.9 million in the first half of 2020 and $21.0 million in the second half of 2020.
Loss from operations was $6.2 million, compared with a loss from operations of $3.8 million in the first half of 2020 and a loss from operations of $7.3 million in the second half of 2020.
Net loss attributable to China Finance Online was $5.1 million, compared with a net loss of $3.4 million in the first half of 2020 and $7.1 million in the second half of 2020.
Loss per American Depository Shares ("ADS") attributable to China Finance Online was $2.19 for the first half of 2021, compared with loss per ADS of $1.41 for the first half of 2020 and loss per ADS of $3.11 for the second half of 2020. Basic and diluted weighted average numbers of ADSs for the first half of 2021 were 2.3 million, compared with basic and diluted weighted average number of ADSs of 2.4 million for the first half of 2020 and 2.3 million for the second half of 2020. Each ADS represents fifty ordinary shares of the Company.
1. It is better to go to Shanghai in the spring. The weather is very comfortable here at this time. In addition, there are not many tourists here at this time of year. The main influx of them begins in June. In addition, you can get to the cherry blossom blooming season in March. Yes, you can see trees completely covered with white and pink flowers not only in Japan.To get more news about Shanghai travel tips, you can visit shine news official website.
2. It is not recommended to go here in the summer. A huge metropolis turns into almost a 24-hour sauna due to the numerous skyscrapers and the heat. The air is getting pretty dirty. Most likely, you will have to wear a mask on the street. It's pretty cold here in the winter. Please note that heating is not provided in the houses. You will have to warm up with the help of air conditioners here.
3. It is convenient to move around the city by public transport. Metro and buses will take you almost anywhere in Shanghai. However, it is worth remembering that the metro is open until 22.30. If you want to go somewhere after this time, then you will have to look for an alternative.
4. You can take a taxi on the street here. Please note that the checkers of the free car glow green. The cost of the trip is calculated on the counter plus $2 for boarding.
5. You can also rent a car. However, it is not recommended. First, you need to follow a number of rules to use a rented car. Accompanying you with a guide-translator is one of these rules. Secondly, local drivers and pedestrians almost do not observe traffic rules. You will have to be careful not to get into a traffic accident.
6. Shanghai is a very safe country. It's almost impossible to face some serious crime here. However, it is recommended to take care of pockets and handbags on busy streets. This is due to the fact that petty theft still occurs.
7. It is better to choose options that are close to metro stations when choosing a hotel. This will allow you to get to the sights quickly. Most of the hotels and tourist facilities are located on the west shore of the Huangpu River. This area is called the Puxi. Pudon is located on its eastern shore. This is the business center of the city. Housing prices are significantly higher here.
8. If you plan to make purchases in Shanghai, keep in mind that the prices for equipment and clothing are quite high here, unlike other cities in China.
9. Products can be bought in supermarkets. However, there are also features here. For example, the cost of fruit is indicated for 500 g. Eggs are sold by the piece in the local supermarkets. You will not find dairy products easy here. However, this is specific in many Asian countries.
10. Language difficulties may occur during the trip. Not many locals speak English. However, you will find price tags in English in some stores. All inscriptions in the metro are also duplicated in English. Of course, this will be ideal if you find a guide to accompany you on the Internet in advance. This service is very popular in China.
11. Keep in mind that there are a huge number of people here. You will have to adapt to moving in a dense crowd on the streets. Locals, for example, do not hesitate to push passersby with their elbows to clear the way.
12. A traditional breakfast with coffee, scrambled eggs or toast is not served in most hotels. Most likely, you will see Chinese noodles and wontons on the table. If there is coffee, it will be sweet and with milk.
13. It is allowed to smoke in restaurants and cafes here. It is not forbidden to do this even in the hotels.
14. There is Internet in most hotels. However, the traffic is low. You will hardly be able to call on Skype or to watch a movie online.
15. Credit cards are not accepted everywhere. Therefore, be sure to have cash.
16. Food is generally safe here. The main thing is not to forget about hygiene. Be sure to wash your hands before eating. You shouldn't drink tap water. Be sure to buy bottled water.