GENERAL INFORMATION

Warsaw is easily accessible by air, rail, or road. There will be ESAO Information Stand at the airport (organized by "Congress-Or" Congress & Tourism Bureau),  where hostesses will answer all your questions and direct you if necessary.
From the airport, Congress place and hotels can be easily reached in twenty / thirty minutes by taxi (cost 5 - 10 Euro) or public transport (bus no. 175).

All foreign visitors must possess a passport valid for at least the next 6 months. Some participants may require visas in order to enter Poland. Please check with your local Polish Consulate or Embassy for details regarding visa and entry requirements.

Upon request, the Secretariat of the Congress will send a personal invitation to participants. This invitation is meant only to help visitors raise funds or to obtain a visa, and is not a commitment on the part of the organizers to provide any financial support.

The Congress Secretariat and Organizers cannot accept liability for personal accidents, loss of belongings or damage to private property of participants, students and accompanying persons, either during or directly arising from the ESAO 2004 meeting. Participants should make their own arrangements with respect to health, travel and property insurance before they depart from their country.

The currency unit in Poland is the Polish Zloty (PLN) which is subdivided into 100 grosze (gr). The current exchange rate to Euro and US Dollar can be checked at http://www.oanda.com/converter/classic (choose PLN as the Polish currency code). In January 2004 it is about 4.7 PLN for 1 Euro. Delegates may change foreign currency and travelers checks at several banks located in the center of the city as well as in many exchange bureaus, at the railway station, at the airport or in many others places. International credit cards are accepted in many hotels, restaurants, cash machines and shops.

The weather in September in Warsaw is usually warm and pleasant, however the evenings might be sometimes quite cold. The average daytime temperature varies from 15 degrees to 18 degrees of Celsius. There is the possibility of rain, so an umbrella, light raincoat and comfortable shoes are advisable. The weather forecast can be checked at
http://weather.icm.edu.pl/java/mgram.php?x=19&y=13&lang=1&ver=06 .

You can use public telephones with phone cards which can be obtained at the post offices, airport, railway stations, kiosks and in some hotels.

Most shops (except for food stores) are open from 11:00 until 19:00. Some department stores may open earlier or close later on weekdays as well as on Saturdays and Sundays.
Polish craftwork is fascinating: wood craving and hand-woven rugs come mostly from the Zakopane region. Other souvenirs include glass, hand-woven baskets, paper cut-outs and crystal. One of the most popular souvenirs is amber from the Baltic Sea. Each individual piece can be fashioned into a pendant, ring, bracelet, or earrings. Most highly prized is amber with a prehistoric insect preserved inside, though it is a rare find. Poland is also known for its silver jewellery, which is sometimes combined with amber to create uniquely Polish pieces.

Poles are known for their hospitality and love of  food. Polish meals offer a wide selection ranging from fresh game in season to Baltic herring. Red beet soup or borsch, is well-known, as are Polish sausage (kielbasa) and stuffed cabbage (golabki). Dumplings (pierogi) come stuffed with meat, potatoes, blueberries, or sauerkraut and mushrooms. Bigos is a stew of meat and sauerkraut, while roast duck comes stuffed with apples. For dessert, try pastries with poppy seeds, or perhaps a Polish donut filled with preserved fruit (paczek). In the summer, try our delectable strawberries, blueberries and cherries.

PLACES TO VISIT IN WARSAW

The Old Town (Stare Miasto) is for those who enjoy museums, art, and historical architecture away from the bustle of everyday city life. It is closed to traffic, and in its narrow streets you can relax and leave the 21st century behind for a while. Everything here is within easy walking distance. The Old Town is especially beautiful in the evening when its floodlit walls, houses and monuments begin to live a life of their own. An absolute must for all visitors of Warsaw.

This is the hub of the life in Warsaw’s Old Town.

The Royal Route connects the Royal Castle with the other two royal residences: in the Lazienki Park and the Palace of Wilanow. Especially its northern part between the Old Town and Charles de Gaulle Roundabout is worth seeing, comprising Krakowskie Przedmiescie, with its many palaces and churches, and the beautiful campus of Warsaw University, and Warsaw's most elegant shopping street, Nowy Swiat. These two streets, carefully reconstructed after the war, are one of the few places that retain the atmosphere of pre-war Warsaw.

The Warsaw Ghetto, where during World War II the Nazis imprisoned over 400 000 Jews, comprises monuments commemorating the place from where Jews were sent to death in the concentration camps. Apart from the monuments, today there is little left that would remind of those days, as the ghetto was completely leveled during the Ghetto Uprising of 1943. The terror of those days, however, can be sensed at two small museums, the Pawiak Prison Museum and the Museum of Struggle and Martyrdom, situated in the cellars of the former Gestapo headquarters at 25 Szucha Avenue (today the Ministry of Education). The huge area of Jewish cemetery in Okopowa street can impress any visitor.

The Stalinesque skyscraper over the city center is probably the most impressive example of this style of architecture outside the former Soviet Union. At the multimedia information center on the 30th floor visitors can get an overview of Warsaw and its history as well as breathtaking views of the whole city.