Dear Signis Asia Assembly Participants;
This is to advise the followings:
(1) REGISTRATION CONFIRMATION SHEET
We are sending each of you a Registration Confirmation Sheet shortly. Please verify the contents (name, country, organization, address (*1), phone, fax, e-mail address, arrival date, time, flight no, airport, departure date, time, flight no, no. of nights at NYC, payment amount (*2), and special additional accommodation, if any.
(*1) There are ADDRESS A and ADDRESS B. Basically we input 2 addresses; A for home address for invitation letter, B for business address for mailing. Some times, we used the same address for A and B.
(*2) See item (3) for details.
(2) NARITA AIRPORT PICK-UP
We will do grouping of passengers so that we can work efficiently. We will escort you to the Limousine Bus for Shinjuku. We changed our original plan of guiding for transfer at Washington Hotel and decided we can do without it, because it is just you get off the bus and take a taxi as group. We will give you detailed instruction later. While majority will be taken care of at Narita Airport, some people may not receive this service because of scarcity of passengers in a given time slot or simply they are arriving so late at night or arriving on 9/25, etc. Or simply we are not informed of the flight schedule yet. We are giving each of you your specific group no. or "we are sorry" note in the above Registration Confirmation Sheet.
(3) PAYMENT
Your payment amount and its break-down are in your Registration Confirmation Sheet. Please confirm the contents and the figure.
<CALCULATION>
Payment amount=$50 (Registration Fee) + $35 (Food & Lodging) x no. of nights at NYC + $15(Airport Transportation One-way) x 2 + Other Charges, if any. For Non-member, Food & Lodging is $40/night. Some people will not use our airport transportation arrangements. So, we will write to each of you your specific amount to be paid.
We provide you with two payment methods: Bank transfer and Dollar cash at the time of registration in Japan. We would strongly encourage you to use Bank Transfer.
<BANK TRANSFER>
Account Name: SIGNIS JAPAN
Account No.: 0087180
Currency: Only U.S. Dollars
Bank Name: The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd.
Swift code: BOTKJPJT
Branch: Roppongi Branch (Branch No. 045), 4-9-7 Roppongi,
Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan
(4) TOKYO STUDY TOUR COURSES
Please CHOOSE ONE or PRIORITIZE the following courses and WRITE us BACK such
as: B > A > C
Basically we will respect your first choice, but may ask you to move your second to make each group balanced.
A: Yotsuya (Eucharist) > Kiyosumi Garden (Lunch) > River Cruise > Asakusa
(Dinner) > Shinjuku
B: Yotsuya (Eucharist / Lunch) > National Museum > Asakusa (Dinner) > Shinjuku
C: Yotsuya (Eucharist / Lunch) > FEBC > Akihabara (Dinner) > Shinjuku
<Notes>
-YOTSUYA: Eucharist at St. Ignatius and short visit to Sophia University -KIYOSUMI GARDEN: Japanese Garden with its trees and its pond beautifully arranged -RIVER CRUISE: Some 40 minutes cruise of River Sumida by boat
-ASAKUSA: Famous of its Kannon Temple and Nakamise arcade of small souvenir shops
-SHINJUKU: One of the bustling downtown area in Tokyo with skyscrapers and bright neon signs at night -NATIONAL MUSEUM: Fine arts of Japan, Asian countries, etc. Special Exhibition on Hidden Christian articles
-FEBC: Far East Broadcasting Co. They have a Christian radio studio in the suburb of Tokyo.
-AKIHABARA: Famous for its "Electric Town", where you can look and/or buy new digital cameras, video equipment, etc.
<<< You may go to our web-site and click "Guide"from Main Menu to learn a little bit of "Asakusa, Shinjuku, and Akihabara" >>>
SIGNIS JAPAN
T. Mac Machida
My e-mail address is JN1OGJ@nifty.com (jn1ogj@nifty.com), NOT JN10GJ@nifty.com
Dear SIGNIS ASIA Assembly 2007 Participants;
We are rather late in coming back to you because of many unexpected changes, adjustments, etc. on our preparations.
Thanks to your cooperation, we are glad to announce that we have reached our maximum capacity of 40 participants from abroad. India (9), Philippines (6), Malaysia (5), Hong Kong (3), Korea (3), Sri Lanka (2), Taiwan (2), Thailand (2), Macao (2), Indonesia (2), Cambodia (1), Pakistan (1), Germany
(1) and one more for TBD shortly from the waiting list.
Now the following is the third list of items important for you to know and remember before you come to Japan:
(1) PHONES
You may rental cellular phones at Narita Airport. See http://www.rental-mobile.com/en/domestic/index.html for details. Or you may purchase a telephone card at NYC for domestic and international public telephones. Or you may purchase a Prepaid International Telephone Card and use it from your hotel room. Or bring your own ATT cards, etc. Credit Cards may or may not be used. Prepaid SIM cards are not sold in Japan. Cellular phones in majority of Asian countries are only operable under GSM circumstances, whereas in Japan it is 3G.
(2) FAX
You may use FAX machine at NYC Service Corner, but please note that it is OUTGOING ONLY..
(3) PC
We will set up 5 PCs for your use of internet (e-mails) in the big conference room. You may use these during breaks.
(4) CURRENCY/CREDIT CARD
Please exchange your money (US Dollars) into JAPANESE YEN at Banks at your NARITA, as NYC does not have currency exchange function. US Dollars are not accepted at Japanese shops. Credit cards are becoming popular, but still a large number of small shops/restaurants do not accept them. Credit Card Cashing may be difficult in Japan, as there are very few ATMs capable of handling PLUS and/or CIRRUS in Japan. (May be used only at "Yucho" and "Seven Bank" ATMs.) If you plan to do shopping at AKIHABARA (famous Electric Town), majority shops will accept Credit Cards and there is a foreign currency exchange bank (mini branch) near the station.
(5) ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND JAPANESE
Because of big difference in grammars and pronounciations, English language is very difficult for Japanese in spite of many years of learning at junior high and senior high (and university). It is said that in general Asian people speak English better than Japanese people. Now there are many English signboards (or even Chinese or Korean in some cases) in Tokyo.
(6) SECURITY/WATER
Basically Japan is a safe country. You may walk, take subways, etc. in downtown Tokyo alone without fear. You may ask your directions at "Koban (Policde Box)." Water is also safe and you may drink from a tap. Nowadays, bottled water is becoming popular. You can find many automatic vendor machines (drinks, cigarettes, etc.) everywhere.
(7) OTHERS
-We rearranged the locations where we will have Eucharist. On 9/24, we will have Archbishop's mass at Tokyo Cathedral, and on 9/25 mass at the Daughters of St. Paul, etc. Full explanations with timetable will follow.
-Dine Out: Do not worry too much about what you are going to eat. Many family restaurants/cafeterias have sample displays and/or menu with photos, so that you will know what you are ordering.
-Rest Rooms: Many places have Western-style toilet bowl. Japanese invention, "Washlet", becomes popular in big cities. Automatic faccets are also popular. Paper towels are not so popular. So, we recommend you to bring handkerchief in your pocket. Airjet towel are prefered in public facilities.
-Train Tickets, Subway Tickets, Bus Tickets, etc.: Many Japanese now use pre-paid cards. You may buy a single ticket from ticket vending machine for trains and subways. Wickets are also automatic. As for bus, you pay to the bus driver when you get on or get out. You need to purchase Limousine Bus (all reserved seats) ticket at ticket counter before you get on.
-VIDEO/TV: Japan uses NSTC (not PAL).
-Electricity: 100V 50 c/s (Tokyo area)
-Our No. 4 news (plan): We will give you our final arrangements on Welcome Escort at Narita Airport, Tokyo Study Tour Courses, etc.
Lastly, my repeated request: If you have not submitted your photo and/or presentation resume (abstract) and presentation materials (i.g. PowerPoint
files) yet, please do so ASAP to help us to prepare better.
Looking forward to seeing you all in Tokyo in two weeks,
SIGNIS JAPAN
T. Mac Machida
My e-mail address is JN1OGJ@nifty.com (jn1ogj@nifty.com), NOT JN10GJ@nifty.com
We posted our last e-mail in our web-site, so you can refer to it at any
time. Today, we are providing you with another set of information for
SIGNIS ASIA Assembly 2007 in Tokyo.
Currently we have 33 entries from abroad; India (8), Philippines (7),
Malaysia (4), Sri Lanka (2), Taiwan (2), Hong Kong (2), Thailand (2), Macao
(2), Indonesia (2), Cambodia (1), and Pakistan (1). And we may have
additional one or two persons. With 7 visa exempt country passports, we
have sent out 20 invitation letters, will send out 3 more tomorrow. We are
still waiting for detailed information on 3 persons in order to issue our
invitation letter.
About 12 Signis Japan members will attend the major portion of the Assembly.
We will have Bishops as our guests. We hope to finalize and provide you
with detailed time table shortly.
Now, we would like to list up 2nd round of some items important for you to
know and remember before you come to Japan:
(1) INVITATION LETTERS
If you are not visa exempt passport holder and have not asked for invitation
letter, please do so ASAP. The mailing time is more or less 10 days. The
processing time for visa at Japanese Embassy may take longer. But it some
cases, they ask for more detailed information or some original legal
documents from Japan, which means minimum additional 10 days.
If you have asked for invitation letter and have not received our invitation
letter yet after 15 days, please contact us.
(2) PHOTO
If you have not sent us your photo yet, please e-mail us ASAP.
(3) PRE-REGISTRATION/FLIGHT INFORMATION, ETC.
If you have not sent us your Registration Forms via e-mail, fax or our web
site, please do so at your earliest convenience. Especially we would like
to know your arrival date, time, flight no., departure date, time, and
flight no. We would like to finalize our lodging at NYC/outside hotel
reservations shortly.
(4) WEATHER
Japan has distinct four seasons of the year, Spring, Summer, Autumn and
Winter. The last week of September falls into late summer/early autumn.
Therefore, you will have to prepare for the both.
I looked up the past data for the period of 9/24 to 9/30 in Tokyo, and found
the following data. The average highs are 25.1-24.1 degree centigrade, the
average lows are 19.0-18.0. But averages are only averages. There maybe
hot and humid days and also cool and crisp days/evenings. I was astonished
to find the most probable weather during this period is rain, rain, rain,
rain, fine, fine and rain. So, let's pray that weather will be fine on 9/27
(for our outing) instead of rain, and no late typhoon will hit Tokyo area
during this period.
(5) CLOTHES
So, it is necessary for you to bring half sleeves and long sleeves. Thin
windbreaker and/or thin cardigan are very useful. You'd better bring
foldable umbrella (or buy one here around 500 yen) just in case it rains on
the arrival/departure day and 9/27. You don't need to have umbrella within
NYC premise as there are free umbrellas on site.
(6) OTHERS
-Welcome escort at Narita Airport:
Signis Japan member and/or volunteer(s) will welcome you at Narita Airport
between 8:00-13:30 on 9/24. We are studying if we can expand this time
band.
-Tokyo Study Tours: We are very near to finalize three tour routes for you
to choose
from. They will be announced soon.
-Presentation Materials
We have started receiving abstracts and presentation materials, and thank
for them. Please do not forget to send us your materials via internet
within August.
-Cellular Phones
Japan employs GIII system whereas majority of Asian countries employ GSM
system. If you plan to bring your own cellular phone, please check
beforehand whether it can be used in Japan.
-Maps, etc.
At registration at NYC, you will receive a packet consisting of a map of
Japan, a map of Tokyo, a booklet, "Hello Japan", etc. For those who arrive
earlier, those packets will be delivered to the hotel.
-Our SIGNIS ASIA ASSEMBLY web site
Please check from time to time our web site via link from SIGNIS ASIA web
site.
Peace and Love,
SIGNIS JAPAN
T. Mac Machida
My e-mail address is JN1OGJ@nifty.com (jn1ogj@nifty.com), NOT
JN10GJ@nifty.com