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IFLA Conference

World Library and Information Congress: 72nd IFLA General Conference and Council

"Libraries: Dynamic Engines for the Knowledge and Information Society"

20-24 August 2006, Seoul, Korea


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Travel and local information

Travel information

Star AllianceTM offers participants and one registered accompanying person discounts on the following Star AllianceTM published fares for the airlines listed below.

Business Class
20% for "C" class (Air Canada "J" class)
10% for all business class fares
Economy Class
15% for "Y/B" class (Air Canada "Y/M" class)
10% for all economy fares

Participating airlines:
Air Canada Austrian Airlines Asiana
LOT Polish Airlines Lufthansa Scandinavian Airlines
Singapore Airlinea Spanair Thai Airways Int.
United US Airways  

You and one accompanying person can book tickets for a reduced fee To make use of the discount:

Please be informed that you are not obliged to book a ticket via Star Alliance should you wish to make your own arrangements.

Airport

For information about how to get from the airport to the COEX and other information please use this link:
http://www.coex.co.kr/eng/map/map2/map_04.html

Local information

Banking and Currency

The Korea currency is the WON. Commonly used coin denominations are 10, 50, 100 and 500. Banknotes are 1,000, 5,000 and 10,000. Foreign banknotes and traveler's checks can be converted into Korean WON at most banks, hotels and airports. The exchange rate varies (per March 1, 2005) 1 USD: 980.873 WON 1 EURO: 1,164.74 WON

Climate

The Republic of Korea has four distinct seasons. In mid-August when the WLIC 2006 Seoul will be held, the late summer weather will provide pleasant mornings with a low of 19 degrees Celsius and a high of 28 degrees during the day. The temperature continues to cool down from high summer beginning in mid-August.

Credit Cards

International credit cards such Visa, Master Card, AMEX, Diners Club and JCB are widely accepted at major hotels, department stores and restaurants in Seoul.

Electricity

In the Republic of Korea, 220 volt outlets are most common.

Food

Food in the Republic of Korea is one of the greatest pleasures awaiting all visitors. The term "Food Heaven" may be an apt description for Korea, with its extensive gastronomic repertoire - Western and Oriental, traditional and modern. Exquisite dishes are to be found not only at hotels and luxury restaurants but also at low-priced dining facilities that give an unmistakable character to every corner of the nation.

Language

Korean is the official language of the Republic of Korea but a majority of Koreans speak English well.

Translation Card
(Useful Korean words and sentences)

Shopping

The Republic of Korea is known as a Mecca for shoppers, offering a great variety of items at reasonable prices. You may purchase many necessities and souvenir items of both domestic and foreign origin tax free at any of the hundreds of shops in department stores and shopping arcades in as well as major cities throughout the country.

Tips

Tipping is not customary in the Republic of Korea. Sometimes, expensive restaurants and luxury hotels may add a service charge of 10%.

Transportation

Domestic airlines link 15 major cities of the Republic of Korea. Korea's extensive railroad covers most of the country. The metro system in Seoul is very convenient, efficient and easy for foreign travelers to use. Using the eight metro lines, one can reach every corner or Seoul within an hour. Express bus service is extensive and extremely frequent. Taxis are plentiful.

Visa

Foreign delegates having return tickets coming from countries with no-visa agreement with the Republic of Korea can normally stay in Korea up to 30 days without a visa. However, the delegates should check with the Korean Embassy in their country or contact the National Organising Committee. The National Organising Committee for the WLIC 2006 Seoul will assist participants and issue official invitation letters to facilitate their travel allowance and visa application.

Please ensure to contact the embassy as soon as possible to avoid visa problems!

SEOUL - The city

Location

At 126 degrees east longitude and at 37 degrees north latitude the beautiful city Seoul is located.

Climate

Seoul belongs to the Temperate Zone featuring four distinctive seasons of spring, summer, autumn and winter. The yearly average temperature of Seoul is 12.2 degrees Celsius. Temperatures in Seoul show large seasonal variation, reaching as high as 38.4 degrees Celsius in the summer and dropping as low as minus 19.2 degrees Celsius in the winter. Influenced by the North Pacific high-pressure system, Seoul has hot and humid summers with average temperatures above 20 degrees Celsius from June through September.

In the middle of summer, the city often records daily highs of over 30 degrees Celsius. In winter, Seoul is geographically influenced by the expansion of the Siberian high pressure and prevailing west wind with temperatures dropping lower than other regions on the same latitude. The rise and fall of the high-pressure system causes a typical cycle of three successive cold days followed by four warmer days, relieving people from freezing temperatures.

The annual precipitation in Seoul averages 1,344.2 millimeters, which is more than the average amount of rainfall across the peninsula. Most of the rainfall is concentrated in the rainy months (monsoon period) of June through September when downpours account for about 70 percent of the total annual precipitation. Except for those rainy spells, however, Seoul boasts fine weather throughout the year and is especially famous for its azure autumn skies.

Area

The total area of Seoul is 605.52 square kilometers, or 0.6 percent of the entire country. The Hangang (River) bisects the city into two parts: northern part ( Gangbuk ) and southern one (Gangnam). The Gangbuk area totals 297.97 square kilometers (49.2 % ) while Gangnam is 307.55 square kilometers (50.8 % ).

Among the 25 autonomous "gu" or wards of Seoul, the largest is Seocho-gu (47.13 square kilometers) and the smallest is Jung-gu with an area only one fifth (9.97 square kilometers) that of Seocho-gu.

The expansion of the city has been curbed since the last administrative reorganization in 1973. The lifestyles of Seoul citizens, however, have been influenced since the 1970's by to the rapid growth of satellite cities around the capital area.

Bordering Cities & Counties

Gyeonggi-do: Goyang-si, Yangju-gun (county) and Euijeongbu-si to the north; Namyangju -si, Guri-si and Hanam-si to the east; Seongnam-si, Gwacheon-si and Anyang-si to the south; Gwangmyeong-si, Bucheon-si and Gimpo-si to the west.

Population

Seoul has a population of 10,297,004 as of the end of 2005. This accounts for about a quarter of the total national population. As for the proportion of male to female excluding foreigners, women (5,173,266) slightly outnumber men (5,123,738). By district, Nowon-gu has the biggest population of 624,855. In contrast, Jung-gu has the smallest population of only 134,420. Since Seoul became the capital of the nation in 1394, the population of Seoul has grown 110 times.

The number of foreign residents in Seoul as of the end of 2005 is 129,660 or about 1.3 % of Seoul's total population. They include 77,881 Chinese, 11,487 Americans, and 6,710 Japanese. There are people of more than 90 different nationalities currently residing in Seoul, forming a small global village.

Origin of Name

The name of Seoul comes from the ancient word 'Seorabeol' or 'Seobeol', meaning "capital"

Legislative Organization

Seoul Metropolitan Council

Administrative Districts: 25 Gus consisting of 522 Dongs

Administrative organization: Mayor, 3 Vice Mayors, 12 Offices, 10 Bureaus, 64 Divisions, 3 headquarters and 76 affiliate offices.

Budget: 12,663.5 billion won

Mountains

8 consisting of 4 inner mountains: Bukaksan (Mt.) to the north, Naksan (Mt.) to the east, Inwangsan (Mt.) to the west and Namsan (Mt.) to the south; 4 outer mountains: Bukhansan (Mt.) to the north, Yongmasan (Mt.) to the east, Deogyangsan (Mt.) to the west, and Gwanaksan (Mt.) to the south.

River

River Hangang (River)