WSDC 2001: Johannesburg, South Africa Newsletter 9 Hello again all. This newsletter gives details on a whole range of bits and pieces that should enable you to prepare properly for the Championships. Its long and varied - but please read it all or you'll miss out... 1. MONEY a) FOOD AND DRINKS The Organising Committee will be covering all meals except:
You will also need to provide your own lunch on Mon 29 Jan if you arrive in the morning and on Sat 3 Feb if you choose not to go on the tours. The suburb of Rosebank offers you a complete range of restaurants from R70 per person for an upmarket Thai or Italian or Japanese meal down to R15 per person for a burger, schwarma or pizza. All of these are 5-10 minutes walk from the hotel. To give you some idea of what things cost:
b) TRANSPORT The Organising Committee will be covering your transport to and from the airport (we will be there to meet you) as well as all transport to debates and events. The three Rosebank shopping centres are a maximum of 10 minutes walk from the hotel so no transport is necessary. Because public transport is at times unavailable, your best method of getting around Johannesburg is to take taxis which can be called from the hotel. Approximate prices for likely trips are:
c) SHOPPING Lots and lots and lots of it. Traditional African stuff, CD's, books, perfume, clothes etc. Go wild.... d) TOURS You will be paying for your tours on the free day - please see below. e) CURRENCY South Africa's currency is Rand - there are 100c to R1. Current exchange rates are:
Almost all shops and restaurants will accept credit cards as payment. Travellers cheques can be exchanged for cash at the hotel (up to a limited amount) and at the large number banks in easy walking distance. Although many currencies will be accepted, dollars and pounds are your safest options. Travellers cheques are obviously preferable to large amounts of cash. Banks are open weekdays 09h00 to 15h40 and Saturdays 08h40 to 11h00. f) VAT Value Added Tax (VAT) of 14% is levied on all purchases - normally included in the display prices. Foreign passport holders on a temporary visit are entitled to reclaim all VAT upon leaving the country at Johannesburg International Airport. 2) HOTEL The hotel is very upmarket providing all necessary facilities. Each room has a television, hairdryer and telephone. The hotel has a swimming pool and a gym available for use by guests.
**TO MAKE USE OF ANY OF THE ABOVE FACILITIES, YOU WILL NEED TO PUT DOWN A CREDIT CARD OR CASH DEPOSIT WITH THE HOTEL.** In case anyone wants to call you, the hotel telephone number is +27 11 447 2700. The hotel fax number is +27 11 447 3276. 3) ROOMING ARRANGEMENTS As you should now be aware, unless you have paid for an upgrade to a single room, you will be sharing a room with another person. These rooms are largely twin rooms (i.e. 2 single beds) but some will be double rooms (1 double bed) as the hotel doesn't have enough twin rooms to accommodate all of us (300 people!). Please could each country send us an e-mail within the next 6 days, giving your rooming preferences for during the Championships. For example: Country: The World Please send these ASAP to Belinda Fynn on http://www.debating.org.za/2001/2001entry@debating.org.za If they have not been received by Tuesday 16 January, we will take it that you have no preference and will allocate you ourselves. 4) WEATHER AND DRESS Johannesburg is fairly hot at this time of year, with occasional rain - especially in the later afternoon. Temperatures range between 20 and 30 degrees celsius. For the actual debates, we will not be requiring you to wear jacket and tie (although most South African schools have this as their uniform). Please just ensure that your debating outfits are neat and fairly smart as you will be on display to hundreds of school pupils each day. For your free time at the hotel or shopping in Rosebank dressing casually is fine. Generally going shopping in Rosebank wearing shorts, t-shirt and sandals is acceptable. If you want to go to an upmarket restaurant then long pants would be a good idea - but you don't need a tie etc. Other clothing requirements:
Other things to bring due to the weather:
5) TOUR DAY The Tour Day is Saturday 3 February - the free day. Tours are all OPTIONAL but we've put a lot of effort into producing well-organised tours that will really allow you to enjoy yourself and get away from all the debating - however briefly! You have four tour options which should cater to different interests and budgets: a) WILD AFRICA If you want the raw taste of Africa's wilds, this tour is definitely for you. Featuring the Pilansberg Nature Reserve, with its spectacular selection of the Big Five (Lion, Rhino, Buffalo, Elephant and Leopard). This tour will include a 3 hour game drive run by professional guides, which will expose visitors to a vast array of the natural life of Africa. What's more, there is no sense of anything being "canned" - the park is completely wild and spans an area of more than 55000 hectares. This tour will take place in the morning and the afternoon will be spent on more decadent pleasures with a detour to the Sun City Resort - for many years one of South Africa's prime tourist destinations with tons of stuff on offer. The tour also includes lunch. Cost: R350.00 per person b) PRE-MEMORY LANE A major feature of the Johannesburg area is the so-called "Cradle of Mankind". Recently declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, it includes many of the most important paleo-anthropological sites in the world having supplied a large proportion of the oldest human remains. The Sterkfontein caves is the most prestigious of these, a numbers among its finds Mrs. Ples - the oldest human fossil ever found. Tours will be lead by an expert in the field from Wits University, who is renowned for her skill in conveying a sense of the extent and history of the site. This is truly a once-in-a-lifetime chance. Once this is complete, delegates choosing this tour will be transported to the Lion and Rhino Nature Reserve (www.rhinolion.co.za) - a treasure trove of wildlife. The Reserve has all the major types of game within a reasonable area, increasing the chances of seeing the "Big Five". A professional game drive is included in the price as is lunch. Cost: R195.00 per person c) THE TRIBAL FEEL If you prefer the people you look at to be slightly more contemporary than, say, Mrs Ples, then this tour is for you. The Lesedi Cultural Village offers a broad insight into the traditional lives of the peoples of Africa. The tour kicks off with a brief movie outlining the history of the African continent, followed by tours of 4 different kingdoms' villages and traditional dancing and ending off with a superb meal - cooked, of course, in the traditional African way. There is no better way to see Africa than this. Not to be outdone by Mrs. Ples, however, the tour then continues on to join up at the Lion and Rhino Park (see above) for exactly the same finale as the Sterkfontein tour. Cost: R335.00 per person d) MIDAS DREAMS If for whatever reason you don't want to get to the heart of Africa, there is always the more adrenaline driven option: Gold Reef City. Although the Championships will be having a dinner and a show at Gold Reef City earlier in the Champs, no-one will have had a chance to enjoy the staggering array of entertainment that it offers. The theme park covers the turn of the century in Johannesburg, with the Gold Rush in full swing and those who aren't impressed by the realistic dE9cor will be thrilled by the rides. Amongst them are the highest inverted rollercoaster in Africa and a number of water-based rides and amusements. A highlight of the tour is a guided trip down an authentic mine-shaft. Entrance fees, the rides, the trip down the mine-shaft and lunch are all included in the tour. Cost: R125.00 per person For those who don't want to go on the tours - the day will be a free day for shopping etc. You will need to buy your own lunch. We should add that we reserve the right to cancel one of these tour options if there aren't enough people wanting to go on them but we're pretty confident that's not going to happen! Because each of these tours can take a maximum of 60 people, we strongly suggest that you plan ahead and choose your tours in advance by e-mailing http://www.debating.org.za/2001/2001events@debating.org.za You will still be able to register for tours at registration but spots are likely to fill up very quickly - so e-mail your choice as soon as possible - especially if you're arriving late on the 29th. Payment for the tours will take place at Registration - those countries that are owed refunds can put their money towards the tours if they wish. All queries regarding the tours should be sent to Bradley Shuttleworth on http://www.debating.org.za/2001/2001events@debating.org.za 6) YOUNG LEADERS SUMMIT In case you have been wondering what is happening on the Youth Summit front, this update should answer your questions. The core idea of the event has not changed: to allow the youth of the world to air their views and explore solutions to real-world problems. We have designed a structure to make this interesting, enjoyable and controversial for all participants. No preparation is necessary - exact information will be given out at registration. But for the moment just be aware that a framed copy of the declaration drafted by the summit will be signed by all participants and handed to Mr. Mandela at the Grand Banquet. Copies of that document will also be given to all the Diplomats present at the Grand Banquet - and each country will be represented. This is in addition to the original idea of distributing copies to government departments and other luminaries. So the event will be exciting, interesting and high-profile, and we hope that a little of our excitement will have rubbed off onto all participants. As always, questions or queries can be sent via email to Bradley Shuttleworth at http://www.debating.org.za/2001/2001events@debating.org.za 7) DEBATING ISSUES Just a few points - mainly for new teams:
8) OTHER BITS AND PIECES
9) FLIGHT DETAILS AND AIRPORT ARRIVALS **If you have not yet sent us your flight details, please do so ASAP. Please send them to Belinda Fynn on http://www.debating.org.za/2001/2001entry@debating.org.za ** We will have 4 volunteers representing the Organising Committee stationed at Johannesburg International Airport to meet you on arrival - this includes the teams that are arriving early. You will then be taken through to the Rosebank Hotel where everyone will need to register. If your flight gets delayed/postponed or you have any other problems upon arrival at the airport, please phone Kevin on 082 783 7340 (+27 82 783 7340) or Steven on 082 927 3559 (+27 82 927 3559). That's probably it for now - although we're bound to think of something else! Please let us know if you have any queries at all... We look forward to seeing everyone in just 18 days! Regards STEVEN BUDLENDER Tel: +27 82 927 3559
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