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Softopia Japan, Ogaki City, Gifu Prefecture
VSMM2000 will be held in the same location as VSMM98, in the Ogaki City
Annex of Softopia Japan.
For more information, please see the Softopia Japan homepage. |
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Softopia is a 15 minute drive from Ogaki City.
Here is the Softopia Japan Directions page
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Where is Ogaki?
|
 Ogaki
is situated in the middle of Japan, some 410 km from Tokyo, and approximately
146 km from Osaka. Since Ogaki is only 44 km from Nagoya, it is closely
connected to the culture and lifestyle of that city. The latitude and longitude
of the city is East 136° 36', North 35° 21', which puts the city at roughly
the same latitude as Los Angeles (USA), Oklahoma (USA), Pusan (Korea), and
Tehran (Iran).
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Where
is GIFU?
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Gifu prefecture lies
in the center of the Japanese island chain and is about 300 kilometers west
of Tokyo. Gifu city, the prefectural capital, is 30 kilometers north of
Nagoya. Gifu prefecture ranks seventh in size with 10,595 m². 82% of this
area is covered by forest, ranking Gifu second in forest area. GIFU WEBCAMS: There are a couple of really great webcams which you can control via your web browser. The page is in Japanese, but if you watch the URL address in the bottom left corner of your browser, you can see in english what you are looking at. Softopia has a webcam, and there is one on top of Gifu Castle which is great! http://gifucam.softopia.pref.gifu.jp
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Accommodation
 |
Rooms have been reserved at the following hotels from Oct.2 to Oct.6 by JTB Event & Convention Service (JECS). Rates include
If hotels are fully booked due to a large number of participants, JECS will take it upon themselves to reserve a room on your behalf in the same or similar category. In order to guarantee your hotel reservation, payment as a deposit for the first night is required in advance. Deposits are equal to one night room charge (according to the hotel of the participants' first preference). The deposit will be credited to your total hotel bill and the remaining part of your hotel bill is to be settled with the hotel directly. |
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Travel by Air
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Nagoya Airport Entry: (recommended) 1. Arrive in Nagoya, walk outside; 2. Limo bus to Nagoya train station (879y / approx. 30 mins). 3. Local express JR train directly to Gifu or Ogaki (450 yen / approx. 20-40mins). Usually platform 6. 4. Taxi to your hotel. NOTE: for those of you going to Gifu, there is an Express Limo bus service (Gifu Bus) directly to Shin Gifu station (1,600y / 1 hour) from Nagoya Airport. Depending whether you enter via domestic or international the bus platforms are located very close to the baggage claim areas. Osaka Airport (Kansai) Entry 1. Arrive in Osaka; walk to next building to station 2. Express train to Shin Osaka station; 3. transfer to Shinkansen supertrain to Nagoya Station (approx. 9,000 yen / approx. 3 hours) 4. Local express JR train (usually platform 6) to Gifu or Ogaki. (450y / 20-40 mins) 5. Taxi to your hotel. Tokyo Airport Entry 1. Arrive in Narita, then; 2. N'Ex (Narita Express train) to Tokyo Station (3,800). Reserve seats only. 3. At Tokyo Station, transfer to Shinkansen to Nagoya Station (approx. 11,000y / approx. 2.5 hours) then; 4. Local express JR train to Gifu or Ogaki (20-40 mins). 5. Taxi to your hotel. JR: Japan Rail, for local and regional travel around Japan Taxis: 650y for the first three kilometres, then EXPENSIVE after that!
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Travel by Train |
Shinkansen Super Train One of Japan's landmarks is the Shinkansen super train - extremely fast and efficient. Highly westernized, you'll not have any trouble getting around. If you are coming from Osaka or Tokyo, you will have to take the Shinkansen to Nagoya station, then transfer to the local JR lines to Ogaki. 1. Arrive to Nagoya Station by Shinkansen, and follow signs to JR section
of the station. |
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Japanese Entry Visa
|
In most cases it is a requirement to have a Visitor's Visa to visit Japan. Please check with your nearest Japanese consulate on whether a Visa is required. We will generate an Official Acceptance Letter should if be required for your visa or from your organization. |
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General
Information
|
General feeling about westerners in Japan The Japanese are some of the most friendly and polite people in the world and you'll feel very welcomed in Japan. As of late, there has been a distinct effort to make contact with the western worlds and be more proactive towards joining a global society. You'll find many english words, t-shirts, names of restaurants and the like. Recommendation: Restaurants Transporation Weather Information and what to wear Japan is a very clean country, with health and sanitation standards equivalent or better than the US and Europe. You should have no problems health wise, yet if you have sensitive health, please consult your physician. You'll have no problems eating any of the food nor drinking the water, though be prepared for a diet that is based on rice and fish. Other Japanese facts you should know... - Yes it's true that you take your shoes on and off many times a day. Although Softopia Japan is a modern building and you won't take your shoes off there, you might take your shoes off when you go to a restaurant. - When you use a japanese toilet, you face toward the wall, or the pipe that is connected to the toliet fixture. If you see another pair of slippers just INSIDE the bathroom, then change from the ones you have on, to the ones in the toilet. (Don't take the slippers outside the door, these are the person's who is already in there!) Finally, don't forget to change back to your own slippers when finished! - Soy sauce never gets poured directly on rice! |
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information
about Gifu Prefecture
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About Gifu Prefecture Kakamigahara's official website. Japanese Only. http://www.area.gifu.gifu.jp/17/kakami/ Ogaki's official website Japanese links: |
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information
about Japan
|
Excite's CITYNET The Japan FAQ:Know Before You Go! |
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