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Subject: Arrangements for July FTF


As the prospective host of the upcoming FTF, UnitSpace made preliminary
hotel arrangements for UDDI Spec TC members planning to attend the meeting
July 22-24 in Moscow.  In brief: after thorough deliberations we have
settled on Renaissance Moscow as the hotel of choice for FTF attendees to
stay at, with UnitSpace providing all necessary transportation to and from
the airport as well as to and from the place of meeting.  Meetings will take
place at UnitSpace corporate office in Moscow.

If you were not planning to come (or vice versa), but have reversed your
plans since polling took place, please let me know so I can adjust hotel
reservations and other parameters.

Those planning to attend, please see below for instructions.

-Daniel


Hotel
-----
Detailed hotel information can be viewed at http://www.marriott.com/MOWRN.
Bookings have to be made by fax directly with the hotel, because online
booking for the rate negotiated is not available (standard corporate rate is
$215, UnitSpace rate is $115 including breakfast).  Reservations for the
confirmed number of attendees (12) are in place and will hold only until
June 20, so you have to book your accommodations before this date to
guarantee room availability; keep in mind that Moscow time is 8 hours ahead
of U.S. ET (11 hours for PT).  Please fill out the form attached to this
email and fax it to Renaissance Moscow at +7 095 931-9020 as soon as you
can.

Transportation
-----
Please email me with your flight itineraries as they become available so I
can make your transportation arrangements.

Facilities
-----
Meetings will take place at UnitSpace corporate office in Moscow.

Food
-----
Complimentary American breakfast will be served for you at Renaissance
Moscow.  Although no on-site cafeteria exists on our premises, restaurants
are abundantly available nearby.  I fully expect that UnitSpace will cover
substantially all of your lunch expenses, although specific arrangements
have not yet been made.  I am confident that together we will find the right
place(s) to retire to for dinner after work.

Other
-----
If you are interested in seeing the city, attending a performance at the
Bolshoi theater or otherwise enhancing the use of your time in Moscow,
please let me know and we will try to accommodate your request.  I have to
forewarn that I am not the best possible tour guide as I have only lived in
Moscow since 2001 and most of my life here had to do with business. :)



-----Original Message-----
From: Daniel Feygin [mailto:feygin@unitspace.com] 
Sent: Wednesday, March 26, 2003 5:45 PM
To: uddi-spec@lists.oasis-open.org
Subject: [uddi-spec] Moscow FTF - trip planning info


Visas
-----
Unless you are a citizen of Russia or one of the select countries of the CIS
(Commonwealth of Independent States), you will be required to obtain a visa
prior to going.  Be aware that it takes time (up to a month) to get a visa,
although express service is available at higher rates from most providers.
Rules guiding the visa acquisition process vary by country where you are
getting the visa.  New regulations in effect for the U.S. and probably most
of the rest of the world require the original passport of person obtaining
the visa (it used to be that you could get a paper insert without having to
submit a passport).

There are a number of organizations that are available to help you get the
Russian visa.  American Express Travel Services
(http://www10.americanexpress.com/sif/cda/page/0,1641,8382,00.asp?russia_nav
=newhomepage) handles them, so your company's travel department might have a
straightforward process already in place to get your visa.

I usually obtain my Russian visas from Atlanta-based GO TO RUSSIA Travel
(http://www.gotorussia.com/).  You can apply online, but the new consular
rules require that you mail your passport to them.  Their fee schedule for
full visa services can be accessed at
http://www.gotorussia.net/main.php?name=show-country&country=8.  You'd be
interested in a "Tourist Single" or a "Business Single" visa.

Russian U.S. consulates treat all U.S. residents regardless of citizenship
the same as U.S. citizens, but non-U.S. residents who are also not U.S.
citizens may be subject additional 'obstructions'.  Knowing that we have a
very diverse group, I asked GO TO RUSSIA Travel specifically about citizens
of Canada, Germany, France, Australia and Japan (sorry I forgot the UK).
With regard to this list they said only citizens of Germany are required to
show proof of permanent residency in order to apply for visas in the U.S.
Further, with regard to their capability to handle such cases, they
commented as follows: <quote> All other applicants can send their passports,
and their visas will be processed in Washington and shipped to them via
FedEx. If they choose not to ship their passports to us, they need to locate
a Russian Embassy or consulate in their city/country and find out the exact
visa processing requirements. Main issue here will be whether that
particular consular institution requires an original invitation to be
presented. If not, we can fax or e-mail their invitations to the applicants.
Otherwise we can mail or FedEx those to them. They do not have to be
physically present at the consulate to apply for visas (unless it is
required), their documents can be mailed or submitted by another individual
or agency. Again, the specifics of the process in each consulate will have
to be checked by the applicants before applying for visas independently.
</quote>

Consult http://www.russianconsulate.com/ for locating your nearest Russian
consulate.

Those in the UK can contact Andrew's Consulting
(http://www.andrews-consulting.com/) as instructed at
http://www.andrews-consulting.com/eng/about/eng-office.shtml.  They will
provide an invitation ("visa support service"), but from the information on
their site I gather that you (or someone acting on your behalf) would have
to go the London embassy of Russian Federation to obtain the visa. According
to their Web site, Andrew's Consulting also provides complete business
travel support, including air travel reservations, hotel bookings and ground
transportation.  Btw, same applies to the American GO TO RUSSIA Travel.

Those living in the Seattle metro area may prefer going to a local company
called Red Star Travel, their fees and information is available at
http://www.travel2russia.com/.  I used them on several occasions when I was
on the West coast for everything from visas to air travel bookings on
Aeroflot.  My experience with them was very positive as they handled my
rapidly changing needs with great care and professionalism.  If all you want
is a visa though, then the Atlanta company I mentioned above is a little
cheaper alternative, which I also never had a problem with - they are my
primary source of visa services.  Of course, now that you have to provide
the original passport, you may prefer to deal with a local company, ensuring
secure transport of your passport.

Google search on "visa to russia" reveals a number of resources and service
providers.

Please let me know if you have questions on obtaining a Russian visa.


Getting to Moscow
-----
Moscow area air hub is served by all international European airlines as well
as Delta, which operates daily direct flights between Moscow and New
York-JFK (DL 030/031).  Russian national passenger air carrier is Aeroflot
(http://www.aeroflot.com/) with regular flights between Moscow and 108
locations in 54 countries, including direct service from 5 U.S. cities: New
York, San Francisco, Seattle, Washington and Los Angeles.  I know Aeroflot
flies to Tokyo (direct) and Sydney (I think it lands for refueling in
Singapore).  I am not particularly fond of Aeroflot, but most people seem to
find its business class service acceptable, which I cannot confirm since I
always travel in economy class.  They say they are preparing to join the Sky
Team alliance in 2004, but IMHO they still have a few things to work on.

If you are coming from the U.S. and your airport is not served by Aeroflot
(and, perhaps, even if it is) while Delta is not an option, your best bet is
most likely to go to any European capital (+Frankfurt) and connect to Moscow
from there.  You probably know whether your city has direct flights to
Europe.  If that is the case, you can just go to Moscow with a single
connection at a European hub.  If you are not that lucky and Expedia or
Travelocity can't locate an adequate route, then email me for advice.


Facilities
-----
Depending on how many people will be able to come, the meeting be held
either at our Moscow HQ or at an hotel.  Of course, all necessary equipment
will be available.


Hotels
-----
UnitSpace will select a hotel with a brand you recognize where we would
prefer you to stay.  Moscow has Marriott, Renaissance, Radisson, Holiday Inn
and others that can be booked online or through travel agencies that use all
the usual booking networks.  At this time we are selecting between Marriott
Tverskaya (http://www.marriott.com/dpp/PropertyPage.asp?MarshaCode=MOWTV),
Holiday Inn (http://www.moscow-vinogradovo.holiday-inn.com/) and Renaissance
(http://www.marriott.com/dpp/PropertyPage.asp?MarshaCode=MOWRN).  We have to
consider a number of factors, but our choice will be based on the number of
you that will be coming.


Airport-to-Hotel Transfer
-----
Because you will be coming in on different flights I do not expect to be
able to meet you all in person.  You can get ground transportation services
through GO TO RUSSIA Travel at http://www.gotorussia.com/ or you can get a
cab at the airport.  I strongly recommend that you pre-arrange the transfer.
Let me know if you need help.


General Information and Travel Tips
-----
Most of the links provided in this email will lead you to sites that have
information about Moscow.  Travel guides are available where you would
normally expect them to be on the Web (http://travel.yahoo.com/,
http://www.expedia.com/, etc.).  Marriott provides one at
http://www.marriott.com/dpp/fodors.asp?marshacode=MOWTV&type=dpp.

U.S. Department of State offers this invaluable<g> piece
http://travel.state.gov/russia.html.  It can raise questions, so email me if
you have any.

hotel-reservation-form.doc



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