2009 IEEE Multi-conference on Systems and Control

Dear MSC 2009 participants, visitors of Saint Petersburg,
Please find below some important update of travel and conference information. I would advise to print it out and keep with you when in Saint Petersburg. Maps of the Conference venue and its neghborhood are here (doc). See also Map of cafee and restorants and Map of the hotels.

REGISTRATION DESK will be open:
on July 6 from 18:00 till 20:00;
on July 7 from 9:00 till 19:00;
on July 8 from 8:30 till 19:00;
on July 9 from 8:30 till 17:00;
on July 10 from 10:00 till 13:30.
Extra tours and banquet tickets may be booked there.

OPENING CEREMONY will start on July 8 at 9:30 in the Congress Hall of Park Inn Pulkovskaya hotel (1, Pobedy square, ten minutes walk from metro station "Moskovskaya", see map on the MSC'09 website).

TRANSPORTATION TO HOTEL. The Park Inn Pulkovskaja hotel can be reached from International Airport Pulkovo in 20-25 minutes by bus, stop "Pobedy square" (next stop is the metro station "Moskovskaya"). Details can be found at the page of Pulkovo Airport.
Note that public transport may be uncomfortable (you may be travelling unseated) and hard to use for non-russian speakers (except metro). You may also take a taxi to the hotel at the airport Arrival hall (fare is $25-35 for a single trip).
For those travelling via Moscow special tips for transfer from Sheremetyevo-2 to Sheremetyevo-1 airport (from international terminal to the domestic terminal) are posted here (doc).
Before July 4 it is still possible to add the transfer to/from the hotel service via the Paperplaza registration page ($40). In this case, do not forget to send your flight details to the MSC 2009 Registration Chair Dr. Natalia Dudarenko ( dudarenko@yandex.ru ).

SHUTTLE TO CONFERENCE VENUE will be organized from the conference hotels "U Fontana" and "Rossia".
Bus departure:
on July 8 at 8:30 from "U Fontana", at 8:45 from "Rossia";
on July 9-10 at 8:15 from "U Fontana", at 8:30 from "Rossia".

BE ON GUARD. Like in every big city, there exist pickpockets in St. Petersburg. If you are robbed, contact 02 (Police emergency line) or 278-30-18 (a police hotline for foreigners), 340-10-20 (central police switchboard). The staff of the Tourism Information Office at Sadovaya ul. 14 (phone 310-28-22, E-mail: info@ctic.spb.ru) can help you file a police report, which is needed if you plan to claim loss with your insurance company. It would be wise to always have a photocopy of your passport and visa with you when in Russia.

EMERGENCY. In the case of emergency you may contact me at MSC emergency phone number +7-951-674-5240 or Dr. Natalia Dudarenko at +7-911-753-2145.

SOCIAL PROGRAM. All tours start from the conference venue. Please contact social program desk to confirm departure time.

RUSSIAN BALLET. You may book the tickets to the famous Russian Ballet at the website of Mariinsky Theatre or Mikhailovsky Theatre.
I recommend to order soon since the number of remaining tickets is limited.

WORKSHOPS will take place on July 7 (on-site registration is possible):
10:00-13:00 Automotive Industry and Control: What is After Crisis? (speakers are top executives and researchers of GM Company divisions worldwide).
14:00-17:00 Autonomous Unmanned Vehicles: Collaborative Planning, Obstacle Avoidance, and Control (speakers are Prof. Farshad Khorrami, USA and Prof. Antony Tzes, Greece).
10:00-17:00 Frequency and matrix inequalities in nonlinear control system design: theory and applications. (A tribute to Vladimir A. Yakubovich)

BOOK EXHIBITIONS will be open at the registration area on July 8-10 from 10:00 till 17:00.

Wi-Fi and desktop INTERNET connection will be available on July 8-10 during registration desk working hours.

WELCOME RECEPTION will take place in a historical military building (Officers' Club) on July, 7 from 19:00 till 21:00. Buses will depart at 17:30 from the Conference venue.

CONFERENCE BANQUET will take place in the Peter and Paul Fortress, one of the oldest historical sites of the city, on July, 9 from 20:10 till 23:00.
Buses will depart at 19:00-19:25 from the Conference venue.

FAREWELL RECEPTION, FRIDAY PLENARY SESSIONS AND CLOSING/AWARD CEREMONY will take place in the "Elektronstandart" building (across the square from the Park Inn Pulkovskaya Hotel) on July, 10.
Closing/award ceremony will start at 18:00 and Farewell reception will start at 18:30.

Wishing you a nice and safe trip to Russia,
Sincerely,
Alexander Fradkov,
MSC 2009 Chair