Local
Arrangement Information
Venues
and Registration
General:
To encourage participation from developing countries there
will be two registration options available this year:
- Full Registration:
include free drinks and finger food during coffee breaks
- Budget Registration
(restricted to participants from developing countries):
does not include drinks or finger food during coffee breaks
Registration
includes one copy of the Proceedings and admission to all exhibits,
demos, and the Student Research Workshop.
Main Conference
Sessions: October 3-6, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition
Center (HKCEC)
Registration:
Conference registration will take place in the “Convention
Hall Foyer” located outside the “Theater Foyer.”
Between 8:00 am and 5:00 pm October 3-6.
Tutorials:
October 1 and 2, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
(HKUST)
Registration:
Tutorial registration will take place in the “Academic
Concourse” in front of lecture theaters A and B between
8:00 am and 5:00 pm October 1-2.
Workshops:
October 7 and 8, HKUST.
Registration:
Tutorial registration will take place in the “Academic
Concourse” in front of lecture theaters A and B between
8:00 am and 5:00 pm October 7-8.
Welcome
Reception
A welcome
reception will be held at 5:00pm on Monday, 2 October in Lecture
Theater A on the HKUST campus. Professor
Aravind Joshi, the Honorary Chair of ACL-2000, will give
a keynote lecture about Aspects of Research and Development
in NLP and their Internationalization. Professor
Makoto Nagao, the founder and first President of the International
Association for Machine Translation and the Association for
Natural Language Processing, will give a keynote lecture about
NLP in the Age of IT Revolution.
Banquet
A
special banquet for conference participants will be held on
the HKUST campus from 7:00-10:00pm on Thursday, 5 October. In
addition to sumptuous food and drink, the banquet will feature
live music and a variety of entertainment options.
Prof.
Wolfgang Wahlster will deliver the Presidential Address.
Ticket price:
Regular US$ 30 each; Student /Discount $15 each.
Demonstrations
Demonstrations
of NLP systems will be placed in the Theater Foyer, a space
of approximately 457 square meters. For information on demonstrations
please write to: acl-2000-demos@dfki.de.
Exhibitions
Accommodations
Meals
and Breaks
A map of area
restaurants featuring a variety of foods fitting a wide range
of budgets will be provided to all conference participants upon
arrival.
Participants
with the Full Registration Package will be issued with coupons
that can be redeemed for coffee, tea and finger foods during
breaks. Others may pay cash.
Entry
Regulations
For most visitors
to Hong Kong from Western Europe, North and South America, Asia,
Australia, New Zealand and many countries in Africa, all that
is required to enter Hong Kong is a valid passport.
The period
you are allowed to stay will depend on your nationality. In
most cases it is between 14 days and 3 months. Citizens of certain
countries will require an entry visa. Please see http://info.gov.hk/immd/english/topical/e/1.htm
or check with your local travel agent for details.
Smoking
Policy
No smoking
is permitted indoors either at HKCEC or on the HKUST campus.
Childcare
Some hotels
may be able to help with childcare arrangements. Please inquire
when you register.
Climate
Hong Kong’s
climate is subtropical and its weather is at its best between
late September and early December, when the sweltering heat
of the summer months lifts. At the time of the conference you
can expect a high proportion of clear sunny days, sometimes
quite warm, with cooler nights. Shirtsleeves to sweaters and
light jackets are suggested. Hong Kong’s average temperature
in autumn is 23“C (73“F) with humidity at 72%.
Getting
Around
Hong Kong
has an extensive, affordable and user-friendly public transport
system that includes subway (MTR), double-decker buses, 16-seat
mini-buses, trams and the Airport Express rail line. Taxis are
also numerous and relatively inexpensive, especially for shorter
distances.
For more information
on getting around on the MTR please visit: http://www.mtrc.com/
Attractions
and Activities
Hong Kong
is well suited to both whirlwind tours and extended stays. All
major hotels offer bus tours of the most important sites around
the city and excellent nightlife, walking tours, hiking, boating
and water sports are available for the more intrepid. Hong Kong
has a great deal to offer enthusiasts of fine dining, architecture,
shopping and entertainment.
Foreign
Currency Exchange
The Hong Kong
dollar is pegged to the US dollar at 7.8:1, but fluctuates slightly.
Check http://www.oanda.com/converter/classic/
for exact currency conversion rates.
Electrical
Power
Hong Kong
uses standard 220V AC, predominantly with British 3-prong plugs.
Plug adapters are widely used and are available for purchase
(HK$8-10) at a variety of shops throughout the city.
Directions
- From Airport to Hotels:
Several hotels provide shuttle bus services. Be sure to
inquire when you register.
- From Airport to Convention
Center: Take the Airport Express to Wan Chai (HK$70 approx.
30 min). Walk (10 min) or take a taxi (HK$15) to the Convention
Center.
- From Airport to HKUST:
Take Airbus A22 to Lam Tin take bus 298 to HKUST (Approx.
HK$46, 2 hours total travel time). OR: Take
the Airport Express to Tsing Yi, take the MTR to Diamond Hill
and take the 91 or 91M bus to HKUST (Approx. HK$5, 75 minutes
total travel time).
- From Railway Station
to Convention Center: From Hung Hom Railway Station take
the KCR to Kowloon Tong, then take the MTR to Wan Chai (Approx.
HK$11, 30 minutes total travel time).
- From Railway Station
to HKUST: From Hung Hom Railway Station take the KCR to
Kowloon Tong, take the MTR to Diamond Hill, then take the
91 or 91M bus to HKUST (Approx HK$18, 50 minutes total travel
time).
Maps
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