Jubilee 2005 Trip Info

Jubilee 2005 Trip Info

Note: The information created on the Wiki before July 2005 is now archived here

Trip Itinerary

GETTING THERE

7/2 9:45 Paul departs for Riga via ORD and WAW on UA/LOT flights arr:13:50 7/3

7/4 11:35 PM Depart SFO on Icelandair (8:20 hour flight + 7 hour time change)

7/5 2:55 PM Arrive KEF -- Reykjavik, Iceland

7/6 breakfast at Borgartun (comment: that's gonna be really early); transfer by bus to airport

7/7 Erik Schutter, Mark Ryken, Debbie and Abe, Paul, Phillip arrive in Helsinki from various other places

7/8 10:00 AM depart by bus from Hostel Academica to Kaustinen -- approx 6 hour bus ride + stop for a lunch provided by the Festival. There is a toilet in the bus

KAUSTINEN FESTIVAL

7/9 - 7/15 Jubilee performs at festival, see Performance Schedule. We will have "Performing Guest" passes valid in all 200 events, except 7 concerts in the Folk Arts Centre. We will stay at a school in Salonkyla, where there are three classrooms and a gym. Breakfast is served there at the school. Lunch and dinner are provided in the Festival restaurant in the Festival area.

7/16 (Saturday). Big day of closing weekend of festival. No Jubilee performances. Final dance at 10PM, w/ famous "Midnight Quadrille" dance  to the music of house band JPP . Dance into the wee hours (dance goes till 4AM)!

RETURNING

7/17 Return to Helsinski, there are three bus options:

7/18 Depart HEL 3:20PM, arriving SFO 6:35PM same day (Linda G, John R, Monica, OJ, Chip, Ken)

7/20 Paul departs Tallinn to SFO via WAW and ORD (LOT.) Mary Ann and Liz depart Tallinn for London, Gatwick via Estonian Air, ultimately arriving back at SFO 6/25, 6:35.

7/23 Depart HEL 3:20PM, arriving SFO 6:35PM same day (Barbara, Dee, Joe, Ruth, Tirtza, Barry, Tony, Joan)

Festival Schedule

Jubilee performances listed at Kaustinen website 

See map of festival area

Sunday 10.7.2005 -- Festival Arena -- 9:30 p.m. to 11 p.m.

Monday 11.7.2005 -- Festival Arena -- 13.00-14.30

Tuesday 12.7.2005

Wednesday 13.7.2005

Thursday 14.7.2005 -- Festival Arena -- 13.00-14.30

Friday 15.7. 2005 -- Festival Arena -- 16.00-17.30

Saturday 16.7.2005

Emergency Contacts

Please add cell phones, email addresses, phone #'s for credit card companies, US Embassy info, whatever people can think of.

General Travel Info

See also specific country pages:

Passports

You need a passport valid for 3 months beyond your return date. Please check your passport to make sure it qualifies. If you don't have a passport or do need to renew it, please take care of this right away, to save yourself a lot of hassle and expense. Forms and instructions for new passports and renewals are at Passports See the forms for everything you will need, but in particular, you will need proof of citizenship: either a certified birth certificate, previous passport, proof of naturalization, or see instructions for other possibilities. These may take time to get, so check for the one appropriate to you. A driver's license is not sufficient.

You'll need 2 passport photos. Many photo shops do this for $10 or less, AAA does it for $6 for members. Costco charges $4. High-quality digital photo prints are OK -- see the instructions with the forms for more details on photos -- make sure your prints meet the requirements if you go the DIY route.

You can renew by mail UNLESS:

Locations to turn in your application at Passport Office Locator

Visas

Travel Websites for Europe

Note that many European carriers, including some major airlines and especially low-fare airlines, have very tight luggage restrictions. If you are considering them, check the restrictions and over-weight charges carefully before booking! E.g., RyanAir: 33l lb checked luggage total, one 22 lb carry-on, and about $4/lb for over-weight.

Other General Transportation Info

Maps/Language/Currency/Phones

Medical emergencies

Your Health Plan benefits entitle you to emergency care anywhere in the world. You are entitled to be reimbursed for care received in emergencies and for unforeseen illnesses or injuries that require uurgent attention. If you are hospitalized, you or a representative should phone Kaiser as soon as possible with the name of the hospital, the doctor's name, the hospital telephone number and the diagnosis.

For more info, see traveling. Note that Kaiser provides reimbursement, so be prepared to pay on the spot if necessary. (Some European countries have health care systems that are more user-friendly than here, but I have no particular idea about Finland.) [TP]

Acknowledgements

Thanks to Paul (#5), Tony, Phillip, and ???, for contributing lots of info

What to Bring: Packing list

Toiletries:

Make-up kit:

Clothing:

Miscellaneous:

Travel Needs:

Useful appliances:

Carry-on: Women: carry on clogging dress and mary-janes.  Men: carry on 1860's shirt, black flat front pants and black shoes. Musicians: carry on your black and white costume.Those going via Reykjavik, please put change of clothing and utility kit (without sharp objects) in your carry-on as well, and check your baggage straight through to Helsinki. This will save everyone time at the airport -- if everyone does it. You will be much happier on Wednesday morning.

 

Baggage

Icelandair Baggage Regulations (http://www.icelandair.com/main/view.jsp?branch=3551992): for each Economy Class passenger:

Transatlantic Flights/Piece Concept: (US to Iceland and Europe and return)

Also, a few volunteers may be needed to carry on an instrument for musicians with more than one instrument (Chip, Tony, Dan?).

People overnighting in Iceland: We will try tp check luggage through from SFO to Helsinki. There will be a private bus waiting at the airport to take us to the Borgartun Guest House. Please pack everything you'll need in Reykjavik in your carry-on, so we can skip waiting for luggage claim in the Reykjavik airport and have more time to explore Reykjavik. This will also speed check-in, which is quite early the next morning (it's a 40-50 minute bus ride to the airport, and a 7:40 AM flight). Be prepared for cool weather, as average July temperatures are a little above 50ºF.

People staying with group in Helsinki: Note that Hostel Academica (http://www.hostelacademica.fi/eng/index.htm) website states: "All prices include bed linen and towels, buffet breakfast, morning sauna & swimming, service and VAT."

Other useful things

I have a folding reading light to use in places that have terrible lighting. It is from Sharper Image, folds up to 5"x1" in a little leather case, and costs $30.00. The other useful thing is a folding suitcase which folds up into its own case. When folded it is only about 6"x3", unfolded it is about 18"x12"x3". They are available in different travel catalogues. [Debbie]

Electricity

Current is 230 V, 50 Hz -- like most of Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia.

EuroPlug -- like most of western Europe, two round prongs, ungrounded. Schuko plugs, which are similar but add a ground prong, are used in Finland too.

Some devices, such as some DC power bricks, will work fine on 230 V with a simple plug converter; it will specify in fine print on the device. If 110-120 V, 60 Hz only, you need a step-down transformer, and should consider whether you really need that device! Electronic devices can be destroyed by wrong voltage.

Russia and parts of Eastern Europe use plugs that look similar, but the prongs are smaller in diameter. For more info, see Electricity around the world (http://users.pandora.be/worldstandards/electricity.htm)

Money

Universal Currency Converter (http://www.xe.com/ucc/)

Finland uses the Euro: € 1 = $ 1.21; $ 1 = € 0.82

Iceland kronur (ISK): 1 kr = $ .015; $ 1 = 65 kr

(Rates approx. June 2005) PLUS conversion fees

OTTO ATMs are common in Finland, and charge cards are even more commonly used than in US. Outside of tourist spots, Russia, Estonia, and other Eastern Europe countries are a different story.

CHARGE CARDS Compare the fees for cash advances and currency conversion of your ATM, debit cards, or credit cards, to determine which is best to use. There's a lot of variation, and a lot has changed in the last year or two. Until recently, ATM cards were definitely the best deal: good conversion rate, and no additional service charges, so usually the best way to get cash in Europe (much more convenient than traveler's checks). However, some banks are now charging a 2% "conversion fee", in addition to up to a $3 flat transaction fee on ATM cards. Debit cards may have the same conversion fees. Most credit cards charge a 3% fee in addition to the exchange rate conversion. Bottom line: check with your particular financial institutions to find out what their fees are for each of your cards and choose accordingly. Read more here (http://biz.yahoo.com/brn/050624/16435.html?.v=1) orhere (http://europeforvisitors.com/europe/articles/atm_conversion_fees.htm).

Earplugs

Highly advised for group accommodations... Cheap foam or silicone earplugs work fairly well but, in situations such as loud concerts and airplanes where you want to hear much less but clearly, fancier earplugs that block all sound frequencies equally are better. E.g., (3 sets / $35 ppd) for Etymotic Research (http://www.etymotic.com/ephp/er20.asp) ER-20 fromEarPlugStore (http://store.yahoo.com/earplugstore/profmusearpl1.html), which has many other choices too. [TP]]

Fauna

According to some sources (http://wikitravel.org/en/Finland), the mosquitoes in Finland can be a real nuisance in the summer, and it has been recommended to acquire a prescription of Zyrtec. Start taking it a few days before the trip and then through the end, to greatly reduce the impact of the bites. Zyrtec won't chase away the mosquitoes, but just make the bites much less noticeable.

Also, don't count on "natural" bug repellant. DEET, the active ingredient found in most otc repellants, is the substance most effective at repelling mosquitoes. Some folks on the Internet swore that the Finnish brands work better than American ones.

Tirtza says West Nile virus not reported in Finland. See CDC info re West Nile (http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/) andRepellents (http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/RepellentUpdates.htm)

TP comments:

Finland

Kaustinen

Helsinki

Transportation

Other Travel Info

Note: Because Finnish and Swedish are both official national languages, on things like maps you'll see two names for each place, Finnish and Swedish

 Culture

Iceland

Read about Iceland (http://www.randburg.is/is/beforeyougo/Iceland_the_Country.asp) or here (http://www.whatson.is/) orhere (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/country_profiles/1025227.stm) or especially HERE (http://wikitravel.org/en/Iceland)

Airport: Keflavik International Airport is 50 kms (31 miles) from Reykjavík (http://www.visitreykjavik.is/), with good but expensive shuttle bus connections to the capital.

Accommodations: Borgartun Guest House (http://www.visitreykjavik.is/yellowpages.asp?cat_id=63&element_id=192)

Tourism: Good interactive map of Reykjavik (http://www.visitreykjavik.is/Interactive/interactive.html), including thermal pools such as the Blue Lagoon (http://www.bluelagoon.com/), bike rental, night clubs, and entertainment.

Money: Iceland kronur 1 = $.015, $1 = 65 ISK (approx. July 1, 2005). "Prices are generally high in Iceland, even higher than in Scandinavia." Sale is "útsala."

Language: Icelandic Phrases (http://www.bbc.co.uk/print/languages/other/quickfix/icelandic.shtml) -- short version with pronunciations from BBC

Climate: The mean July (the warmest month) air emperature is 9°C to F 11°C (48°F to 52°F). (For Dee only:) The sea surface temperatures are highest off the south and southwest coasts, 8°C to 12°C in summer.

Russia

A visa is needed. See Passports and Visas.

Russian Phrases (http://www.bbc.co.uk/print/languages/other/quickfix/russian.shtml) -- short version with pronunciations from BBC

Russia ruble 1 = $.035, $1 = 28.6 (RUS) (approx. July 1, 2005)

Red October (http://www.redoctober.us/default.asp) St.Petersburg high-end guided tours

Ferries -- Here is some information which I've collected concerning the excursion to St. Petersburg in PDF files. There are little yellow tags ot the center of the page. Click on them to read the notes that I've added. I haven't found any other ferries to or from St. Petersburg. The Tallin boat doesn't go to St. Petersburg anymore. If anyone found another one, please let us know. [Joe]

Estonia

See also General Travel Info

Money: Estonian kroon (EEK) = 100 cents

Fixed exchange rate: 1 EUR= 15.65 EEK

Estonia krooni 1 = $.08, $1 = 13.1 (EEK) (approx.)

Electricity: Current is 220 volts AC, 50 Hz, European-style 2-pin plugs are in use.

Phones: Telephone cards costing 50 and 100 EEK are sold at newsstands, post offices and the tourist information office. Calling abroad, dial 00 and the country code. The GSM mobile phone system is available.

Language: Estonian Phrases (http://www.bbc.co.uk/print/languages/other/quickfix/estonian.shtml) -- short version with pronunciations from BBC

Food: Estonian Cuisine (http://www.inyourpocket.com/estonia/tallinn/en/feature?id=55202) -- funny, but informative!

Ferries between Helsinki and Tallinn:

Tallinn: