Caribbean Community Telecenters
Regional Workshop
July 20-22, 2006
Santo Domingo - Dominican Republic
Logistic information for the particpants
1- About the workshop
Workshop Fee:There are no participation fees as the costs of the organization is covered by the supporting institutions.
Schedule:The Workshop will run from 9 A.M. to 5:30 P.M. approximately, every day. There will be a pause of 1:30 hours for lunch and two Coffee-breaks. We request participants to respect the schedules to be able to fulfil the proposed workshop objectives.Agenda
A provisional agenda is posted on the Web. A more definitive agenda will be communicated shortly.Facilitation
The workshop will be facilitated by a team of professionals from Sula Batsú cooperative of Costa Rica that will present the workshop methodology during the first session.Simultaneous interpretation and translations
The event will be held in the three main languages of the Caribbean: Spanish, English and French. We are making a considerable investment to have all documents translated and to provide simultaneous interpretation for all the sessions of the workshop. We ask you to keep this in mind, and would appreciate if you would assist the translators and interpreters as much as possible by speaking slowly, briefly and clearly, allowing the necessary time for the interpretation, and making clarifications as necessary..
BlogsThe event will have 2 blogs on Taigüey’s and on Telecentre.org’s web sites. They will be used as tools for the conducting of the workshop.
The World Coffee (or Village Fair) and the “off program”
The event is going to be centred on collective discussion and group work, so very little time is allocated for participants to present their projects or activities during the plenary sessions. Therefore, to facilitate the exchange of experiences, in one of the 2 rooms you will have the options to use printed information as posters, brochures, photos or leave some publications on the display tables. We will also have a video + television set. A session to be held on the afternoon of the first day, will be dedicated to facilitating this direct interchange and to inaugurate a “mini-fair ”.An off” program (or open mike) will be prepared with volunteer participants that wish to program presentations or project materials, during pauses or after the official program.
Extra Activities
o As Boca Chica, the small town hosting the workshop is a community where the contradictions of tourist development are evident in the coexistence of international tourism with poverty and marginality. We will be trying to organize an exchange with groups that work with youth at risk and ICTs and some youth t from the area.o On Friday 21st at 8 p.m. we have prepared a cultural activity with a music group “Batey 0” that it blends traditional rhythms of the island (Rep. Dominican and Haiti) with rock.o On Saturday 22nd the farewell night we will have a nocturnal tour by the bars of colonial zone of Santo Domingo.
Clothes:
Dress for workshop sessions is casual and comfortable.. We recommend light cotton clothing, because of the warm climate of Dominican Republic. However we advise that you bring some extra clothes for the meetings, since the temperature in the closed rooms tends to be low, due to the air conditioning.
What to bring:
For us the most important is that you come with the will to share, exchange, learn, and build; with an attitude of respect to the other, with patience and understanding of cultural, social or linguistic differences, with an open mind and positive energy.Do not forget your bathing suits (between 7 Am and the breakfast you will have some time for the beach -:), and do not hesitate to bring something typical from your community that you want to share, either to eat, drink, or dance.2- LOGISTICS
Venue for Workshop:
The event will be held at the in the Caracol y Carey salons of the Don Juan Hotel in Boca Chica. www.donjuanbeachresort.com/The address is:
DON JUAN BEACH RESORT
Boca Chica, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Telephone: 1-809-687-9157 Fax: 1-809-688-5271, Switchboard: 1-809-523-4511,Email: info@donjuanbeachresort.comAccommodations:
We recommended that all participants stay at the Don Juan Hotel where we have negotiated special rates of 2100 RD$ (US$ 65) in double occupancy room and RD$ 3100 (US$ 94) for single room.The hotel in Boca Chica is about 15 minutes from the Las Americas International Airport, and about 30 minutes from Santo Domingo city.It is a medium category hotel and participants are accommodated under “all inclusive” modality that includes all the buffet meals, limitless national drinks, international drinks (from 6:00 p.m.), a programs of activities, gym hall and sports as tennis courts, bicycles, aquatic sports, children club, night show, discothèque with open bar, etc.Check-in time is 3:00 pm and check-out 1:00Pm. If you want to checkout later please lets us know in advance.
Hotel booking / reservation
We are making reservation for all participants. If you have returned the information form we will do the booking. If not, please do send it urgently by email.
Accommodation for participants sponsored by Taigüey
Participants whose accommodation is being paid for by Taiguey will be hosted in double occupancy rooms between the 19th and the 23rd of July. Taiguey will pay the hotel directly but all additional expenses or services not included in the “all inclusive” package (as telephone calls, laundry, etc.) or additional days that participant decide to stay are at their personal expense. We are not responsible for these expenses, and you must pay them before checking out. If you have any doubt please do consult us before requesting any service.In general, the hotels request a credit card or a deposit to guarantee the payment of these additional extra costs.
Medical insurance.
We have contracted a medical insurance plan for all foreign participants: it is a national medical insurance that covers up to 1000 US$ in emergency. Attention: It does not cover any event during the international travel, only starts at your arrival to the airport. Consult with an insurance or travel agency of your country if you wish an insurance of international trip.
Arrival at the Airport
We will provide transfers from the Airport to the hotel Boca Chica and return for all international participants that have notified us with their flight/time of arrival. A person with a poster “ “TELECENTROS-TAIGUEY ” will be waiting for tem at the international exit after customs.We should know In case your flight has been delayed. But if you changed flights and you do not find the person please, try first to call the telephone numbers that are in “contact” section below. (There are several public phones on the lobby and calls can be made at a cost of i5 Dominican pesos coins). We will reimburse the cost of the taxis to the hotel (approx 20US$) if it has been authorized by telephone by the logistical coordination. On the day of your return flight, a driver will collect you from the hotel to transport you to the airport you at the appropriate time/
Visa and Card of tourist
According to our research only nationals of Haiti, Grenada and Cuba need a visa.All other Caribbean participants do not need a visa to enter the Dominican Republic. However upon your r arrival to the airport you will have to buy a tourist card, which costs US$ 20.00. Try to arrive with that sum (US$ 20) in cash (exact change if possible) to facilitate the process, since they do not accept credit cards.The participants whose trip is being paid by TAIGUEY will have the cost of visa or tourist card reimbursed. Please submit receipts to justify and facilitate reimbursement.
Access to Internet:
Free WIFI connectivity will be available in the meeting rooms and the contiguous areas. We will also have two PCs available for participant use.Confirmation of flights and connections:Please bring your ticket or the itinerary of ticket electronic the first day of the meeting in order to have us confirm your return flights and connections. In case you want to make a change to your itinerary, please request this as soon as possible.
Local transfers/city:
We will have available a bus for transfers Boca Chica- Santo. Domingo – Boca Chica for the night of the 22nd night tour by the colonial zone. For persons who are accompanying participants or those who stay additional days, the hotel has a free shuttle bus that takes you in town in the morning and returns in afternoon.
Expenses reimbursement the participants whose travel is supported by TAIGUEY:
Expenses such as exit taxes , visa, tourist card and air fare (to those who did not receive the pre-paid ticket) will be reimbursed to sponsored participants. For this they will have to present the corresponding invoices and/or receipts, with your name signed at the back and the calculation of its equivalent in US$ dollars.
3- IMPORTANT CONTACTS
Coordinator of the event: Yacine Khelladi, contact@taiguey.org, No cell phone.Logistic coordination: Vicky Apolinario Cel 1809 7568817and Carmen Balbuena cel: 1 809 3044776
4- More about Boca Chica
Language: SpanishClimate: temperature is between 32 °C and 26°C. Take into consideration that we are in the hurricane season and afternoon storms can be common.
Drinking water: The pipe water is not potable. You can obtain bottled water in the hotel, without additional cost.Voltage: 110 volts (not 220 V) the power outlets are U.S. standard.Currency: Dominican PesoRate of Change: The rate of change has remained stable in the last weeks in approximately RD$ 32.50 to US$ 1About Boca ChicaBoca Chica is a coastal town located about 30 kilometres east of Santo Domingo. It has beautiful beaches characterized by its crystalline water and white sand. The town growth during the first part of the 20th century was based on sugar industry. It is also the first tourist pole developed in the country, as during the 1950’s, the dictator Rafael Leónidas Trujillo ordered the construction of a modern hotel that became an icon of the region. Now it is basically a tourist spot, characterized by a mix of local tourism, small scale hotels and few big all inclusive facilities. As a result of the negative impacts of the tourist industry, among other social problems that affect all the country, Boca Chica has unfortunately also become one of the sexual tourism destination of the country, but not only, as because of its proximity it is the favourite and popular beach of the inhabitants of the capital.
More information: http://www.dr1.com/travel/bocachica/