IGCP 469 meeting in Bucharest

General information
In October 2005, for two days, the IGCP 469 meeting will be held in Bucharest, hosted by the Faculty of Geology and Geophysics, University of Bucharest. The meeting will include presentations, collection surveys, and a practical workshop attended by Romanian students in Geology, Geography and Biology. A field trip in the South Carpathians, organized for visiting Upper Paleozoic formations of the Resita and Sirinia Basins, is scheduled after the talks in Bucharest.

Important updates:
In red, we have added updates and new details with regard to the meeting.

Timing
- Friday, October 7, 2005, 12.00-18.00, registration at the Laboratory of Paleontology. The participants are encouraged to leave their luggage at the "Academica" guest house, and then to reach the Laboratory of Paleontology for registration. At 19.00, an informal meeting at Tosca (M. Kogalniceanu Ave.), a local pub next to the "Academica" guest house will be held. Participants arriving lately in the afternoon or evening are invited to join the informal meeting at Tosca, after cheking in at the "Academica" guest house.

- Saturday, October 8, 2005, 9.00-19.00: talks, discussions, workshop;

- Sunday, October 9, 2005, 9.00-19.00: talks, poster presentations, and discussions;

- Monday, October 10, 2005, 8.00: departure by bus in the field trip organised in the South Carpathians, from the "Academica" guest house. Arrival in Oravita in the late afternoon or evening, accomodation at the "7 Fir Trees" motel (Oravita). This motel is a new facility, with rooms with two and three beds. The motel includes a well supplied, new restaurant. Lunch will be taken at the "Rio" restaurant, in downtown Craiova;

- Tuesday, October 11, 2005, 8.00-18.00: field trip demonstrations within the Resita Basin, in Ciudanovita (the Natra Anticline, with Upper Carboniferous and Lower Permian formations), Anina (Ponor Quarry, a unique, highly valuable site for Early Jurassic plants, animals and sedimentology), and Secu (a sterile dump very rich in Late Carboniferous and Early Permian compressions), for Upper Paleozoic and Mesozoic outcrops. Geological heritage values and geoconservation will be discussed as well. Ittinerary: Oravita - Ciudanovita - Anina - Secu - Oravita. Accomodation in the evening at the same motel in Oravita, lunch taken in the field (lunch bag);

- Wednesday, October 12, 2005, 8.00-18.00: field trip demonstrations in the Iron Gates Natural Park, centered on Upper Paleozoic outcrops and geological heritage values of the Sirinia Basin, along the Danube Gorges in several important stops. The Danube Gorges offer a unique glimpse in the geology of the South Carpathians, as the Danube crosses the South Carpathians transversally, outcropping all their tectonic units. Arrival in Orsova in the evening, accomodation at the "Meridian" hotel (Orsova), lunch taken in the field (lunch bag). Ittinerary: Oravita - Moldova Noua - Cozla - Svinita - Eibenthal - Baia Noua (the only mine for Carboniferous coals in Romania, still open) - Orsova;

- Thursday, October 13, 2005, 8.00: departure for Bucharest and arrival there in the evening. Lunch will be taken at the "Rio" restaurant in Craiova. Ittinerary: Orsova - Turnu Severin - Craiova - Pitesti - Bucharest.

Visas
Please check with your travel agents the necessity of obtaining the Romanian visa, before departure. Usually, there should be no difficulties in obtaining the Romanian visa at the "Henri Coanda" Airport in Bucharest. Guests from the Schengen states do not need entry visas.

Invitations
Letters of invitation for the IGCP469 meeting participants can be obtained upon request. Please let us know with regard to this aspect, so that these letters will be sent in time.

Accomodation
- In Bucharest, accomodation is arranged at the "Academica" guest house (36-46 M. Kogalniceanu Ave., next to the Law Department of the University Bucharest, tel. 021-3104270), a facility belonging to the University of Bucharest. The price for a double room per night is about 87.5 RON (equivalent of 25 euros, meaning 12.5 euros per participant), the lowest price in the city for the quality of service they provide. Breakfast is not included. "Academica" guest house is in walking range of the IGCP469 meeting location (20 minutes walking without heavy luggage). From the Laboratory of Paleontology to the Acacemica Guest house, any trolley bus along the Kogalniceanu Ave. is fine. 5 places were booked for the 6-7 October night, and up to 20 places were booked for the nights 7-8, 8-9, 9-10 and 13-14 October.

- Also in Bucharest, other hotel opportunities are numerous and they vary between 1 and 5 stars. The density of downtown hotels is particularly high, and the quality of their services is variable too, but we strongly recommend the "Academica" guest house accomodation.

- In Oravita, accomodation is arranged at the "7 Fir Trees" motel (Nucilor Street, Oravita), a new motel with excellent services and a well supplied restaurant. The price for a double room is 100 RON per night, and the price for a triple room is 120 RON. Breakfast is not included. Two nights will be spent there: 10-11 October and 11-12 October.

- In Orsova, accomodation is scheduled for the night 12-13 October, at the "Meridian" motel (12, Eroilor Street, Orsova). The price for a double room is 42 Euros, and a single room is 35 Euros per night.

Field trip transport
Transport in the field trip (10-13 October) will be provided by an "Eurolines" Iveco or Volvo minibus with an 18 passengers capacity.

Fees
The participation fee will cover the printed material for the meeting in Bucharest, representing 70 RON (equivalent of 20 Euros) per person. Publication costs will be decided upon the periodical, and on the number of manuscripts submitted. Hotel accomodation and meals will not be included in fees, and they will be supported separatelly by each participant.

Location
The meeting in Bucharest will be held at the University of Bucharest, Faculty of Geology and Geophysics, Laboratory of Paleontology, at 1, N. Balcescu Ave., Bucharest. This is a central location in the Capital of Romania, in the heart of the city. Bucharest, known before the Second World War as "the little Paris of Europe", is a 2.5 million people European capital, with several excellent universities, a steaming cultural life, and important touristic attractions ranging from museums and theaters to sightseeing, architecture and cuisine. Bucharest is also a city of contrasts, as today it is caught between a communist past and a capitalistic future. Pre-communist architecture and cultural heritage is particularly seductive, as a result of successful co-evolution between western and oriental cultures.

Laboratory of Paleontology
The Laboratory of Paleontology of University of Bucharest (see photograph, second floor of the University building) is celebrating its 100 anniversary in September 2005, when the Fifth National Symposium of Paleontology was organized. Within the Laboratory is curated one of the largest Paleontology collections in Europe, and the teaching facilities are also well provided with fossil material. Here also activates the Paleobotany research group, a research unit centered around a small research facility. The teaching units include a large amphitheater, a Laboratory of Stratigraphy & Historical Geology, a Laboratory of Micropaleontology, Paleobotany & Palynology (provided with transmitted light microscopes and dissecting microscopes), and a Laboratory of Paleozoology.

Talks and collections
Presentations can be given with MS Powerpoint, with slides or transparencies. Gear for any type of presentation is available. The talks will be given within the amphitheaters of the Faculty of Geology and Geophysics, and collections will be visited within the Laboratory of Paleontology.

Field trip
The field trip by bus will reach the South Carpathians in order to visit important sites and geological heritage values for Paleozoioc Paleobotany, Paleozoology, and Paleoecology within the Resita and Sirinia Basins. At least one Mesozoic highly important future SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest) in Anina, the so called Ponor Quarry, Caras-Severin County, will be visited too. The entry point in the area is Oravita, for visiting a series of important localities in the Resita Basin for one day. For the second day, the field trip will reach the Danube Gorges, in the Iron Gates Natural Park, for both exquisite Paleontology & Geology, and for sightseeing. The Danube Gorges, within the Iron Gates Natural Park offer a unique glipse in the geology of the South Carpathians, as the Danube crosses the Carpathians along a transversal route, outcropping all tectonic and almost all stratigraphic units of this chain.

Field equipment
Boots, rain coats, geological hammers and hand lenses are particularly useful and recommended in the field, so please bring them with you. Newspapers for wrapping matterial can be found in Bucharest.

Fossil regulations
Fossils can be collected from all visited sites, excepting for the Ponor Quarry, in Anina (Early Jurassic land plants). Accompanying letters for the collected material can be issued upon request.

Organizers
On behalf of the Faculty of Geology and Geophysics, Dr. Mihai E. Popa and his students will organize the meeting. Contact Dr. Popa: University of Bucharest, Faculty of Geology and Geophysics, Laboratory of Paleontology, 1, N. Balcescu Ave., 010041, Bucharest, Romania, Mobile phone: +4 (072) 273-4070, Office phone: +4 (021) 314-3508 ext. 128, fax: +4 (021) 318-1557, e-mail: mihai at mepopa dot com.

Access
Bucharest has a major international airport, the "Henry Coanda" (former Otopeni) International Airport, north of the city. The bus line no. 783 serves the airport, it has departures each 15 minutes, and it has the great advantage that it can be boarded exactly from the airport, leaving the quests in front of the Laboratory of Paleontology, at the University Square Bus Station. One two way ticket is 4.5 new lei (45000 old lei). A bus ride from the airport to the University Square is about 30-45 minutes long.

The "Henry Coanda" International Airport is served by the "Fly Taxi" cab company. Although reliable and elegant, the trip is more expensive than the bus trip, but it can bring people directly to the "Academica" guest house.

The North Railway Station is not far away from downtown. Subway, bus and cab means of transport are efficient and reliable. The access by subway is particularly simple and reliable, from North Railway Subway Station to the Laboratory of Paleontology in University Square Subway Station counting 3 stations. The subway trip is: North Railway Subway Station - Victoria Station (commuting between lines) - Romana Station - University Square Station. One two way ticket is 2 RON (20000 ROL).

Romanian currency
The Romanian national currency is "lei" ("leu" in singular, "lei" in plural, meaning the... lion). In July 2005, Romania had its first monetary denomination in 50 years. This way, 4 zeroes were slashed, defining the "old lei" (or ROL) and the "new lei" (or RON). 1 Euro is about 3.5 new lei (RON), or 35000 old lei (ROL), while 1 US Dollar is about 2.9 new lei (RON), or 29000 old lei (ROL). Both old and new banknotes are in circulation, but their colours and design are the same, for easier handling and use, while sizes are slightly different. Payments can be made with both types of banknotes, and when receiving change, the combination of the two is frequent.

Meals
Restaurants of all sorts and types, ranging from classical to ethnic restaurants can be found in Bucharest, in downtown or elsewhere. The restaurant offers around University Square are very diverse, from pizzerias, trattorias, high class restaurants, to McDonalds and KFC. In Craiova, Oravita and Orsova, selected restaurants will be used. In the field, lunch bags will be used during the 11 and 12 October trips.

Posters
The student workshop poster, in PDF format.
The IGCP469 meeting in Bucharest poster, in PDF format.