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IETF 108 - Madrid, Spain, July 25 - 31, 2020
Meeting Venue
The IETF 108 Meeting Venue is the Meliá Castilla Hotel https://www.melia.com/en/hotels/spain/madrid/melia-castilla/index.htm.
Airport Transportation
Heathrow Express - there are also ticket kiosks where you can purchase an Heathrow Express ticket before you get on the train, but the web site is cheaper..
To catch the Heathrow Express at Heathrow Airport:
For Heathrow Airport terminals 1, 2 and 3, follow the signs inside the terminal buildings for Heathrow Central train station.
For Heathrow Terminal 4, follow the signs inside the terminal building for the free shuttle bus service to Heathrow Central train station, where you can get on the Heathrow Express train. The shuttle service from Terminal 4 departs every 15 minutes and is a 4 minute journey.
For Heathrow terminal 5, follow the signs inside the building for Heathrow Terminal 5 train station.
To make the return journey to Heathrow Airport from Paddington Station:
At London Paddington, the Heathrow Express usually departs from platforms 6 and 7, but check the electronic boards inside the station for the latest information.
Please NOTE: Departing from London Paddington, the first train is at 5.10am and the last train is at 11.25pm.
Departing from Heathrow Terminal 5, the first train is at 5.07am and the last train is at 11.42pm.
Departing from Heathrow Central, the first train is at 5.12am Monday to Saturday and 5.08am on Sundays. The last train is at 11.48pm.
For Heathrow Terminal 4, the first shuttle to Heathrow Central train station is at 5.23am Monday to Saturday and 5.53am on Sundays.
Main alternative is to take the Underground (= metro). This much cheaper (~£5 vs ~£25 single) and much slower (~50 minutes vs ~15 minutes to Paddington).
For nearly all public transport in London (including bus, metro and most trains), you can either use your contactless credit or debit card, or else use an Oyster card - but unfortunately not on the Heathrow Express.
Oyster Card https://tfl.gov.uk/fares-and-payments/oyster/what-is-oyster. If you have a contactless credit or debit card with a logo of concentric arcs, in most cases you can use that instead of Oyster and pay the same.
Language
The official language of Spain is Spanish, together with other autonomic languages in some specific regions:
- Catalonian (in Catalonia and Balearic Islands)
- Valencian (in Valencia)
- Galician (Galicia)
- Basque (Basque Country and Navarra)
Public Transportation and Area Maps
NOTE: It is suggested that to get around London via public transportation, that having an Oyster Card is recommended. Oyster is a plastic smartcard you can use instead of paper tickets. You can put Travelcards, Bus & Tram season tickets and pay as you go credit on it. If you have a contactless credit or debit card, you can use that and do not need to buy an Oyster card. An Oyster Visitor card has an attractive design but is functionally the same as an ordinary card. The ordinary card is for sale at all Underground stations and many other places.
The Transport for London Oyster App (https://tfl.gov.uk/fares-and-payments/ways-to-pay/tfl-oyster-app) is NOT an NFC payment app and not a substitute for a physical Oyster card.
Oyster or contactless is the cheapest way to pay for single journeys on bus, Tube, tram, and DLR services in London.
Please NOTE: All travelers are required to have their own card - although the Web site states all children under 11 travel free accompanied by an adult using a valid Visitor Oyster card or ticket. A maximum of four children under 11 can travel free with an adult who has a valid Oyster card or ticket on Tube, DLR and London Overground services.
If you’re using an Oyster card, you must touch in and touch out as normal but ask a member of staff to let your group through the side gate.
For metro, touch in and touch out (if you fail to touch out, you'll be charge assuming you travelled to the outermost zone). On the bus, touch in only.
Self-tour
Getting Around (to and from the Meeting Venue)
Suggested Smart Phone Apps:
"Tube Map" by MXDATA is a live Underground arrival and departure information that includes a station finder and journey planner.
"Citymapper" by CITYMAPPER LIMITED is an app to help you get from point A to point B - whether you choose to walk, bike, taxi, bus, or tube to your destination. Also includes NYC, Paris, and Berlin.
Exercise
Running Trails:
some proposed routes are available here (no map although)http://www.joggingroutes.org/search?q=London
maps can be found e.g. here http://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/1975306724
Hiking:
Events
ATMs & Money Conversion
There are Travelex Currency conversion desks in Heathrow Airport.
Terminal 1: Before security (check-in area) Terminal 3: Before security (first floor next to security) Terminal 4: Before security (departures) Terminal 5: Before security (departures zone B)
Cash dispensers (ATMs) are available before and after security control in every terminal at Heathrow.
Most cash machines accept UK bank and building society cards without surcharge, and usually foreign cards without surcharge too (although your foreign bank may add its own fee.) They also accept major credit cards.
Self-Service Laundry
Search results for the Edgware Road area:
Central Wash Launderette and Dry Cleaners 17 Star Street, Paddington, London W2 1QD. You can drop off a bundle of laundry and they will wash, dry, and fold it for you.
Star Kleen 398 Edgware Road, London W2 1ED
Electrical Plug / Outlet
Plug/Outlet and Voltage Information for United Kingdom
Electronics
Cellphones / Data
Miscellaneous Information
Supermarkets
Restaurants
- Draft House Paddington, Unit 1, West End Quay, S Wharf Rd, 1 min. walk. Acceptable pizza. Good beer.
- Fountains Abbey, 109 Praed St., 6 min. walk. Good fish and chips. A friendly pub.
- Micky's Fish Bar & Turkish Kebab Restaurant, 332 Edgeware Rd. Good kebab. Generous portions and very cheap. But the dining room heat is sorely lacking.
- Satay house, 13 Sale Place, 5 min walk. Good Malaysian food. Only two beers to choose from. Smallish portions.
Espresso, Coffee, and Tea
Daisy Green 20 SEYMOUR STREET, LONDON, W1H 7HX https://goo.gl/maps/nC2PM7FumU22
