Letter to Participants of AVI 2002 Conference
Contact Information
Phone numbers:
1 (831) 425-5620 - Nilauro at AVIUSA office
1 (408) 670-0648 - Nilauro's Cell/Mobile for
Fri 19 - Tue 23 ONLY
1 (866) 2-HELP-AV, or 1 (866) 243-5728 - FREE
from anywhere within USA. Use if calling from a payphone.
1 (831) 234-2789 - Constance's Mobile for Transport
issues
1 (408) 803-0928 - Chandresh's Mobile if no-one
else is available
AVIUSA Office physical location:
AVIUSA c/o Talisman, 719 Swift St. #5, Santa Cruz,
CA 95060
email: info@aviusa.org
fax: 1 (831) 425-7829
What to Bring - Checklist
- Good, bright flashlight VERY IMPORTANT - the
trails to your cabins are hard to see at night
- Sweater or light jacket, and layered clothing
- expect sudden climate changes, bring shorts too
- Good hiking shoes and socks - prevent poison
oak rashes that last 3 weeks
- Loose clothing - for yoga/stretch, Festive
Clothing - for Sat night's Moroccan music performance.
- Bathing suit - if you want to swim in the ocean
or local swimming holes
- Shampoo - Not provided at conference center
- Alarm clock - you don't want to miss stuff!
- Sunscreen lotion - especially for Monday's excursions
- Laptop - if you'd like to help us take notes
during the sessions
- An open mind - last but not least
Other preparations
- VISAS/PASSPORTS: Please make sure that your passport
is valid, and that you have a valid visa for the United
States. If you think you can get the visa upon arrival,
double check with the USA Consulate in your country.
- EMAIL: If you are bringing a laptop with email
capability, look for the local access numbers based on
these: Ben Lomond (831) 336-XXXX or Santa Cruz (831) 425-XXXX.
We will have a phone line you can use to check your email.
We'll also have a computer set up for others without a
laptop to check their email.
- TEMPORARY EMAIL ADDRESS: If you would like us
to set up a yourname@aviusa.org email address for
the duration of the conference, please let us know.
- SMOKING: During this season, the fire danger
is HIGH, and smoking is ONLY permitted on the porches
by the meeting halls. Absolutely not allowed in the cabins.
- PETS: are not allowed at the Conference Center
Excursion Options for Monday
For those of you still there on Monday (55 people), we
will have 6 hours to break off into groups and explore certain
aspects of California. Please look at the following list,
and start thinking of what you would like to do. If considering
the Monterey Bay Aquarium, reserve your spot by replying
soon.
Options:
Big Basin To Waddell Beach Walk: Gently downhill
6 Mi (9.5 km) hike through several ecosystems from Redwoods
to the Ocean. More information, including elevation map,
topo map, and turn-by turn directions (going the wrong
way), can be found at: http://www.bayinsider.com/recreation/guides/hiking/hikes_big_basin.html.
If you have a fast computer and Quicktime installed, you
can check out some virtual reality shots at: http://www.virtualparks.org/scenes/ZAzDNHE5Ce9as-nptYYBzog.html
Henry Cowell State Park And Natural Bridge State Beach
By Van Or Car: For those who want to see the Giant
Sequoias and the beach, but don't feel ready for a long
hike, this is for you.
More information on Henry-Cowell can be found at: http://sports.yahoo.com/parks/locs/ca/casphencowellredsp.html,
or, if you have a fast internet connection and Quicktime,
check out the 360degree Virtual Reality at http://www.virtualparks.org/parks/hcrsp-qtvr-map.html.
More information on Natural Bridges can be found at: http://sports.yahoo.com/parks/locs/ca/caspnatbrib.html,
or, for virutal reality: http://www.virtualparks.org/scenes/ZA1TcWjYvFCi6wZ_TvgD2oA.html
Monterey Bay Aquarium: Because Auroville's ideals
are fully in line with those of the Monterey Bay Aquarium,
we have been invited for a FREE guided tour by two of
its most qualified guides. The maximum for this tour is
30 people, so sign up now if interested. The drive is
1-2 hours each way, depending on traffic (hopefully we'll
all fit in the two 12-passenger vans).
Part of a review of the Aquarium on e-Pinions says:
"Monterey Bay Aquarium is built on Monterey's Historic
Cannery Row. The Monterey Bay Aquarium actually recreates
the bay's habitats, the deep blue sea to the tidal pools.
The aquarium features many permanent exhibits and several
special exhibits. A very interesting remark made, that
held a tremendous amount of truth is that we know more
about the surface of the Moon than we do about the mysteries
of the deep. Many displays at the Monterey Bay Aquarium
are on display for the very first time ever. If you love
the ocean, and marine life as much as I do, then you must
see this remarkable place." - more reviews from e-Pinions
at:
http://www.epinions.com/trvl-Family_Travel-Zoos-All-Monterey_Bay_Aquarium
The Monterey Bay Aquarium's website is at: http://www.mbayaq.org/
Stay At Sequoia Seminar Center: Play horse-shoes,
volleyball (if enough people are there), or just relax
under the sun or the Sequoias, read a book, or whatever.
List of Participants
For a list of participants, check your email. For privacy
reasons, we cannot include that information here.
Airport pickups/dropoffs
We are only organizing transport to the conference center
for certain people. Each of the people we are planning to
pick up has received an email from us.
If you think you are being picked up from the airport,
and have not yet received an email from Constance, please
contact him IMMEDIATELY at cnstnce@cruzio.com.
Driving Directions
Do not arrive at Sequoia Seminar before 6:00 pm - you
will be turned away.
If you have not received an email from Constance, we are
assuming you are finding your own way to the Sequoia Seminar
conference center.
For directions with a map, enter your starting address
on the main AVI
2002 page.
Sequoia Seminar
11445 Alba Rd
Ben Lomond, CA 95005
(831) 336-5060
Sequoia Seminar is located near Ben Lomond (California
State Highway #9) about ten miles north of Santa Cruz. Coming
from the north, Highway #880 becomes #17 in San Jose (at
#280 intersection). Turn off Highway #17 at the Mt. Hermon
Rd exit and turn right onto Mt. Hermon Rd. This is the second
Scotts Valley Exit. Follow Mt. Hermon Rd through Scotts
Valley and on to Felton. You will come to a "T"
intersection with a stop light which will direct you to
the right for Highway #9 and Ben Lomond. Make this right
turn and at the next intersection/stop light turn right
again onto Highway #9. It is about three miles to Ben Lomond.
Go through Ben Lomond, cross the bridge at the northwestern
edge of town, and turn left onto Alba Road (after the Econo
Lodge and the gray Quaker Center sign). Proceed up the hill,
turning left into Sequoia Seminar at the entrance sign.
If further directions are needed call Sequoia Seminar at
(831) 336-5060.
Presenter Guidelines
In General, we would like to have interactive discussions.
Presenters should use 1/3 of their slot to present the current
situation, and use the remaining 2/3 for questions/answers
and discussion. For 1.5 hour sessions, this means presenters
should use 30-40 minutes max for their presentation, and
the remaining 50-60 minutes for discussion. Some sessions
are 1:10h long, so 20-30 minutes should be used for presentation,
and 30-40 minutes for discussion. We will write an individual
letter to each presenter.
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