General Information

ABOUT MILAN
Milan is one of the largest cities in Italy, located in the North West region of Lombardy, and is one of the most highly developed urban centres in Europe.
The city is known all over the world as the “Fashion City”, the leading centre of fashion in Italy and probably in the world.
Milan is also one of the major art centres of Northern Italy; its chief landmarks include the Duomo, the second largest church in Italy and the world’s third,  the Teatro alla Scala, one of the most important centres in the world for operas and the famous painting the “Last Supper” by Leonardo da Vinci.
The commercial metropolis of Milan is also home to many important business centres, financial institutions as well as Italy’s stock market.

AIRPORTS
The Malpensa airport handles most international flights. It’s about 50 km northwest of the city. Most domestic and some European flights use Linate airport, about 7 km east of the city centre. Public transportation links both airports to the city centre. There is a computerised information service with details about flight departures only (phone: 39-02-58583497) for both airports.
Or you can visit their website www.sea-aeroportimilano.it.
The Malpensa Express train links Stazione Nord with Malpensa airport (40 mins, every half hour). Some early morning and evening services are provided by bus instead; the stop is on Via Paleocapa. The airport is also served by Malpensa Shuttle coaches, departing from Piazza Luigi di Savoia, outside Stazione Centrale. STAB runs buses to Orio al Serio airport near Bergamo. A taxi from Malpensa airport to Milan city centre is rather expensive (average from EUR 70.00 to 85.00).
From Milan’s Piazza Luigi di Savoia, in front of Stazione Centrale, STAM buses run to Linate airport. Tickets are sold on board by the driver.
You can also get a local ATM bus from Piazza San Babila (on the corner of Corso Europa).

BANK AND EXCHANGE
The national currency in Italy is the Euro (€). Banks are normally open Monday to Friday 08.30-13.30 hrs. and 15.00-16.00 hrs. They are closed on Saturday and Sunday. Many banks have automatic currency exchange machines that also take credit cards. Exchange offices at airports and main railway stations are normally open 06.00 - 22.00 hrs. The main international credit cards (VISA, American Express, Diners, Eurocard/Mastercard) are widely accepted in most large retail outlets, petrol stations, hotels and restaurants. Please beware, however, that smaller businesses may not accept credit card payments and you are advised to check prior to purchase. Service charges are usually included in the bill in bars and restaurants, but tips are welcome. Travellers cheques are best exchanged at an exchange office (“Cambio”) as they are not accepted as payment in general stores, restaurants and hotels. Banks also often decline to change travellers’ cheques.

CLIMATE AND WEATHER CONDITIONS
Milan has a temperate climate with warm summers and cold winters. Summer climate is normally hot, howeversome rain can occur. Average temperature in May is 22°/25°C (Celsius).

REGISTRATION
Regularly registered participants are entitled to attend all Scientific and Poster Sessions Opening Ceremony with Welcome Reception and Industrial Exhibition. They will also receive a congress kit (including Final Programme and Abstract CD-ROM) as well as vouchers for free soft drinks or coffee/tea during the coffee breaks.
Accompanying guest registration is not available, however, all participants can take part, with their accompanying guests, in the Opening Ceremony and Welcome Reception.
A confirmation letter and congress materials (badge, bag voucher and coffee tickets) will be sent by post to regularly pre-registered delegates shortly after the set deadlines.
Congress bags, which include the Final Programme and Abstract CD-ROM, can be picked up at the bag desk located in the Registration Area, by handing in the bag voucher, starting May 22 at 8.00 hrs. Please note that admission to the Registration Area will be strictly forbidden to all until May 22 at 8.00 hrs. We strongly suggest to all delegates who have not received their congress materials in due time, to contact the Registration Dept (e-mail: mailto:registrations@ wcn2009.org or fax: 39-0521-959242) urgently.
Registration fee does not include any other benefit besides the ones mentioned above.

CURRENCY AND TAXES
The currency used in Italy is the Euro (EUR, €). 1 EUR = 1.35 USD at October 21, 2008.
ELECTRICITY Voltage is 220V AC, 50Hz. Plugs have two or three round pins. Foreign voltage could require an adapter.

EMERGENCY PHONE NUMBERS
The most important telephone numbers in an emergency are: 113 or 112 for calling the police/carabinieri, 115 for the fire brigade, 118 for the ambulance service.

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS / VISAS
Passport and visa requirements may differ according to the country of origin, please contact the Italian Embassy or Consulate in your country.
An official invitation letter will be sent upon request. This letter however does NOT involve any commitments by the Congress Organizers to cover fees, accommodation, travel expenses or other costs connected to the participation in the Congress. WCN 2009 will not be held responsible for visa not granted.
Official invitation letters can be requested to the President of the Congress Prof. Francesco Locatelli at least three months in advance. You can also print the invitation letter for visa purpose from the WCN 2009 website at section: visa.

HOW TO GET THE CERTIFICATE OF ATENDANCE
All regularly registered delegates can collect their certificate of attendance at the proper desk (certificate of attendance) located in the Registration Hall starting May 23 after 15.00 hours. To obtain the certificate of attendance, it is mandatory to go to this desk and hand in the badge. A personalized certificate will be printed and state exactly the days of the participation in the congress.

INSURANCE/LIABILITY
The WCN 2009 is insured only to meet claims arising from incidents caused by the organizers and their equipments. Participants, exhibitors and visitors are strongly recommended to be properly insured against accidents they may suffer when travelling and during the Congress.

ITALIAN CME CREDITS / CREDITI ECM
The National Commission for the Continuous Medical Education has confirmed following credits to the World Congress of Nephrology:
 
- May 22, 2009 - 138-9006555 - no. 3 credits with a minimum attendance of 5 hours
- May 23, 2009 - 138-9006580 - no. 5 credits with a minimum attendance of 6 hours
- May 24, 2009 - 138-9006655 - no. 4 credits with a minimum attendance of 6 hours
- May 25-26, 2009 - 138-9006677 - no. 6 credits with a minimum attendance of 10 hours
 
Please refer to the ECM/CME desk at the registration area to collect the CME questionnaire and to receive further information and assistance.

LANGUAGE OF THE CONGRESS
The official language of the Congress is English. No simultaneous translation will be available. CNE Courses are organised also in French, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Serbo/Croatian, Spanish and Turkish.

PRESS CENTRE
For accredited journalists only. Full press working facilities and activities including press conferences, press releases and services for press.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT
Milan’s public transportation system is efficient. There are three underground lines, as well as buses and trams. Tickets are available at Metropolitana Milanese (MM) stations and some newspaper stands.
ATM operates an efficient bus system that integrates the underground rail. Tickets are valid for up to 75 minutes travel on buses, underground and trams and can be bought at underground stations, tobacconists and newspaper stands. Free public transport maps are available from ATM’s Info Point in the Duomo underground station.
Taxies do not stop upon request in the streets: should you wish to use a taxi you must go to the appropriate taxi stations disseminated throughout the city.

RESTAURANTS
From a quick snack to a gourmet meal at a fine restaurant the choices for eating out in Milan are endlessly varied. Traditional Milanese cooking is made of simple, but very tasty dishes. There are “Trattorie”, inns and restaurants (including luxury ones) everywhere that offer traditional Milanese dishes to eat. If you are planning to visit this city, don’t miss the chance to try some typical local food that you can find here in their original version. You can have a typically Milanese menu from antipasto to dessert. Actually, from the appetiser (“aperitivo”), because an evening in Milan cannot go without this ritual. One of the many “aperitivo”’s that you can try during “happy hour” is the classical Negroni, which is a little “aggressive” but is especially loved by the Milanese, made with Bitter Campari, Gin, red Martini and ice, that must be accompanies with a few snacks. After your “aperitivo” you can choose one of the several restaurants specialised in traditional cooking like the classical “Risotto alla Milanese”, made with a full-bodied beef broth (the original recipe includes bone marrow) and flavoured with saffron, this dish can also be accompanied by “Ossobuco” (marrowbone), then as a second course the “Cassouela”, an extremely filling dish made with various poor parts of pork meat (tail, ribs, rind, feet and ears) cooked with green cabbage and other vegetables, or the tasty “Cotoletta alla Milanese” (Milanese cutlet), a crunchy cutlet, made with a veal chop, including the bone.

SHOPPING
Milan is a temple of high fashion and the socalled “Quadrilatero della Moda”, formed by Via Montenapoleone, Via Sant’Andrea, Via Manzoni, Via della Spiga is top of the list.
Outside the historic centre, fashion outlets are able to move into even bigger premises:
Corso Buenos Aires (North), Corso Vercelli (West) and Corso XXII Marzo (East) are runners up for fashion shopping. Most shops open 09.30/13.00 hrs and 15.30-19.30 hrs, although the bigger stores do not close for lunch.
For furniture and design, a good bet is the district around Brera. The pedestrian Via Fiori Chiari is a particularly pleasant spot for browsing galleries, with a number of good cafés along the way. The area is also popular with antique dealers. Antique fairs are also available at the weekends along the banks of the Naviglio Grande canal.
For those who prefer the bustle of open street markets, Viale Papiniano (metro Sant’Agostino) is open on Tuesday morning and all day on Saturday, while via Zanetti (metro Centrale Station) is open on Wednesday morning.

TRAINS
Train lines from Stazione Centrale (Piazza Duca d’Aosta) in the city centre run to all parts of Italy and Europe. Daily trains run to and from Venice (3.5 hrs), Florence (3.5 hrs), Genoa (1.5 hrs), Turin (1.5 hrs), Rome (6 hrs) and Naples (8 hrs). High speed trains connect Milan Stazione Centrale to Bologna (1.5 hrs), Florence (2 hrs) and Rome (3 hrs). This is also a good point to pick up international connections to and from Switzerland (with the Cisalpino train) and France (with the TGV). Ferrovie Nord Milano (FNM) trains from Stazione Nord (Stazione Cadorna, Piazza Luigi Cadorna) connect Milan with Como (1 hr, hourly) and Desenzano (1.5 hrs, hourly). Regional services to many towns northwest of Milan are more frequent from Stazione Porta Garibaldi (Piazza Sigmund Freud).

UEMS CME CREDITS
The WCN 2009 is accredited by the European Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Educations (EACCME) to provide the following CME activity for medical specialists. The EACCME is an institution of the European Union of Medical Specialists (UEMS) www.uems.net
EACCME credits are recognised by the American Medical Association (AMA) towards the Physician’s Recognition Award (PRA). To convert EACCME credits to AMA PRA category 1 credit, the AMA should be contacted directly. EACCME-UEMS has direct reciprocity status with all European countries, with the exception of France (no reciprocity) and Italy (reciprocity up to 20% of the total number of credits). The total number of CME credits given to the WCN 2009 will be posted on the website as soon as available.
How to receive UEMS CME credits WCN 2009 will track attendance of delegates during the congress in the Stockholm International Fairs and Congress Centre, each day.
As delegates enter or exit the Congress Centre each day, hostesses at the CME credit desk will read the bar code printed on the badge.
Delegates will then be awarded the number of credits towards the hours actually spent participating in the sessions of the congress.
Delegates will receive from WCN 2009 the CME UEMS certificate directly at their address after the congress by post. For any problem regarding this matter please contact the WCN 2009 Congress Office at registrations@wcn2009.org.

USEFUL LINKS
For more information you can easily connect to the following website pages:
www.cityguide.travel-guides.com
www.travelplan.it/milan_guide.htm
www.provincia.milano.it/turismo_en/index.html

VENUE
Milano Convention Centre and Fiera Milano Congressi
Entrance from Viale L. Scarampo
20145 Milan, Italy
www.fieramilanocongressi.it


HOW TO GET TO WCN2009

 5-DAY-CITY PASS

A 5 day-city transportation pass will be given to all registered delegates together with the congress bag. This will enable unlimited free journeys within the city transportation network from May 22 to 26 inclusive.

SHUTTLE BUS FROM AMENDOLA FIERA

The undreground red line connects the WCN2009 Congress Venue with the Milan transportation network; the nearest undeground station is "Amendola Fiera" from which a shuttle service to the congress venue has been provided. (The same applies for the return trip back to the city).

 SHUTTLE FROM THE WCN2009 HOTELS

Since Milan has a good public transportation network, no specific shuttle service will be provided except for those few hotels that are not served either by surface or underground services. If your hotel will have a congress shuttle bus, an information board with the schedule will be in the hotel lobby.

From Downtown
Take the Metro Red Line 1 (Rho Fiera Milano direction) to “Amendola Fiera” - 1 km from MIC - or get out at “Cadorna” and go up to Cadorna railway station on ground level: take the first train and get off at “Domodossola” - just 400 m from MIC.

By Ground Transportation
- Bus no. 78 - get off at Colleoni
- Tram no. 19 - get off at Largo Domodossola
- Tram no. 1 and 33, bus no. 57 and 94 - get off at the corner of Corso Sempione and Via Domodossola