NAASWCH 2008

The 2008 conference of the North American Association for the Study of Welsh Culture and History will take place from Thursday, July 31, to Saturday, August 2, 2008, on the campus of Victoria College in the University of Toronto. The conference will be sponsored by the Centre for Reformation and Renaissance Studies, the Centre for Medieval Studies, and the Celtic Studies Program of St. Michael's College.

Registration:
Click here for a PDF copy of the conference registration form, and here for a WORD copy. Registration forms should be submitted either by mail or fax; we are not equipped for online registration. Registration includes includes attendance at all events with the exception of the Friday evening banquet. Registration fees are indicated in Canadian dollars, US dollars, and UK sterling, cheques can only be accepted in Canadian and US dollars; for UK registrants credit card payment is the best option. Cheques should be made payable to ‘CRRS,' please add ‘Welsh Conference registration' on the memo line. The registration form also allows for payment by credit card (Visa, Mastercard); please note that all credit card payments will be made in US dollars, and will appear on your credit card statement as ‘Victoria University.' We do not recommend sending credit card information by email, please use mail or fax. Please send faxes to 1-416-585-4584, to the attention of Kim Yates. The mailing address for registration is:
Dr. Kimberley Yates
CRRS
E.J. Pratt Library, Room 301
71 Queen's Park Crescent East
Toronto ON M5S 1K7
Canada
 

Program:
Click here for the present state of the program. This page will be updated regularly as program details become finalized. We are very happy to be able to present three distinguished keynote speakers: Prof. Ralph Griffiths of the Department of History, University of Wales, Swansea; Prof. Catherine McKenna, Margaret Brooks Robinson Professor of Celtic Languages and Literatures and Director of Graduate Studies in Celtic, Harvard University; and Prof. Pawl Birt, Chair of Celtic Studies, University of Ottawa. The conference will feature a wide variety of concurrent sessions, including a session of papers by students in Celtic Studies from the University of Toronto, and a brown-bag reading by Welsh writer John Sam Jones on Friday. Friday night we have scheduled a Welsh-themed banquet at Victoria College. Toronto is home to a wonderful collection of world-class restaurants, so we have left Saturday evening open. A list of restaurants in the vicinity of Victoria College will be included with registration materials, and any Torontonian will be happy to tell you about his/her favourite!
 

Accommodation:
We have reserved a block of rooms in the student residences of Victoria College. Rooms are available as singles ($59.50)or doubles ($80.50). A student price of $49.50/$70.50 is also available, and all rooms are subject to a 10% tax. Breakfast in the College dining hall is included; bathrooms are shared. Bookings for College rooms should be made directly with Victoria College by calling Asha Bridgemohan at (416) 585-4524, or by email . There is also a mail-in form you can use for room reservations, click here

For those who would prefer slightly more opulent accommodation, we have reserved a block of rooms at the Downtown Howard Johnson Hotel at 89 Avenue Road, about a ten minute walk from the College. There is a ‘mixed' price with these rooms, since August 1-2 is Caribana, Toronto's celebration of Caribbean culture, and the town will be very full. Rooms for Wednesday and Thursday, July 30 and 31, will be $119, but will rise to $159 for Friday and Saturday, August 1 and 2. For rooms at the Hojo's, call (416) 964-1220, and ask for the ‘Welsh Studies conference rate.'
 

Travel:
Toronto is served by most major airlines. Of particular interest are flights from Cardiff to Toronto via Zoom Air, and flights from Newark NJ to the very convenient City Centre airport by Porter Airlines. Pearson International Airport is about half an hour from the centre of the city, and there are two principal options for travel to Victoria College or the Howard Johnson hotel.
1. Airport limousine. Convenient but expensive, likely to be around $50 (with tip). A good bet if you have three or four people.
2. The ‘Airport Rocket' - Toronto Transit Commission's bus #192 offers express service from both Terminals 1 and 3 (there is no longer a Terminal 2) to Kipling subway station about every 12 minutes. Cost is $2.75 for adults, $1.85 for seniors and students. At Kipling station, take the subway into the city to the Bay St. station. When you exit the train at Bay St., walk back the way you just came and take the exit at the end of the station, which will bring you out onto Cumberland St. Turn left half a block to Avenue Road, then right two blocks for the Howard Johnson or left two blocks for Victoria College. Click here for a map of the area. A hotel bus serves the downtown hotels, but it does not stop close enough to the Howard Johnson's to be practical.
 

Finally, if you have any questions about the conference, please contact me by email.
David Klausner