Wikipedia talk:Meetup/London 14

Apologies
*  Ϣere Spiel  Chequers Probably not available that weekend, but I enjoyed my first realworld encounter with Wikipedians, have already used something I learned as a result of it and intend to come in future. My prior commitment has now been cancelled -so I should be able to come.  Ϣere Spiel  Chequers  17:02, 22 September 2008 (UTC)
 * I'm off back to Uni in Durham, so it's a little far. I'll try and attend northern meetups, but London will probably have to wait until Christmas. --Tango (talk) 20:18, 16 September 2008 (UTC)
 * Another no-show for me... Gordo (talk)

Gdańsk Wikimania 2010 bid, July 9-11 2010
I'm glad our bid proposal has been noticed - before your meetup I would like to give you all a short heads-up on the project.

As we all probably know, Wikimania has a large chance of getting back to Europe in 2010 and we consider Gdańsk as one of the possible locations, partially meaning to show the Wikimedians a place a bit more remote from the all-popular tourist destinations, partly to de-anglophonise the event, showing the possibilities for non-native speakers of English. A city with a tradition of freedom (formerly the Free City of Gdańsk, recently the place where Solidarność originated, spreading the idea of freedom across the region) coupled with the idea of free knowledge and the values which the Wikimedia Foundation represents through its projects seem very obvious connections. Apart from the obvious freedom connotations, Gdańsk is definitely a cosmpopolitan city with long traditions (it's over a milleniumm old).

Additionally, Poland is still a relatively low-cost country when compared to other EU countries (in terms of accomodation and meals). We also shouldn't forget the fact that citizens of a large number of countries can enter Poland without a visa.

Our suggestion is to hold the event in the Gdańsk Philharmonic Theatre and the neighbouring Central Sea Museum. The main hall of the theatre can comfortably accomodate 1100 people, and the theatre itself together with the museum can provide sufficient number of rooms and seats. The technical infrastructure can be built according to the needs and expanded. The venue is located a few steps from Gdańsk's Old Town, and most of the possible accomodation can be reached on foot (although it's not as near the venue as can be wished for).

We have contacted the local authorities and were informed of their support to bid for Wikimania 2010. The local authorities assured us of their wide-range support, which will certainly stabilise the bid.

If you would like to get to know more about the project, feel free to contact me on my Polish Wikipedia talk page, which I visit most regularly, or by email (wpedzich@wp.pl). Note though, that I'll be staying outside my home (and without the Internet connection) for the weekend.

Best regards,

Wojciech Pędzich, Wpedzich (talk) 10:25, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

Time
Is there anyone endeavouring to be there earlier than 13:00? WilliamH (talk) 10:57, 11 October 2008 (UTC)