Tag: meetups

Moving on from WEBMU

The Whiny Expat Bloggers Meet-Up has been an annual treat for us, through which we’ve met fantastic people and explored areas (sometimes new, sometimes familiar) through a local’s eyes. In the last few years, we’ve taken on an organizational role, helping the hosts execute the event, lending guidance and fomenting discussion. However, this feels like the right time for us to step back.

We’re open to attending future meetups, but WEBMU needs a new driver if it is to continue. We’d be happy to hand over the existing resources (blog, FB and forums) to anyone who wants to carry on. Or maybe WEBMU will continue under someone else’s auspices, but in a different form. If you’d like to try giving WEBMU a facelift, go for it. Contact either of us via any of the methods listed here. And if there’s no interest, we’ll eventually shut down the meetup’s online presence.

It’s been a good run, and lots of fun, and we still have and value friends we made through WEBMU. Thanks to everyone who has participated and made it so special!

Meetup 2010 Planning Begins

The new planning threads are open for WEBUM (Whiny Expat Bloggers Unmissable Meetup) 2010 over on the discussion board.

For those of you new to this experience, it’s a chance for the English-speaking expat bloggers here in Germany to get together and put faces to screen names. We’ve previously met in Marburg, Bonn, Dresden, Bremen and Munich and mostly in late summer or early fall, but first poll is up now if you want to weigh in or pitch your city as our next destination. The board does require you to have a login, but, if you’re a blogger in Germany, getting one is easy:

1. Click on the above link,
2. click on ‘Register’ at the top of the page and
3. wait for approval (usually takes less than a day).

Where and when will we end up this year? You can help decide!

WEBUM 2009 – Keeping it moist

It’s right around the corner! The Whiney Expat Blogger Unmissable Meetup is happening in Munich, September 4-6, 2009. If you want the details, go to the discussion board and sign up for an account or login if you already have an account and haven’t been there in a while. To get access you need to:

-be an expat blogger or
-know an expat blogger who will vouch for you.

These are measures to keep spammers and bots away. We’re not mean high school girls guarding our lunch table or anything. Last year’s event in Bremen was a lot of fun (thanks again, Claire!) and a great opportunity to discuss your discoveries with fellow expatriates. Cliff and I had a good time checking out an area of Germany in which we hadn’t spent much time, so if you need an excuse to come to Munich, this might be it!

WEBMU 2009 Discussion Board

WEBMU, the Whiny Expat Blogger Meetup

Are we still calling it that?

No matter. I set up a discussion board (chiefly moderated by J) over at http://www.expatbloggersingermany.com/meetup and the discussion is now under way to determine first where, and then when we’ll be meeting up this year. New user registrations must be approved by an administrator (such as Yours Truly or Himself). You have to register in order to post. At the moment registration and login is required in order to read content (which means some or most feedreaders are out of the question for now), but that’s up for discussion and I’m hoping we can reach a consensus about making the content world-readable.

Check it out, cast your vote, then meet up!

nom nom nom

Yesterday was Ersatz-Thanksgiving at Christina and Rainer and Oliver’s house. Tammy graciously drove us over to their house, even though she was very busy with lots of stuff going on at her house that day. And we got there kind of on the early side and watched all the other parties roll in. It was a good mixture of Germans and “U.S.-Amerikaner” nice bird(with a wink to Christina) and even a sprinkling of “others,” some of whom also drove us back to Regensburg. Big thanks to Penny and Chris for that — we are looking forward to seeing them and son Nathan again.

Seemed like everyone brought something to share, (especially the turkey, for which we are thankful) and I enjoyed Hezamarie’s corn-cake leftovers for breakfast very much. On to some mashed potato leftovers for lunch!