Bangkok: > Given costs, if necessary, it would be easy to bring in additional > volunteers from nearby countries to form a larger 'local' committee to > help planning everything.
That is what I was actualy hoping to hear but didn’t dare suggest it. Deryk Chan would be an excellent aly (in fact I mentioned it to him in Esino) , but I belives he prefers to live iEngland now. Kudpung > On 17Oct, 2016, at 17:28, John Mark Vandenberg <[email protected]> wrote: > > I agree Bangkok would be great for the next Asia Wikimania. > > Given costs, if necessary, it would be easy to bring in additional > volunteers from nearby countries to form a larger 'local' committee to > help planning everything. > >> (only 20 mins from the backpacker ghetto (rooms from 4 quid a night) > > There are also lots of really nice places to stay across Bangkok, and > very reasonable accom for USD $10 per night, and *nice* accom for USD > $20. > > The main thing to be wary of is arriving at the Don Mueang > International Airport, which is not connected to good local transport. > It isnt worth saving $50 on a lower-cost flight to arrive here as > opposed to the new Suvarnabhumi Airport. > > > On Mon, Oct 17, 2016 at 4:27 PM, cs <[email protected]> wrote: >> There are very few countries that need a visa for visiting Thailand for up >> to 15 days and the nationals of most Western countries can stay for 30. This >> is a simple stamp in the passport on arrival although if you just got off a >> A380 it might take you 10 minutes queuing at the immigration desks. Members >> of ASEAN countries have even greater benefits (a bit like EU borders - oops! >> Should I have said that?) >> >> Ultra modern mass rapid transport (overhead and subway trains) make transfer >> from the airport to the centre of downtown a doddle and extremely >> uncomplicated at not more than 20 minutes and just over a dollar or two for >> a ride; a taxi costs only 10 dollars so 4 sharing is even cheaper than the >> railway or the bus. >> Signage everywhere in Thailand is in English, even in the tiniest rural >> villages. Plenty of facilities everywhere for people of reduced mobility >> (ramps everywhere for wheelchairs, special toilets, etc.). Most people under >> 30 can speak enough English to point you in the wrong direction. >> >> Despite the silly reports in the Lonely Planet, BKK is an extraordinarily >> safe city, no mugging, and hardly any pickpocketing. Most petty crime is >> done by the foreign tourists themselves. >> >> Transport in town by proper air conditioned taxis or the touristy tuk-tuks >> (motorcycle rickshaws for the more adventurous) costs only 2 - 4 dollars for >> a ride that in a black cab in London would cost over 20 quid. >> >> Road traffic in the city is dense, but not as bad as central Berlin, London, >> Manhattan, Paris, or Marseille. In fact I don’t mind driving around it at >> all. Helps to know where you are going though (but I do, and I know the >> shortcuts through the back alleys). >> >> Unlike DC, Hong Kong, or Esino, a compact venue with a very short walking >> distance to/from accommodation and reasonable eating places is absolutely no >> problem. Everything is flat and there are no hills (no collapsing in the >> street from asthma attacks like on the steep slopes in the rare air of Esino >> Lario) Something like the government Chulalongkorn University (Thailand’s >> Oxbridge) campus is right in the middle of town and there are budget hotels >> up every alley. >> >> For those who feel they must exploit the conference for some sight seeing, >> BKK is a hugely fascinating city. Even has what I believe is the world’s >> largest shopping mall (Panthip Plaza) dedicated entirely to IT. Fast river >> and canal boat-busses also provide a dense transportation network in and >> around the city and suburbs (only 20 mins from the backpacker ghetto (rooms >> from 4 quid a night) in Banglamphu district to Siam Square, the downtown >> epicentre. >> >> Tourism speech over. >> >> Kudpung >> >> On 17Oct, 2016, at 15:15, WereSpielChequers <[email protected]> >> wrote: >> >> Hi Chris, >> >> That sounds like a really good option for 2018 or later, especially when you >> consider how open Thailand is for visitors. >> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visa_policy_of_Thailand >> >> Also it would be the first Wikimania in the far East for five years. >> >> If Bangkok traffic is as bad as its reputation, would it be possible to get >> a compact venue with food accommodation and conference all in walking >> distance? >> >> WSC >> >> On 17 October 2016 at 07:33, cs <[email protected]> wrote: >>> >>> I am seriously interested in organising a Wikimania in Bangkok. >>> The Thai Wiki does not have a functional chapter, but there is a user >>> group chaired by a professor at Thailand’s major Medical College, and we >>> have collaborated on various projects. >>> With our combined knowledge we could get a team together fofr 2018 0r 2019 >>> probably 2019 would be best. . >>> I have experience in event management. Taweetham has lived and studiedfor >>> his PhD in Australia and has attended several Wikimanias. I have lived in >>> Thailand for nearly 20 years and was a professor at a government university >>> in Bangkok for several years. >>> >>> Bangkok has an ideal geo location, it’s a very modern city with excellent >>> transport and communications infrastructures. (two large interation >>> airports only 20 mins from the city centre; highly developed urban rapid >>> mass transport systems; first class Internet). >>> >>> Food, accommodation, and other facilities for visitors cost roughly one >>> sixth of those in Western (USA, Canada, Australia, Europe,) or Westernised >>> economies (HK, Singapore, etc). >>> >>> Chris >>> (Kudpung) >>> >>> On 17Oct, 2016, at 07:24, Ellie Young <[email protected]> wrote: >>> >>> >>> This is a follow-up to a posting to this list by the Wikimania Committee >>> in July soliciting proposals for people who might be interested in hosting a >>> future Wikimania (especially 2018 and 2019), as follows: >>> >>> >>> " >>> We are now looking for proposals of teams and locations. This is not a >>> bidding process; we are keen for this to be a light-weight, simple request >>> for suggestions. You don’t need to have a venue locked down, contracts >>> drafted or sponsors lined up. You can have a quick look at the “judging >>> criteria” which were used for 2016,[2] but the key part is commitment. In >>> deciding where to hold conferences, we have to take into account additional >>> factors about potential sites such as cost, >>> accessibility, and security. >>> " >>> >>> I will be following up with various people who have expressed interest in >>> the coming week. If anyone else is interested in discussing the >>> possibilities (the team/prospective host need not be tied to a particular >>> venue), please get in touch with me directly by October 30, 2016. We will >>> be working with the WM >>> >>> F >>> in the coming months in finalizing a venue/team for 2018, and we also want >>> to get an early start at identifying potentials for the following year. >>> >>> Thank you, >>> >>> >>> Ellie Young >>> >>> WMF Events Manager >>> >>> [email protected] >>> >>> >>> [2] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimania_2016_judging_criteria >>> >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> Wikimania-l mailing list >>> [email protected] >>> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l >>> >>> >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> Wikimania-l mailing list >>> [email protected] >>> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l >>> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Wikimania-l mailing list >> [email protected] >> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l >> >> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Wikimania-l mailing list >> [email protected] >> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l >> > > > > -- > John Vandenberg > > _______________________________________________ > Wikimania-l mailing list > [email protected] > https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l
_______________________________________________ Wikimania-l mailing list [email protected] https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l
