cybertree

Just got back from a 3,5 hr training session. This sounds a lot worse than it was - it was actually a nice evening. Here we were, all 15 of us, full of enthusiasm and with loads of ideas to share on fund raising, travel preparation and so on.

It is a nice group going out over the summer - students, teachers, a lawyer and myself. Most of us will work either in the nursery or the orphanage. One lucky girl will work in the new music school which has been set up last year in cooperation with the Walton’s School of Music. The woman right beside me - I can’t remember her name, I’m clearly over-worked - will be working in the conservation project. She is looking forward to planting trees - apparently a welcome change to her usual office job. Unfortunately I won’t see most of them again before our debriefing session in the fall, since I will have returned to Europe before most of them leave for Tanzania. I also noticed that except for two people, including myself, everybody else is travelling in pairs.

Wes from TVP gave an introduction to Moshi. It was very interesting - he clearly knows what he is talking about. Although TVP is only three years old, he has been to Moshi four years in a row now. If I can confirm all his impressions on my return it will have been one of the best months in my life Ciara from TVP joined us half-way through the session. It was great being able to talk to her. There are a few details to consider when travelling as a woman and she knew all about it.

Next stop on my way to Tanzania is tomorrow evening’s baking session for the Coffee Morning on Wednesday. But the very next stop is my bed.

lala salama!

I’d like to invite you to my Coffee Morning with tea & coffee and (thanks to my lovely colleagues and friends) home-made cakes with recipes from Germany, India, Ireland and Romania.

It’s on this Wednesday, 20 April
10 am - 12.30pm in the

Inter Faith Center on DCU Campus.

I am raising funds for my work with the Volunteer Projects in Tanzania. I will go to Tanzania with The Volunteer Projects  (opens in new window) and I will work with women who want to start their own small businesses. I will guide them in developing a business plan and a marketing strategy and will probably teach them some Business English as well. I will be in Moshi (opens in new window) for five weeks from 6 May until 9 June.

Hope to see many of you at the coffee morning;)

What a night!

11 teams were competing - all with very special team names ranging from kichizi kama ndizi to
if our_pts > other_pts.
Then YAY.
Else Pints.

The raffle was also a big hit. A travel board game was one of the first things gone. Next the books, CDs and chocolate easter eggs disappeared.. There was a total of 24 prizes and they were all gone at the end of the evening.

At the end of the night every team had received a prize one way or the other.

The fundraising added up to an impressive 323 EUR - that will almost get me to Tanzania;) Thanks everybody!

If you couldn’t make it last night: there is a coffee morning coming up with home-made cakes, tea and coffee. Next Wednesday (20 April), 10am-12.30pm in the foyer of the Inter Faith Center on DCU campus. There will be a raffle for the special prize during the coffee morning next Wednesday.

A number of people have asked me about the costs of the volunteer work.

Here is a list of the main items:

• 780 EUR for the 5-week stay in the project,
• roughly 400 EUR for vaccinations and malaria medication and
• 564 EUR for the return-flight to Kilimanjaro airport
• approx. 130 EUR for travel and health insurance.

Depending on how much funds I can raise, my own budget will either be completely needed to cover these costs or, if I am lucky, I might have some of my saved money to spend on a bit of sightseeing at the weekends. Considering that there are several national parks around Mount Kilimanjaro, including Serengeti National Park literally at our door step, that would be great. From what I know about my job, I will travel to a number of small villages to work with the women, so I’ll definitely get to see the surroundings of Moshi.
The flight booking was a bit of an adventure, because the online booking did not go through at first. But with the friendly and competent help of Hilary from gohop.ie I finally got the flight for 90 EUR less than the original price.

Thanks for that - every little helps;)

I just received a last minute prize donation for tonight’s table quiz (7pm, Matt Weldon’s) :

The Swahili Institute (opens in new window) offers a 2 hour introduction to Swahili. The winner can bring a number of friends to the free introductory session. From my own experience I can only recommend it! It is a fun language and not too difficult to learn. Having said that: I’m still a bit anxious how the “on-road test”  will go, once I’m in Tanzania…

Obviously the reservation for the room has been made. Matt Weldon’s bar in the back, next Tuesday (12 April), 7pm - depending on numbers we can move to a bigger room upstairs. So please RSVP! Contact: sabine_moebs AT web.de

We now have a set of questions that would do any table quiz proud. My friend Marian Flanagan’s dad supplies most of the questions, seconded by Caroline Connolly from MacCoole Tours, an equally able table quiz expert;) Caroline will guide us through the evening. Anyone who has been on one of her tours or at one of her table quizzes knows, a fun evening is guaranteed!

Need I mention that on top of that we have a colorful selection of prizes? If you and your team don’t win the quiz you can always try your luck with a few raffle tickets;)

If you can’t make it to the table quiz: come to our coffee morning on Wednesday 20 April from 10.00 - 12.30h in the main foyer of the Inter Faith Center on DCU campus. We will offer a variety of home-made cakes. So far I can promise a mix of Irish, Romanian, German and Indian recipes. Stay tuned; more details to follow;)

Support my volunteer work in Tanzania and join me for the
Fundraiser Table Quiz
at Matt Weldon’s (The Slipper), 125 Ballymun Road, Dublin (Glasnevin)
at 7pm, Tuesday, 12 April.

It is 4 EUR per person and a maximum of 4 people per team.

Bring your team or join a team on the night.

Prizes for the winners, as well as raffle prizes are up for grabs;)

RSVP to sabine_moebs AT web.de to confirm numbers with the pub.

THX and hope to see you there;)

You are learning WHAT? is the usual response. Yes, I have started learning the language at the Dublin Swahili Institute and I hope to make good use of it during my volunteer stay with TVP in Tanzania in May and June.

It is quite an exciting undertaking - not comparable to a trip to North America or elsewhere in Europe. It keeps me very busy and it is also quite a bit more expensive, because it requires more complex preparation. You need vaccinations against all kinds of exotic diseases such as yellow fever, hepatitis A & B or typhoid - to name just a few.

Flights are by nature more expensive. Then you might consider special equipment like mosquito-repellent clothes, spray against mosquitoes and Malaria prophylaxis. Don’t forget sun screen and mosquito nets and shoes that will allow you to walk long distances in hot weather. The good news: the equipment AND the vaccinations will mostly last for quite a while.

Was passiert, wenn 10 Frauen aus dem Bereich e-learning (mit dem Namen sind wir gestartet) zusammentreffen und eine Arbeitsgruppe gruenden? In Frankfurt sah das am vergangenen Wochenende so aus:
Zunaechst einmal haben wir geklaert, wo wir uns sehen; das drueckt sich im Namen aus. Aus dem kick-off der AG e-learning ist die AG Lernen geworden: Wir setzen Technik zielgerichtet ein, um das Lernen zu verbessern.
Was macht die AG Lernen?

Die Arbeitsgruppe wird fachlischen Austausch bieten, Kooperationen innerhalb der AG und ausserhalb mit anderen webgrrls und nationalen und internationalen Netzwerken suchen. AG-interne Weiterbildung zu aktuellen Themen wird durch Webinare fuer die webgrrls und Externe ergaenzt werden. Die Interessenvertretung der unterschiedlichen in der AG vertretenen Gruppen, Autorinnen, Online-Trainerinnen, Forscherinnen, Provider usw. wird einen weiteren wichtigen Bereich darstellen.

Mit Verantwortlichen fuer die verschiedenen Aufgaben versehen, waren wir nach gut 2,5 Stunden “reisefertig” - sowohl ins Wochenende, als auch auf die zukuenftig gemeinsame Reise durch die wunderbare Welt des technik-unterstuetzten Lernens.

We’ll keep you posted;)