Wikimedia Apps/Team/Philadelphia 2017 offsite
Basic Info
editPhiladelphia, October 17-19
editLocation info:
editOld City Collective, 222B Race St, Philadelphia, PA 19106
Hotel info:
editWyndham Philadelphia Historic District, 400 Arch St, Philadelphia, PA 19106
Travel info:
editPlease see Travel's offsite page for flight itinerary and hotel reservation details [Now updated].
Admin contact info:
editMegan Neisler, mneisler@wikimedia.org
Lani Goto, lgoto@wikimedia.org
Goals
edit- Introducing and getting to know each other, especially for new team members
- Engage together in discussions and activities across functions and across apps
- Make some medium term plans and commitments for the apps
Proposed Agenda
editThe first two days will take place in the shared event space. The last day will be out and about in Philadelphia
Tuesday, October 17
edit9:15 - Breakfast
9:30 - Grace: Welcome, generate working agreement
10:15 - Josh: General agenda
10:30 - Grace: Get to know each other:
- Journey lines
- Working styles and giving good information
11:00 - Break
11:15 - Josh: App strategy overview and team product self-evaluation
12:00 - Lunch
1:00 - Rita+Carolyn: Apps design vision
2:30 - Break
2:45 - Josh: Growing the app audience, a marketing/growth hack brainstorm
3:30 - Create-a-thon: Taking Wikimedia to a New Place
- Grace: Create-a-thon intro and ground rules
- Long break and brainstorming mixer
- Grace: Commitment ceremony
Evening/Night - Hacking and creating!
Wednesday, October 18
editNote that "divergent group work" is a fancy way to say brainstorming and ideation, "Convergent group work" is a fancy term for "planning and decision making" :P
9:15 - Breakfast
9:30 - Create-a-thon continues/hacking wraps up/finishing touches, work time for those who need to "catch up" with the outside world.
10:30 - Grace: First day retro and Create-a-thon share out
11:00 - Josh/Chris K: Divergent group work on Editing and Community in apps
12:00- 12:30 - Lunch
12:30 - Cynefin team building activity
1:30 - Josh/Rita: Divergent group work on Explore and recommendations in apps
2:30ish - Break
2:45 - Josh: Convergent group work to define feature goals for next 3 - 4 Quarters
3:30 - Corey: Convergent group work on technical roadmap
4:00 - Break
4:15 - Josh: App awareness brainstorming
4:45 - Grace: Closing ceremony/retro
6:30 - Team Dinner: Mission Taqueria, 1516 Sansom St, 2nd Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19102. The restaurant is a 30 minute walk from the hotel or 10-15 minute taxi. Please plan your departure time accordingly.
Night - Karaoke at Yakitori Boy. We have an 8-10 person room from 9-11 pm. Come hang out, sing, or just watch!
Thursday, October 19 (Activity Day)
editMorning - Free time: Historical tours, museum visits or just work time
12:00-1:30 Lunch: Meet at the Reading Terminal Market, 51 North 12th St, Philadelphia, PA 19107. 15-minute walk from the hotel. Meet at the corner of Arch and 12th Street.
1:30-2:00: 25 to 30-minute walk from Reading Terminal Market to Museum.
2:00-3:00 Mutter Museum guided tour, 19 S. 22nd St, Philadelphia, PA 19103. Note: No backpacks or photography are allowed on the tour. Please leave any large bags at the hotel before you depart.
4:00-: Free time. Axe throwing for some...Reservation at Urban Axes from 4pm-6:30pm for those who signed up.
Create-a-thon
editA create-a-thon is like a hack-a-thon, but open to any creative activity, rather than focusing on technical creativity only. Created things can be lightning talks, demos, drawings, stories, media, art, sites, or even an interpretive dance. The only 2 requirements are that you cannot work on what you are currently paid to work on (no work on existing apps) and that you fit in the "theme" of Bringing Wikimedia to a New Place. That can be bringing our tech or information to a new app, platform or medium in a new way, bringing our values or way of doing things to something not-Wikimedia, or even bringing one part of Wikimedia to a new venue within Wikimedia.
Our hope is that anyone can participate and all will feel welcome to add their creative ideas and work to the mix, even if thats not building an app. The format of the create-a-thon is as follows:
- Introduction and kick-off: The MC will introduce the theme (Taking Wikimedia to a New Place) and review the ground rules
- Mixer and brainstorming: Some time, over a beverage, to think and talk with other about ideas you might create
- Commitment ceremony: participants decide if they want to "commit" to an idea. Committing to an idea means providing a brief description of the idea. People who don't want to commit to an idea can then sign up to "collaborate" on one or more ideas. Committing means you "own" the idea and will present it the next morning, collaborating means you want to help.
- Work time! Participants will have from 4 PM to 10:30 AM the next morning to work on their creation.
- Share-out: each committed participant shares their creation.
Unlike some hack-a-thons there are no prizes, winners or losers.
Group Sign Ups
editAxe Throwing
editUrban Axes
$35 per person
4-630 PM Thursday
2019 E Boston St, Philadelphia, PA 19125
https://goo.gl/maps/C6R8z5pq5WU2
(Fill out your waiver early: https://urbanaxes.checkfront.com/reserve/document/?template_id=1&id=MRZA-041017)
- Rita
- Dmitry
- Monte
- Cooltey
- Josh
- Anthony
- Tilman
- Corey
- Mikhail
- Matt
- Open
- Open
Karaoke
editYakatori Boy
9-11 PM Wednesday
211 N 11th St, Philadelphia, PA 19107
https://goo.gl/maps/hJPsvCyuR482
- Carolyn
- Sharvani
- Rita
- Josh
- Corey
- Dmitry
- Open
- Open
- Open
- Open
Things to do on your own
editHistory & Culture
editSo this is the neighborhood where we are staying, it has like history and stuff:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_City,_Philadelphia
The Liberty Bell… duh. It is about 2 blocks away from the hotel. You can see it for free, there can be a line.
https://www.nps.gov/inde/planyourvisit/libertybellcenter.htm
Independence Hall - No the Liberty Bell isn’t here, it is across the street. This is free BUT you need a ticket/reservation. I would reserve soon if you really want to tour it:
https://www.nps.gov/inde/planyourvisit/independencehall.htm
If you like money, the US Mint is across the street from the hotel and has free self guided tours. It is actually fun, you see the process and history of coins being made… and a shop to buy copies of course.
https://www.usmint.gov/about/mint-tours-facilities/philadelphia/tour-information
You can send a post card from Ben Franklin’s Post Office, so why not? (Also there is a Ben Franklin museum and square next door):
http://www.philadelphiafaithandfreedom.com/franklinpostoffice
If you are morbid and want to see where Ben Franklin is buried ($3 to enter)…
http://www.christchurchphila.org/about-the-burial-grounds/
Less morbid… Christ’s Church is around the corner (on Church St 🙄).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christ_Church,_Philadelphia
Barnes Foundation - Cool art museum. Subject of the Art of the Steal.
https://www.barnesfoundation.org/
Nature Walk on Forbidden Drive
https://www.fow.org/visit-the-park/activities/
Italian Market
https://italianmarketphilly.org/
Magic Gardens
https://www.phillymagicgardens.org/
Fun
editBarcade
80's and 90's arcade games + beer
http://barcadephiladelphia.com
Terror Behind the Walls
Haunted house in the Eastern State Penitentiary! Pretty fun actually ($20):
https://www.easternstate.org/halloween/schedule
Yakatori Boy
karaoke!
Independence Beer Garden
A Beer Garden ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Buffalo Billiards
Pool, Shuffleboard, Darts, Skeeball, Foosebal
http://www.buffalobilliards.com/philadelphia/
Brauhouse
German Beer Hall (Also a good restaurant):
https://www.brauhausschmitz.com
Frankford Hall
German Beer Garden, open air… next door to Fette Sau BBQ
SkyGarten
A middling beer garden, but it is on the 51st floor and you can go outside. Awesome views!
Food
editDinner
editEkta
One of the best Indian places in Philly, small BYOB: *Note: We have lunch catered from them as well for Wednesday.
http://www.ektaindianrestaurant.com/fishtown/
Brauhouse
German Restaurant / Beer Hall:
https://www.brauhausschmitz.com
Pho Ha
Best Pho in Philly, in the Vietnamese neighborhood:
https://goo.gl/maps/uhX2QoSbZrK2
Vedge
Amazing Vegan food
Fett Sau
BBQ, open air
Charlie Was a Sinner
A vegan cocktail bar… great cocktails btw:
Puyero Venezuelan Flavor Great Venezuelan food and cheap https://goo.gl/maps/aT6L746hDmk
Getting Fancy
editAbe Fisher
Jewish Diaspora Tapas (yes, and it is delicious)
http://www.abefisherphilly.com
Zahav
Israeli food… amazing, reservations are booked a month out… but they have a bar and chef's counter that you can walk in and get lucky during the week. Not for a large group:
Junk Food
editCheesesteaks (Obligatory)
editJim's
My personal choice of best cheesesteak:
http://www.jimssouthstreet.com
Pat’s and Geno’s
The standard Philly steaks are conveniently located across the street from each other and open 24 hours:
http://www.patskingofsteaks.com
… And you can take your steak next door to The Garage, a bar with the largest selection of canned beer in the city (really a lot of beer)
Campo’s
The best cheesesteak close to the venue
Tony Luke’s
The best far cheesesteak (for a south Philly adventure)
PSA: Ordering a cheesesteak:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1BXNnr-eqgY
(for the standard, just say “Whiz with”)
Sandwiches
editJohn’s Roast Pork
If you haven’t had one of these, you should even though it is a trip:
Primo Hoagies
A very good Italian hoagie, very close by:
Pizza
edit(for the west coasters who don’t know what real pizza is…)
Santucci’s
it's not traditional Philly pizza, but it is an amazing square pie:
http://joesantuccisquarepizza.com
Pizza Brain
Literally a Pizza museum (also good pizza)…
It’s also next door to some good ice-cream… http://www.littlebabysicecream.com
Other
editFederal Donuts
The fry hot donuts while you wait. Also they make fried chicken. It's ridiculous and delicious:
Notes and Archive
editOriginal etherpad for team input on agenda/activities/goals: https://etherpad.wikimedia.org/p/apps-offsite-ideas