Having had some time to recover and more importantly count the cash we managed to raise, it has become evident that the event was an unprecedented success and we have raised more than we could ever have imagined.
Drum roll please... the grand total is 46'411.78KM (approximately 20,000GBP).
This is a huge amount of money anywhere, but especially here and is going to go a long way to help the four identified beneficiaries.
The day itself was slightly fraught, and it was a learning curve for me working on such a huge event as a volunteer (as your approach to everything has be slightly different compared to if people are being paid)! All the usual on-site event stresses came to the fore, the main issue which occurred was that the floor plan we had been given was not correct and there we had huge challenges trying to get all the tables in the space we had available.
The venue we used is the French School, initially we thought it would be big enough, however it soon became evident that this was not the case and with over 100 Embassies, vendors and NGOs it was a squeeze and then add over 1,000 guests... and it was a squash! However this is all a learning, and next year the venue needs to be much bigger (I am holding out for Zetra Stadium)!
However, aside from all of the challenges, everyone had a good time. The Embassies all laid on amazing spreads of food, from paella from the Spanish, fondue and raclette from the Swiss, cheese and wine from the French and Carlsberg from the Danish! The UK table sold a selection of delicious homemade jams and chutneys, along with some mince pies!
The debriefing meeting will take place in the New Year, which gives us all some time to reflect on everything and we can then regroup and identify what we can do to make it an even bigger and better event in 2013!
Check out the Facebook page for more information and some videos and photos of the day itself. www.facebook.com/diplomaticwinterbazar
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