If you registered for IMWe 2024, then please read trough the information carefully to organize all you need for your trip to Studio24 this Easter!
What’s crackin’ my dudes and dudettes! In just under six weeks we will be groovin’ and shakin’ to the funkiest tunes at Rieneck castle. So leave the jive-talkin’ behind and read this radical newsletter we’ve prepared for you, where you will find all the information you need for a stellar week at IMWe.
Peace, love and granola,
The IMWe team
Arrival and Departure
Date
Sunday, 24th March – Monday, 1st April 2024
Location
Rieneck Castle
Schlossberg 1
97794 Rieneck
Check-in starts at 3:00 pm on Sunday the 24nd of March. Please arrive between 3:00 pm and 4:30 pm. If you arrive later than this, you will not be able to check in (e.g. finding your room, collecting bedding etc) until the end of the evening programme (approx. 11:00 pm). But of course, you can join the programme! 😊
If you already know that you will arrive later, please tell the team in advance.
No specific COVID-19 regulations will be in place at this event. However, throughout the entire event, we respect everyone’s choice to take additional measures (i.e. wearing a mask, social distancing), whatever participants and teamers feel is necessary for their personal health. We ask you all to respect each other’s choices.
In general, if you feel ill (particularly with COVID Symptoms), please consider not attending the event.
There will be no pick up from Rieneck train station when you arrive. The walk from the train station to the castle takes about 20 minutes. You can of course organize yourselves through the Facebook Group or the participant list to walk together or join participants coming by car.
If you are planning to drive, the car park is at the bottom of the hill leading up to the castle.
IMWe will end on Monday the 1th of April (no joke!), at 11:30 am, after eating breakfast and cleaning up the castle together. Please tell us when you check in on the first day whether you will be staying for lunch on departure day (N.B. this is not included in the fee).
Travelling to Rieneck
You can find all the necessary information on how to get to the castle on the following websites
If you have any problems with travelling,
please —» contact us directly!
What to bring?
Your ultimate packing list for IMWe 2024
1. Clothing – Scout/Guide uniform, scarf/necker, slippers, working clothes for handicraft work, hiking boots (if you want to hike), comfortable clothes (i.e. for dancing, bad-weather, for cold and rainy days).
2. Instruments – If you own any musical instruments (including ones you don’t play), sheet music for group performances (choirs, duets, trios, etc.) and music sheet stands, please bring them along.
3. Costumes – Participants are asked to bring a costume based on the theme that you will wear several times throughout the week. Creativity has no limits, if you want to dive in and create something amazing, we love that!
From a classic punk or disco outfit, a corporate music industry boss to a walking record player – there are literally no limits. On our website you will find more inspiration if needed.
On a practical note: take the weather into account and note that you will have to move around the castle in your costume, so think practically or at least allow for an extra jumper or wearing trainers when necessary.
4. Brochures and flyers to advertise your own Scouting and Guiding, camps and events
5. If you like, some cakes, biscuits, snacks or sweets from your country for chatting times
6. Board games to play with or teach others
7. And don’t forget the basics like a wash kit, pyjamas and a flash light!
8. Feel free to bring your own bed linen and towel. In case you prefer renting it, please bring 7 € to check-in. Renting a towel costs 2,5 €.
9. Food for International Evening (see below)
Contributing to IMWe
Your chance to get involved
IMWe is an interactive creative programme where participants are invited and encouraged to share their creative talents in music, acting, dancing, designing, crafts and more. There are various ways to get involved and contribute to the programme. If you already have ideas, great! Please fill out the form for each of your ideas/activities to share during one of the programme points. It is also possible to tell us your ideas during IMWe, too.
Interest Groups (IGs) and Music Interest Groups (MIGs)
Studio24 is a place for talents of all kinds! On most afternoons there will be two hours of Interest Groups where you can teach your skills to others and you are invited to lead your own workshop. In addition, there will be one hour of specific Music Interest Groups for you to share absolutely anything musical. Your IG can be anything creative from hand crafted items to dancing, any kind of theatre or games indoors and outdoors, massage, discussion groups, teaching each other instruments, choir, rapping, covering a song and so much more. This is also the perfect time to come together and rehearse pieces for the concert. If you are interested in leading an IG, please bring everything you need (tools and materials for interested participants) or check beforehand if we might be able to provide you with anything. If you have ideas ready to go, then you guessed it... fill in the form!
Dream Time
Almost every day after lunch there is Dreamtime. 45 minutes of relaxing and napping accompanied by comfortable music, poetry, story reading or other relaxing activities.
We'd love for PCs to come and share your most dream inducing activities with us. If you would like to offer any Dreamtime programme please fill in the form.
International Evening
On Monday we will be hosting our International Evening where you will have the opportunity to present your home country, region or town. Therefore, we ask you to prepare the following:
1. Presentation of your country and its Scouting and Guiding traditions
You will be given a table where you can display pictures, events, photos and/or objects. It would also be great if you prepared a short sketch to present your home country. Please consider the international aspect, all explanations and presentations should be in English. If you have something planned already, please fill in the form.
2. Food and drinks from your country
We also ask that you bring a regional or national specialty of your country. Since there are a lot of vegetarians participating, take this into consideration so we have a selection of vegan, vegetarian and meat-based foods. There will also be lactose- and gluten-free people attending, we hope everyone will be able to eat safely so please avoid cross-contamination of allergen-containing and allergen-free foods.
On this day, there is no dinner prepared by the kitchen staff, instead we will eat the food all the participants bring to the international evening – this means we need a good range of both savoury and sweet foods.
There will be facilities for storing foods that need to be kept cool, please ask about the fridge on arrival. Also take into consideration that the cooking facilities are limited. International Evening is on Monday, so ensure any food you bring will still be fresh by then.
Absolutely no hard liquor/spirits are allowed during IMWe, this also applies for International Evening.
We hope scouts and guides from each country will collaborate on the presentation and food if you need help with finding out who they are, contact us (info@imwe.net) or take a look at the participants list.
For the German participants: Please work together in presenting the different regional states (‘Bundesländer’).
Scouting Café
On Friday, we will discuss Scouting and Guiding topics in a cozy atmosphere whilst sipping coffee and tea. Here you have the opportunity to dive deep into discussion. Whether you have some interesting/best practices of scouting/ guiding from home, projects you want to start, problems and ponderings you want input on or anything else scouting/guiding related, just bring your ideas and thoughts to IMWe. During the Scouting Café you can also present up-coming events and camps. In case you already know that you want to lead a discussion or present an event, please fill in the form.
Creative Evening
On Thursday during the Creative Evening, you participants will be on the stage. We invite you to present fun performances that could include: sketches, juggling, plays, acrobatics, tricks, songs, dancing etc. Start thinking now about ways you could share your creativity on this evening, you could get together with other participants from your country/region to prepare something, or find other like-minded people once you arrive.
Meditation
Meditation takes place on some days after the evening program. A possibility, for all who feel like it, to come together and calm down after a busy day. From relaxing music, yoga, classical meditation, letter writing, painting, dancing to self-reflection methods... just like during the IMWe week, creativity knows no bounds in this time. Feel free to offer your own meditative methods too! Let us know before or during IMWe what you would like to offer and what materials we can support you with (form).
Chatting time
Bring some cakes and biscuits for Chatting Time – ideally typical sweets from your home country or region. Additionally, you are welcome to bring savory snacks for the evenings.
Concert
The Concert is your chance to perform any type of music you want. If you can play an instrument or want to sing, you are welcome to contribute. Please feel free to join even if you don’t consider yourself an experienced musician! You will have time to rehearse performances during IMWe, especially during Music IGs. If you can prepare something in advance – all the better, but you can also form groups during the week! Every participant can take part in up to three performances during the Concert on Saturday.
Be Prepared
On Wednesday evening we will be going back to the roots of scouting and guiding with a campfire evening in the outside campfire circle! If you have any campfire songs, sketches or games that you would like to present, please fill in the form. We plan to start the evening with a set programme of items, and then will open to anyone who wants to throw in a song as they think of them.
We know there are lots of fun campfire songs, but some are ruder than others and we would prefer you to choose songs that don’t contain sexual or discriminatory lyrics.
IMWe for Beginners
We are looking for 1-2 volunteers who want to coordinate our “IMWe for Beginners”. Did you always want to plan a free walking tour through the castle or a fun get to know each other game for the first day? Please contact us (info@imwe.net) if you want to be this social disco boy or this uniting punk girl.
Alcohol
Absolutely no hard liquor/spirits are allowed during IMWe, therefore please don’t bring any to the castle. If we discover any hard liquor, we are obliged to confiscate it and will pour it away.
This rule also applies for International Evening.
Picture & Video Guidelines for Social Media
The world of social media (such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, etc.) offers us a great opportunity to stay connected throughout the year. But using these platforms also carries the risk of invading someone else's privacy.
For further details please read the "VCP Social Media Guide"
If you would prefere not to have images of you publicly shared on the official IMWe website/Facebook/Instagram, please notify the team on check-in and we’ll keep a list.
However, we would still love to see photos you take of the event and your creations during the week, so as long as you’ve asked anyone you’ve taken a photo of (or of their work), feel free to post with #imwe, #imwe2024, #studio24, #vcp, #rieneck and tag @vcp_de and @burgrieneck.de!
Did you implement things you learned at IMWe at home?
Yes? Then share your story! It doesn’t have to be long. It can be a few sentences or a whole story what you learned at IMWe and how you implemented it at home, whether it was your local group, Scout and Guide Association or maybe even in your professional life? This year we want to collect all of your stories for others to read and get inspired how experiences from IMWe can be brought back home.
