– Post by Ameera –
18.08.2018 / 19.08.2018
From the 17th of August until the 19th of August, I went to the Art Lake Festival. It was in a very big piece of land not too far away from Berlin. The journey there was quite long, but in the end it was worth it. The festival is based around an artificial lake, and is made up of 13 stages, each with a different musical performance, workshop, DJ Set or art exhibition. There, I met up with many friends from Palestine, including some that were performing or exhibiting in the festival, and I introduced them to my new friends from the YALLAH! exchange. It was nice to get out of the work environment and take a break for a few days, and it was interesting to see a different side of Germany too, especially that it was the first time I went to such a big festival. That being said, it was also my first time having to build and sleep in a tent. It seemed like a normal procedure for everyone there, but to me it was an experience. The big size of the land, the festival 
happened in, made it tiring to move from one stage to another, but we quickly discovered all the hidden surprises on the way between stages. It was as if we were in a different world, and these small details helped us stay in that world. My favourite thing was a sound installation in the forest. When you stand 
under one of the sensors, different sounds are played from many small speakers hanging from the trees. It was a project about urban noise pollution. In general, it was a great experience. An endless view of colourful tents, swimming in the lake, and non stop music is a wonderful way to take a break from work.
20.08.2018
On the 20th of August, at about 01:00 PM, we started heading out to Cologne to do two interviews for our project. It was my third time in Cologne. The first interview took place in the Cologne Game Lab. The space was amazing. It was super futuristic and they had a cool elevator, made from wood, that never stops going up and down. It also has no doors, and you have to jump on and off. I felt like I was in a video game. We interviewed the professor, and he explained the process of how the Game Lab works. He also showed us a parachute in VR that was unbelievably realistic. Honestly, I felt like I have been on a real parachute and don’t have the urge to experience a real one anymore, which is scary and 
cool at the same time. The second interview took place in Dingfabrik (a FabLab) with one of the older members of the space. He told us about his experience, and gave us some ideas for our project and helped us improve the thinking process by suggesting various books that have information about Maker-Spaces. The interviews were very insightful and fruitful. Then we spent some time in Cologne and ate a delicious meal of Schnitzel, and the night ended with the crew sitting on the Rhine river bank near the Cathedral.
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