Elftopia took place again at the beautiful grounds of Ooidonk Castle in Deinze, near Ghent, for the tenth time this month. With a more diverse program than usual to celebrate the anniversary edition, including sword-fighting and manga-drawing workshops, storytelling (one of the few shaded activities, but more on that soon), famous actors (notably from The Hobbit movies) to bands on stage, cosplay competitions, speed dating and many other activities.
On paper this all sounded brilliant, and had Mother Nature not decided to scorch the Earth this weekend, undoubtedly the experience would have been enjoyable. But now it was simply too hot.
Your intrepid reporter didn’t even make it out onto the second field to photograph SteamNation’s steampunk camp, because she was felled by heatstroke even before noon. I wasn’t the only one. The Red Cross were carting people around in wheelchairs who had succumbed to the bleak heat and sunlight.
The main issue with this event and its location is that there is simply not enough shade and cool in August. There are a few tree-covered spots, but in order to reach them, you have to brave the sun first. The picnic benches outside the food court are unshaded. Surely a canopy or parasols could be set up to provide cover? Yet year after year visitors have been expected to queue for, and consume, their food and drinks in the sun and heat. There are also no water taps, forcing you to queue first for coupons and then again for hydration.
Combined with mobile Dixi toilets, which run out of water to wash one’s hands and become increasingly foul as the day progresses, the dearth of fresh water at this event is just unhealthy.
Elftopia can be fun. If you are willing to lug the necessities — plenty of bottled water, wet wipes and your own toilet paper, for starters — and are heat-resistant.
The organization had warned about poor Internet connectivity and the heat, but warning about heat is not enough. They should provide cover, refills and more sanitary facilities. Once they do, it will be an absolutely brilliant event. So long as they don’t: visitor beware of these things.
