Romina successfully completed her apprenticeship as an application developer in 2020 and has been working at MD Systems since April 2022. This is where she first came into contact with Drupal. Since we strive to inspire developers for Drupal and the community, the Drupal Mountain Camp was the ideal place to finally get to know the community better after her first impressions of the Drupal code. Below is her report from the camp.
Thursday
Early in the morning the MD Systems team met. While two of us left by car, the others met at Zurich main station. Thanks to the early start, we arrived in Davos at exactly the right time. There the lunch was just being set up ;-).
Shortly after, an exciting workshop followed, conducted by Miro Dietiker (Founder of MD Systems) and Ursin Cola (Managing Director of soul.media). The topic was: "what is needed to train new employees in Drupal". Whether they are developers, POs or have another function in the team was not important for the time being. Learning guides and a channel where all Drupal newcomers can exchange information were clearly most desired.
After this informative workshop, we used the short break to check into our hotel and stow our luggage in the rooms. But we didn't have much time, because the beautiful ice hockey stadium was already waiting for our visit.
After a very informative tour, a nice aperitif awaited us in the stadium before the speakers of the coming days went to dinner together. While the speakers of our team filled their bellies in the fine Jody's, the rest of the team enjoyed the evening with other Drupal developers in the restaurant of the Hard Rock hotel and so a wonderful first day slowly came to an end.
Friday
A new day is dawning and what better way to start it than to stay in bed for a while and watch the golfers through the window. But there was not much time for that, because the first keynote about how and why companies should contribute to Drupal started soon. This was followed by several exciting sessions, some of which were held at the same time, which left some with difficult choices. Among them were the two interesting sessions "Entities Explained" by Sascha Grossenbacher (CTO of MD Systems) and "Introduction to using cypress for website testing" by Mathilde Dumond (developer at MD Systems).
With so much new information, however, there is also an urgent need for something to eat to replenish the energy tank for the afternoon. Fortunately, the talented cooks were able to satisfy all needs with their fine lunch. Immediately afterwards, several educational sessions followed. Among them was a session by Ivica Puljic (Senior Frontend Developer at MD Systems) about forms in Drupal and how to make them even better. This new knowledge will motivate you to try it out yourself and create the most beautiful forms soon. The sessions were followed by workshops on testing and how serious Lego playing can be useful in communication and planning.
The beautiful works of art, which were created with Lego, were of course also toasted together at a small aperitif. Unfortunately, the planned meal in the beach bar had to be cancelled due to the weather conditions. But no rain could stop the team of MD Systems and so we quickly organized a new restaurant to enjoy the Friday evening together as a team.
Saturday
Good morning Davos and good morning you wonderful smelling bakery "Ganz Heiss". Happy and with full bellies we first listened to the keynote about the current state of Drupal 10. Still quite excited about the new, soon to come features, everyone was excited for the group picture of all participants of the Mountain Camp. But then quickly back, so as not to miss how deep the Paragraph module actually goes, which Ivica Puljic gladly explained to us.
However, all the back and forth quickly emptied our bellies again, so now we had another lunch break with delicious food. This was followed by the last sessions and workshops of the Mountain Camp.
Miro Dietiker once again captivated the audience with his topic "Unleashing the potential of accessibility" and showed how important we should take accessibility in development and how quickly everyone can get into situations where it can be very helpful.
Sunday
The Mountain Camp was over and the departure was imminent. While some wanted to get on the train early to enjoy Sunday, others preferred to sleep in or use the day to enjoy the beauty of Davos and the surrounding area. But in one thing everyone agrees, we can hardly wait until the next Mountain Camp starts.
