When I learned that EmberFest’16 was to be held in my hometown, Budapest, I could barely contain my excitement. I attended all previous EmberFests in other beautiful cities across Europe, but the idea that for once I didn’t have to go to EmberFest because EmberFest came to me was almost too much to take.
And, although the bar was reeeally high, the conference didn’t disappoint the least.
Pre-conference meetup
We, the organizers of the Ember.js Budapest meetup group (Ember.BP), decided to do a pre-conference get together the evening before the conference. It turned out extremely well, with a record-high attendance for our small group (~40 people were sitting into a small room) and great talks.
After the talks, we moved headquarters to Budapest’s bar district to have a post-meetup, pre-conference drinks and continue chatting.
The evening had a great vibe, with Ember friends flying here from all over the world (some of them seeing the illuminated city, which is quite the sight, for the first time), and I was ever so excited for being able to “host” them here.
The conference
The conference had the same structure as in previous years. One track, two-day, with an opening keynote and 45-minute presentations including Q&A. The chats in the lobby between talks were great and the whole vibe was very laid back and familiar, although I might be biased as I still couldn’t believe my Ember peeps came to me this time (the feeling only went away when the conference was over).
As Joachim, who almost single-handedly organized the previous 3 EmberFest conferences, announced his resigation from this position at the end of the talks, new plans started to slowly form…
EmberFest not dead
A few of us, European Ember lovers, met again at EmberConf’17 in Portland, and started to talk about the possibility of continuing EmberFest.
We formed a group later in the spring, involving Joachim and a few others and our small but very enthusiastic team started to get things rolling.
Berlin, having a renascent Ember.js meetup group and great direct connections to lots of cities, came out on top and soon after we’ve found and nailed down the gorgeous venue for the event.
About two more months passed and by now, an amazing roster of people have confirmed they’re speaking at EmberFest, and we’re in the process of selecting talks for the remaining slots.
The conference is again going to be a 1-track, 2-day one and is happening on the 12th and 13th of October.
Do you have your ticket already?