in Process, Research

3D(II): Dialogue in the Dark

 

Dialogue in the dark was an interesting experience. First, it starts out feeling constrained and very lost in the beginning corridors. It was mostly because I was infront of the line. Then, I am in a wide space in the park, before entering the boat ride with height feels shorter and I felt lower.

Then to the carpark with I got lost feels slighter wider but is constrained due to the items inside. The road with feels wider again, and then we head over to the marketplace which is a narrow and long space. Chinatown is a complex location and I did not know where we are headed too, then to the wide cafe.

 

Overall, Dialogue in the Dark was an interesting snippet on feel how it feels like to be a blind person. Without our sense of sight, naturally we would depend on other senses like kinesthetics and smell. For me, I relied on sound to travel around, listening carefully to our guide and the surrounding sounds to find out what kind of location it was. Looking back, it is funny that we can feel the sense of space though we can’t exactly see it. I was not that scared during the walk, and sometimes I wish that the experience can be intensified. For example, if the boat could actually move up and down, mimicking the waves of the river.

We also get to know more about the blind world and the difficulties we would never experience. It is eye opening to see how design plays a big role in aiding the the handicapped, and there are areas which are still developing. Like taking public transport (knowing the number of the buses and which stops is it).

This experience reminded me that we must never take our healthy bodies for granted, and to be much more sensitive to the handicapped community. I appreciate the times where the guide shared more about her personal experiences, which educated me on how to sensitively help these people when I see them in public. Also, it reveals to me the importance and uses of each of our other senses that we underestimate in our daily lives 🙂