Tuesday’s “Meet the Majors/Welcome Back, Seniors” was a lot of fun: great to have the Class of 2015 back on campus, telling stories and sharing tips on getting the most out of IGS. And how great to see so many first-years and sophomores interested in the major!
My thanks to everyone who spoke, but especially to Rohan Narayanan for his spoken-word poem about his time in Ghana: what a gripping, frenetic trip down memory lane…or maybe memory highway?
Speaking of recording one’s time abroad…we have some winners for the photo and blog competitions! The UDRs picked the best pics. They were:
Ally Eller’s powerful shot at the gates of Auschwitz:
As Ally writes:
“As the number of Holocaust survivors dwindles, this generation needs to be able to tell their stories, and part of that is facing the horror they went through. To me, this picture shows that, though 6 million Jews were killed during the Holocaust, we aren’t gone, we’re thriving, and remembering this piece of our history so nothing so horrible happens again.”
If you want to read more about Ally’s trip, check out her blog post: this entry also made her a co-winner of the blogging prize for the night!
And it turns out that Rohan’s a talented photographer as well as poet: here’s one of his shots from Ghana. As Rohan writes:
“The picture was taken right by Cape Coast Castle in the Central Region. The castle, which was used a slavers castle, is a historical site. This is a fishing village right outside the Castle. I remember being somewhat shocked by all the hus
tle and bustle. It was early morning and I hadn’t yet grown accustomed to all the bargaining and commotion involved with Ghanaian trading and public life. I was so drawn in by all the colors and the incredible diversity of age and focus of each person.”
Our last winner was Joe Crook’s gorgeous shot of a beach in Vietnam. As Joe writes:
“This picture was shot on Cham Island (Cu Lao Cham), which is located off the coast of Hoi An in central Vietnam. The small bowl-like objects scattered about are actually a style of traditional Vietnamese fishing boats known as Thung Chai. Local fishermen use
them to transfer between larger boats and land, carry supplies, and to cast and catch fishing nets…If you look closely, you can see none of them are tied up or locked down, which speaks to the Vietnamese sense of trust and community.”
Finally, the other co-winner in the blogging category was Mia Katan, currently abroad in Uganda on an SIT program in conflict resolution. Mia’s been traveling around the region and filing sharply observed posts wherever she goes.
Looking forward to seeing more of you all as the year unfolds!