One Photo - One Story by The American School in Switzerland

academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic academic

travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel travel

Photographs by the Advanced Digital Class The American School in Switzerland Spring 2010

academic travel

one memory one photograph one story

Kenya Clean water in rural Kenya is a scarce commodity. An inadequate supply forces people to rely on the contaminated Lake Victoria as their water source, which inevitably causes widespread health problems. The men above are throwing concrete in a sort of assembly line in order to construct the main water routing system that will provide clean drinking water to over 5,000 people in Muhuru Bay, Kenya.

WISER - Kenya Photo by Bridget Larson â&#x20AC;&#x2122;10

The Theory of Knowledge This is what is going through Mr. Koppeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mind... Why is this dog following me? Maybe he smells the food in my backpack. No that is impossible, it is in a zip lock bag that is air tight, nothing can escape it, especially air tainted with the smell of my food. Though they do have an acute sense of smell, unlike humans which have a very limited sense of smell. I might have spilt some of the outside of the plastic bag. This dog is sorta cute. I am a dog person...oh how I hate cats. Maybe I can train it to be my evil minion and do all my work; he should at least scare my students into working harder. Hmmmm that would be pretty cool. A dog that would do all my tedious time consuming work. Oh crud I have to grade those TOK essays...

Greece - TOK Photo by Richard Parsons â&#x20AC;&#x2122;10

Kenya Fish is synonymous to survival in Muhuru Bay, Kenya. It acts as both the primary food source and the primary income for the majority of this rural village’s families, as it has traditionally been the man’s work to fish all day and the women’s to prepare the food. These gender roles are preserved to this day, as Mark Pate and I learned upon our visit to the home of one of the top performing WISER girls, Floviance. As Floviance’s father toured us around the small village of scattered huts and protruding grey boulders, her step mother remained in the kitchen, spending hours preparing lunch for us. Although her smile suggests otherwise, the family‘s impovershed village is being threatened by a rocky island miles off the shore called Migingo. Despite the fact that Migingo is miles closer to Kenya than Uganda, war threats between the neighboring countries have resulted from both their identical and total reliance on the surrounding water’s fish supply. Currently, the land is Kenyan territory and the water is Ugandan, but according to Floviance’s father, this has done little to satisfy fishermen of either country. In fact, her father and eldest brother now spend their days aimlessly at home, since all of their fishing material was recently stolen by the Ugandans. Without fish, these men have no lifestyle, and their families have no food or money.

WISER - Kenya Photo by Bridget Larson ’10

The London Eye NY, Paris, Tokyo... these famous and big cities have either a tower or a high building to look around the city. Unfortunately, London did not have such a sight to look around the city of London until few years ago. The British people had a different idea on how to show the city of London to tourists. They built a huge Ferris wheel right next to Thames River called the “London Eye”, and it is now one of the famous sights in London today. Many tourists’ eyes now ride this new landmark every day and see the city.

United Kingdom - University Tour Photo by Akito Goto ’11

Portugal I will see these chairs again.

Habitat for Humanity - Portugal Photo by Jake Mulligan â&#x20AC;&#x2122;10

Dreams This place brought me the magic of going back to a young girl who used to dream of becoming a princess. I could see the sky between the buildings with only small amount of light coming from the sun. This piece of sky, something I could never reach, made me feel like I was child again. I used to believe that I could reach the sky someday, and I have always opened my arms to the sky with this belief.

Istanbul Photo by Natsuko Ishihara â&#x20AC;&#x2122;10

Kenya The majority of the schools in Muhuru Bay, Kenya do not have access to electricity; students are forced to limit their study hours to times when the sun is bright enough to feed into the classrooms and naturally illuminate their tattered workbooks. This greatly limits studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; ability to excel academically because they also have responsibilities at home, such as fishing for boys and cooking, fetching water, or helping younger sibilings for girls. As a result, many teens drop out before secondary school in order to dedicate themselves entirely to these traditional labors. It is rare to see as much concentration in an older studentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s body language, alone in his private studies, as demonstrated by this boy.

WISER - Kenya Photo by Bridget Larson â&#x20AC;&#x2122;10

Portugal While walking to lunch, we encountered these signs. Certain interpretations could cause cows to slow down to a snailâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s pace of 40 km/hr.

While work with Habitat in Portugal, walking was our main mode of transportation and seeing animals walking in the streets was common.

Habitat for Humanity - Portugal Photo by Jake Mulligan â&#x20AC;&#x2122;10

A Momentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Pause After an amazing trip, my teachers were having a conversation in London Heathrow Airport right in front of the gate. They seemed happy about the trip and how well everything went. This trip was excellent because of these wonderful teachers.

United Kingdom - Univeristy Tour Photo by Akito Goto â&#x20AC;&#x2122;11

Uncomfortable Travel Underground travel is loud and smelly. There was a combination of fatigue and frustration trying to find the stop for the Accropolis. As you were being wretched around by the constant stopping and going, and the G-force that throws you into strangers. It is efficient travel in the sense that you travel quickly, but in the sense of personl space and comfort it is not comfortable. We are basically a can full of people in a tube traveling at high rate of speed in one common direction.

Greece - TOK Photo by Richard Parsons â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;10

Remembering Japan This room reminds me of the traditional Japanese place. I was able to capture the beautiful reflection of the lights on the pot (Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m not sure what it is). Japan has changed so much that nothing can be imagined from the ancient Japanese culture. I think the loneliness of this picture expresses the forgotten Japanese culture.

Istanbul Photo by Natsuko Ishihara â&#x20AC;&#x2122;10

The Transaction I need two thousand euros, and you get all the supplies you need. It’s okay I am using a pay phone they won’t be able to trace me. I know that is where I’m supposed to take the supplies. Just relax the boat will arrive at the shipping yard with everything at exactly midnight. I’ll be the man in the brown jacket wearing bright adidas shoes with red stripes on them. Bring the briefcase, and we’ll see if we can transfer all the money. Okay, nice doing business with ya. Okay, bye.

Greece - TOK Photo by Richard Parsons ‘10

The Work Day Working with Habitat For Humanity in Portugal Retiring the gloves at the end of the day was a relief. It was rewarding to look back at the work accomplished. It was also reassuring to know that another group was coming the day we were leaving to pick up where we left off.

Habitat for Huanity - Portugal Photo by Jake Mulligan â&#x20AC;&#x2122;10

Magical Memory These underground water ducts were used centuries ago. When we first walked underground I was immediately reminded of the water rides and Disney world. The lights and the smell of dripping water brought back many memories of Disney World.

Art History - Istanbul Photo by Brooke Stayer Wagner â&#x20AC;&#x2122;11

The Statue’s Sole I thought the toenails were so real that the statue was human. In the museum, I saw many statues, but their faces and bodies seemed fake. Greek art is beautiful, but I felt as though everything was wrong. When I looked down at their feet, I finally found their “human” parts.

Art History - Istanbul Photo by Natsuko Ishihara ’10

Rust Rust is the essence of art. Something rusty will always have a story. Instead of seeing something old and rusty, you see something with passion and a past. Rust creates very unique colors, which makes it very appealing to the eye.

Toulouse - IB Architecture and Art Photo by Isa Andrade â&#x20AC;&#x2122;10

A Drop of Water Life can be represented by a drop of water, everything around us depends and lives off of it. The fresh, clear look of water can represent purity. With purity you gain positive thinking, which can turn into being enlightened and feel refreshing.

Toulouse - IB Architecture and Art Photo by Isa Andrade â&#x20AC;&#x2122;10

Starbucks A cafe is a place where people have time to relax or have a conversation with others. I found this cafĂŠ in the centre of Oxford, England. A lot of people are usually walking by this Starbucks in the main street, but it was raining outside when I took this photo. Inside many people were having a cup of coffee with some sweets. A cafe gives us a quiet place to relax.

United Kingdom - University Tour Photo by Akito Goto â&#x20AC;&#x2122;11

isa

Drawing The art of drawing and nature caught on a photograph. Mr. Dukes and Ms. Hurst are drawing landscape outside of Toulouse. The feeling of being in the middle of nothing helps loosen your mind giving it a sense of freedom. Creativity comes from a free mind and soul. This image conveys that freedom to me.

Toulouse - IB Architecture and Art Photo by Isa Andrade â&#x20AC;&#x2122;10

Turkish Delight Turkish delight is a famously enjoyed desert. The colors of the dessert drew my attention immediately and the interest of tasting something new made me have to try it. The first thing that came to my mind when I read the sign Turkish Delight was the Chronicles of Narnia when the snow princess brings the little boy Turkish delight. It was definitely worth the five liras in the end.

Art History - Istanbul Photo by Brooke Stayer Wagner â&#x20AC;&#x2122;11

Aladdin Belly Dancing is a very famous tradition in the Turkish Culture. It is a traditional dance influenced by Middle Eastern countries. The belly dance itself consist of strong movement of all parts of the body mainly focusing on the hips and stomach. Watching these spectacular performances allowed my imagination to wander into the magical mood I would escape to as a small child.

Art History - Istanbul Photo by Brooke Stayer Wagner â&#x20AC;&#x2122;11

Photo by Jake Mulligan ‘10

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain