The Top Four Photos

1^st Prize

Photo Title : HOZUKI-ICHI (GROUND CHERRY FAIR)
Location : Asakusa, Japan
Student Name : Jonathan Huang
Program : IES/Kanda University
Description : Every year, on the ninth and tenth of July, the Japanese hold a summer festival at the Senso-ji Temple in Asakusa, commemorating the event with a very special cherry plant, called hozuki. Thus, this two day event is conveniently named Hozuki Ichi, or Ground Cherry Fair. At first I didnít really know why so many Japanese people were carrying around these small, orange and pumpkin flowers. I meant to ask one of them but didnít have the courage because of the very little Japanese that I spoke. Later however, I asked my friend, Maki, to help me translate the questions I had for the street vendors. Peeling the outer covering of the flowers, this lady explained that inside each of the orange plants was a pod of seeds that was said to contain 1000 seeds. It is believed that each year when people come over from all over Japan to this Temple, if they pray and buy hozuki, their prayers will be, in a sense, multiplied a thousand times. In addition, women who come to pray to Kannon, the goddess of mercy, during the days of this summer festival, and also buy these cherry plants will be blessed with many children.

2^nd Prize

Photo Title : PRAYERS IN ORANGE
Location : Siem Reap, Cambodia
Student Name : Alana Abernathy
Program : KEI/Mahidol University, Bangkok
Description : Even at the sites of ancient ruins, Buddhist monks still come to offer prayers. I found this monk at one of the top tiers of Angkor Wat, a temple famed for its size and beauty. It is surrounded by a gallery, which gradually leads to more interior galleries. Each is higher than the previous, requiring a steep ascent up the flight of stairs. It seems that around every corner there is another alcove. They protect the Buddha statues, some missing arms or heads, but each still donning an orange cloth. It is this orange, such as the color of the monkís robes, that brings vibrancy into the gray sandstone temple.

3^rd Prize

Photo Title : BRIDGE IN THE SKY
Location : Rotorua, New Zealand
Student Name : Jack Chi
Program : Arcadia University, Auckland
Description : Rotorua is nicknamed the ìSulphur Cityî for its violent geothermal activities, with bubbling mid pools, gurgling hot springs and gushing geysers. The bridge is located inside Te Whakarewarewa thermal reserve, a Maori traditional reserve meaning ìThe gathering together of the war party of Wahiaoî. The person pictured is Charlie Castellano from NYC. The hot springs in this picture is completely masking his lower body. I felt a strange of uneasiness when I was walking in along this bridge. I believe the scariest thing in life is facing the unknown and studying abroad was a unique, new experience for me.

4^th Prize

Photo Title : LA COPPIA MISTERIOSA
Location : Venice, Italy
Student Name : Jennifer Williams
Program : Study Abroad Italy, Lorenzo de medici
Description : Venice is known everywhere by modern travelers for its mystique and beauty, but many never get to experience the great Venice carnevale. The carnevale, which begins on vent and is held for the ten days preceding Ash Wednesday, is an old custom that began in the middle ages. During this time, the carnevale symbolized equality in a normally strict social structure. It was a chance for everyone to enter the public sphere, the piazzas, without class distinction. It has had many different meanings throughout the years, but one quality has endured - the freedom to reenact fantasies through dress and manner. I definitely experienced some of these qualities when I went to the carnevale in the spring of 2005 with my study abroad program at Lorenzo de medici. That day in Venice, I was no longer an American or tourist, I was a participant in the world of fantasy. This world of fantasy, even though it was magnificent and mysterious, was also overwhelming, and I soon escaped to an isolated corner in the San Marco piazza so that I could fully enjoy my role as a mere spectator. It was there, in that corner, that I saw the most bravura couple. My only choice was to take a picture ñ to somehow give invincibility to that one moment, to my ìLa coppia misteriosaî.