A trip around the world in pictures

Members of the Rice community were able to enjoy a trip around the world Feb. 17 at Rice Coffeehouse, which played host to the annual Study Abroad Photo Contest. The contest included 111 entries from 32 Rice students. The photos were taken during students’ travels to all corners of the globe.

“Las Veronicas,”by Jake Krauss. Photo by Jeff Fitlow.

Jake Krauss’ photo, “Las Veronicas,” received the Best in Show Award and also won first place in the Culture, Customs, Traditions category. The picture was taken in Quito, Ecuador.

“On the Friday before Easter, hundreds of people marched down a main street in the historical district of Quito, Ecuador,” Krauss said. “My homestay mother, a devout Catholic, took me to watch the procession from a side street overlooking the ceremonies. As part of the procession, these women dressed themselves in purple to show their devotion to Christ. Dubbed ‘Las Veronicas,’ these women pay tribute to Saint Veronica, a woman who used her veil to wipe the sweat off of Christ on his way to the cross.”

This was the seventh year for the contest, which requires that entrants submit a short explanation of how their photo submission captured something special and unique about the location, the people or the culture of the region they visited.

Students enjoy photos from this year’s Study Abroad Photo Contest. Photo by Jeff Fitlow.

The People’s Choice Award winner will be selected March 21 on the basis of which picture receives the greatest number of Facebook likes. The pictures will be online Feb. 21 at www.facebook.com/RiceStudyAbroad. Rice faculty members serving on the judging panel determined the other winners:

Category: People
Winner: “Next Door” by Erica Cheung.
Second place: “Young at Heart” by Isaac Schultz.

Category: Places
Winner: “Fushimi Inari Toori” by Gia Longsworth.
Second place: “Night at Nyhavn” by Julie Ren.

Category: Nature
Winner: “A Gentle Giant” by Jake Krauss.
Second place: “Church of the Good Shepherd” by Kaysie Tam.

Category: Everyday Life
Winner: “The Cow’s Place” by Courtney Wang.
Second place: “Day’s End” by Juliann Bi.

For more information on Rice’s study-abroad programs, visit http://abroad.rice.edu/.