New Student Photo Series 2012 Post #7 COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY - SIPA Admissions Blog

New Student Photo Series 2012 Post #7 COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY - SIPA Admissions Blog We took a brief  Blog hiatus but were back with some more photo submissions.   We received a few in the past few weeks so we will post them in the next week or so before the class arrives for Orientation on August 27th. ___ Todays first set of photographs were submitted by Elisa Dumitrescu, an incoming MPA student. ___ All photos submitted  were taken in various locations in Kenya. A  tailor working on the roadside at one of the busiest junctions in Nairobi A  bicycle belonging to a security guard. Most people in Kenya either walk or cycle to work or take a minibus (matatu) at some point in their commute Photo was taken at one of the major used clothing markets in Nairobi Mutumba/Toy Market. Clothes are often sold in large bundles for 50 shillings a piece (less than a dollar). Some local children in Lamu, Kenya on Shela beach ___ The second set of photos were submitted by Nancy Widjaja, an incoming MPA-DP student. ___ My best friend Liyana visited me in Bangkok in 2011 and we decided to take a detour from the usual shopping spa routine to drive about 2.5 hours out of the city to Wat Pha Luang Ta Bua, more famously known as the Tiger Temple, in Kanchaburi province. The Theravada Buddhist temple cares for about 100 tigers and tiger cubs (most roam freely or with a simple leash!). We had the awesome opportunity of playing with about ten cute tiger cubs and we even got to bottle-feed them. They were really cute, but don’t be fooled by their innocent looks…they do bite and scratch  hard! I was really excited when I was sent to Beirut, Lebanon, to attend an OECD conference in October 2010. I had heard  that Beirut is a very pretty city, but all my expectations were surpassed! The people were also very nice and warm (and beautiful!). This picture is one of my favorite from my Beirut photo set. Here the gorgeous Mohammad Al-Amin mosque, an Ottoman-style mosque established by the late Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and inaugurated in 2008, sits side by side with Saint George Maronite Cathedral, established in late 19th century. You can also see ruins of ancient Roman structures in the foreground. For me, it offers a taste of how beautifully diverse and rich in heritage Lebanon is. The other ‘perk’ of living in Bangkok is that you get to do the famous Muay Thai (Thai Kickboxing) with one of the real master kickboxers. I have to admit that I quit after 2 exercise sessions way too strenuous for someone who has been living in a sedentary life for quite a while!