Welcome to our visual blog for the BUPS/BIS 2009 8th grade Ephesus trip. These photographs, captions and "unphotographs" represent a joint venture in English and art class capturing the experience of the students' final middle school trip at BUPS/BIS. Many still remember and speak fondly of the games at Patalya in 6th grade and the adventures in Cappadocia last year in 7th. This year's experience held the same kind of wonder and memories, all the more poignant since in just a little time they will graduate from the 8th grade. The students have chosen their best landscape, portrait and detail photograph, writing a concise and descriptive caption for one. Using Michael David Murphy's "Unphotographable" as an inspiration, the students also wrought an image in words when its meaning went beyond the pixel.

Even though they will be in the same building next year and have many of the same teachers, high school is a different world. Every assignment and class trip of middle school has been constructed to help the students succeed in this new realm. But, as you will see from the photos of Ephesus and its surrounding areas and as the students realized, the past is never far away, and it's always the foundation for the future.

Wednesday

Ekin Demirörs

This is a picture I did not take of my friend sitting on my right, buried in the brown wool bed sheet, on a trip to Kusadasi, Ozcelik Otel, trying his best to hold my pointless tears before they touched the floor, then we leaned towards each other like leaning towards an empty hope, that he tried to build back up so I can knock him down to the ground again, when I start talking without noticing he laughed, he laughed like he cried, like he will always support me, so I realize the emotions I feel now, were just dreams once.