Penn Alumni Day 2007

Saturday, May 12 was Alumni Day at the University of Pennsylvania. It's a fun event for any alum, with a chance to see old friends and remember your college days. And it's a great event for any photographer, bringing together a number of interesting elements: college students present and past, music, children, free food (I had a hot dog and cherry water ice), parades, parties, campus tours, and other special events. It climaxes (well, "climaxes" might be too strong a word) with the parade of classes down Locust Walk, focusing primarily on the major reunion classes--especially the 25th and 50th reunions, who natually give the most money. As you can see, fun was had by all.

Taiko Drummers

I was walking home from work tonight and noticed some movement behind Houston Hall at Penn, so I checked it out. It turned out to be a dance and Taiko drum group from Tamagawa University in Tokyo, practicing for a performance later on in the evening. They were fantastic, so I stayed around for about an hour taking photos. I really wanted to stay and watch the actual performance, but it was pretty cold and my fingers were getting numb. In retrospect, I realized that it would have been too dark for me to take pictures at the performance anyway, so I'm glad I took these photos when I had the chance.

Sitar Players on College Green

I ran into these guys on College Green today, over near Logan Hall. You don't see sitars too often in Philadelphia. Especially groups of people playing them. So I took a few photos. I think there's a class at Penn where you learn how to play. I always wanted to take it, but I never did because apparently you have to give a concert at the end of the semester and I hate public stuff like that.