“Water, Tree and Stone” An Art & History educational trip to Cambodia

It was a Wednesday morning, two days after their arrival in Siem Reap. The students from the Institut International de Lancy (IIL) enthusiastically settled into the tuk-tuk that would take them on a discovery tour of the temples of Angkor.

Last October, 16 Première and Terminale students from the Art and Film/Audiovisual options set off to discover the extraordinary region of Siem Reap, Cambodia, for over a week. The trip was organised around three main focuses: discover the spaces, territories and timeframes that shape our imagination, based on the theme of water; follow an itinerary planned by teachers that included art, history and geography; and finally, take part in an international humanitarian project to encourage openness and exchange with others.

The journey first began with a stop in Vietnam, in Ho Chi Minh City, where we enjoyed a tour of historic Saigon, from colonial buildings to the presidential palace of the 1970s war.

When we arrived in Siem Reap, we were quickly immersed in the arts with a visit to the National Museum, guided by an enthusiastic curator-researcher who helped us understand and put into context traditional Angkorian architecture. A visit to the Theam’s Gallery, on the other hand, was an opportunity to discover the work of an internationally renowned contemporary artist.

The following day, the students attended a private conference at the Ecole Française d’Extrême Orient, before heading out to the countryside to study the economic and social issues of rice-growing regions.

A major highlight of the trip was the meeting with the pupils of an NGO that teaches French to young Cambodians, most of whom are preparing for a career as travel guides. The IIL group had brought iPads to offer them and it was our students themselves who trained the Cambodians in these digital tools. In return, the Cambodian students spent two days guiding the IIL group across the famous Angkorian temples, including Angkor Wat and the Bayon. Thanks to this linguistic and cultural exchange, the students quickly forged strong and deep bonds.

At the end of the week, the students continued their immersion in Cambodian culture by visiting a market and a village on stilts, taking a boat trip through the flooded forest in Kampong Phluk, on the shores of the Tonle Sap Lake, and attending traditional dance and contemporary circus performances.

In addition to taking photographs, the students in the Film/Audiovisual option were in charge of filming with professional and 360° cameras. Those in the Art option drew various sketches in their travel diaries, particularly during the end-of-day workshops.

Monique Roiné, IIL Director General, also enjoyed the opportunity to visit the Ta Pen school, where construction of a new secondary school building is under way thanks to the support of Geneva’s private schools and the funds raised at the recent Don du Chœur concert. This is a fantastic charity project that IIL is particularly proud of.

Since their return to Switzerland, the students have been working on the images they took during their trip. A documentary as well as various exhibitions are planned over the coming months to share their journey and their unique experience in Cambodia.