Suzhou Expats Class of 2014 had their first ever group photos in Central Park yesterday (June 24, 2014). About 65 people of 19 nationalities joined the photograph.

(Scroll down to know how to get the photos)

Peter Wynd, one of the organizers, said he and his friends were inspired by graduation photos and Leonardo DiCaprio’s movie “Beach.” The movie ends with Leonardo stopping by an internet cafe to check his e-mail, and receives a message entitled “beach life” which contains a photograph of the beach community.

People in the movie took this photo knowing that they would not be doing this again, said Peter. “Expatriates in Suzhou come and go, and we want some sort of permanent record.”



Those who could not make it supported by spreading the news on their WeChat moments.



Some people came to the photographing 15 minutes earlier, and some came during or even after it.



Central Park was near the subway station where there was a busy passenger flow. The organizers waved to every expat who passed the venue, trying to enlist more people. But three passersby said they were just tourists, and a cool-looking gentleman said he was heading home. Oops! But they still had quite a group of people for the photos.



A photo journalist from Suzhou Daily Newspaper took the photos.

People who came to the photos wrote down their names, country names, and e-mail addresses, but someone wrote: “Country: Earth; Company: Journey.” Hopefully this person has internet access and will not need the internet cafe to receive e-mails.



The expats posed in front of the camera sitting, jumping, forming a heart with their hands, holding their children upside down... Maybe they can add a bit of square dance next time (!??).



↑↑↑Two of the organizers: Peter (L) and Sharrif (R).

How to get the photos

The group photos have been uploaded online. One of the places you can see them is NihaoSuzhou’s online photo album:

(WeChat does not allow links from other websites, so please type in the address as indicated in the picture above, or you can click on the four Chinese characters 阅读原文 at the bottom to reach the album.)

There are 180 photos in the album. Enjoy!



But not everyone can access the photo album. You need to enter the place where we took the photos (“Central Park”) and the identifying code as indicated.



↑You will see this album after you open the webpage. You click on it.

↑Then you enter the place name and the identifying code (the code changes, just follow the code in the picture on the right; if you can't see the code clearly, click on 换一个 to change).

One of the photos is published in Suzhou Daily Newspaper today (June 25), and a different one will be published in Suzhou Daily’s English version on Monday.

Anyone who needs a hard copy, or the e-paper, or high-resolution photos, please send your request to szreview@126.com and those who need photos please specify which ones you need (there’s a code to each photo in the album).