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By ELSIE DENTON
News intern
August 1, 2007
Many people dream of taking a globe-trotting
vacation, but few have a chance to do so at the age of 11. Ben
Dane is in the middle of just such and adventure: Dane and his
parents, Jules Burton and Mark Dane, have been exploring Europe
and surrounding countries since August of last year.
Ben has seen a number of incredible sights on
his journey, such as the Chimera, near Olympos, Turkey. Atop the
mountain is a natural gas vent that bursts into flame when the
gas contacts the air. Fire continually flares from holes in the
side of the mountain, creating a natural lighthouse.
The best part of traveling, according to
Dane, was “the stories, the food and the art.”
Ben also said that being abroad an entire
year was difficult. He misses his cat and his friends, and, to
top it off, he is home schooled. He hasn’t really gotten a break
from school.
Ben’s continued scholastic achievements are a
boon for friends he left back home, because for homework, his
mother encouraged him to write a history ‘zine. In his own
words, “after a bit of moaning,” Ben consented to design his
eight-page History Magazine!
Learn Turkish
Here is an example of one
of the 'funnies' that populate the pages of Dane's 'zine. This
cartoon highlights an entertaining conjunction between Turkish
and English - "goodnighten" in two very dissimilar languages.
To date Dane has put out three installments
of the ‘zine and he said that he would produce a fourth and
perhaps a fifth before he returns to the United States at the
end of August. The History Magazine! is always eight pages and
includes hand-drawn cartoons and sketches of the places Dane has
been and the art he has seen.
“Most of the ‘zine art is from copies of
pictures in my drawing book,” said Ben. “I have to take it to
museums and sketch something for schoolwork.”
Also included in the ‘zine is a section Ben
termed the “long and boring story.” In this section Dane takes
on the monumental feat of summarizing human history beginning
six million years ago with the arrival of the first hominids and
finishing up around 500 B.C. Each ‘zine focuses on a different
chunk of history and includes a timeline of important event and
developments that occurred during that era in human history.
It seems surprising that Dane can fit so much
into only eight pages but his ‘zines also include maps of the
Danes’ travels, history quizzes and educational puzzles like
word scramble and a basic foreign language vocabulary
mix-and-match. In addition Dane has added a few helpful travel
tips. For instance, here are some from Turkey:
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“Some places price in euros
($1.30 = 1 euro) so watch out!
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“Doner kabob shops offer a
cheap, tasty, meal.
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“ In Cappadocia, no
(matter) how inviting they look, the hot air balloon tours are
130 euro per-person.
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“When buying milk in a
restaurant be careful: salted milk is popular.”
Dane’s ‘zine is an interesting blend of
modern European culture and ancient history and he hopes readers
will enjoy learning about both.
If you are interested in picking up a copy of
Dane’s History Magazine! drop by Artifacts, 202 Cascade Ave.,
where the ‘zines are on sale for 50 cents an issue.
Dane said that selling the ‘zine is great
motivation to produce future editions but he still wouldn’t get
it done without his mom
“My mum does all the badgering and
schedule-creating,” said Dane. “In short, she is my editor.”
Best of luck to Dane in the rest of his
travels and may he avoid any further altercations with monkeys;
after surviving two his luck might be running short.
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Elsie Denton can relate to many of Ben’s experiences; she
visitedTurkey for a few weeks in 2006. |
