Day Four:

We started our day on the Green Line, the oldest subway in the country.

We were on our way to Harvard Medical School, where we practiced treating a patient via a mannequin simulation. Our instructors helped us brainstorm all the information a provider would need to treat a new patient in the Emergency Department.

Our fake patient was named Lily, who suffered from a sudden onset of asthma.

Since Lily’s tests showed no physical abnormalities in the lungs, we surmised that her bronchioles may have constricted. We were able to give her the appropriate treatment, not just the albuterol medication, but also the reassurance that her side-effects were normal and would pass in a few minutes!

Afterward, we got lunch and went on a tour of some historical sites on the Freedom Trail in Boston; our tourguide, Tom, was very charismatic and seemed to deeply enjoy his job. Lastly, we spent the rest of the day walking around Quincy Market and trying various local foods.

By Ava

We started off a little later, giving us such much needed extra sleep. Recharged, we went to explore Boston Commons and enjoyed a lackadaisical lunch in Boston Public Market. (Crepes, chowder, bagels, seafood, tea and even cider donuts!)

Afterward, we spent the next few hours within the Boston Science Museum. As a group, we saw a presentation about Deep Fakes, and then we splintered off into groups to witness the museum in its entirety.

Lastly, we debriefed, then walked through Boston Common to our dinner location and feasted on a variety of burgers and shakes.

Photos by Dia, Dora and Ava

Walking through Boston

By Dora

We walked alongside the Charles River, then headed to the Boston Public Garden, which was founded in 1837. While we walked, we saw many cute animals and listened to the strums of street musicians. We then walked to the Boston Commons, which was founded over 200 years earlier in 1634, and has a lot of geese.

Day One

By Ava

After a long but pleasant drive to our hotel in Boston, we greeted our fellow groupmates and trip supervisors with some casual conversation. We briefly unpacked and then set out to explore. Despite the frigid cold, we persevered enough to observe the subway system, the Charles River, and the Boston Public Garden. After which, we spent the next phase of our day ambling through and dining in China Town. After we dined, we got some bubble tea and headed back, thoroughly exhausted, to our hotel.

Photos and text by Ms. McGivern

We arrived just before 1:00 pm (Thanks for driving, Ms. Babar and Ms. McGivern!) and were met by Susanne and Laura, our Envoys guides. The hotel kindly stored our bags while we had a snack and did a few activities to begin building our team for the week.

Many of us have visited Boston before but we still experienced something for the first time: a ride on the “T”, which we found out was the first subway built in the US, even older than New York City’s! Susanne gave us a crash course in reading the map. We even had our first volunteer group navigator later in the evening. (Way to go, Jenny!)

We had a blustery walk along the Charles River …

… where we met a cute puppy pal (with muddy paws) named Molly.

We spent some time in the Public Garden, which was beautiful even in its winter sleep. Some sure signs of spring could be seen: willows beginning to turn green, tree buds growing fatter!

We paused in Boston Common to share our observations.

Then it was off to Chinatown to explore before a delicious dinner.

In this photo we are joyfully awaiting food ordered for us by some student volunteers. Thanks for listening to preferences and dietary restrictions and sticking to our meal budget, friends! You did a great job. By the end there wasn’t much left over and we were all satisfied.

Off to bed so we are well rested for tomorrow!