Last we had reported, spring had arrived in Boston! The lawn mowers and the cool shade are now signaling summer is right around the corner. Our first heatwave of the year is already popping into the weekend weather forecast! The NBA finals start tonight here in Boston, which means its already June!
So what were we up to while the trees were growing greener and the window screens were put to use? Well, a little bit of this and a little bit of that, a nice long vacation and a special out-of-town guest!
The first half of the month started out with work as usual for me and Jon found himself making a few more trips to Baltimore. The hospital treated all the interns to a night out at the Harvard Club for drinks, dinner, and a 34th floor view of downtown Boston signaling the coming of the end of intern year!
On the 16th, we head west to start on our much anticipated Pacific Northwest Tour to Seattle, Victoria, and Vancouver. We started off with a small Pepperdine reunion in Seattle to attend my good friend from undergrad and my year in Heidelberg, Dave Brown's wedding. The weather was unseasonably warm for Seattle at 90 degrees and our pale new england skin got a little crispy at the poolside before the wedding! No one told us to bring sunscreen with us to the rain pacific northwest!
After a wonderful weekend with old friends and time exploring the coffee capitol of the US, we traveled up the coast for some relaxation and an opportunity to check out the native wildlife! Jon liked the jumbo slugs; I thought the bald eagles were pretty neat. The mountains that surround you in all directions when the cloud cover clears are spectacular!
We ventured on by ferry to Victoria, BC. There we sat in on paralament, enjoyed the pubs, and visited the famous Butchart Gardens.
Another ferry took us back to the mainland and north to Vancouver and the opportunity to catch up with a friend from NJ, Shin, who is now back in his home town. He showed us the highlights of the area and tested our physical limit on our 600m elevation, 2.25km hike up the "Chief" in Squamish - half-way to Whistler. Vancouver was definitely the highlight of our trip.
On our drive back to the Seattle airport, we stopped off to see Ryan and Christine Wasserman and their two children in Bellingham, WA. They were the college and career ministry leaders at Christ Community in NJ when I first moved to Piscataway. Christine was the first person to suggest that Jon might be a good match for me....and the rest is history.
Before my two week vacation ended, we had the priviledge to welcome my best friend from undergrad and newly minted medical doctor, Jennifer Flannery, on her first visit to Boston! We hit the top of the Pru, the Elizabeth Stewart Gardner Museum, the Freedom trail, Cambridge, Harvard Yard (see prior posts for more details about the sights of Boston). I'm still awaiting the photo documentation from Jennifer - pictures to follow.
I'll be ending my last two weeks of intern year working night's at the VA medical center. Good news - I never thought the end would come and its here. Bad news - I didn't think there would be work to do after. Though the hours improve and the paperwork dramatically drops off, I quickly learning doctoring demands all you are willing to give it.
It's been a great year in our new city: new friends, two paying jobs, out-of-town guests, one world series championship, an impressive superbowel victory (for Giants fans), and the NBA finals!
Good night and BEAT LA!
