Boston, from the perspective of an Iraqi teen

One of the activities that has kept me busy in each of the last three summers has been hosting students from Iraq who are in the U.S. for a program on leadership.  The Iraqi Young Leaders Exchange Program lasts about a month, including a week in Vermont, a week in Washington, D.C., and about two weeks in home stays in one of several American cities, accompanied by U.S. students.  My daughter, Kayla, participated three summers ago, and interned with the program this year.  The students just left Boston yesterday, following a farewell meal we were able to arrange for the 12 participants and five host families at Tufts on Sunday evening.  (The program is sponsored by the U.S. State Department and the Embassy in Baghdad.)

During their month in the U.S., each of the students is asked to consider writing a blog post, and this was the entry of one of the Boston-based students, though not the one who stayed with us.  I thought blog readers might be interested in this unique view of the area’s history.