Thanksgiving Day 2007

On 22 November 2007 (Thursday) we experienced the great thanksgiving day of America. Our host family (Don Murray & Gloria Murray) invited me and Sarah Namuli, another Humphrey Fellow from Uganda. We reached Murray family’s house of Braintree at around 1.30 pm.

The house looked neat and clean. The dining room was in a festive look. There we met the bigger Murray family – 2 sons & 1 daughter along with their 5 kids in total. Don, Gloria and also Diane, their youngest daughter-in-law cooked all foods – Turkey, potato mesh, salad & so on (forgot some names).
With thanks on Thanksgiving day, we started our dinner with Turkey, bread, butter & other stuff. Food was good in taste & we’re not in a hurry. So we kept chatting while eating. Different issues came up in discussion including recent cyclone damages in Bangladesh. After sometime once we finished the main course, desserts were served. It’s apple pie, ice-cream and another cake. We enjoyed that also.
Finally at around 6 pm Don & Gloria gave us a lift back home. In the meantime I captured a memorable thanksgiving day with Murray family.

Castle Island visit

On 10 November 2007 (Saturday) my host family Don Murray & Gloria Murray took me to the Castle Island, a little island very close to the Boston airport. It's so named after the fort situated just on the brink of the Atlantic Ocean. The fort once used to accomodate a huge number of British soldiers in the sixteenth century. Even though the weather was very chilly & breezy that day, I being accompanied by Don & Gloria enjoyed a long walk along the seaside and viewed wonderful scenery.

Then Don took me to their house at Braintree where we'd a long chat the whole evening. Don showed me his album full of pictures with Bangladeshi orphan girls. The orphanage in Mongla area is run by a Christian religious group Don associated with. I had some good talks with two grandsons of Don & Gloria. Don made some apple pie & other stuff with which we together enjoyed our dinner. It's such an evening that very difficult to forget. Thanks to Don & Gloria.

State Department reception to humphrey fellows

A welcome reception was given to humphrey fellows 2007-08 by the US State Dept on 30 Oct night. All had to pass through security gates and many antique enriched rooms/corridors till the main hallroom. Ms Karen Hughes, special advisor to the US President welcomed fellows with her eloquent and forceful speech. Also ambassadors/high officials of the diplomatic missions of the countries having fellows this year attended. Everybody engaged themselves in meeting with someone new, greeting, talking, eating and more noticeably taking photographs. It was a great networking scope for all.
On my query, Mr. John Sedlins, Chief, Humphrey Fellowships and Institutional Linkages Branch of the US State Dept responded that even after being the State Department official, he himself rarely gets the scope of getting into the hall. Being in the State Dept mainhall was a great honour indeed. As a Humphrey Fellow really feel proud !

Visit to Parkdale High School in Maryland

On 30 Oct, all humphrey fellows did experience the American high school visits in the DC, nearby Maryland and Virginia areas. Fellows were divided into different groups and then sub-groups. Each group visited a particular school and each sub-group to a particular class of the school. I was in sub-group 3 of the group who visited the Parkdale High School, Maryland. It's a big public school with about 2200 students and 100 teachers. Noticeable that students are mostly non-whites (blacks, mixed, hispanics). The group was taken to a hallroom where students served the breakfast with items made by themselves and the Principal delivered a short speech on his school.
My sub-group members ( me, a Burmes medical doctor, a Syrian female journalist, a Namibian lady doctor working with HIV Aids, a Panamian engineer cum researcher and a Slovakian university teacher) presented about themselves and their countries by 3-4 minutes one by one. Then students asked a lot of questions ranging from the educational arrangements to homosexuality in those countries. We responded individually as well as collectively. It was a great fun and enjoyable event.
American high schools are with great modern facilities including computer labs. Many have their own radio and/or tv braoadcasting facilities. Teacher-student ratio is very high. The class we visited had only about 15 students but the area was such a big that it was like a rural based Bangladesh primary school.

Global Leadership Forum Washington D.C

The much expected Global Leadership Forum meeting for the humphrey fellows was held during 28 Oct - 1 Nov period. All the 173 fellows representing 87 countries and stationed in 15 different campuses in USA gathered at Le'nfant Plaza Hotel in Washington DC. They attended seminars/workshops, visited many high schools of nearby DC area, took part in the reception party hosted by the State Dept, viewed the leadership qualities of Hubert Humphrey in documentary films and more importantly, committed themselves to make a difference in their own society/field/country.
It was indeed a special previledge for all humphrey fellows to be honored with such respects & expectations from them.
I flew to DC (Ronald Reagan Airport) from Boston. Reagan airport is very close to downtown Washington DC - just 3 stations away from L'enfant Station by the famous Metro Subway. It's a wonderful modern airport.