Column: A Happy Medium, by Erin Murtaugh

This past weekend, I gathered with 5,500 fellow high school journalists in Boston. In the wee hours of Thursday morning, nine Albert Lea High School publication students, including adviser Riley Worth and his wife, headed for Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.

We flew out at 7 a.m. and arrived in Boston around 11 a.m. Eastern time. We took a shuttle to our hotel, which was right by the harbor. We took a little time to rest and freshen up. In the early evening, we took the “T” which is their train system to the Hynes Convention Center, which is where the National Journalism Convention was being held.

Our first stop at the convention was to a room filled with different colleges and yearbook publishing companies who were giving out swag, which varied from buttons to customized media badges. The whole group went into the opening ceremonies. There, we listened to keynote speaker Juliette Kayyem, a former Boston Globe columnist and current candidate for governor of Massachusetts.

After the opening, we wandered up the street to Summer Shack, a seafood restaurant. I wanted to eat authentic seafood, so I ordered calamari (squid), which I had tried before and enjoyed. This was a big mistake because I was used to it being served as little rings, which did not resemble squid at all. When they brought me my food, there were entire little fried squids on my plate. Being able to see what it once was, I couldn’t eat it.

Friday and Saturday during the day, we were at the convention. We were given the freedom to choose what sessions we wanted to attend, so I went to one on column writing and the rest on photography. It was really cool getting to learn from people who are working in career fields that I want to go into.

At night, we were able to do whatever sightseeing we wanted to. Friday night, a small group of us took a train to Chinatown. Boston’s Chinatown is extremely quiet on Friday nights, so for future reference, I would go during the daytime. Saturday, we all rode the train to Cambridge and walked around Harvard’s campus and explored the surrounding area.

On Sunday, our final day in Boston, we started the morning by taking a tour of the Freedom Trail. Our tour guide was dressed in colonial wear. We ended up at Faneuil Hall. Three other people and I walked to the Union Oyster House, which is the oldest restaurant in the United States.

After lunch, my cousin Kelley picked me up and she showed me around Beacon Hill. By 5:30, we were all back at the hotel and loaded up the shuttle to head back to Logan Airport. Our plane took off at 8:50 p.m., and we were back in Minneapolis by 11:30 p.m.

Boston was a fun and exciting trip. I learned a lot at the convention and saw a lot of historical things. I don’t think I would want to live there, but I would definitely take another trip back.

 

Albert Lea resident Erin Murtaugh is a senior at Albert Lea High School.