This is the daily diary of the four Langdon Community travellers in Boston, being kept by Dave Reilly. Please read on... 

12 October - Did you know that there is another 4 o’clock? I do, it’s in the morning or should I say the middle of the night. This is the time I had to get up this morning to start the long trek from Manchester to Boston for the Langdon/Till exchange. Me, Michelle and Natasha flew out of Manchester for the 30 minute hop to London to pick up Hadley then we started a 7 hour flight across the pond to Boston, where we gained an extra 5 hours on an already long day. We were greeted with a warmly at the Boston Airport, being told to “Have a nice day” many times.After picking up our S.U.V. from Alamo car hire we proceeded in an English fashion, getting used to driving on the wrong side of the road. We arrived at our destination in Westwood in about 30 minutes; don’t know what we did before Sat-Nav. On our arrival we were met by the Till staff together with about a dozen people from there organisation and we were made very welcome. There was a lovely meal prepared for us all and we were introduced to everyone there. They were all very friendly and interested in our visit and im sure we will see much more of them. Afterwards Linda showed us around the property and pointed out where everything was. Later we discovered 2 lovely hampers of snacks and gifts from the people at Till which was very good of them and we have been invited to a Halloween party on the 24 of October. They said I can comes as I am, “not sure if that was a compliment or not”. We spent the evening time watching cable T.V. and chilling out. We’re all very tired and looking forward to a good sleep and the rest of the exchange.

13 October - Lazy day today! I got up at 7.30; I can’t sleep but feel tired. We hung around the house this morning, then after lunch Hadley rang his mum. We had a drive to Brookline to see where we will be going for Shabbat, it looked very nice. On return we went to the local supermarket to buy some food. Most of the brands were unfamiliar and the prices were a bit higher than we thought they would be. However, the staff were very helpful and one member pushed our trolley to the car for. When we got back to the house we had a visit from Alison, from Till. She had setup a placement for us tomorrow at Nashua, in New Hampshire. So we rested up as we knew we would be up early in the morning.

14 October - We set off for the Till head office this morning to see Cindy who would be taking us to our placement at Cravings Gift Shop and Café, in Nashua. Whilst waiting we met Alison, Linda and our old friend Matt (he came to England on the previous Exchange), who we are arranging to see next week sometime to go round Boston.Cindy set off and we followed but she lost us at the second set of lights but I had my trusty sat-nav and found my way their no problem.Once we were there Cindy showed us where they make the gifts that they sell in the front of the shop. They are made by members of Till in the basement supported by staff 5 days a week. They all seemed to enjoy going there and doing different types of craft work to be sold for the benefit of the organisation. Back upstairs, the shop manager Scott took us all into the kitchen and after fitting us all in our protective and hygienic coveralls, including hairnets, he got Hadley and Natasha to help him make cookey dough, which will be cooked and sold in the shop. Both Hadley and Natasha did really well at putting the ingredients in the bowl and mixing them. After which Scott cooked a few so we could test them for quality control. They passed I’m pleased to say. On leaving Nashua, we made our way to a town called Manchester-by-the-Sea, which is south of Gloucester. It is very different to the Manchester we know as this is a little town by the sea. We then headed back towards Boston, stopping at Salem. We had a walk round the streets looking in the shops for witch related gifts and took some photos. Then we went in the Salem Witch Museum, where we sat inside and watched a presentation about the history of the Salem Witch Trials of 1662 before returning home to Westwood, dinner and bed.

15 October - We set off this morning to a shop owned by Till called Essence of Thyme, situated in Hyde Park about 15 mins from where we are staying in Westwood. When we arrived Gina showed us round and I found that it was similar to the one we went to yesterday in Nashua except much bigger. Michelle and Natasha worked in the kitchen preparing salad tubs and snack bags of donuts, milk and juice. They prepare 1000 meals a day which are then transported to schools and served to children. Hadley and I went down into the basement and sorted boxes of cups, lids, trays, plastic utensils and condiments, which had become mixed up and untidy. Then we sorted a stock room out that needed boxes moving off the floor so they would not be damaged from leaking water. After we had lunch with the other people who work there, either making food in the kitchen or producing craft items to sell in the gift shop. We got on really well with them all and look forward to seeing them on Monday morning when we go back. We will be starting early to prepare breakfasts and hope to go with them when they are taken to the schools. After lunch we came back to the house to make some Skype calls to family before they went to bed back in the U.K. Then we travelled down the road to Super Stop and Shop for groceries. We found some kosher hot dogs, so will look forward to having those this weekend. It was nice to have our bags packed for us at the check out. It is great that once they hear our English accents they can’t do enough for us and want to know why we are here and if we are enjoying our stay. After dinner we relaxed in front of the telly and Hadley and Tash had an early night as they were tired.

16 October - After breakfast Alison from Till arrived to see how we were getting along, she followed by Paula in a mini bus who together took us for a sight seeing trip to down town Boston. As we drove round they pointed out interesting places and showed us things we might like to see when we return ourselves this weekend. We drove around Boston Common which was their equivalent of central park. We couldn’t stop there to have a look round as all the parking spots were coned off for film crews making a movie with Tom Cruise. We looked from the bus but could not see him. We then drove past Cheers Bar, the old State House, Boston City Hall and the JFK Federal Building before parking near the Faneuil Hall Marketplace. Parking was fun, as the bar on a chain over the entrance to the parking lot was 6ft 1inch and the bus was higher than that, so it scraped the roof as we drove in. Luckily a guy who worked let us park in a reserved spot just inside the entrance, which was nice. Once outside we went to the famous Quincy Market. We will come back here another day as it is ideal for buying gifts to bring home. Coming out the other side we took time for a photo opportunity, you will notice if you see the picture that Hadley is frowning, this is his “im starving” face so next stop was a pasta restaurant in the Italian quarter of the North End of Boston. After having our fill we walked back to the bus and then Paula drove us home to Westwood, promising to see us again and show us round some of the Till projects next week. This evening we were invited to Shabbat dinner at Brookline House. There are 5 guys who live there but only 3 were there tonight. Dennis, Joel and Danny. They all have a very good sense of humour and together with Kingsley, who is the house manager, made us very welcome. The food was very very good and later we were given a musical recital by Benjamin who was Dennis’s nephew, for a seven year old it was very good. We also watched a five minute video called April Madness, where the guys are set a series of goals over a month to push them to achieve things they might not have thought they could do. We look forward to seeing them again next Friday.

17 October - After Hadley and Natasha had spoken to their parents on Skype we walked across the road to the station to catch the train to Boston. When the ticket inspector arrived he mistakenly assumed the me, Michelle, Natasha and Hadley were a family so he charged us a family return which saved us over $20. Result. At Back Bay Station we departed the commuter train and walked outside as we were going to the Sky Walk on the 50th floor of the Prudential Building, the second tallest building in Boston. Once there it was easy to find the ticket booth and then up an incredibly fast lift to the 50th floor, where we enjoyed the birds eye views of Boston; seeing the old State House, The John Hancock Tower, The Charles River and Fenway Park, home to the Boston Red Socks. Once down at ground level the plan was to go on the Duck Tour round Boston, which also takes you into the Charles River because they are amphibious, but the next available seats were at 4.30 and this was too late so we went back to the station (will try again next week). After sussing the machine we headed for Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market. Outside there were street performers called YAK who were hip hop dancers. Hadley just ran into the middle of them and started to copy there warm up moves. They were quite happy to let him and told the crowd watching that he was their new member called “White Chocolate”. They performed for about 20 minuets with dances and acrobatics and poked fun at the crowd because it was predominantly white and they were all black. Both Hadley and Natasha thoroughly enjoyed this. We got lunch inside Quincy Market which was packed out with shoppers and Tourists and we were asked a few times what we were doing in Boston by interested locals who always wished us the best with our stay in Boston. We spent the rest of our afternoon shopping for presents on the stalls in and around the 3 market halls, before making our way back to the subway station and then from Back Bay station to Islington station which is outside the house.

18 October - We had a lie in this morning, up at 8am, Natasha and Hadley spoke to their parents on Skype, then about 11.30 we went down the road in heavy rain to put some petrol in the car. I probably looked a bit bemused standing in front of the pump as it’s not like we are used to back home. You have to pay for your petrol first but I didn’t know how much I wanted so played safe and put two $10 notes in the slot then you press a button to say what fuel you want. This is the important bit as it all comes out of the same nozzle, so I pushed for regular unleaded and put $20 in I didn’t wait to see if it shut off when I got to $20 as I did not want to look any more stupid than I already was. Once the receipt popped out we set off to meet our old friend Tom Graef at the Natick Mall, which is the biggest shopping mall in New England and only 25 minuets from us at Westwood. After memorising were we had parked we walked into the mall and after about 10 minuets we saw Tom sat on a lower level from us. At this point Hadley who was exited at meeting Tom again started shouting Tom, Tom at the top of his voice all the way down the escalator. He was so loud that people came out of shops to see what the commotion was but I Tom was thrilled that he had been so fondly remembered. We then walked to P. F. Chang`s Chinese Bistro for lunch. The lunch time menu was excellent and the mini deserts were fantastic and very reasonably priced. After lunch Tom said his goodbyes and we arranged to meet up with him again before we return home. We then spent a couple of hours window shopping and Hadley and Natasha bought a few presents for family and friends. On exiting the Mall we found that we would have to drive home in a snow storm. This continued off and on all evening and I’m sure this was the reason I didn’t see anything of the possum I saw earlier on in the week.

19 October - Up at 6am this morning so we can be on the road for 7.15am.  We had to be at Essence of Thyme in Hyde Park for 8am to pack lunches. When we got there Gina set out all the things we had to pack on a table. Natasha put a small bag of carrots and an apple in a paper bag then Hadley put mayonnaise and ranch sauce with a spark and a sandwich on top. Then me or Michelle rolled up the bag and stapled it. These were then put in to boxes and loaded into a van to be taken to a school. We did 125 bags. After this Natasha and Michelle went into the kitchen to pack some food trays for school dinners and me and Hadley went into the basement to rotate some display stock; putting the summer display on the shelves and moving the Xmas holiday displays closer to the door. This is so it can be moved upstairs to the shop after Halloween has finished. After we had finished we started cleaning the bookshelves in the café till lunch time. After lunch we had a drive to Braintree and had a coffee and a donut at Dunkin Donuts. We also had a look around the shops before heading for home to do some laundry. The weather today was cold this morning but sunny and warm for the rest of the day, so we took some photos outside before dinner. Early night tonight as we are all tired and Paula is coming tomorrow at 9am to take us on a full day trip around the Till properties and services.

20 October - Paula came round at 9am to take us out to the Watertown Day Program. Here we met the Till Central Group. After a tour round to see what they do on a day to day basis we tailed a small group to the Yawkey distribution centre where we helped to load the Till Mini Bus with food stuffs donated by different parties to the centre. We then followed them to the Reverend Pauls Pilgrim Church were we all helped to unload and carry it all down to the store room in the basement. Both Hadley and Natasha did their bit in carrying the sacks and cases of food which will be prepared in a free kitchen for those people in the community on low incomes. Reverend Paul has had some involvement with Till in the past and originally only needed the use of a vehicle. This has now become a fortnightly part of their routine which they all enjoy.After this Paula took us to the Essence Of Thyme in Chelsea where Cindy who we met earlier in the week gave us lunch. My Monti Cristo sandwich had an inch thick layer of meat in it and was excellent. After we had all been fed and watered we walked round the corner with Paula and John to the Till Day Habilitation Centre, where we attended the weekly music event performed by John on his guitar. He sang and played for about a half an hour and the people of a wide range of ages and abilities were very enthusiastic about it, as was Hadley who was in the middle of it dancing, shaking his instrument and singing at the top of his voice. The staff there were very impressed with him. Natasha also enjoyed it but was more subdued in her appreciation of the music. When the music had finished Paula and Donna, the centre Manager, showed us round the facility looking at their day rooms and craft rooms. They also had a gym and a sensory room. After saying our goodbyes we returned back to Westwood so Paula could pick up her car. She had been my personal Sat-Nav for the day and had been more fun and reliable, and also handed out information on the sights we saw as we passed them bye. After dinner we watched TV. Hadley and Natasha both went to bed early as they were tired and we have a busy day again tomorrow.

23 October - Lazy day today, we had a lie in to recharge the batteries; it gave Hadley and Natasha a chance to speak to parents on Skype. This has been a great idea letting them see each other through a Webcam, as well as hear their family on the other side of the Atlantic. In the afternoon, we went out to a local mall round the corner in Dedham and had lunch. I had a massive burger; I just don’t know how people can eat a double or triple burger that were on the menu. You would have to see the picture to believe it. Then a quick look round the shops and back home to get ready to go out to Brookline House for Shabbat dinner. Whilst at Westwood we had a quick visit from Dafna, the President of Till, who came round to see how we are getting on. After her visit we set off for Brookline, the Sat Nav did not get me lost this time and went straight there! We had a lovely dinner and had a laugh with the staff and Guys who live there and before we left we gave them each a Langdon shirt. They all seem pleased with their gifts but they were all camera shy. Once home Hadley and Natasha went straight to bed as they were tired out. We are going to a Halloween Party at Braintree House tomorrow afternoon and expect to meet all the people that were here to greet us when we arrived at Westwood, what seems like ages ago.  

24 October - We are going to a Halloween party today at Braintree house. We were invited by Nina on our very first night in Boston and we still need to find something to wear. In the U.K., you would go to the supermarket or rent something from a fancy dress shop, not in America. You go to a Halloween store and if they don’t have what you want, you go to the one up the road or the one across the street or the one round the corner, they are everywhere. It’s mad in America at this time of the year. Every house is decked out in scary stuff and the pumpkins are everywhere, big ones and small ones. We went into the first shop we came across and got Natasha a witches costume and Hadley a scream outfit. Michelle declined to get anything and I just got some rather fetching Monster Teeth. You could get any costume you could possibly dream of. It took us about 15 minuets to get to Braintree and when we got there the house was massive. Only about 5 people live there but the rooms were huge and one was bigger than the entire down stairs of my house. It was quite full of people from the other houses and more arrived after us. Nina made us very welcome and soon we were playing board games, as the weather was not very good. After we had lunch, then we watched a film on their 72-inch TV screen. All the best dressed people then came into the kitchen for photos before we said our goodbyes and made our way back to Westwood and a quiet night in.

25 October - Well it’s the last one. This time tomorrow we will be on the big silver bird flying home and when we return suffering from jet lag, we will also have our heads messed up by putting the clocks back; apologies if I’m late for work on Wednesday J We have been winding down for the last couple of days and today we went out for the last bit of shopping to a huge shopping village. As with all things American it’s big with 170 outlets, enough to bankrupt Michelle if we let her. After a brisk 2 hour stroll along the shop fronts we returned to Westwood and started packing. Then relaxed in front of TV before going out for dinner round the corner. On our return Natasha and Hadley went to bed whilst Michelle and I discussed our plans for tomorrow. We are meeting up with till for lunch at their Denham office and to say our goodbyes then we will drive to the airport and drop off the rental car. I’m really going to miss that car; it will be hard to go back to a little Ford Fiesta after driving an SUV. Also it will be difficult readjusting to driving on the correct side of the road. I will probably try getting in the wrong side of my car the first time I get in it.We have all enjoyed our trip to Boston. I think we gained valuable experiences by working and visiting the Till establishments. It was good to meet everyone and see all the many different things that they do here. We were made very welcome everywhere we went and hopefully these daily logs have shown you a little of what we have experienced and enjoyed in the last two weeks.

That’s all folks.

Dave.      

Please click the link below to view the latest pictures from the Langdon People in Boston http://www.langdoncommunity.org.uk/past_events.php