By Xinlan ‘Annie’ Chen, Dormitory Life Division Head

It was the afternoon of March 17th when the North Campus welcomed its first group of student residents back. After over 14 hours of travel, they finally arrived at Logan International Airport.

“Hey! It’s Mr. Betti, text me when you land!”

This was the first greeting that appeared on their phones after landing. The text was sent thirty minutes before they landed, and, when students finally met Mr. Betti in the lobby, it was another forty minutes later. How long had he been waiting?

Mr. Betti was energized and cheerful as usual. He stood on his toes and waved when he spotted dorm students coming out of the exit, exclaiming, “Hey, what’s up guys!”

If you have travelled before, either by a bus, a train, or a plane, you would understanding what it is like to be picked up at the station or the airport. Mr. Betti was the one who took away our traveling anxieties and fatigues. There was no longer the worry of calling a cab and waiting for another hour.

In the shuttle, Mr. Betti tried hard to start conversations.

“So, how was your spring break guys?” Mr. Betti spoke in his casual tone.

Unfortunately, everyone was too tired to give an answer with same energy, perhaps because we were all half-conscious (since it would be half past three in the morning in China), so all he got was weak “good”s.

“Oh come on! Allen, what did you do in China? Anything fun?” Mr. Betti did not give up and started to call on names.

Making unremitting efforts, Mr. Betti finally got some answers. Interestingly, they were very similar, and there was nothing involving traveling around and visiting sites in the answers. Nothing one may expect when talking about going to another country. In all of the answers, common keywords included family, friends, food, sleep, and hanging around, things most students would do on a normal weekend, yet all of us were satisfied.

Even though eventually saying goodbye was harder than never going back home, and though the process probably included hugs and tears, most of our world travelers are now back, fully charged, ready to continue their journey on this foreign land.