My last article ended when Emily Cegielski, Saige Pilgrim, and I returned to our hotel room Saturday night after an exciting first day. Harvard’s giant halls no longer seemed as intimidating, and we were now on a first name basis with each person on the Harvard mock trial team.

The courtroom demeanor workshop, closing statements workshop and the opening statements workshop completed the series of classes. We then began to focus on the scrimmage taking place that afternoon. Emily, Saige and I were each on different teams that consisted of approximately nine students and two or three Harvard students serving as coaches. We were given various attorney and witness roles to perform. I gave the prosecution opening statement, cross-examined the defendant and played a kidnap victim, Bailey Reynolds.

As Bailey, I was direct examined by a South Korean girl named Chae-Young Lee. Her voice was soft and timid of the English language, so I often had to ask her to repeat sentences. She also struggled to understand what I said. English was hard enough, but adding an accent that she had never heard made my words harder to comprehend. Despite our language barrier, we became friends.

The trial simulations passed fairly quickly. Two Harvard students served as judges and wrote us personal critiques instead of scores determining a winner. We were proud of our performances and received very nice compliments.

I had a chance to sit down with some of the Harvard mock trial members and ask them a few questions about the seminar. Harvard junior Caitlin Riley explained how the idea for a high school mock trial seminar began.

“We did it as a fundraiser to send one of our teams to nationals, and we also wanted to share our mock trial experience with all of you,” Riley said.

She told me that their goal when preparing the seminar’s material was to cover the seven main parts of a mock trial: direct examination, cross-examination, opening statements, closing statements, objections, character witnesses and courtroom demeanor. She believes that mock trial is an excellent way to learn analytical thinking, develop public speaking and have fun with your teammates who become like family.

I later asked Joe Kerns, Harvard junior and co-captain of the mock trial team, if they planned to make the seminar an annual event.

He replied, “Yes, if the turnout is as good as this year. We expected to get a much smaller number. We have enjoyed this, and I was impressed to watch you guys work.”

To celebrate the last night of our trip, we took the subway into downtown Boston. Emily and I squealed in amazement when we saw a giant teapot secreting smoke above the entrance to a Starbucks. We stopped to take pictures and reference our map for directions. Suddenly, an elderly Boston native asked if we needed help finding something, and we asked about the best place to eat. (He knew we were tourists after witnessing Emily and me obsessing over the teapot.) He suggested that we walk to the little Italy section of town if we wanted Italian food. He then offered us a little Boston trivia.

“Do you know that we are standing on the most famous square of World War II?” he asked.

We learned that the square was once flooded with American heroes returning from war after their ships docked in Boston harbor. By the pride in his voice, we guessed that he had witnessed that sight.

Once in little Italy, we passed numerous restaurants until a group of Italians persuaded us that their restaurant, Dolce Vita, was the best in town. Not long after entering the small yet stylish restaurant, I noticed that we were the only ones in the room who did not speak Italian. We pondered over the menu and eventually ordered. Our waiter was quick to correct our pronunciation of the dishes. As we ate, a singer and accordion player serenaded the customers at each table. Everything from the bread and olive oil to the pasta and seafood was exquisite.

Our good weather streak ended as soon as we stepped foot in the Boston airport Monday morning. Slushy snow began to fall, causing problems with the planes. We boarded our plane on time, but we were taken off the runway twice to be de-iced, causing us to miss our connecting flight from Charlotte, N.C., to New Orleans.

After arriving in New Orleans on a later flight, our next destination was Jones County Junior College to play in our school basketball game. Despite having slept only eight hours during the trip, the adrenaline held on long enough to keep us functioning throughout the game. We returned home that night with new knowledge, wonderful memories and a basketball victory.