Hey everyone, happy holidays and new year!

This break has been pretty relaxing. Being used to what University of Michigan calls "winter vacations" from undergrad, which only end up lasting 2 weeks (not an exaggeration), I was really excited to find that the med school gave us a 3-week vacation. :) I've mostly stayed at home, hung out with friends from undergrad, and read good non-medical books.

I did go to Chicago for a few days with friends. I'll spare you the photos, as I mostly took pictures of the lamb and steak we ate at a delicious Brazilian steakhouse in Chicago. Food is usually the highlight for me when I travel.

I've also been unwinding after a busy last week of classes. I took the opportunity of having a relatively laid-back Dermatology sequence that week and made it stressful by organizing an Arabic food sale with the Medical Students of Middle-Eastern Descent. We got food donations from delicious Arabic restaurants around Ann Arbor and sold plates of that food at the medical school. All the proceeds went to the Palestine Children's Relief Fund, a great charity that, among other things, sponsors medical trips for children in the Middle East to receive life-saving surgeries and medical care (http://www.pcrf.net/ for more info). Raising money for PCRF was reason enough to try to put on a successful fundraiser after a difficult semester in school, and it ended up being a great success: we sold out all of our food in an hour! And while I'm still receiving checks in the mail from amazing faculty and physicians who have donated to the cause, we raised more than $1200!! Never would I have imagined raising that much from a food sale, but it seems the Arabic food and great cause was enticing enough:) Here are some pictures:

Putting on the food sale fundraiser has probably been my favorite UMMS memory so far, and it felt great having the support of faculty. And based on the enthusiastic responses, MSMD will definitely have to make this an annual event. :)

Alright, time to enjoy the last few days before M2 year continues! Take care!