Guides beat the haze to have fun in KL
At the end of October this year 7 girls from Singapore’s 1st Wessex unit flew up to Kuala Lumpur for an adventure. A Baden Powell adventure.
It should have been an outdoor camp, making our own shelters, hiking through the Genting mountain air and catching our own fish for dinner: but the thick haze which has engulfed Indonesia had blown over much of south East Asia and thrown a blanket over KL. On the Wednesday before camp the KL DC’s made the decision that the Great Genting Guide Getaway would have to be postponed until the air was clearer..May? June? but we had flights booked! As a new leader in Singapore I don’t have the experience (or licence) needed to travel internationally with 7 girls so Kathy Hobbs (out-going Outdoor activities co-ordinater for BGIFC) was flying out from the UK to travel with us. She had her flight booked! So, the KL team re-planned, re-catered and re-organised. In 2 short days they put together an impressive, indoor, Baden Powell Adventure covering 1st aid badge and several clauses needed to complete the award and we’re so glad they did!
As we arrived at KL international airport we were welcomed by both District Commissioners who loaded our bags into their 7 seater cars and drove us (through the haze) to Alice Smith International school (where one of the units meets). The sports hall had been booked at the last minute as our base camp, with crash mats and gym mats all round. That Friday evening the girls got stuck in to part 1 of the First aid badge training, decorated their own cardboard box cars, ate pizza together and then it was off to a drive through movie in a separate hall with popcorn.
Saturday was another packed day with a lesson in fake wounds; food court fayre and a trip to KL’s “District 21”: an indoor, trampoline, climbing, adventure course, zip-wire, leap-of-faith adventure centre where the girls had several hours of fun. Back at camp, another member of the amazing KL team had prepared hot dogs for all of us and we played a very memorable 41 games of Bingo (with prize snatching)! On Sunday morning the girls had pancakes delivered to the school (thanks to another KL guide leader), the final first aid lesson with CPR training and then the most amazing game of ‘Human Hungry Hippos’. After lunch it was “the Great Guide Bake-off”, with each team baking and decorating their own cake. Once we’d cleared up and the girls had packed up we all joined together for the presentation of badges and Baden powel awards. Then came the journey home: onto the KL airport express-train and another 45 minute flight home to waiting parents.
Some great friends were made over this weekend that the girls can’t wait to meet again. We heard stories about BGIFC camps, admired blankets and laughed together. We didn’t need our mosquito nets this time, but ‘Operation Haze Sleepover’ was a great adventure.
click here to see their photos
