Hello again,
We hope many of you had a great holiday weekend. The 180th Pacific Coast Scout Group enjoyed a very special Christmas on over the Pacific, consisting of cup noodles and airplane peanuts. The combination of excitement and anticipation has kept our spirits high through out our 18-hour journey to Manilla.
As we walked out of the airport, we were welcomed by 30 degree sunshine. We made several stops to local government officials, communities. It has been amazing to see how significant the Scouting movement is to the social institution of this part of the world.
For example, many original cooperatives (credit unions) were started by Rover scouts in the 1950s as credit was only available from loan sharks. Unlike Canada, where social programs and facilities are readily available, these co-ops are important staples in suburban communities that rely on fair, equitable and affordable assistance.
We are having a great time. We are now heading to the Asia Pacific Regional Jamboree to attend the opening ceremony.
Pictures will be posted once the internet will allow us to. We have our internet situation a bit more stable so we should be able to post a bit more frequently now. Alternately, http://twitter.com/pccscouts will have on the fly updates from our twitter feed.