At 9am on the morning of 26 July, 36 Scouts and four leaders from the GLNE County boarded their coach and left Chingford Plains for their 12 day experience of a lifetime. They were heading to Hylands Park in Essex, which was playing host to 21st World Scout Jamboree to celebrate 100 years of Scouting.

This was the biggest Scouting event ever, with over 43,000 Scouts from 216 countries represented. The GLNE Unit was camped next to Scouts from Portugal, Japan, Germany and Italy, and they all became friends.

The UK Scouts arrived a day early to help people from other countries when they arrived. On the first night there was a UK opening party which featured Peter Duncan (Chief Scout), JK from Radio 1, Lemar, Liberty X (their final gig) and Anne Foy from CBBC.

On the third day there was the official opening which really kick started the Jamboree and in the evening there was a party with lots of acts from around the World. It may have rained all night but this didn’t stop the thousands of Scouts from dancing and having an amazing time.

On 1 August everyone rose early to head down to the main arena for 7:30am to celebrate exactly 100 years since the start of Scouting. During the morning there was a live link to Brownsea Island, where Peter Duncan and two Scouts from every Scouting country were celebrating the Centenary on the spot where Scouting started.

Every Scout in the world renewed their Promise in their own languages; many white doves were released to signify the world peace at the Jamboree. There was a very moving moment when Baden-Powell’s grandson read his last message to Scouts. There was a very strong bond between everyone and there were few people with dry eyes.

During the Jamboree the Scouts took part in many activities including community service and visiting the home of Scouting, Gilwell Park. They also found out about food, clothes, sports, music, dance and traditions from different countries as well as learning about issues in the world such as Aids, refugees, climate change and slaves. They also spent a day at a local reservoir taking part in various water activities.

The GLNE Unit also spent lots of time relaxing and meeting new friends. They had dinner with Scouts from USA, Holland, and Korea forming many new friendships.

On the last night there was the closing ceremony, which featured performances from Mexican, Irish, Indonesian and Hong Kong Scouts. Auld Lang Syne was also played while everyone held hands and sang along, this was an amazing moment having so many people linked. At the end, the flag was handed to Sweden who will be hosting the next World Scout Jamboree in 2011. To end it all, fireworks were set off to end the Jamboree on a high, happy note.

It was an amazing atmosphere at the Jamboree with young people speaking to each other and giving ‘free hugs’ to people they’d never met. The saying ‘there are no strangers, only friends you haven’t met yet’ was certainly true at the Jamboree.

There were many things that left an impression on me on the Jamboree but one thing that I couldn’t fail to notice – the “hellos”. In a world where we live in the shadow of violence and misunderstanding between nations, the “hellos” here always came with a smile, and all barriers ceased to exist. We were all having the time of our lives, aware that peace and friendship are essential to creating an environment made up by a piece of each country. Who would have thought that a simple “hello” could make such a difference?

If 40,000 Scouts from all over the world, countries that are at war, countries at conflict can live together in peace and harmony for 12 days, then why can’t the rest of the world follow Scouting’s lead? The Jamboree participants are the next generation leading the way to world peace.

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