Holiday adventures in Timor-Leste

As students get ready for the upcoming school holidays, a group of 1st Forestville Venturer Scouts have looked back on their July adventure to Timor-Leste.

Sam and Hamish, who were part of the Patrol of seven Venturer Scouts, supported by two Leaders, spent their July school holidays on an exciting trip to explore a different culture and learn about its recent history.

“On this trip I learnt about the deep history of Timor-Leste, the way of life for the people and the different elements special to their culture,” Sam said.

“I also, however, learnt that anything is better with friends, whether it be scuba diving through coral reefs or simply sitting in a car going from one place to another.

“Something unexpected that happened though was getting stung by a sea creature while attempting to swim in Akrema beach on Atauro Island. I still don’t know what the animal was but being stung by something on the trip was not something I was expecting. The locals were able to treat it with some paste made of crushed-up leaves and I found the whole experience very new and exhilarating.”

The Patrol chose to go to Timor-Leste as they felt it was the perfect place as Scouts to truly experience camping, hiking and learning about new and diverse cultures through living in them. They were hoping to learn new skills and experience new things, as well as having lots of fun.

They know the trip would not have happened without the help of the Dick and Pip Smith Leadership Through Adventure Fund, which covered the cost of flights, local tour guides, transport, and camping costs.

“We wanted a new experience for our Group, and the fund seemed like the best course of action to do so as it would be a big journey overseas,” Hamish said.

“We had an amazing experience with lots of hard work that all paid off in the end. There were some problems that came about, such as a missing bag and that sting, but overall the incredibly nice locals and beautiful sights got us through to the end.

“This trip 100 per cent lived up to and surpassed our expectations due to the wonderful people, tasty food and super fun activities we were able to experience along the way. Although at the start I was sceptical and sure I wouldn’t enjoy being away from home for so long, I ended up having a great time that I don’t regret at all.

“My favourite part of the trip was going on a 45-minute hike to a waterfall during the highlands tour. Although the hike was steep and tiring, reaching the waterfall was worth it and we ended up getting soaked without even going in the water.”

As they reflected on the trip, Sam and Hamish both agreed that being a Venturer Scout has been a “wonderful experience” which they would recommend to anyone to try out, “especially if your Group can come together and organise special trips like this”.