Summer 2009 was a Spectacular Summer. It was action packed and extremely busy. The highlight of Summer 2009 for me was CEF Scottish Camp! It was FANTASTIC!
This was my first year attending Scottish Camp and I had heard a lot of good reports about it. It was rated as the best ever CEF Camp and everybody who attended it had always the same great positive opinion on this sensational camp. I had previously attended various CEF Camps (Inters and Teen) and if Scottish Camp was as good as they were, it had high standards to reach. And boy, I certainty wasn’t disappointed – Scottish Camp reached those standards and soared way above them.
I am going to try and sum up the whole Scottish Camp in 4 small points:
• Food
• Meetings
• Evening Activity
• Outings
1. Food
The food was delicious and the cooks who prepared it were terrific! They were the most cheerful and happy people at the camp (even in the early mornings). They always had a big smile on their faces or were having a laugh with the campers and leaders. Sometimes it was hard to keep them quiet during the meetings and grace!
On the days that we were leaving the camp centre, we were given a fry with cereal, fruit and tropical fruit juices for breakfast. Those breakfasts were the best, and really set you up for the day’s activity. However, my favourite meal was the banoffee pie because of my sweet tooth – it was delicious!
2. Prayer Meetings / Bible Study / Praise / Discussion time
Every morning before breakfast there was a prayer meeting which I found very fulfilling and helpful. I believe that it set you up for the day and I would truthfully recommend attending these, even though you have to get up a wee bit earlier.
Then we had our morning Bible Study in which David Crutchley lead us and taught us through the highs and lows of the life of David. These lessons were fantastic because they related to us in our everyday lives. I personally found that the ‘Giant Killing’ lesson was very helpful and beneficial as I had been trying to knock down one or two of my own ‘Giants’.
Then in the evening, usually after supper, we had our praise time which was when we got to pick and sing our favourite songs. (I would recommend picking 230, it’s my favourite!) This was a wonderful time of praise and fellowship together.
At the end of the day we had our discussion groups with our dorm and our leader. I found this time to be very beneficial because it gave the opportunity to talk about and discuss any matters that were on your mind and also to discuss the various teaching and experiences throughout the day.
The leaders at Scottish camp aren’t really your leaders – they are more like big campers. They are really great fun and are so passionate and enthusiastic about what they are doing. They set a great example for us campers to look up to.
3. Evening Activity
The evening entertainment was always brilliant fun and always got everyone laughing. It consisted of volleyball (I would recommend anyone to play the volleyball – it is so much fun and by the end of the week you can get really good at it!), football, group board games, social, Edinburgh Tattoo, Concert and much more.
Every evening there was something different and fun to do. The social was so much fun and I won a few different games. I also got to wear my cool checked shirt and then I released I was the only fella wearing a shirt, but I was proud to be different and unique!!
I also thoroughly enjoyed the Edinburgh tattoo. It was one of the many highlights at camp for me. This was my very first time attending it and I sort of expected to just see and hear bagpipes playing the same tune over and over again… but boy was I wrong! There was loads of various displays including RAF military band, TOP SECRET drum group (they were amazing), Chinese display, Caribbean display, military display with guns and army jeeps, fireworks and so much more. It was an amazing time at the Tattoo and I hope to attend again in the future (hopefully next year at Scottish Camp 2010).
On the final evening of Scottish camp there was a concert for the campers to participate in. Each dorm could make up their own little act and perform it in front of the rest of the camp. Our dorm jumped at the occasion and we performed ‘Hit me baby one more time’ by Britney Spears. It was so much fun, I loved it! We were slightly out of tune and high pitched in places but we still managed to win over the audience – it was brilliant! Other acts included:
• The Proclaimers ‘I will walk 500 miles’.
• ‘Weast of the Bann’ by the Girls from the West and East of Northern Ireland.
• A tribal percussion and dance group which had very impressive costumes.
• Some crazy Scottish dancing.
• A singing girl group from Cookstown who made up a very catchy Scottish camp song.
• Blind date with a twist – which included 3 very charming men from Russia, France and Espana and 1 lovely lady from Northern Ireland! I was involved in this act and I was Juan Carlos from Espana! I really enjoyed acting this one out, I had so much fun and it was so funny! I have never laughed so much in all my life!!
4. Outings/Day Activity
On the Saturday we went into Glasgow and did a bit of shopping. Then in the afternoon we all met up and went to M&D’s, Scotland’s Theme Park. We were given a day pass and we could go on all of the rides as many times as we wanted.
I would recommend going on the water rides, the swings and the roller coasters. Watch out for the magic carpet and the pirate boat – they both look relaxing but before you know it you can feel your stomach moving.
Another day we went to Xscape and it was amazing! I have never seen anything like it. It was a huge place and it had loads of things to do at it which included snowboarding, skiing, and tobogganing on real snow inside, bowling, cinema, rock climbing and a skypark, soccer circus, Robocoaster, mini golf, laser station, fun station, and shopping and restaurants. And this was all under the one roof – it was brilliant. We went tobogganing and it was brilliant fun. It ended up turning into a huge snowball fight. Well, we used the toboggans as shovels and threw snow with them (…it worked really well, but don’t tell anyone I said that!)
On the Wednesday we got up early and went into Edinburgh and spent the day there. First of all we had an open air meeting in the middle of the city and campers volunteered to give out tracts to the public. It was my first time doing this and I loved it.
Then after the open air we had the whole afternoon to ourselves and you could go shopping or you could visit the many attractions that Edinburgh offers. Then finally in the evening the highlight of the day was the Edinburgh tattoo. It was spectacular, amazing, awesome! The variety of displays and performances was amazing. I also loved doing the horse game and shouting for Ireland at the start (it gets the spotlight on you). At the very beginning the commentator announced each country and people shouted for their country, but when he came to Ireland the whole 68 campers and leaders stood up and shouted as loud as we could. We were so the loudest we even beat the Scottish – the hosts! Whoop Whoop!
In conclusion I would sincerely recommend Scottish Camp to anybody. It has been the best camp I have ever been on! I had such a great time and I met so many new friends that I hope to meet at the reunion and Scottish Camp next year. I also personally found the teaching and discussion time extremely helpful and valuable in my walk with God and lessons that I will keep with me for life. Seriously, book for CEF Scottish Camp – you won’t regret it!
Graham Dunne (AKA Juan Carlos!!)
PS If you want to see more photos of Scottish Camp check out the Camps page
I couldn’t have said it better myself!! what a great week…highlight of the summer along with training week
Just reading through that made me smile…the memories we all have..lets not forget the message we learned from the life of David now as we are back into our normal routines…pray that God will help each one of us to apply this to our lives and kill the ‘giants’ in our lives.