Russian away
	DURHAM news: This Week
	OFF TO RUSSIA are: Back Row, Brendan Hendel-McCarthy, Siobhan Hendel-McCarthy, Brian Wick, and front row, Andrew Pearce and Sam Morrison.

By Charles McGregor

The Durham Sun

IMAGINE, IF you will, that you spent all day yesterday, Saturday, walking many of the narrow streets and wide avenues of one of the world’s most famous and picturesque cities, St. Petersburg in Russia.

That you’ve seen pretty well everything that’s there to be seen in the time available; that you’re a Canadian teenager who spent last night trying to make yourself understood to the Russian speaking family members where you’re billeted. Would going on a picnic sound good to you?

Doubtless it did to the 11 members of the 1st Whitby Venturers and Rovers, four boys, five girls and their two Scouts Canada leaders, who are now on Day Four of their two week excursion to Finland and Russia.

Today’s picnic, organized by host Scout leaders, will end with the traditional campfire as they relax before heading to the fabled Hermitage tomorrow, where they’ll marvel at some of the more than 3,000,000 items assembled there over the past 250 years. And that’s just one of the things they’ll be doing that day based on their event-packed schedule.

First, Whitby leader and advisor Brian Wick, a life-long Scouter, says that, “For some of these teenagers, this is their first big trip, but some members of the group have a fair bit of overseas travel experience.”

These include brother and sister team Brendan Hendel-McCarthy, 19, and his 16-year-old sister Siobhan?

Brendan says that, “I went to Thailand in 2002, to a Jamboree and to the Czech Republic last year, and I’m really excited about the chance to visit Finland and Russia and to learn a bit more about the people.”

He says he doesn’t speak Russian, although Sam Morrison, another Scout on the tour, ”speaks a little.”

Siobhan, who hopes someday to be an elementary school teacher, also visited the Czech Republic last year and says she’s “looking forward to seeing the different cities, meeting new people, seeing how they live – maybe making lifelong friendships.”

The group will take an overnight side trip to Tallinn, the Estonian capital city and then, the next morning, true to the scouting tradition, they’ll “hike to the ferry dock to catch the ferry to Helsinki, rather than travel by bus, train or boat, as they have been doing.

Other tour stops in Finland include Tampere and Stockholm before they get to Munich to catch the plane home on Sept. 7 – “so they only miss two days of school,” says Scout Leader Wick, as the scouts high-five each other at this thought.

Wick, who studied in Finland in 1996, and who made scouting contacts there and in trips to Russia during the time, says that, “Perhaps they’re a little nervous about what’s ahead, but they’ve worked hard to earn money to pay for this trip and it will be a good education for them. They’re growing up in the global world and they need to see what’s beyond the computer screen.

Wick says the teenagers, who are billeted singly in private homes with the scout families in each country “will get along fine. Scouting is scouting, and there’s always a way around any language barrier. Scouting is a world brotherhood and we all have the same objectives. By staying with other families they’ll see how diverse the world is.”

Some of the travellers admitted they’re not sure about what they’ll be expected to eat. It didn’t sound as though one of Russia’s traditional staples  -- borscht -- was too appealing, but like most teenagers, they’re willing to give it a go. Of course, there’s always McDonald’s. And there is at least one in St. Petersburg. All they have to do is find it. But then, they’re Scouts. How hard could it be for them?

- chickmcgregor@sympatico.ca

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