Kim Simpson, 17, from Paisley, just outside of Glasgow, Scotland, flew from her small town to the bustling city of London, England to catch her connecting flight to the Calgary International Airport in Alberta, Canada. Arriving on the 30^th of June, after a ten and a half hour flight, Kim met up with the 2nd Ontario Patrol. She had met three of the girls and the two leaders from this patrol in India a year before. Kim met the group of Canadians at one of the Girl Guide world centers, Sangam, in India, where she quickly became friends with Marie Kerr and Emma and Fiona McGee. Two of the leaders on the India trip, Susan Thompson and Kris McGee, invited their new Scottish friend to join their patrol that would be heading to Alberta for the Guiding Mosaic 2016 camp.

“I was really excited to be invited to Canada,” Kim says, “I’ve never been to Canada before so I was really looking forward to it, but also nervous because I’ve never flown by myself before.”

For a week, Kim explored the province with her Ontario friends, visiting many popular tourist destinations. Lake Louise, the Columbian Icefields, the Calgary Stampede and caving in Banff were all stops the group of Girl Guides made, including daily stops to Tim Hortons, as Kim has discovered a love for Tim Horton’s Ice Caps.

After a small tumble off the peak of Whistler’s Mountain and 5 stiches later, the international camper arrived in Sylvan Lake at GM 2016. After being assigned to Grizzly Peak and being given a maroon hat, Kim set off on her first out trip to the Red Deer animal shelter where she spent her morning surrounded by dogs, baby bunnies and “fun sized” cats.

When asked about the fun sized cats, Kim’s response was, “I want one.”

On the first night of camp, Kim proudly held her Scottish flag high (with the help of some tall friends) during the camps opening ceremony. Being the only girl camper from Scotland, Kim has been searched for and found by many of the other campers. So much so, that after only two days at camp, almost all off her swaps have been traded away.

“Canadian swaps are really cool. There’s lots of cookie ones which is amazing because we don’t sell cookies in Scotland.”

Although the Scottish camper has only been on Canadian soil for just over a week, it’s safe say that the high mountains and unending forests have left a lasting impression on Kim.