2024 Pax Lodge Trip
July 22, 2024
From June 5–15, 2024, 11 local Girl Scouts and three adults traveled to London to stay at Pax Lodge, one of the World Centers of The World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts. The travel group planned their trip, including staying at Pax Lodge, with the guidance of their adult chaperones. The entire trip was girl-led and fully supported by Girl Scout volunteers!
All trip participants were pinned in a special ceremony led by Pax Lodge volunteers, Carol from Mexico and Lisa from Nigeria. The Pax Lodge pin is only available to those who have physically visited the World Center in London. Some Girl Scouts are on a mission to visit all of them!
Two Girl Scouts from this trip also attended GSNI’s council-sponsored trip to Our Chalet this summer and have plans to go to Mexico next summer. One of the other Girl Scouts (maybe more!) is joining them at Nuestra Cabana on another girl-led trip. Michelle, the group’s lead chaperone, has already visited four World Centers and cannot wait to see where these young women travel next!
While in London, the Girl Scouts also planned an unforgettable bridging ceremony. Michelle writes, "We started the morning with an individual and group photo shoot in full uniform. Earlier in the week, the girls all received their official Pax Lodge necker, and it was great to see them wear it alongside their khaki uniforms. We visited the Crown Jewels at the Tower of London before heading to Tower Bridge. We were lucky enough to see the bridge rise while we were waiting to enter. We started our ceremony on one end of the bridge and began our ‘pass it on’ step. Then we climbed up Tower Bridge and held the rest of the ceremony over the glass bottom floor as London passed below us. We did the traditional ceremony by making a bridge out of our arms as well as a non-traditional, but equally epic Chat-GPT assisted Shakespearean bridging ceremony. Everyone received the badges and patches they earned at a Court of Awards Ceremony. After we went down the bridge (through the gift shop, of course, where we all got Tower Bridge pins), we finished our ceremony with the ‘look ahead’ requirement. I was so excited to hear so many say that travel will continue to be in their future!"
During the trip, Girl Scouts completed the Senior Traveler badge, Ambassador Photographer badge, LaSER London Challenge, GirlGuiding iCANDO Challenge, Pax Lodge Monopoly Challenge, Pax Lodge Challenge (Harry Potter, Turn Back Time, or Paddington), and at least four people earned the Pax Lodge World Center Challenge!
Girl Scouts who went on the London trip shared their thoughts about their favorite activities.
Eliza tells us, “Girl Scouts took me to London for 10 DAYS! Going to another country is truly an experience! It’s shown that only 25% of people get to go to another country in their lifetime, and GSNI is taking me to three new countries in two years—Switzerland, England, and Mexico! London was so much fun, and I loved how the trip was girl-led, so the girls got to choose what to do each day. My favorite days were when we went to Abby Wood and dug for fossils. I found many shells, and I found shark teeth! I also got to learn how about 55 million years ago the park we went to in Abby Wood was previously under water. We also got to climb the O2, which is this shopping center! It was so much fun, and I’ve never done anything like that before!”
Kahlan says, “I had a great trip to London! I was really stressed about going, but am I glad I did! My favorite part(s) were going to see Wicked and spending time with my friends at the Harry Potter studio tour! I would recommend going because this trip can help you if you aren't too social like myself, and it can help you grow. Plus, it was really fun!”
Julia says, “I got the amazing opportunity to go on one of GSNI’s international trips to London, England! Going with Girl Scouts was such an amazing opportunity, and it really helped me grow as a person. It prepped me for life, learning how to use public transportation and planning. Some of my favorite memories were exploring the Seven Sisters Cliffs, along with visiting Stonehenge and Bath. As my second Girl Scout destination trip, it has changed me for the better! I am so happy I get to call Girl Scouts my second home.”
Abbi notes, “With GSNI, I was able to go on a trip to London and explore a country with a completely different geography than my home. My favorite activity was being able to go to Abbey Wood and dig in their fossil beds to uncover shells and shark teeth. As someone who wants to be a geologist, this experience was very insightful.”
Mikayla tells us, “My favorite parts of London were the cliffs, Harry Potter Studios, and Stonehenge!”
Elinor remarks, “While I was in London, I really enjoyed climbing the O2. It was a lot of fun because you get to climb up using ropes as a rail, and the view from the very top is an amazing, once-in-a-lifetime view. It was also really good for people who are afraid of heights. It is a good start if you want to get into climbing but are too nervous for some of the more intimidating climbs.”
Michelle shares this advice, "I often hear from leaders that they want to take their girls traveling, especially internationally. They want to know where to start. START LOCAL. In August, we went on a mandatory overnight to Chicago where we stayed at Hosteling International, visited museums, ate in a large group, grocery shopped for a picnic lunch, walked for miles, and rode the Metra, eL, and city buses. Girls went from ‘What's a Ventra card?’ to learning how to use Google Maps for public transit and tapping in for every ride. Chaperones got practice counting to 14 very quickly. Just like camping, travel is a progression, so setting the girls up for success in a nearby city meant navigating London was second nature. Girls with cell phone access were finding the fastest public transit route; they were experts at tapping in AND out with their new Oyster Card, and of course, everyone knew to mind the gap. Even younger Girl Scouts can start practicing some of these soft skills, like going to a museum or theatre performance and ordering for themselves in a restaurant. Then when they go to another country, they understand what to do and travel with such confidence!”
Thank you to the amazing volunteers who helped in the planning for this trip, and to all trip participants for sharing their thoughts about this wonderful travel experience!
To learn more about how to travel with Girl Scouts at any age, visit GSUSA’s Travel webpage.
