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Climbing mountains, studying dinosaur bones and walking through the largest mall in North America- these are some of the activities the YMCA Cumberland group from Nova Scotia got to take part in with the Alberta Junior Forest Wardens as part of a YMCA Youth Exchange earlier this month.
Here are some photos of their exchange:
Escalader des montagnes, étudier les os de dinosaures et se promener dans le plus grand magasin d’Amérique du Nord; telles sont les activités auxquelles a participé le groupe de Cumberland du YMCA venu de Nouvelle-Écosse avec le Junior Forest Wardens d’Alberta dans le cadre d’un Échange Jeunesse au début du mois.
Voici quelques photos de leur échange :
Group photo in Banff | Photo de groupe à Banff
Out and about on Whyte Ave. | Promenade dans l’avenue White
Community clean-up in Old Strathcona, Edmonton| Nettoyage communautaire à Old Strathcona, Edmonton
Hanging out at the Fringe Festival | Sortie au Festival Fringe
Saying goodbye to the Regional Coordinator for the Prairies Andrea | Au revoir au coordonnateur régional des Prairies, Andrea
YMCA EXCHANGES | ÉCHANGES DU YMCA 
The participants were amazed at how much they got to know one another in such a short time. A great group of kids from two parts of Canada melded so well and had an amazing couple of weeks together. Many tears were shed at the Edmonton airport when it came time for the NS kids to depart. Plans are already under way for some kids to come back to Alberta in the spring. As a parent, I would highly recommend participating in an exchange coordinated by the YMCA!
It was a great experience all around. The kids not only made some great new friends, but each group learned something of each culture. Even though we are all in Canada the difference between Nova Scotia and Alberta in some things was vast and in other things not at all. My kids really enjoyed it and continue to talk to their new friends. I highly recommend taking advantage of this program!
This was a thoroughly enjoyable and educational trip. We all learned something new about this amazing country we live in, but more importantly, we made life-long friends and memories. For many, this was a once-in-a lifetime opportunity, one on which we will reflect for years to come. I would do another exchange with the YMCA in a heartbeat.
‘Twas fun! I would do it again.