Our whole cheer team went to camp in June and that is where cheerleaders have the opportunity to try out for All-American which is a title that some cheerleaders and dancers can achieve if they try out and make it. For the tryout, we did a cheer and a dance along with a jump of choice in front of the whole rest of the camp as well as the staff members who were the judges. On the second to last day of camp we found out the results. When I made it I got a piece of paper and a medal. The piece of paper had QR code with a list of trips you can cheer for All American at. The ones listed on mine were Pearl Harbor or London, so I chose London.
I left for London from New York City on the 26th of December. My family and I, which included my parents and my little brother, were supposed to fly out at 9AM but it got cancelled. We ended up flying out on the 27th and it was a 7.5 hour flight. Once we got to London we took a bus and then got a walking tour of London, and the tour lady made us walk really really fast. On the tour we saw a palace which was really cool.
The day that I cheered I got an opportunity to go early in the morning to go on BBC News channel, so that was also pretty cool. I was down in the lobby ready to go at 5:15AM. We took a bus to the start of the parade and the marching band was there as well. They had all kinds of groups in the parade, there was a dirt biking group, and dancers from Puerto Rico. It was the 40th anniversary, so it was a huge deal, and there were a ton of people. We got to go back and chill at the hotel for a bit and then left again for the parade at 11AM. I warmed up, checked in, and had a little down time. The parade was 2 miles long, and we stopped in front of 7 grandstands. At every grandstand we did the dance we were taught 2 days before we performed. While all of us cheerleaders walked we smiled and waved as we did the cheers. The 2nd to last grandstand was in front of our parents and family and the last one was on television.
After the parade was over, I went back to the hotel and had dinner with the group I flew in with, and I got pretty close with them throughout the trip. My favorite part was touring Windsor’s castle, and my least favorite was traveling overall. I wouldn’t do it again because it was pretty unorganized and the staff didn’t seem like they wanted to be there.
