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Scotland. Some tourist attractions started to provide Japanese translations of their leaflets and guidebooks, others hired Japanese speaking staff for the summer. However, at many of the remote places we toured, we were still greeted with bewildered smiles as we were the first ever Japanese visitors.’
Misako Udo loves taking Japanese tours to the Whisky distilleries. ‘Scotch Whisky was a luxurious item back then and for ordinary Japanese people, a distillery tour would never have crossed their minds until the Bubble Boom,’ she said. ‘Now they can’t get enough of it. Even after the bubble burst, the popularity of the whisky distillery tours has remained strong.
‘Looking back at the late 80s to mid-90s now, it was a great time for Japanese guides in Scotland. We didn’t have the convenience of smart phones, but people were eager to embrace the new experiences and wanted even more. We all loved and enjoyed telling stories of Scotland and showing off the beauty of our adopted country. We felt rewarded when the tourists told us they couldn’t wait to visit again,’ she added. ‘When the bubble boom burst, the Japanese economy shrank and the whole dynamic of tourism in Japan has been changed ever since. The cherry blossoms that bloomed so beautifully once and warmly invited everyone are now in winter, and the tight buds are waiting patiently for the spring to blossom once more.’
In the first decade of the new millennium Scotland started to see increasing numbers of Chinese and Russian visitors and the Scottish Government approached the STGA to ask if it could run a "fast track" course to train new Chinese and Russian speaking guides.
‘The STGA didn't have a fast track option but agreed to run a Green Badge course for one year.
‘Pat and I concentrated on the Edinburgh, Glasgow and the route to Inverness via Trossachs. They were a great group and we had a lot of fun with them.
‘There was a lot of publicity. I remember being interviewed in the Chinese Garden at the Botanics with the Culture Minister, receptions at Bute House, going to the Open in St Andrews and lots of newspaper articles and a radio interview.
‘We all received scarves, which I still have, showing the colours of the Scottish flag and the Chinese one.
Xiaopeng Bao said: ‘I just remember we were really happy and everything went well.”
Blue Badge Guide Maggie McLeod who ran the course with fellow guide, Pat Blain, said the STGA got a lot of publicity out of the initiative as did the Scottish Government who paid 50 per cent of the student’s fees.
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