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period in Scottish history, was a fellow sufferer. Sometimes being on deck helped. I recall one voyage as we rounded Cape Wrath, Maggie was wedged in a seat on deck when the ship was struck by a sudden fierce squall. Maggie and seat slithered across the deck as the chum who got me into guiding and I scrambled after her before she hit the scuppers. Maggie was a stalwart support. I took the mike during one of her tours from Oban to Inveraray Castle and I’ll always remember her comment. “That was very good, Norma, and when you gain a bit more experience, you will learn when to be quiet!” That was my best lesson in the danger of “information overload” of the pax and the art of letting the scenery do the talking from time to time! This lesson was endorsed during a trip I made to Canada some years later when the tourist guide never shut up and everyone was ready to throttle her at the end of the day...’
Ten days in the life of a guide
By Lyn Brown
‘What I really love about tourist guiding is the sheer variety of the work. Take one 10-day period as an example:
Day 1 – bus into Glasgow to meet up with 3 Swiss businessmen, all colleagues and friends on their annual guys’ getaway. They wanted a walking tour focussing on history and architecture so I planned a fairly standard tour of historic sites and Georgian and Victorian architecture – then they asked where the modern buildings were! Did they want to see the SEC, the Hydro and the Riverside Museum? Yes, please! Did they want to try public transport, or get a taxi? Not on your life, they were enjoying the walk. Cue one much needed foot-bath at the end of the day.
Day 2 – Early start for a cruise ship excursion from Newhaven to St Andrews. This was a private tour, a family of 4 in a chauffeured car, so a bit of a rest after the walk the day before. En route they decided they wanted to visit the Secret Bunker then it was into St Andrews – father and son were both golfers so the Old Course was a must for them while mother and daughter were more interested in the Cathedral and the book shops. I had thought of different places for lunch but in the end they opted for hot pastries from Fisher and Donaldson, eaten out of the bags as we walked through the town.
Day 3 – Off to Glasgow airport to pick up an Indian family of 12 from the States, take them for lunch, then do a city tour before dropping them at their hotel. Of course, they were all arriving on different flights, some of
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