It is said that the real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes. This is basically what happened to me since I joined the Local Guides programs just a few months ago.
Obviously I was no stranger to Google Maps and some of its features. I used to curate a private map of Milano, with all my favourite places organised in extremely detailed categories and ready to be shared with friends and friends-of-friends coming to Italy from other countries.
And that’s where it all got started.
(My first Map of Milano made using the “MyMaps” feature, and a sneak peek at what’s inside)
Milano is the economic heart of Italy, a lively city that is blooming year after year: the home of fashion and design. But when you are visiting Italy and you have on your schedule cities like Rome, Florence or Venice, and then you stop in Milano a few days before flying back to your place it is easy to miss its charm.
I used to tell them: please, give Milano the chance it deserve! I know we don’t have the amazing Uffizi museum in Milano, but you can visit one of the biggest cathedrals in Europe whose factory is open and running since 1387 (and then you can enjoy the evening show of a hidden open-air cinema on the rooftop of a renaissance building next to it).
Of course you won’t see the polished Michelangelo’s Pieta, but here you can admire his last and unfinished work, a poignant and moving masterpiece that reveals all his genius and sensibility.
We don’t have the suggestive canals of Venice, but you can still enjoy a romantic apero at the two-seats bar overlooking Naviglio river.
The beauty of this city was so clear to me, and I was determined to do all my best to show it to my friends.
With some of them, I succeed 
and this made me so proud. Not proud of me, obviously, but proud of my city.
(On the background, my german friend Lea while enjoying this delicious cod at Il Liberty, one of my fav place in Milano.)
So when I became a Local Guide I tried to apply the same mindset to this new adventure, aware of the fact that my audience now was basically the entire world. This made me feel empowered and motivated, since I realised that this was also a way to thank the places that I really love and give them something back through my review (sometimes it can be a new client, some other just a smile).
Reviewing all that places pushed me to ask myself some game-changing questions. It seemed obvious to me why I liked them, but what about others? Why should a family with kids feel at ease in this restaurant, for example? Will a foreign visitor get some Italian vibes eating here?
I started scouting for details, and I discovered new exciting sides of the places I thought I knew well.
I still do. There were a lot things I used to take for granted and now I feel so enriched by the fresh perspective that this different attitude has unlocked.
I love to see how impactful is my contribute reading the monthly report on my mail. 40’000 views? This means 40’000 people that spent some of their time with me. No matter the distance or the differences, we now have something in common.
I’m new to all this. There are a lot of features in this program that I still need to get confident with: the journey to find my identity as a local guide has just started. But it seems like a wonderful journey, and I don’t even need to move to enjoy it.
Best.
Filippo