Hello, awesome peoples in the Local guide connect,
I’m Abdullah Al-Mujahid a Level 8 local guide live in Tallinn, Estonia.
The local guide program is very significant to me, It’s like a family to me, a global family. I got involved in the local guide program back in 2016. Local guide means to me networking, exploring new places, see the path and show the path to the peoples, and it is a lifestyle.
A Local guide like a candle to me, they can show the path to the millions of peoples around the globe. They are like a lighthouse. Who never guide the peoples in a wrong way.
As a Local Guide, I started my journey in 2016 in Bangladesh but before that, I have added photos on the Google maps, not as a local guide, I didn’t know the term “local guide” before. I was an active google map user, and Google maps were my best companions in my several solo trips to neighboring country India. I have never been in a foreign country before, I don’t know anything, I just had Google map and I relied on it, I was confident that the map will not let me lost. When I was in Bangladesh, I joined a meetup, it was my first meet up, in that meet up I feels like that they are my family, I don’t know many of them but I felt them as my friend.
In 2018, I moved in Estonia, a small European country for my study, after coming here, I was missing the peoples from Bangladesh Local guides community. That time I was thinking that I can make a family here in Estonia, I searched on social media and local guide connect and fortunately I found someone who is from Estonia I contact with him, then again, I felt like that I found my family. One day in 2019 @MahabubMunna sent me a link of a meetup in Tallinn and told me that you can join the meetup. That time I become so excited and sad at the same time because I had a plan to visit my family in Bangladesh at that time. But later I joined a meetup in December 2019, which one was hosted by connect moderator @JaneBurunina and that’s how I found my family in Estonia.
I met lots of Local guides through Local guides connect and it became a lifestyle to me. I contribute to Google maps every day. Whenever I go for travel I took a logo of the local guide or a T-shirt of local guides. They always remind me that you’re not just a simple “tourist”, you’re an explorer. As a local guide I have explored Norway in June 2019, Here is my post about Norway trip, Istanbul in August 2019, Lapland (Finland) in December 2019, here my post about that trip.
I’m contributing on google maps since 2014, my photos got almost 27 million views. Whenever I write a review or add photos on maps, I feel like that I’m writing a poem on maps. Wherever I go I try to see that, is the place is wheelchair accessible or not?
When I write a review always, I give the information about accessibility. I wrote a review of a restaurant named Istanbul kebab restaurant and peoples find my review is helpful. I published 4 lists on Google maps and drafted 10+ lists which I will publish very soon. In 2020, my plan is to take me to level 9 from level 8 and host some meetups in Estonia.
Thank you for reading my post, I hope you enjoyed it. Stay safe and healthy.
Good luck with your application bro.
