Memories of being chosen for Connect Live

A few days ago I was thinking to myself that if this was a normal year we’d be learning which of us would be going to Connect Live by now, sadly because of our wonderful new friend Covid there will not be an event for 2021 (see the post by @TraciC ). I thought perhaps I might share a few memories of the excitement of being chosen for the original Summit That event metamorphosed into the event we know today as Connect Live. Being one of the OG was an intense privilege that I still remember to this day and get goosebumps thinking about it.

The first time I was a second choice, an unfortunate fellow Local Guide from Melbourne was unable to travel and I got a message about 2am my time only weeks before the Summit asking if I would like to take that person’s place. I don’t know why, but something woke me up and made me check my email within moments of it hitting the inbox on that fateful morning when I should have been sound asleep. Naturally I said yes and there began a wonderful story of meeting a wonderful group of 75 people many of whom are enduring friends today.

This was the first time the Local Guides team had put on an international event and it was simply amazing. The event wasn’t polished like they are now, but even the little things here and there that we shared that weren’t quite to plan made it special. During the event we became a family. We all had a wonderful time and on the last day we began the tradition of not wanting to leave our new found family and go home. The first event known as The Local Guides Summit was held in downtown San Francisco and included venues in our The Grand Hyatt, the San Francisco Google Offices, various places around town and of course the Googleplex finishing with a party at a bowling alley in The Mission District.

Paul Pavlinovich And TraciC on one of the small chairs at Googleplex

It was the first time I had met Traci in person - so good to meet the person who had been on the other end of so many hangouts. I hope no one at home sees that neat beard… what a contrast to the bushy drop bear of today!! I might get chased around with scissors.

Somehow I ended up on a Panel

Somehow I ended up on a panel with four other Local Guides talking about Maps and the program. This was an amazing experience and there were certainly plenty of butterflies going on during the lead up to this. I had thought of and worked out answers in advance to so many questions I thought we might be asked, but did I have an answer for the one I was given? Well no, but winging it worked out ok :). Sadly the hat you see in that photo on the right was lost in a Mexican Cantina (with the most amazing Chilli Relenos) but there was a new hat for the next year.

Kim Flowers fellow Melbourne Local Guide

My travel buddy was a good mate that I’d known for about 4 years at the time of the Summit, Product Expert Kimmy @KimmyF . Kim had been to previous Google events and was full of helpful information on what to expect. I already knew San Francisco having lived in the Bay Area for about four years but Kim was instrumental in helping me feel comfortable on the lead up to the event.

The event gave me a renewed passion for Local Guides, at the time of that event I was a Level 5, as was everyone else there as this was the minimum level for the event but also the highest level in Local Guides at that time. The new levels came in some time later. The passion, drive and wonder of the people around me as we learned just how much impact we were personally having on our community spurred me on to become the Level 10 that I am today. Many of the ideas raised at that inaugural event have appeared in Maps and in Local Guides in the years since.

I can trace back many of my friendships to this event and the ones that followed. The events have built a network of wonderful people around the world. I know that no matter where I go in the world, I only have to reach out a hand and it will be accepted by a Local Guide. I know this because around the world I now have hundreds of sisters and brothers who are my family, my Local Guides family.

So while I’m sad that for the second year running there is no Connect Live for 2021 I can look back on my memories and I can continue interacting with the wonderful people around me and know that someday in the future there will again be a time for another grand event and people from around the world will gather and become a new family. I can dream that perhaps I might once again be one of the lucky few who get to go along.

I think I’ve made the event sound too serious… perhaps I should mention the Tiki Bar with the volcano… on second thoughts perhaps not. What happens at the event stays at the event ;). So how to end? Well, once upon a time in a near future there will be more. Look forward to it. Strive to be the best Local Guide you can be and have a positive impact on your community. There are so many awesome role models here on Connect. Check them out, find someone that fits your vibe and reach out to them.

Paul

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Hi @PaulPavlinovich,

wonderful memories, I’m also dropping a tear reading your story also because I can feel your exact memories as well now. I didn’t join the first exclusive small event but I have been super lucky being selected in the 2019 edition, where we met each other in person, and I can confirm all your emotions.

I’m sad too there were no more editions since two years, of course safety first and this terrible pandemic affected our lives a lot, but indeed we do have a big family we are part of! I also had the same as you, I really didn’t know about the family being Local Guides until I joined the event and met wonderful people from all around the world, met @TraciC as well always being behind the scene and finally meeting her (and Brittany at that year) in person. Mara, all the Googlers, local friends, all the amazing people on which you can indeed count wherever you are.

And well, it is not so serious, let’s leave what happens at the event there ?.

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Meeting the Selfie King was a huge highlight of 2019 @LuigiZ

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You made it sound so exciting, just for reading I am so exciting as well @PaulPavlinovich

You were lucky @LuigiZ to meet with our beard master and to be frank, I wish I could meet both of you too, and in this special event.

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@PaulPavlinovich

I could really sense the emotions and excitement you had during that time :sparkling_heart:

Thank you for sharing the memories

I am sure you’ll get to see them all next year :sunglasses:

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Hi @PaulPavlinovich

Remarkable memories my dear ! Great to see many stars with you including @TraciC @LuigiZ too!! :heart_eyes: :grinning: in the Connect Live program!!

I also eagerly waiting to attend such wonderful events ! Although last year and this year this program suspended by Google for safety reason!

You were answering questions there but it looks like you are singing a song!! (LOL!)

Thanks for sharing with us so wonderful memories and excellent photos of Connect live!

Oh, by The way as you are a great photographer, I am waiting for your valuable comments on my Ocean/sea beach post!!

Have a nice day my friend! :heart_eyes: :sunflower:

Mahbub

Warm Greetings :rose: :heartpulse: from Chittagong city

Bangladesh. :bangladesh:

Pls click here to see my recent posts!!

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Aw, @PaulPavlinovich ! I signed in and saw myself on the homepage and was like “what!” and aw, look at us! So young with clean haircuts (I’m well overdue for my own cut). What a lovely post to read and even more so that you shared so many great memories. Things certainly have changed over the years but there was something SO very magical about that first event, including you tricking me for a good five minutes that dropbears were real, getting me addicted to Freddos (I don’t want to admit how many Freddos are too much), sharing pizza with my brother and @KimmyF , and of course, our continuing friendship!

I am so glad you’re still here all these years later sharing posts and sentiment like those shared here! :slightly_smiling_face:

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I joined the program in July 2016, @PaulPavlinovich , and I fallen in love with it. I was knew, and I heard about the summit only after the event, reading magical post from the Local Guides who attended.

So my very first one was 2017, also known as “best summit ever”. Like you, I wasn’t selected at first. I was ok, so many great Local Guides in the community, I didn’t expected to be invited, so the email that reached me a week later was an incredible surprise. What happened in there was incredible, the possibility of meeting people coming from the other side of the world, friends in connect now were real people. The first Local Guide I saw was @DrShaunak , walking in distance trying to find the entrance of the hotel. Then @NunungAfuah and the whole team from Indonesia. Then @TraciC . She appeared from a door (the room of the event), gave me a kiss on the cheek and whispered “you shouldn’t be here, talk later”. The time to explore San Francisco guided by @KarenVChin , and ready to run to my first 36 walk (amazing, a trademark now) and then the door was open, and everything started.

Beautiful, unexpected, full of energy, exciting, with a lot of Googlers around, the two I most wanted to meet were Gus and @sashabg77 and, OMG, it happened. I don’t know how much I can reveal but yes, we had a vision of the future, and features we asked for during the Summit were real after a few months.

Agree, all the people in there was great, and being invited is possible, if you believe it. What is important is not how many points you have, it doesn’t matter how many badges you achieved. Quantity is irrelevant, only quality is important, if you want to live this experience

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What an exciting journey and story you shared with us @ErmesT it is such a huge and important event!

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Perhaps one day @Sophia_Cambodia you never know your (our!) luck :slightly_smiling_face:

We can hope @FalguniP next year may not be possible for Aussies - our carriers aren’t ramping up for a while and we keep getting soft releases to break it to us that “normal” travel into and out of Australia is unlikely before 2024. I guess it will gradually open up before then but we may still need to quarantine on return home.

Thanks @MAHBUB_HYDER oh there are so many stars at the events - its quite humbling to be among people who do much more amazing things than I do!

Only I look older @TraciC :). So awesome meeting you and your brother at time and again more recently. Something tells me I should send over some Freddos :).

It never ceases to amaze me @ErmesT the synchronicity we have during our time in Local Guides. I nearly got to a CTW last year, I’m glad the reason I didn’t turned out well with David. It will happen one day.

Paul

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Oh thanks for tagging me @ErmesT , yes you’re right. I met you in person for the first time I arrived at the hotel with Indonesian team. Woah time flies!

Thanks for the story @PaulPavlinovich . I was so excited to be part of this community. My dream to going to USA came true because of the event. Connect Live gave me experiences that I couldn’t imagine before: having friends with people in the world, sharing ideas… and knowing that we’re not alone for making Google Maps better. Hope everything will be okay soon!

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@ErmesT Thanks for tagging me in your post. I still remember that moment, I was coming from Fisherman’s Wharf hostel to Hyatt hotel by walking and was following Google maps. The weather was fantastic and perfect. :blush:

@PaulPavlinovich Nice post. Time flies though It seems like only yesterday. #LGSummit16 was a memorable experience for all of us who attended the inaugural summit. After seeing your pic with @TraciC I searched my LGsummit16 folder today and found this photo. Hope @TraciC remembers that moment. :grinning:

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Reading your post itself is an awesome feeling.

Wow, that one YES, a starting point @PaulPavlinovich . The way you wanted to see TraciC I wish to see you. You are looking totally different from what I have seen you.

For me these virtual meet-ups made me meet so many, whom I really wanted to meet. Hopefully meet you all in person in near future.

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Thank you @PaulPavlinovich hehe, my immense pleasure :blush: . Indeed lucky @Sophia_Cambodia and honored, but thanks a lot to you as well and would be more than a pleasure meeting you in person as well :wink: .

Thank you @MAHBUB_HYDER , there is always a chance, keep doing the good work as a passionate Local Guide and there will be for sure a chance to attend to the next event, when it will be held freely again.

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photos are awesome & informative

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@PaulPavlinovich What a great post. :blush: I was ‘only’ at Connect Live 2019, but still I feel so lucky that I have met you and the rest of amazing Local Guides Family. :slightly_smiling_face: To be honest I didn’t expect Connect Live to be back this year, however I hope in 2022 it will be possible again to apply for this awesome event. I can’t wait to see my Local Guides friends in the future again, not necessary at Connect Live, but during our travel as well :slightly_smiling_face:

Cheers :blush:

Ania

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@PaulPavlinovich Awww… a lovely walk-down-memory-lane post! The first is, in my opinion, always the special one and it’s the surprise of the unknown that makes it super awesome, although @TraciC and the Local Guides team do work really hard to keep surprising us each year since 2016!

Great memories indeed and lovely to see all the smiley faces again! It was the start of many new friendships and it really motivated me to up my game in the Local Guides program; I went from Level 7 to Level 8 since then!! :wink: Whoop! Whoop!

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Great to read your memories and what was going on in your head @PaulPavlinovich , especially since I am able to relate the exact feelings I had.

I really praise myself lucky to have the opportunity to attend CL 2019 and meet so many people including you.

Let’s hope we once meet again there! :blush:

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yes … there has been no Connect Live in 2020 or 2021 - what will happen next year?

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Great Comments @PaulPavlinovich I see thru thru the photos how much fun you had there and how much you enjoyed it, I can only hope that one day I might be invited.

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