I am originally from Brussels, Belgium. In the 2017-2018 school year I was lucky enough to study my Master in International Business in Madrid, Spain.
That gave me the opportunity to discover some special places in Spain.
The one place I want to talk to you about is Sevilla in the southern part of Spain, Andalusia. I spent there an entire weekend (8-10th of June 2018).
I arrived in Sevilla 1 day before my 4 other friends did, so it really gave me the opportunity to wander through the city, do whatever I wanted, eat wherever and whenever I wanted. I was free for 1 day (which wasn’t unfortunately enough…). That really was one of the most special thing I did as a local guide. For an entire day I was guided by people I did not know but I knew I could trust, which is a really nice feeling!
I had diner in a small tapas (tapas are a small portion of Spanish cuisine, so for lunch or diner, you take multiple ‘tapas’ to share with multiple people) place called “Bodeguita Romero”, I of course found that place through Google Maps and the recommendations of fellow local guides.
I was looking for a typical local place and not a mass tourist attraction, it fulfilled my needs perfectly! The only negative was that the waiters could not speak a word of English and my Spanish was really limited 
But that made the interactions really funny between us.
I gave them a well deserved 5 star review! Guides have to do their job right?!
So what made that day special to me is the fact that it was my first solo holiday (it really was 1 day :p) before my friends arrived.
And even though I was on my own I did not feel alone because of the virtual support offered by local guides. It guided me to the best places in the city and the tips were really customized to what I was looking for and was interested in.
Unfortunately the rest of the trip was not as successful than my solo day, my friends were not using Google Maps and for some reason did not want me to guide them to ‘special places’. So we discovered the more touristic places, which did not really make me happy. But as I am a great optimist, experiencing such a difference between day 1 and the other days made me even more enjoy the memories and things I lived on my own. I would never have experienced those moments without:
- Being on my own, taking the ‘risk’ to travel alone
- Google Maps and the tips and previous experiences from local guides
- Thanks to my friends (that I still really like!) that do not use local guides tips seriously
Going back to Sevilla to enjoy it ‘our way’ (local guide way) 
is on my bucket list! It is such an amazing and romantic city with a special vibe!
Thanks again local guide friends for the tips, it is thanks to all of you that we can all enjoy some really special moments all over the world!