I like foods. Eating delicious foods makes my life more interesting and colorful. And, I believe that it’s the best way to understand different culture.
Especially I’m interested in exploring local restaurants, pubs, and cafes. I started using Google maps because I’m not able to leave a comment about Canadian places with a Korean maps app.
Honestly, Before I start using Google maps, I was just a normal Korean who lives in Victoria, Canada. I had never thought that I can be a local, even though sometimes I know well about this city more than a person who has been living here for 20 years. I felt like i’m a stranger here. But, As soon as Google maps called me a Local Guide, everything has been changed.
Right. It’s the beginning of my history.
There are Four keywords that i’d like to explain what Local Guides Program means to me.
(1) Confidence
It made me more confident about what I do. I am a precious person who can provide high-quality reviews for others. Now I am a top 5% local guide this area. Can you believe it? I made it!
Top 5% Local guide in Victoria, BC
My Performances as a local guide
Every time I get e-mails from Local Guides Team, I feel confident. Because I can see what I’ve done, how popular my postings are, and how helpful they are. It makes me more passionate and gives me energy to do more things. I’m going to keep doing this job in Korea as well. Oh, I already so excited. There are a lot of amazing places in Korea!
(2) Responsibility
As a local guide, I’ve recommended unknown restaurants to others.
Grace Sushi where it is located in Victoria is one of my best sushi places. Few months ago, I had a chance to talk to an owner of the restaurant. He told me that he has been undergoing difficulties because there are not many customers these days. As a regular customer of Grace Sushi, and also as a Local guide, I contacted to a famous local creator team called Tasting Victoria to promote this restaurant. I believe that My job is not only reviewing places, but also support local places.
I don’t think that I would’ve been willing to do it if i were not a local guide. The reason why I left reviews was just for providing information and sharing my experiences to others. But now, I have another job. It is to dedicate to make local places more active. I’d like to say that it’s a core value that Google maps gave me.
(3) Memories
People often say that there are not many places in this island. It’s kind of true, so i used to agree with them. However, after i became a local guide, i realized that there are so many places that i had never known.
Exploring unknown spots that most people just don’t know makes me passionate. My life in Victoria has been changed thanks to this program. I organized a small group with some of my friends, and we used to explore this island based on Google maps. So we were able to make interesting memories! You can check how much we had fun.
(4) Pathfinder
You might be curious why i’m in Victoria, BC. I’m in Canada for Working holiday. I’ve taken two semester off for it, which means I’m a university student. I decided to go abroad to figure out what I want and what I want to be. I think I finally know what I want to do.
I realized I’m into thinking about how restaurants can innovate or how they can be better than now. Every time I write reviews, I think about their pros and cons based on some business strategy tools. This job is pretty interesting and I enjoy doing it.
Yes, Local guides program helped me find it out. Currently I’ve been looking for what I can be in foods industry or consulting industries. I’d like to say I figured it out thanks to Local guides program. As I have been a pathfinder for others with my reviews and photos, this program has also become a pathfinder for me as well.
I hope you’d realize how much i fall in love with Local Guide Program. I want to share more stories with others in Connect Live!