2022
Hi Local Guides from all around the world. I hope you are doing very well.
This post is very special for me, as it's my post #25! But mainly, because I will tell you about someting which is very important for me: my experience as a Local Guide.
About me
My name is Valeria and I'm a Local Guide level 8 from Buenos Aires, Argentina. I attend university, currently studying for a degree in International Cultural Business (focused on German culture). I also work in a company as a Team Assistant; it's a position that allows me talk to a lot of people from all around the world, as we receive many foreign visitors monthly. I've always been interested in languages: I speak English and German and I try to practise every time I have the chance 🙂 My main hobby is photography with smartphone, and learning about new cultures.
How I became a Local Guide
The first memory I have about contributing to Maps is when I noticed that a very important place for me was not created as a location there. It's a building where I go on holiday every year since I was 6 months old and is very, very meaningful for me. So I created it and added a photo. At that time I had no idea that what I was doing was so important. A few months later, a friend of mine told me about "Local Guides" and how many people contributed to the map and helped improve it everyday. That day everything changed! I remember being all day in a café reviewing places I had visited and adding photos of them. It made me feel very helpful.
I spent many months like that, wondering if there was something else about Local Guides. In september, for #a11y accessibility month, I received an invitation from Google to their offices! I couldn't believe it, I had always wanted to go there so it was like a dream come true. That's how I learned about Meet-ups and Connect. When I arrived, many people were outside waiting, I remember seeing @MaxWalsh and @FaridTDF. We went on a geowalk to add information about accessibility in different places of San Telmo neighborhood, it was great! There I met @TraciC for the first time, it was amazing 🙂 I think after that I became more and more commited to Local Guides every day!
I attended a meet-up hosted by MaxWalsh, where I had the chance to get to know Buenos Aires local guides a bit more, talk about our experiences and take lots of photos together. We walked like 4 hours... and those 4 hours were full of guiding and guiding!
I hosted two meet-ups where only my boyfriend @santiagoirale -amazing and motivated local guide- attended (I consider both of them great "Guiding Times" because I contributed a lot!):
- Beach restaurants editing
- Worldwide photowalk in my city, Moreno. This was a Worldwide event organised by @AlejandraMaria, you can learn more about it here and here (Recap). Although there were almost no attendees, it was a great experience. I never felt alone because I knew that all around the world people were supporting me 🙂
...but my third one (Historic Buenos Aires) was just incredible. 8 people attended and we had an amazing time together, walked a lot, took a lot of pictures and contributed to the map a lot. @Jesi and @Johasanc were there too!
Meet-ups are experiences worth living, because you share an activity that you love with other people who are as motivated and committed as you are. I have no words to describe that feeling... We are a team, working together to improve a tool that anyone in the world can use and take good advantage of it. I try to attend every meet-up in my area because I have a very good time there and each of them is worth it 🙂
When I started using Connect, I was shy at first... I didn't really know what to talk about, or how to start a post... I luckily met motivating and encouraging members who helped my during my first logins here. @OSAMA was one of them! He's been like my "motivational coach" and inspired me to keep on writing posts and engaging in very interesting conversations with other Local Guides.
Me as a Local Guide today
Nowadays, being a Local Guide has become more than just a hobby. I could say it's a way of life! Not only I am a part of the community, but it has also become a part of me.
When I visit a new place, I focus on the important things, such as: "is this place accessible?", "does it offer vegetarian food?", "is it suitable for kids?", and many others that help you take a general look. #LetsGuide has helped a lot with focusing on these important aspects 🙂
I've also left most of my shyness behind, for example when I take a lot of photos or a 360 one! I got interested in 360 photography thanks to Street View. First I started taking photos with my phone and when I realized I liked it a lot, I purchased a 360 camera. I even became a Street View Trusted photographer! That's also another thing I like about Google: you get recognition for what you are doing.
Another important aspect of my experience as local guides is talking to people from all around the world! We are all part of the same community, we share a passion in common and encourage each other to keep growing... not only as Local Guides but also as people. I can sincerely say that my life has improved since I'm a member of this amazing community. I've been part of many virtual communities during my short life but I am sure that none of them made me feel so valued and honored like this one. I made very good friends and we even have group Hangouts calls, where we discuss and plan future events (thanks @HelloSamsonR and @Justine2807 for this!).
Writing posts is another important activity I love. I really like talking about my culture and learning about other cultures. Sharing photos and telling everyone about places where I go is very fulfilling, not only by writing my own posts but also participating in other posts! Debate, tourism, saying 'thanks' and learning about other members are just some of the topics I like to talk about. The pure bond that emerges from interchange of valuable knowledge through Connect posts is just heart-touching and so meaningful for me.
I'm a proud Local Guide! Of course I wouldn't have been able to reach this position without everyone's help and motivation. There are a lot of people who make this community be alive and keep it growing everyday: members, moderators, googlers... all of this wouldn't be possible without you, and I'm happy to also try to improve the community everyday.
Thank you everyone for supporting me!
Happy guiding!
@ValeriaA_, eres un miembro valioso de Connect y un Local Guide muy aplicado en lo que hace, estoy seguro que llegarás y superaras muchos niveles. Tus post tienen una frescura y desinhibición muy simpáticos. A medida que pasa el tiempo tus aportes también son mucho mejor desarrollados y con una creatividad a la hora de redactarlos que marca lo que indicaba anteriormente 🙂👍. Esperamos poder ver muchos aportes más jajajaja.
Saludos Farid
