Leading My Small Group On A Tour Of Bath…..
(Continued from previous blogpost)
Waking up feeling refreshed, I hit the shower……ouch it was scalding hot! AND no soap or shampoo!!!!
The day hadn’t started well….lol… I made a mental note to inform the hotel staff, cleaned myself up as best I could, threw on some clothes and went downstairs to breakfast. I ALWAYS have breakfast with my tour groups. Some guides, I have since learnt, don’t. I know they have perfectly good reasons to avoid the tour group, first thing in the morning, but I have found that it gives me plenty of opportunities to sit with different people each morning as the tour progresses. Being there also means that I can ‘put out fires’ if I detect that an issue has developed. And the added bonus is that I can detect the mood of the group at an early stage in each day. This has become an important ritual to me, so I am always up and ready to enjoy breakfast with my new friends.
The previous evenings group dinner had been a success, and the nighttime walking tour of Bath was great fun, and as I sat down at a table, I was greeted by the clutch of tour members who were already supping on their tea and coffees as well as tucking into their Eggs Benedict. They were happy! I was relieved!
Paul, the morning server brought me a pot of rather insipid coffee (10 years later, it hasn’t improved) and took my breakfast order. I mentioned to him about the lack of toiletries, in a jovial but firm way, and he reassured me that there was some to be found at the front desk. We chatted for a couple of minutes before his attention was diverted by a tour members request for toast that reached his ears. I was sitting on a table that had been set for four people and as soon as Paul left a couple of very polite ladies asked if they could join me. I was so happy that they wanted to!. We chatted about their tour expectations and laughed about their taxi ride through London, a couple of days before……. and they made my first ‘tour breakfast’ as lead guide, a joy.
More and more group members arrived and I batted questions from all over the dining area……. great fun.
Reminding everyone to bring their ‘whispers’ with them and denying any knowledge of the weather (this is England for heavens sake….be prepared), I reminded them to meet me outside at 9-00am as I headed back to my room.
I’m pretty organised whilst on tour and had already confirmed all of my hotel, restaurant and admissions ‘confirmations’ for the entire trip, at least three times….. this knowledge served to put my mind at ease and all I had to do was collect my belongings… you know the sort of thing… money belt, whispers, daypack, first aid kit etc. It took me a few minutes to get it all together and so I sat down and studied my notes. My notes were not and never will be a ‘script’ or a list of talking points…. I can’t work like that, and the talks I give are conversational responses to questions that the tour members throw at me…… ‘My notes’ are just bullet point reminders of my timings, that help me make sure that I get everyone to the right place at the right time. Perusing these, I calmed down the adrenaline rush that was coursing its way through my veins, and repaired myself for my first walking tour of Bath.
We gathered on the street in front of the hotel, as I made sure everyone had their audio systems (whispers) turned on, completed our buddy check, and set off walking towardsThe Royal Crescent. As I walked, I talked…. AND listened to the excited and very happy ‘babble’ behind me. This was going to be a good day.
Arriving in front of the Royal Crescent I……..
Well you’ll have to read the next post to know how everything went….(smiles)