“Playing” was one of the reasons why Logan became a tour guide.
After graduating from the department of philosophy and completing his military services, Logan hadn’t decided what to pursue as a career. Therefore, he began a motorcycle trip around Taiwan island with his friend. Two young men traveled for a whole month with just a couple of sleeping bags. On the road, they met a variety of travelers and share their philosophy of life with one another. Experiencing this amazing journey, Logan realized that life doesn’t have to be unwrapped only in a certain way. He grew curious about the meaning of travel and decided to search for the answer by becoming a tour guide.
To take good care of the clients, the items on a tour guide’s to-do list never end.
“Fantasy is always wonderful. Many people think that being a guide means that I get to play around all day. But the truth is that in order to take good care of the clients, the items on our to-do list never end. For the tour to proceed smoothly, not only do we have to plan in advance, but also to be able to handle anything good or bad that comes our way,” Logan said with a smile.
“Our job is to promote our country and culture, and to allow the travelers to experience the beauty of Taiwan.”
Once worked in a traditional travel industry, Logan truly found a travel style that is close to his own value after joining Topology Travel. “In the past, traveling and shopping were always glued together. The guide cared more about making more money than making the travelers happy which totally diminished the value of travel. Our job is to promote our country and culture, and to allow the travelers to experience the beauty of Taiwan. Becoming a part of Topology, I found that my colleagues treasure the experience of the clients more than the profit of the company,” Logan said.
“I believe every place has a story to tell.”
Logan’s first assigned task was taking two kiwis to visit the Bao’an Temple and the Confucius Temple. “Actually, I panicked! I was not sure what kind of contents interested them at these places.” Despite all the preparation, Logan’s anxiety was not truly gone until he met the clients. “They couldn’t stop gasping in admiration, clicking the shutter, and recording every detail of the decoration of the temples. Seeing the look on their faces, I came to realize that we have been taking these for granted that we often neglect the beauty in our lives. Not until we put ourselves in the shoes of the travels do we see that Taiwanese temples are just as fantastic as the churches in the Europe.” Since then, Logan deeply believed that every place has a story to tell. And through him, the tale passes on and makes more travelers grow fond of Taiwan.
Logan took the guest to try stinky tofu!
“I like to use everyday language to express my feelings and thoughts.”
Logan discovers that there are more and more non-English speaking travelers coming to visit Taiwan. Instead of using hard words to show off his English proficiency, Logan prefers making the contents easy to understand. “For example, the first time foreigners smell stinky tofu, they all think it’s terrifying! However, I try to let them understand that in fact that there is stinky food in every culture, such as the durian in the Southeast Asia or cheese in Europe, but they are actually delicious!” By comparing cultures, Logan allows the clients to take the culture shock in an enjoyable manner.
“If I had a local guide when I was traveling abroad, I hoped that he would take me to experience stuff that I never knew when I was traveling alone.”
Speaking about his philosophy of leading a tour, Logan said, “I always imagine that if I had a local guide when I was traveling abroad, I hoped that he would take me to experience stuff that I never knew and never would have tried when I was traveling alone.” With this thought, every tour is a whole new adventure to Logan. As a result, he once took the travelers to try betel nuts and to crawl beneath the palanquin, and encouraged them to take part in all kinds of interesting folk culture. “I will observe their level of acceptance to new things by interacting with them, so don’t worry! I will never force them!” Wearing this, we all laughed so hard.
Say “YES PLEASE!” to Logan’s invitation
Listening to Logan this whole time, I feel like he is more of a Peter Pan on Neverland. As long as you are willing to trust him, he will share anything you want to know and explore the unknown together with you. Double the curiosity; double the fun! A journey unforgettable starts with saying “YES PLEASE!” to Logan’s invitation.