Meet your guide - Ka Bino

CEBU, Philippines - He never imagined making a living out of tour guiding. However, the universe has a seemingly magical way of leading this Tanjay native, showing him around as he moved from being an accredited freelancer to working with several tour operators in Cebu by way of assisting tourist/guest upon arrival and hotel check-in and conducting the tour as per guest itinerary.

“I took up Political Science in 1994 at the Silliman University (Dumaguete City), but I did not finish the course. I became an activist,” Balbino “Ka Bino” Pada Guerrero narrated. “Then I went back to school and took up BS Secondary Education with History as my major in Diaz College (Tanjay City). After which, an opportunity plucked me off Negros (Oriental) and transplanted me here in Cebu.”

Ka Bino shared that while in Cebu, he developed a fondness for interacting in a radio program of writer/professor Nick Ampatin over dyAB. “There I met Zeny Marquez Lua, a tour guide. She invited me to join her tour. I did and I enjoyed going around the city. So I joined many of her tours thereafter. Then eureka came – this is the job I like,” Ka Bino shared.

With tons to know more about Cebu, Ka Bino attended a Basic Tour Guiding Seminar conducted by the Department of Tourism in 2002. In 2007, he also underwent various workshops in basic tour guiding, basic conversational Korean language and culture, and upgrading seminar for tour guides all provided by the DOT-Cebu City.

The series of training furnished Ka Bino answers to vital information that tourists would normally ask or need: time difference, dollar exchange rate, the dos and don’ts in Cebu, introduction to the culture of the people, and basic Cebuano greetings/pleasantries.

Other concerns include directions to the nearest toilet and proximity of the site to the hotel the guests are billeted. “If Islam, mangutana na sila asa ang east,” he stressed.

“The joy in tour guiding comes from the friendship you establish with your guest. Tips are another source. Recently, I received a mountain bike as tip,” Ka Bino disclosed. “And on another occasion, I was queuing in a check-in counter at NAIA on a return flight to Cebu, the lady behind the counter gave me a big smile. I thought she was just friendly. When it was my turn to check in, she blurted out: Hi, Sir! Kumusta ka na? It turned out that she was one of my guests. She upgraded me to Business Class.”

Ka Bino mentioned of another memorable experience he had while tour guiding for members of the United Architects of the Philippines to Cebu south. “Here I was without any single unit in Architecture, lecturing on church architecture to a group which includes Archt. Maxwell Espina.”

How he managed to pull it through? Ka Bino underscored that prior reading was his ace. “Since my major is History, it helps me a lot. If guiding would include Math, I think I won’t last this long. I always read. I have a hard time sleeping. I have to tire my eyes to be able to drift to sleep. I keep books by my bed. One time, I went to a bookstore and came out P6,000 poorer.”

However, a tour guide always has his share of pain. “It comes with tourists who would not pay attention to the history and culture of the place and would rather go shopping instead. I feel offended when they would rather sing with the videoke, rather than ask questions about the places we pass by,” Ka Bino disclosed. “Sometimes, I would tell my guest that I am paid by the number of questions they ask, so please ask me more so that I could earn more.”

“Financially, tour guiding is rewarding. But since work is very seasonal, there are days that you will have more than enough but there are times that you will only have one or two tours in a month,” he further pointed out.

Nevertheless, the bonus of bonuses when it comes to tour guiding is the fulfillment one feels at the end of the day. “Fulfillment comes with the realization that you have passed on knowledge and love of heritage to your guest.”

Another thing is that you begin to dig up stuff to satisfy a guest’s seemingly insatiable thirst for information. “We were told to answer ‘I will try to find the answer’ to things we don’t know. Sa una, I would tell the guests: ‘I will get back to you later.’ I found that telling the truth really sets you free. Many a time, I answer ‘to be honest with you, I don’t know.’ Dili baya mi Google. We are tour guides. Experienced travelers will accept this answer.”

As for the credibility of the Puerto Princesa Underground River text-vote campaign, this tour guide presented this view: “PPUR is vying to be (one of) the New Seven Wonders of Nature. It’s a worldwide poll conducted by the same organization which did for the New Seven Wonders of the World. It is a marketing tool for tourism promotion. Should the PPUR become part of the New Seven Wonders of Nature, it will create a good publicity for Palawan in particular and the Philippines, in general. It would open the floodgate of ‘tourist arrivals’ which we badly need.”