Are you thinking of becoming a tour guide in Berlin? This is true because tour guides are responsible for offering a cultural services that is steeped firmly in history hence the need to be well informed. This blog post is devoted to the role of history in the work of Berlin tour guides and how it helps to deepen the experience of guiding as well as the experience of the tourists.
The article helps us to understand the history of Berlin in more details and depth.
It is obviously the history of Europe and actually the world when it comes to Berlin in specific. Start with the Berlin Wall and you move to other memorials and landmarks such as the Brandenburg Gate and the great thing about Germany is that you cannot separate the present from what has already happened in that country. It is perfectly true to say that extensive knowledge of Berlin’s history helps a guide to give the tourists important clues and backgrounds regarding the sites they see during the guided tour.
By exploring the historical plane of Berlin, and it is relevant how the World war II and Cold war influenced the architectural designs, and political systems in Berlin. You can easily draw attention to such points of interest as Checkpoint Charlie, the Reichstag building, and the Museum Island, and given guests an understanding of the concurrent histories that exist within Berlin today.
Interacting with Visitors through Fascinating Narratives
The subject can help tour guides to share interesting histories to a group of visitors taking them back in the past. Instead of just presenting the historical information and heuristic chronological lists you can work with stories presenting history. For instance, while speaking about the topic, effects, such as the fall of the Berlin Wall, you can actually state and bring out eye-witnessed accounts of people who went through the experience.
Dividing guests into two groups worked well because people can focus on different narratives to make good in-depth experiences and a connection with the city. Both facts and historical facts and drama must be incorporated when preparing the presentation to make the tour appealing, impressive for the guests.
Giving it Some Perspective
So, as a tour guide, your task is not only to give people some information about something but also to explain them why this or that event is important and what consequences it had. It is in this context that, creating your tours, you can explain to the tourists how the history of Berlin fits into world history.
For instance when telling a story relating to the ascendancy and the fall of the Third Reich one can always draw light on social, economic and or/ political factors that triggered such events. Such contextualisation allows visitors to understand also the relevant historical outcomes and embrace the turbulent yet inspiring story of the city’s reconstruction and reunification.
This remained inconsistent, and often when discussing topics that were sensitive, people appeared to discuss them without sensitivity.
It might be surprising but Berlin’s history also has its hot and painful topics which are not worth mentioning. These are sensitive subjects that as a tour guide it is advisable to approach with a lot of caution. It makes you ready to face difficult topics like Ivan the Terrible, or the Holocaust or the Stasi of East Germany ruling your family during Cold war.
When done well these topics can guide visitors through complex histories and leave them with more understanding and appreciation for the spirit of the city and its people. A safe learning environment should be provided, so that it motivates guests to ask questions and address the issue.
Keeping on Increasing Your knowledge.
A tour guide should be open to learning at all times because your learning never ends. Information regarding history is not fixed; there may be some new findings or new insights into history as information is discovered. Always inform yourself with new research sources, books and exhibitions in order to constantly update knowledge and improve the quality of conducted tours.
Join groups of tour guides and other professionals to frequently share experiences and ideas. In this way, your tours will always remain interesting and informative for the visitors, as you will be improving the information which you deliver all the time.
Expertise with history matters in our society today and the world at large.
You should now appreciate the reason as to why historical knowledge is essential when you are being a Berlin tour guide. Starting from giving background information and interpreting the overall meaning to emotionally grabbing the attention of the visitors and sharing wood and meaningful stories that will forever remain in guests’ memory, historical knowledge becomes an invaluable asset for providing memorable tours.
The truth is that, as a tour guide you are not only presenting the physical landmarks of Berlin but the histories behind these monuments as well. Go ahead and become a narrator, an archivist, and a PR agent of what Berlin was, is, and is going to be.
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