The Low Season

It's the final episode! And playing us out is Washington D.C.'s Canden Arciniega. We recorded this conversation back in May, when she was restoring an old mill with friends and focusing on what she enjoys. We talk about sanity maintenance, free tour misconceptions, and flooded markets. Conversation from May 14th 2020. --- Free Tours By Foot, you can find them on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. And Canden produces her own podcast called Tour Guide Tell All. --- Music by Mark Schilders. Design by CC Whyte, and Chris' non-profit charity project 'The Chariso Press'. Georgia Riungu created Women of Berlin!! Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. Or send us an e-mail. More discussion in our Facebook Group 'Real Talk'.

Today's guest is Ken Walsh, a former Berlin guide who gave it all up to make radio in Dublin. For him, the "neoliberal freelance nightmare" of guiding in the German capital was a big factor in the move. So we talk about that and we discuss why he'd take healthcare, holidays and a busload of hungover Australians any day. Conversation from June 26th 2020. --- Ken and I made an episode on Capitalism for the Berlinology Podcast. And Ken creates his own show called Doublethink. --- Music by Mark Schilders. Design by CC Whyte, and Chris' non-profit charity project 'The Chariso Press'. Georgia Riungu created Women of Berlin!! Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. Or send us an e-mail. More discussion in our Facebook Group 'Real Talk'.

Today we're in Amsterdam talking to Anouschka Trauschke- a guide who tried to become invisible in a city famously troubled by overtourism. But is tourism itself the root cause of the Dutch capital's imbalance? And how much is the city's marketing team to blame? We discuss all that, as well as how to make tours that matter. Conversation from June 12th 2020. --- Anouschka's own tour company called Tours That Matter. Together with other tourism pro's, she organised the Reinvent Tourism Festival. Anouschka also created guide lines to minimize your negative impact on tourist destinations. These can be found at The Happy Tourist. --- Music by Mark Schilders. Design by CC Whyte, and Chris' non-profit charity project 'The Chariso Press'. Georgia Riungu created Women of Berlin!! Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. Or send us an e-mail. More discussion in our Facebook Group 'Real Talk'.

We're in beautiful Prague talking to naked tour guide Marcus Bradshaw, who is delighted to see Prague no longer caving under mass tourism. On the show today: what travel once was vs. what it has become; what's important vs. what's just a bonus, and the Czech Republic vs. salad. Conversation from June 11th 2020. --- Marcus' Salad Delivery Company. Go get yourself a Fresh Salad! He also has his own tour company called The Naked Tour Guide, but due to the pandemic there's currently no tours running. The quote Marcus used came from Yuval Harari's book Sapiens and reads: "The tourism industry does not sell flight tickets and hotel bedrooms. It sells experiences. Paris is not a city, nor India a country – they are both experiences, the consumption of which is supposed to widen our horizons, fulfil our human potential, and make us happier. Consequently, when the relationship between a millionaire and his wife is going through a rocky patch, he takes her on an expensive trip to Paris. The trip is not a reflection of some independent desire, but rather of an ardent belief in the myths of romantic consumerism. A wealthy man in ancient Egypt would never have dreamed of solving a relationship crisis by taking his wife on holiday to Babylon. Instead, he might have built for her the sumptuous tomb she had always wanted." --- Music by Mark Schilders. Design by CC Whyte, and Chris' non-profit charity project 'The Chariso Press'. Georgia Riungu created Women of Berlin!! Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. Or send us an e-mail. More discussion in our Facebook Group 'Real Talk'.

Today we're talking to Peter Chrenka in Bratislava, a city that (at the time of recording) was just beginning to wake up and remove its facemask. Peter runs Authentic Slovakia and offers guided driving tours in Skodas from the 70s. We talk about young guides and recent history, getting by without state support, and not getting too nostalgic about totalitarianism... Conversation from June 11th 2020. --- Peter's tour company called Authentic Slovakia. And on FB. Peter's favourite place to guide in Bratislava. --- Music by Mark Schilders. Design by CC Whyte, and Chris' non-profit charity project 'The Chariso Press'. Georgia Riungu created Women of Berlin!! Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. Or send us an e-mail. More discussion in our Facebook Group 'Real Talk'.

We're in Tel Aviv today, talking to Tomer Chelouche - a guide and fellow podcaster who comes from one of the city's founding families. Working also as an urban consultant, he is fascinated by how cities work. We remember when tourism was a good thing, consider how the industry can support sustainable cities, and discuss why we shouldn't aim for "back to normal". Conversation from June 10th 2020. --- Tomer's Virtual Tours of Tel Aviv. Neve Tzedek is the neighbourhood Tomer lives and tours through. --- Music by Mark Schilders. Design by CC Whyte, and Chris' non-profit charity project 'The Chariso Press'. Georgia Riungu created Women of Berlin!! Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. Or send us an e-mail. More discussion in our Facebook Group 'Real Talk'.

Bonjour mes amis! Meet Kasia Klon, a guide who came to Paris from Poland- via New York and Berlin- only to be disappointed. Getting over an initial dislike of the French capital, she soon fell in love with the city and now leads small-group street art tours. We talk Paris Syndrome, proud locals and why a simple Bonjour goes a long way. Conversation from June 10th 2020. --- Kasia's tour company does regular and virtual tours of Paris. Street Art Tour Paris on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. Check out this cool neighbourhood of Paris. --- Music by Mark Schilders. Design by CC Whyte, and Chris' non-profit charity project 'The Chariso Press'. Georgia Riungu created Women of Berlin!! Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. Or send us an e-mail. More discussion in our Facebook Group 'Real Talk'.

We made it to Belgium! Antwerp, specifically. And today we're talking to Bart Verhoeven, who has spent the last couple of years guiding all over the country that gave us Art Nouveau. We talk low season finances, exploring your own country and beer. Of course. Conversation from June 1st 2020. --- Music by Mark Schilders. Design by CC Whyte, and Chris' non-profit charity project 'The Chariso Press'. Georgia Riungu created Women of Berlin!! Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. Or send us an e-mail. More discussion in our Facebook Group 'Real Talk'.

Today we're in Melbourne, Australia - the cocktail capital of the world. We're talking to John O'Sullivan and Hugo Mylecharane of Depot Adventures (formerly Walks 1010) who operate a rather unusual Free Tour model... We discuss ethics & solidarity, five year plans and the element of surprise. --- The Depot Adventures Tour Company. On Facebook and on Twitter. Melbourne on a lockdown. --- Music by Mark Schilders. Design by CC Whyte, and Chris' non-profit charity project 'The Chariso Press'. Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. Or send us an e-mail. More discussion in our Facebook Group 'Real Talk'.

We're in London chatting to self-proclaimed monarchist Margaret Stockton-Davies - a guide who just loves the drama of the Royal Family. We weigh up the possibilities vs the risks of the Free Tour model, and throw a glimpse into the future of virtual guiding.   Conversation from June 2nd 2020. --- Free Tours By Foot is the tour company Margaret is working for. Margaret also has her own Instagram and YouTube channels. If you haven't seen The Crown yet. Go go go! --- Music by Mark Schilders. Design by CC Whyte, and Chris' non-profit charity project 'The Chariso Press'. Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. Or send us an e-mail. More discussion in our Facebook Group 'Real Talk'.