An impressive tour guide

Post 94 Hakone Lake

The Japanese tour guide who took my wife and me for a pleasure ferry ride at the scenic Hakone Lake impressed me with his knowledge of classical music. While we were having lunch at the lake, I heard my favourite piece of music composed by the Austrian composer, Schubert F.P. (1797 -1828), being aired.

As we were eating trout (a type of freshwater fish) at that time, I casually told the guide that the title of that piece of music was ‘The trout’. He immediately replied to me that it was. I was deeply impressed because he was not just a tour guide; he was knowledgeable enough to know that ‘The trout’ was played while visitors to the lake were enjoying a meal on trout.

At the bullet train station in Tokyo after the day tour, the Japanese guide ushered us into a taxi saying that he had spoken to the taxi driver where to send us. He gave me an envelope and assured me that the taxi fares in it would be more than enough to cover the distance. He was apologetic for not being able to accompany us back to our hotel though it was not his duty to do so. When we reached our hotel, there was more than enough money in the envelope to cover the taxi fares.There was no overcharging.

When one is in a civilized nation, one knows why it deserves to be called the First world.

10 May 2011