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Guiding Light: Thanda Tun in Mandalay

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Thanda Tun is one of Journeys Within’s newer guides in Myanmar. A little shy at first, the JW team is working to help this budding guide grow to meet her potential …

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Name: Thanda Tun

Age: 31 years old

Thanda Tun is the middle child, with one brother and three sisters.

When did you begin working for Journeys Within ?

I have been with the company for two years working in Mandalay.

How did you become a guide?

I was interested in becoming a tour guide since I was a student. So I started to attend English Speaking class   as soon as I finished my eleven grade exam.When I was able to speak properly I tried to be a tour guide.

What do you like about being a guide?

Being a  tour  guide I have a chance to share our culture, tradition, way of life of our people and Buddhism with my clients. In turn I can get knowledge from them.

What is your favorite part about being a guide?

I love the way I become a teacher and educate tourists. They come from different countries, different classes etc., but all of them have to follow my instructions, my ground rules.

What is the most challenging part about being a guide?

The most challenging part about being a guide is to be knowledgeable — it can be hard to think of answers quickly when guests ask many questions.

What is your favorite thing to show guests?

My favourite part about being a guide is to let my clients know about our country and to learn about things for themselves.  I also like to improve my English more than before.

What kind of things do guests want to talk about with you?

Most of my guests ask me about political situation and ways of lives of Myanmar people. This is always very new for them.

What food / restaurants should guests try?

The gusset should have food at the restaurants which are hygienic to try new things.

What should guests coming to Mandalay know?

The guest should know how to keep an open mind when learning about the culture of the Myanmar people. Life is different here.

Most memorable JW guest?

All my guests are really friendly and they all have heart of gold. My most memorable guests are Thomas and  Mary. They are form U.S.A.

 … Read more »

Wanderlust calls for great guides to be recognized

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At Journeys Within, we know how important our guides are to making every tour unforgettable for our guests. It is up to our guides to bring the Southeast Asian destinations we showcase to life. Looking to honour the people who go above and beyond as guides, Wanderlust has opened up the nominations for World Guide Awards 2014.

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Time and time again the feedback we get from guests highlights just how important guides are to their overall experiences.  From facilitating conversations with locals to taking guests to their favourite local haunts, travelers have never hesitated to share their appreciation for our guides with us.

For those guests looking to spread the love, Wanderlust is now accepting nominations for their  World Guide Awards 2014 — a global award meant to recognize those guides who create unforgettable memories.

The winner of the Awards will be announced next year, on the 21st October 2014, at a prestigious event at London’s Royal Geographical Society.

I’m sure any of our guides — be it the much-beloved Sina from Cambodia or patient and thoughtful Pong in Thailand — would be overwhelmed to be recognized in their field.  Journeys Within is encouraging any guests who have had positive experiences to nominate the guides that touched their lives on the Wanderlust page.

Feel free to check out last year’s winners to get an idea of what kind of guides they are looking to honour.

We know that the Journeys Within team is special — now its time to share that with the world.

The Wanderlust World Guide Awards were launched in 2005 in memory of Wanderlust’s co-founder Paul Morrison.

 … Read more »

Guiding Lights: Ron, Bangkok Thailand

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Guide Ron
1. How do you become a guide in Thailand?

When I was student my favorite  was English class and I did it very well.But it’s not easy to keep that part in my everyday life cos working without English usage.So I decided to take a tour guide course in 2001 from Archaeology Faculty of Silpakorn University and that my adventure began.

2. Why did you want to be a guide?

I ‘ve always known my advantage is English,and I’m a kind of easy learning person and for sure traveling is my life.For being a tour guide I can do what I really want and enjoy it,that makes me be who I am.I can learn everything from my guests,they’re from all over the world.

3. What is the hardest part about being a guide?

To know everything is the hardest part of my job,but also the most challenge for me.My guests they have different characters and lifestyle and interrest and background.So it makes me feel like I can be everything ,friend ,son , lecturer or student for them.

4. What are your favorite sites to show guest?

Definitely The Grand Palace,The pride of Thailand.

5.Where do you like to take guests to eat?

Any local Thai restaurant.we’re local so we know many of them.Once I invited my guests for dinner with me at a local restaurant,not a fancy at all, and they really enjoyed it.But I have to make sure that they really like hot and spicy authentic Thai food.

6. Favorite guests and why?

My guests they have their own style and character,then it’s hard to tell.But I do have my favorite Mr. and Mrs. Jones, Bob and Caroline. Because we had been through the hard time together. They were here in Bangkok while the Airport was closed so Journeys Within booked them on the tour for 3 days at The Bridge Over The River Kwai. We had good time there and forgot all the bad things for a while. Finally we made it, they caught the flight Back home. This was the second time they came to Bangkok with Journeys Within and they still remembered me when we second met .… Read more »

Guiding lights: Sina Kaam, Cambodia

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Our guides are the backbone of our company and our biggest asset. I thought we would do a weekly Saturday blog dedicated just to our guides. Feel free to send in recommendations on who we should interview next and we will try to get to everyone.

I thought it was appropriate to start it off in Cambodia, where it all began after-all. Sina was one of the first guides we ever worked with in Cambodia and we were drawn to him right away. In the beginning Sina was pretty new to guiding so he didn’t get rave reviews, guests said that he was a bit shy and seemed nervous, but we saw such potential we decided to work with him on building his confidence and becoming the guide we knew he could be. Well Sina now exceeds all our expectations and is a joy to work with and be guided by. He gets amazing reviews from guests and is truly a part of the family. I sat down with Sina to discuss who he is and what he does…

Name: Sina Kaam
Age: 35-years-old
Married with two kids, a 7-year-old boy and a 4-year-old girl
Started Guiding in 2002

Sina with Apsara
How do you become a guide in Cambodia?

You have to go to school for 4 month, 8 hours a day and at the end you have to take and pass a test. When I did it you could do it for about $200, but now it is much more expensive.


Why did you want to be a guide?

In 1992 I met some of the UN Army and I always asked them the questions and practice my English with them. I like to hear about other cultures and I like to find out about other people.


What’s the hardest part about being a guide?

A lot of guests ask questions about politics in Cambodia and it’s hard because in our culture we aren’t used to talking about this.

What are your favorite sites to show guests?

Of course I like Angkor Wat, everyone in my country is very proud of it. I also like Bayon and Banteay Srei because they are the unique temples and have the amazing carvings.

Where do you like to take guests to eat?

Journeys Within always recommend Khmer Kitchen so I take the guests there, but when I eat there I like it so much so I think it’s the good choice.

What do you recommend for guests visiting Cambodia?

To know everyday life in Cambodia and how they live. I think they should tell me their job and then we can compare to the job here, compare salary and experience and see how the same job is different in different countries.


Any favorite moments in guiding?

I like when the guest teach me things too. I learn the saying, “The grass is always greener on the other side.” I always tell the guests that it’s funny that Western people want the dark skin and Cambodians want the white skin and then they teach me this saying and I think it’s very true.

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Thank you to Sina for being such a great member of the team and stay tuned to learn more about our guides in Laos, Thailand, Vietnam and Myanmar!… Read more »