The Tourist Becomes the Tour Guide

Grace Keller
April 10, 2018

Over the past few weeks I had the pleasure of hosting two guests as they visited Amsterdam for the very first time. Before my guests arrived in Amsterdam, I couldn't help but feel extremely nervous about my ability to show them all of the incredible aspects of Amsterdam I have grown so attached to and love so very much. I felt as if the fate of their visits and their lasting impressions of Amsterdam were entirely on my shoulders. I did not want to come off as a tourist in the city I've been living in for the past two months and just show them a weekend's worth of tourist traps. With this in mind, I decided to take my guests to all the places I love and know, all the places I've been recommended, and all the places they had expressed interest in. As it turns out, showing my friends a good time in Amsterdam was that simple. While I was putting a lot of pressure on myself to make sure my guests had a great time, I didn't realize how much I had already learned about Amsterdam in my two months living here and how equipped I actually was to be their tour guide. I was successful in making my guest love my city, but their time here and the questions they asked me did teach me that I still have much more to learn about Amsterdam. I am excited to gain even more awareness of my home in Amsterdam and be able to share this knowledge with any guests I may have in the next few months. 

Grace Keller

<p>Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, I've spent my entire life in an environment heavily connected to the entertainment industry. As a student at Cornell University studying the connections between visual perception and media communication and design, I strive to be able to understand and implement effective design in media management. Fashion, art, architecture, music, food, and people are among the many subjects I hope to capture during my travels</p>

Home University:
Cornell University
Hometown:
Los Angeles, CA
Major:
Psychology
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