Preface

Song Tianxi

When seeing on my office desk a manuscript entitled Handbook for English-speaking Tour Guidescompiled by Ms.Guo Yanhua and her beautifully-handwritten message that asked me to offer some advice and write a preface to the book，I felt discouraged by quite a few scruples mainly because I was afraid I might not be up to the expectations. However，after a skim over the book，particularly its contents which immediately hit me in the eye，I found myself so motivated that I became a willing slave to the task.

Not seldom do my students complain to me that they are fed up with the “empty theory” tourism textbook and lectures in classes and cry for as practical things as possible. As a result，I am time and again asked if I can recommend a so-called “thirst-appeasing” book on tourism. But to their disappointment，I often told them that that kind of book they mentioned was still unavailable at bookstores. Now， I can say to them and other college students that I will recommend such a book that they have been looking forward to.

A book on tourism that combines theory and practice as well as highlights specific examples， Handbook for English-speaking Tour Guidesnot only tells how to administrate tourism，how to be a qualified tour guide，how to lead a tour group，and the laws and regulations involved， but also exhausts how to succeed in a test for a tour guide license and how well learned an English-speaking tour guide should be，serving the purpose of an Ariadne's thread by rendering practical help to college students who want to be tour guides after graduation. This book would not have been made possible without the rich experience of Ms. Guo，who，a once-tour guide for years，now teaches Tourism English at university.

Guangdong is one of China's frontier areas of reform and opening to the outside world. Boasting of very beautiful mountains and rivers and a strong economy，the province has an extraordinarily great potential for the development of tourism. Therefore，more and more personnel to be engaged in tourism there will be sought after. I sincerely hope that Ms.Guo's book and some others will contribute a bit to the country's as well as Guangdong's preparation for such kind of men and women badly needed.