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A few questions: Was your housing all employee housing for the most part, and what was the general consensus of the living conditions that your peers encountered in other parts of the world? Also, what do you plan on doing when you get older? I realize thinking about something like that isn't necessarily your style, but have you considered what you'll do when you can no longer guide rivers? For retirement?
A lot of the time it was, particularly in the third world areas. In Uganda we lived in white colonial luxury. In Canada we lived in a shed above the storage area.
When I get older. Well, I suppose I have to say that I'm getting a bit older now. I'm opening a lounge bar here this summer, and I have other interests that bring the money in. I'm not looking to get a traditional job to support me into my retirement years if that's what you're asking. But I'm winding down the guiding now. It's a great job when you're in your twenties and early thirties. It's an even better job when you get out of it succesfully after that time.
A quick warning on becoming a guide in BC. A lot of companies there run "rafting courses". These normally last about a week. These can be useful but there is no way you can learn to guide in a week. The best way to learn is to identify a good company and present yourself as someone willing to do whatever it takes to get river time and experience.
Good luck with it,
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