Curriculum Vitae

Curriculum Vitae

     Hello my friends, I am Leo-Jiang. I graduated from Feng-Chia University in 2001, I have been working in travel agencies for 17 years so far. I am a salesman, local guide, and outbound tour leader. Because of this job, I have been to many places in Taiwan and about 50 countries in the world. Because of this job, I have to keep learning all kinds of knowledge, and make it easy to understand to my guests. Usually when my guests see me at first sight, they think I look like a nerd engineer. But when I start to introduce the place, history, and food. They will think the guide is not bad. When they feel tired, I will tell them some jokes to cheer up.

For example: between 1 and 10, why 6 is afraid of 7? Because 7 ate 9 and 10. ate is number 8. It is also the past tense of eat. 

Another one: Dad, I'm hungry, Hi, Hungry. I'm Dad. 

Last one: Which one is faster? Hot or cold? Hot is faster, because you can catch a cold. I know they’re lame jokes but funny.

I devote my life to the job as a tour leader. Tourism is my vocation. Every group I always do my best to help and accompany with my guests make their dreams come true. You can say my dream is to make my members’ dreams come true.

1. University and Club life   1997 – 2001

     The target of industrial engineering is to design, build and improve systems. Apply to industry: such as process management and improvement, supply chain management, human factors engineering, quality control; apply to business: such as cost analysis, project management, logistics systems, enterprise resource planning, etc. When I was in high school, I was interested in both the Department of Tourism Business and the Department of Industrial Engineering, but because of my growing background and strong family ties, I chose the latter. Fortunately, I like most courses, so my graduation grade is 10th in the class and 34th in the department of IE. 

     In the school club, I joined the Disaster Relief Service Team and became a member of the team's activity group. Learned first aid training, group games, art, drama, dance, campfire and equipment assembly. During the semester, we were responsible for setting up first aid stations for various activities and regularly organizing blood donation activities in campus; during the winter and summer vacations, we went to rural primary and secondary schools to organize health care and recreation camps, and arranged educational entertainment courses such as first aid, group game, and handicrafts teaching for children. Welcomed by local residents. The team’s training courses have made me optimistic and outgoing. It's also helpful for my job in the tourism industry.

     On holidays, I worked as a first aid instructor in the Taichung branch of the Red Cross, in charge of teaching first aid courses and promoting public welfare activities. Although I no longer work at the Red Cross, the knowledge I learned is still applied in my life and work. Also because of my understanding of the medical field, I agree that when my life reaches the end, healthy organs can be donated to people in need, so I signed the authorization for organ and tissue donation.

2. Two years of mandatory military service   2001 – 2003

     After graduated from Feng Chia University, I immediately fulfilled the mandatory military service. When I received the basic training in boot camp, I didn’t wait for the final draw to be distributed. I voluntarily applied to the Army Aviation and Special Forces Command to be a paratrooper. Hmm...actually, I think I could learn skydiving for free, and receiving hazard pay every month. The daily training of paratroopers is really harder than that of ordinary soldiers. I have upgraded my physical and spiritual a lot. Sometimes I felt that I am about to see the God. As the saying goes, no pain no gain. 

     For two years in the army, like a cram school before entering society, you will understand that the way of operation in society is different from that in school. In school, every test must have a standard answer, and the questions can be solved in scientific formulas. But in the military, there is no absolute wrong or right to deal with things. A little flexibility will make it easier to do things. Learning to compromise and let go will make you live a more peaceful life.

3. Start of work - Domestic Tourism Period   2003 – 2009

     After an honorary discharge from the army, my senior at university told me that there was a travel agency in Taipei that was recruiting student group leaders, he suggested that I go for an interview. After got the offer, I explained my thoughts to my family, and then I rented a small apartment in Taipei and started my life as a tour leader. Through the life of a graduation trip leader, I have traveled to various scenic spots in Taiwan and accumulated practical experience and interpretation skills. In 2005, I got the license of Chinese-speaking tour guide and English-speaking tour manager.

     After getting acquainted with Taiwan, I chose to work as a group clerk at Happy Family Travel Agency, responsible for the company’s staff travel. I made cold calling every day, asking for details, design the itinerary and quotation, arrange the group tour process, book the bus, restaurant and hotel, and repeat the same process the next year after the group tour was completed. In this way, I gradually got acquainted with many industries in Taiwan. Companies such as Formosa Plastics, Adidas, ABN AMRO, Oriental Securities, Cal-Comp Electronics, China Electric, TGI Fridays, and Taiwan Biotech Company have all been my customers. In addition to the company trip, we also undertake the spring party, year-end banquet, education training, conference tour, incentive travel, family day and international travel for our clients.

     I am very fortunate that I chose to work at a Class-A travel agency at the beginning, because our departments are not classified as detailed as consolidated travel agencies like Lion-travel or Cola-tour. If I want to make more money, I need to understand accounting, cost control, itinerary design, after-sales service and so on. Besides, I have a travel agency manager's license, these abilities are enough for me to start my own business. Although I did not set up my own travel agency in the end, my biggest gain during this period was to learn to consider and pay attention to details. I prepared some activities on the bus, such as balloon folding, magic tricks, and lottery games. I also designed a game called "The Best of Taiwan". Once, my client’s chairman was Japanese, and I paid a Japanese translator to take care of the chairman. Over the years in Happy Family Travel Agency, my position has been promoted from a salesman to an assistant sales manager, taking on the responsibility of managing and training new employees, playing three different roles: salesman, tour guide, and supervisor.

4. Chinese-speaking tour guide period   2009 – 2017

     In July 2008, the Taiwan government passed the opening policy for Mainland China Tourists to Taiwan. The chairman of Huan-Yu International Travel Service wanted to set up a new department to take charge of Mainland China tourists visiting Taiwan. He wanted to recruit persons who are familiar with Taiwan and can work independently. I wanted to seize business opportunities, so started working as a tour guide at Huan-Yu. When Mainland China tourists traveled in Taiwan, most of them arranged an eight-day trip around the island. The destinations are different from Taiwanese tourists. They are interested in the life of Chiang Kai-shek and his wife, as well as internationally renowned scenic spots, such as Yehliu Geopark, Zhongshan Hall, Chiang Kai-shek Shilin Residence, Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, Cihu Mausoleum, Sun Moon Lake, Alishan, Kenting National Park, Taroko National Park and other places. In 2015, the number of international tourists to Taiwan exceeded 10 million for the first time. In the same year, 4.18 million Mainland China tourists came to Taiwan. Following this trend, Huan-Yu International Travel Service has become the largest local tour agency in Taiwan, with a total of 300 tour guides and 200 tour buses, and tour guides like us led about 30 groups each year. 

     Although I haven't been to all the cities in China, tourists from various provinces in China have told me a lot of beautiful scenery and delicacies. I also learned about the personalities of people from various provinces and viewed Taiwan from different angles. Daily life we take for granted in Taiwan, they feel very interesting, such as Mandarin Phonetic Symbols and Traditional Chinese, multi-functional convenience stores, elections and voting, patterns on the New Taiwan dollar, Feng Shui, and Matsu Pilgrimage Procession. Because I have led groups to many Asian countries. In the past few years as a tour guide, I started to travel to Europe and America during vacation. Before traveling, I looked up and sorted out all the local information online. Through every long journey, every experience and mistake, I explored my own processes and methods, and learned about the life and culture of Europe. 

5. European line tour manager   2017 – 2020

     I have a senior coworker who led long-range tour in Beijing and moved back to live in Taiwan. As the head of the European department at Sky-Tour, I seized the opportunity of recruiting new blood, went to Sky-Tour as the tour manager, and began to travel through European countries. Austrian writer Peter Altenberg once said that if he is not in the cafe, he is on the way to the cafe. For me, if I’m not in Europe, I’m on the plane to Europe. Those who usually join a group to travel to Europe have been to Japan, South Korea, Thailand and other Asian countries before. Those who have traveled on short-range tour will be easier to adapt to the schedule in Europe and respect local laws. The European tour is also due to the long days (8-14 days), and the high tour fee (NT$70,000 to NT$200,000). Only the winter and summer vacations will have family groups. At other times, the group members are mostly retired elders, honeymoon couples, and social people who want to fulfill their dreams. 

     The history and culture of Europe are quite rich and profound, so there are almost limitless topics that can be introduced to my group members. At the same time, I usually compare the life experience in Taiwan with that in Europe, so that the members can understand the different perspectives of the East and the West, and I can say that I am explaining it 24/7 when I lead a group tour in Europe. Although due to jet lag and walking every day, members occasionally get some shut-eye, I can still speak with pleasure. The elders in my group usually praised my magnetic voice, which cured their insomnia. Once I talked about the House of Habsburg, I felt as if I had made a mistake about the age of Princess Sisi, after checking my notes that night, I corrected it to my members on the bus the next day. From the look of sleepy eyes, members immediately looked at me in surprise, because they had forgotten the entire content of what I said yesterday. I just care about having to provide the correct information. 

6. Since the new coronavirus outbreak   2020 – 2021 

     Because I have been working for almost 20 years, and have some savings and passive income, I am not in a hurry to find a job and plan to use this long vacation to complete some of my life lists. Therefore, I took courses related to the tourism industry, get my teeth straightened, tested TOEIC, set up my blog and fan page "Leo’s Travel Life", got the bus driver’s license, preparing for Level C technician for Western culinary, cycling around Taiwan. To be continued…