An Interesting Interview in Ely

What is the typical daily routine of a Tourist Information Centre? It sounds really exciting and varied so we decided to interview an assistant in Ely.

The Tourist Information Office is situated in an old traditional English house.

Three very friendly female employees received us cordially. One of them was immediately prepared to answer any questions.

Ann Muncaster, the Senior TIC Assistant, is a lady in her early fifties. She lives with her husband in Ely so her route to work is not very long. She has two grown-up sons. In her spare time she often goes for long walks with her dog.

She has been working in the Tourist Information Office for nearly 15 years. Ann does not work the whole week - she is a part-time employee. She loves her job because she has contact with very different people. Ann has to answer many local and international questions. She must be prepared for anything all the time. She knows a lot about Ely and its attractions.

The very famous Cathedral of Ely

was built in the year 1083.

Her day is was diverse. She has to manage the gift shop, answer E-Mail and phone inquiries, book accommodation and organise guided city-tours. The qualifications she needs for her job are Computer skills, speaking different languages and having a lot of patience with tourists. Every day she has to do a stock-count. That is the only thing she doesn’t like in the office.

The end of our interview we had the cheek to ask what sort of starting salary we could expect in TIC. The three women smiled at this question. They calculated with a pocket calculate and gave us the sum of
£ 1,100 a month!

In these only fifteen minutes we saw three happy employees in a small tourist place and we think working in a Tourist Information Office is a possibility after our apprenticeship.

By Anja and Stefanie K.