Recently, as I boarded a Turkish Airlines plane, I was pleasantly surprised to see sign language interpreters projected on the small television screens above the seat rows transmitting flight safety rules. I attempted but could not remember a sign language translation of safety rules on such airlines as Lufthansa and Air France, or any other major European flight company. This brought my mind to the sudden acquaintance that started for me online at the Tour Watch network where best practices in accessible travel are shared - with a leader and initiator of the International Deaf Tours in the Philippines, Maria Gilda Quintua.
After graduating from college in the Philippines, Gilda was hesitant to apply to different companies for employment, fearing that they would not accept disabled people. Those experiences prompted her to start thinking about establishing her own business.
In 2002, Deaf Japanese friends who Gilda met through the Internet asked her if she could show them the best tourist spots in the Philippines. Gilda agreed and voluntarily guided them through her home country. Her friends were amazed by the beautiful sights of the Philippines and spread the word about Gilda's tour, not only to Japanese fellow countrymen at home, but also to potential tourists in other countries.
When Gilda saw the growing demand for tour guides who could show Deaf foreign tourists around their countries, she decided to establish Ma. Gilda L. Quintua (MGLQ) Deaf Tour Assistance, Philippines, on February 18, 2004.
Gilda started from scratch and managed to find needed resources through networking, organizing itineraries, contacting hotels, resorts and maintaining contact with the local tour Deaf guides. At first, resources were scarce, but Gilda's hard work, paired with word-of-mouth promotion from her first clients, paid off. Gilda still has no office and uses her home in Eastern Samar as her main office. Today, tourists from the USA, Japan, Canada, the United Kingdom, Malaysia, Korea, Australia, Singapore, Pakistan and Ireland among others, have taken part in Maria Gilda's Deaf Tours.
The company was established with the help of Marites Racquel Corpuz, President of the Philippine Federation of the Deaf. Marites later became a part time staff and tour guide. The entire company is maintained through clients' fees for tour guiding. M.G.L.Q. Company works strictly as a Deaf to Deaf tour operator, and no sign language interpreters are needed.
"We have only 2 people on our staff and the Deaf tour guides come from the local areas," says Gilda. "Tours are held almost every month in Filipino Sign Language with mix of ASL, and in Japanese SL," she adds.
"Usually we send the clients a tour package of their choice, with the price already included," says Gilda. "We do not have hearing professional guides because we conduct orientation of the site before getting information on history of the sites, length of travel time and inform our clients of the site rules, if any. Ms. Corpuz and I are professional tour guides as we are very experienced in traveling through many parts of our country, and we both work in a non-profit organisation as volunteers. Our tourist spots are located in 3 main islands of the Philippines - Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao."
For Gilda, the main benefit from her business is not money, but getting to know new people and other cultures. Through her work, she has met many Deaf and hard of hearing people from all over the world and wants to learn more from them.
What are the challenges facing M.G.L.Q. Tours today? "It's funding," Gilda says, "and we want to include a Hong Kong and Macau tour for Filipino Deaf clients. In the future, we want to find permanent office located in the central Metro Manila [the capital of the Philippines] for easy access. We also aspire to become members of the Travel and Tour Association of the Philippines to promote our company and expand networking."
A good deed does not go unrecognized. In 2007, the program of the Philippine Center for Entrepreneurship "Go Negosyo" chose Gilda as one of the Go Negosyo 2007 Most Inspiring Entrepreneurs for People with Disabilities.
Authors' note: for more details, contact Maria Gilda Quintua at her e-mail address, Gilda_tourguide@yahoo.com. If you want to join the Tour Watch online platform, go to http://www.ning.com and search for "Tour Watch Network".
SOME FACTS ABOUT THE PHILIPPINES:
Location: Southeastern Asia, an archipelago between the Philippine Sea and the South China Sea, east of Vietnam
Population: 91,077,287
Area: total: 300,000 sq km, land: 298,170 sq km, water: 1,830 sq km
Area-comparative: slightly larger than Arizona
Government type: Republic
Climate: tropical marine; northeast monsoon (November to April); southwest monsoon (May to October)
Terrain: mostly mountains with narrow to extensive coastal lowlands
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