Pro tip: don't trust the 'official' tour guide at a castle ruin

I was at this old castle ruin in Scotland, Dunnottar, and the guide kept saying a certain tower was from the 1400s. But I'd just read a plaque near the entrance with a different date from an old dig. I asked him about it, and he got all flustered and said the plaque was wrong (which felt weird, you know?). It made me wonder how many other small historical facts we just accept because someone in a uniform says so. Has anyone else caught a guide or museum sign getting a date or fact totally wrong?

2 comments

2 Comments

davidwright1d ago

Oh man, that's the worst. I once corrected a guide on the height of a church spire, only to realize later I was mixing up feet and meters. I felt like such a tool. Good on you, @umaf20, for actually having your facts straight before speaking up. It's a weird spot, because you don't want to be that guy, but wrong info just sticks in people's heads. Makes you question everything you hear on those tours.

umaf201d ago

What did you end up doing, just let it go? I had a guide at a fort get the name of a battle wrong once. I just quietly looked it up on my phone right there and showed him the park service page. He mumbled an apology to our group, it was awkward but I felt like I had to say something.