The Tour Guide Who Ran Out of Facts

Barnaby had been hired to lead walking tours of his small harbor town for the summer, mostly because nobody else had applied. The job came with a laminated map, a bright yellow cap, and a folder of facts put together by the town council years ago.

Barnaby dipekerjakan untuk memandu tur jalan kaki di kota pelabuhan kecilnya selama musim panas, terutama karena tidak ada orang lain yang melamar. Pekerjaan itu datang dengan peta berlaminasi, topi kuning cerah, dan sebuah map berisi fakta-fakta yang disusun dewan kota bertahun-tahun lalu.

The folder was thin. By the third stop, the old clock tower, Barnaby had already told his group everything it contained. The tower was built in 1902, and the clock had been running five minutes fast ever since.

Map itu tipis. Pada perhentian ketiga, menara jam tua, Barnaby sudah menyampaikan kepada rombongannya semua isinya. Menara itu dibangun pada tahun 1902, dan jamnya sejak itu selalu berjalan lima menit lebih cepat.

Eight tourists were looking at him, waiting for more. He probably should have admitted the truth. Instead, he pointed at a small window near the top of the tower.

Delapan turis memandanginya, menunggu cerita lagi. Mungkin seharusnya ia mengakui yang sebenarnya. Sebaliknya, ia menunjuk sebuah jendela kecil di dekat puncak menara.

"That window," he said, "is where the clockmaker lived. He refused to come down for eleven years, because he was convinced the town would steal his gears."

"Jendela itu," katanya, "tempat tinggal si pembuat jam. Ia menolak turun selama sebelas tahun, karena yakin warga kota akan mencuri roda giginya."

The tourists laughed and took photos. Encouraged, Barnaby kept going. The fountain in the square, he explained, had been designed by a sailor who was homesick for the sea. The crooked lamppost outside the bakery had been hit by a runaway cheese wheel in the 1950s. He was starting to enjoy himself.

Para turis tertawa dan memotret. Terdorong semangat, Barnaby terus bercerita. Air mancur di alun-alun, jelasnya, dirancang oleh seorang pelaut yang rindu laut. Tiang lampu yang miring di depan toko roti pernah ditabrak sebongkah keju bulat yang menggelinding pada tahun 1950-an. Ia mulai menikmati dirinya sendiri.

Only one person wasn't taking photos. She was an older woman in a green raincoat, and after every story she wrote something down in a small notebook.

Hanya satu orang yang tidak memotret. Ia seorang perempuan tua berjas hujan hijau, dan setelah setiap cerita ia menuliskan sesuatu di buku catatan kecil.

At the end of the tour, she waited until the others had left. "Young man," she said, "my name is Imelda Ross. I've been the town's volunteer historian for thirty years."

Di akhir tur, ia menunggu sampai yang lain pergi. "Anak muda," katanya, "namaku Imelda Ross. Aku sudah tiga puluh tahun menjadi sejarawan sukarela kota ini."

Barnaby felt his face turn hot. He tried to think of an excuse, but nothing came to mind.

Wajah Barnaby terasa panas. Ia berusaha memikirkan alasan, tetapi tidak ada yang terlintas.

"The clockmaker story is nonsense," she continued. "The cheese wheel is nonsense. The sailor is nonsense." She closed her notebook. "They were also the first stories anyone has actually enjoyed on that tour since it started."

"Cerita si pembuat jam itu omong kosong," lanjutnya. "Keju bulat itu omong kosong. Si pelaut itu omong kosong." Ia menutup buku catatannya. "Tapi itu juga cerita pertama yang benar-benar dinikmati orang sejak tur ini dimulai."

Then she told him that the town's real history was far stranger than anything he had invented. The clock ran fast because the mayor in 1902 had wanted everyone to arrive early for church. The fountain had been paid for by a man who lost a bet about the weather.

Lalu ia memberi tahu bahwa sejarah sebenarnya kota itu jauh lebih ganjil daripada apa pun yang dikarang Barnaby. Jam itu berjalan cepat karena wali kota pada tahun 1902 ingin semua orang tiba lebih awal untuk ibadah. Air mancur itu dibiayai seorang pria yang kalah taruhan soal cuaca.

"The council's folder leaves all of that out," she said. "They thought it was undignified."

"Map dewan kota menghilangkan semua itu," katanya. "Mereka pikir itu tidak pantas."

The next morning, Barnaby found a thick envelope that had been pushed under the door of the tourist office. Inside were forty pages of handwritten notes, each one marked with a date and a source. On the last page, Imelda had added a short message.

Keesokan paginya, Barnaby menemukan sebuah amplop tebal yang diselipkan di bawah pintu kantor pariwisata. Di dalamnya ada empat puluh halaman catatan tulisan tangan, masing-masing diberi tanggal dan sumber. Di halaman terakhir, Imelda menambahkan pesan singkat.

"Real facts only from now on. But you may keep the cheese wheel."

"Mulai sekarang fakta sungguhan saja. Tapi keju bulat itu boleh kamu simpan."