Tourists, Travelers, and Local Culture

Travel theorist Stanley Plogg places the personalities of tourists and travelers along a broad scale. On one end are people who want their travel experience to be as "like home" as possible. They want to take it easy and not be faced with stressful situations and decision-making. They want everything to "go right." These are frequently (but not always) the people found at posh resorts, or on group tours.

On the other end are those travelers who enjoy new situations, dig deeply into local culture, and travel as if they were natives of the land. They find lodging where the locals sleep, eat where the locals dine, and use their transportation. They may hitch rides to get from place to place, not only as a means of saving money, but as a way to meet local people. Most of these travelers are backpackers.

These most-adventurous travelers prefer travel destinations which are not yet developed for the mass tourist trade. They often lament about an area becoming developed and losing its charm. They then push out to new, virgin areas, and unintentionally begin laying the groundwork for future tourist expansion. Of course, most backpackers fall somewhere in the middle of the scale.

As an area develops for the tourist trade relations between locals and travelers become more formalized. Locals become accustomed to foreigners, now seeing them as either a source of income, or a nuisance. No longer are they interesting new friends from far away.

Travelers and the travel industry may both benefit and harm a local economy and culture. Locals may gain from jobs, taxes, and contact with democratic cultures. But severe disruptions also occur. Crime may increase as crooks congregate to prey on rich visitors. The tourist area may rapidly rise in population as villagers from other parts of the country migrate to get jobs, which may or may not be available. Sanitation and medical facilities may be overwhelmed, and housing may become a short commodity, with land prices unaffordable for the local population. One example: few native Hawaiians now own any part of Hawaii.

When tourist culture meets local culture, a clash is inevitable. Locals may decide their own products and way of life are no longer desirable. In the 1960's there was a popular campaign in Europe to donate used clothing to "poor, naked Africans." It had such appeal many kind-hearted souls donated new clothing. The organizers failed to understand, however, that Africans had been beautifully dressing themselves, as necessary, for thousands of years.

Consequently, as Western clothing poured into Africa and came to market (which is the natural outcome of such a program), prices were driven far below normal. Africans eagerly snatched up the bargain Western styles they had seen or heard about. Many local clothing makers--pillars of the African economy--were driven from business as their hand-made products were now perceived as inferior. Africans became more reliant on imports, further weakening the economy, further increasing unemployment.

That said, tourism as cause of culture clash is a distant second to electron-conveyed information, and both are only going to increase as Earth truly becomes a global village over the next century. Moreover, information via television, HDTV, satellites, fiber optics, ubiquitous Internet, and unknown means will exponentially increase until world culture eventually becomes one well-stirred bowl of alphabet soup.

So go now while the traveling is great!

C. Watch the film “Family Album” (Episode 25 “Country music”) and enlarge on different types of travelling.

UNIT 9

Countries and Nationalities

I. Phonetic Training

1. Train the pronunciation of the following geographical names:

Argentine Algeria

Vietnam Norway

Russia Pakistan

Ireland Japan

Sudan China

Libya Thailand

Peru Korea

Scotland the Netherland

Hungary Chile

Belgium Brazil

Egypt the USA

Sweden the Ukraine

Switzerland Georgia

2. Listen to the rhyme, repeat it after the speaker and learn by heart.

Winter Song

(by Katherine Mansfield)

Rain and wind, and wind and rain.

Will the summer come again?

Rain on houses, on street,

Snow and sleet and sleet and snow

What do beggar children do

With no fire to cuddle to?

Hail and ice and ice and hail,

Water frozen in the pail.

See the robbins, brown and red,

They are waiting to be fed.

3. Listen some tongue twisters.

I can think of six thick things, can you?

Yes, I can think of six thick things

And six thin things too.

Can you imagine

An imaginary menagerie manager

Managing an imaginary menagerie?

4. Listen to the song, learn the words and sing the song.

Thank you for the music

ABBA

I’m nothing special, in fact I’m a bit a bore

If I tell a joke, you’ve probably heard it before

But I have a talent, a wonderful thing

‘Cause everyone listens when I start to sing

I’m so grateful and proud

All I want is to sing it out aloud

Refrain:

So I say

Thank you for the music, the song I’m singing

Thanks for all the joy they’re bringing

Who can live without it, I ask in all honesty

What would life be?

Without a song or a dance what are we?

So I say thank you for the music

For giving it to me

Mother says I was a dancer before I could walk

She says I began to sing long before I could talk

And I’ve often wondered, how did it all start?

Who found out that nothing can capture a heart

Like a melody can?

Well, whoever it was, I’m a fan

Refrain:

I’ve been so likely, I am the girl with golden hair

I wanna sing it out to everybody

What a joy, what a life, what a chance!

Refrain: