tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8319797996494487653.post4782848309144083524..comments2023-12-30T17:31:11.883+00:00Comments on The Solitary Walker: Tourists And TravellersThe Solitary Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11284354541952038339noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8319797996494487653.post-9065443295967629812010-06-22T21:42:51.792+01:002010-06-22T21:42:51.792+01:00Kiwi - met very few 'tourists' on all my 3...Kiwi - met very few 'tourists' on all my 3 Caminos...<br /><br />Grace - no better place:)The Solitary Walkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11284354541952038339noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8319797996494487653.post-42546774203431977862010-06-22T20:03:15.958+01:002010-06-22T20:03:15.958+01:00Most of the time, I'm content just to be a tra...Most of the time, I'm content just to be a traveller in my own backyard:)Gracehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09696349282379608085noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8319797996494487653.post-78918331150871756182010-06-20T00:26:33.876+01:002010-06-20T00:26:33.876+01:00When I walked the Le Puy route I guess I was surpr...When I walked the Le Puy route I guess I was surprised by how few 'tourists' there were. I was walking through such beautiful landscapes, and staying in interesting medieval towns, but 'luckily' they weren't on major tourist routes. Except for Conques. After 12 days of walking that had included some very cold wet days both before and on the Aubrac Plateau, I knew I had experienced the wilds of the Auvergne in a way that the tourists in Conques didn't know about. I am not really one to label myself as a pilgrim- long distance walker is probably more accurate mostly- but in that instance I felt like a 'pilgrim'.Kiwi Nomadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13351034705766073667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8319797996494487653.post-326816826317656342010-06-18T21:57:32.408+01:002010-06-18T21:57:32.408+01:00Thanks for all these interesting comments.
Firewe...Thanks for all these interesting comments.<br /><br />Fireweed, yes, I know exactly what you mean, and you've developed so well what I was saying. I've always found 'holiday' (in the sense of our 'well-earned' annual 2 or 3 weeks' respite from the daily drudgery of 'work') a rather pathetic concept, and one I react against. I don't want 'work' (bad) over here and 'holiday' (good) over there. I want them to be seamless, with work flowing into holidays and vice versa. (I know this sounds idealistic.) I want to enjoy work enough so that it seems like a holiday; and also to put some work into holidays (eg do a pilgrimage or climb a mountain).The Solitary Walkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11284354541952038339noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8319797996494487653.post-3339289364028152112010-06-17T18:53:36.436+01:002010-06-17T18:53:36.436+01:00I see tourism as an extension of our industrialize...I see tourism as an extension of our industrialized consumer culture. I think many people go on holidays just to have something to talk about back at work, and because they are desperate not to “waste” their precious few days off - those in EU countries get at least twice as many paid days off as North Americans, by the way - and want to fill them with something that seems important, that makes the drudgery of the rest of the year feel worth it. <br /><br />I’ve lived in some tourist hotspots in my time and in observing the tourists who came and went, I perceived a kind of hunger/despair in their eyes. They seemed desperate to get the right photos, to buy something, ANYTHING, and to see all the right things. I found it depressing.<br /><br />Tourists do what they are told, go where they are told to go, and think they can buy pre-packaged, effortless happiness. A traveler is someone who is curious and sees every day as a journey, whether at home or far away. Traveling is about learning, discovery, savouring diversity and honing one’s perceptive skills. Tourism reinforces a person’s worldview; traveling alters and expands it. After a holiday a tourist is ready to go back to the old routine while a traveler returning from a journey is eager for changes, challenges, and growth.fireweed meadowhttp://www.fireweedmeadow.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8319797996494487653.post-9137232564036774532010-06-17T00:11:51.026+01:002010-06-17T00:11:51.026+01:00Fully agree - when I travel I often reflect on ho...Fully agree - when I travel I often reflect on how fast even backpackers move and how slow I go. They usually have a list of "to see" places whereas I think if I want to just see a place I can look at photos. To know a place you have to stay longer than the click of a camera.gleanerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11826401785165112918noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8319797996494487653.post-22469514261944807362010-06-16T17:08:57.196+01:002010-06-16T17:08:57.196+01:00I too like to think of myself as a traveller, when...I too like to think of myself as a traveller, when I travel, not a tourist. But I wonder - is it a real distinction or a necessary self-delusion born of the least attractive extremes of tourism?Dominic Rivronhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02618013365521035400noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8319797996494487653.post-10572968525808749622010-06-16T14:19:17.618+01:002010-06-16T14:19:17.618+01:00Intersting slant on the tourism thing. I remember ...Intersting slant on the tourism thing. I remember when I was in Peru a few years ago that our guide referred to us as visitors (not tourists) during our trip, as you say tourists get on a bus and drive somewhere then get off the bus and take a photo at which point they get back on the bus and go somewhere else and so the cycle continues. Visitors tend to try to get under the skin of the country and get a real feel for it rather than arrive back home with few experiences but a memory stick full of photos.CF Richhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03982001728381415835noreply@blogger.com