The Spatial Sense and Sensibility of Mexican Architect Ricardo Legorreta

Posted on April 29, 2012 by Bob Fisher

Architectural travel and playfulness

At The Westin Resort & Spa in Cancun, you are never entirely sure whether you are inside or outside; and this is the fundamental enigma and challenge that award-winning Mexican architect Ricardo Legorreta has not only conceptualized but internalized in this very human-friendly space.

It is a place in which you get a sense of permission-giving; permission to play. And in my experience, human play and playfulness are highly underrated; often misperceived as the sole domain of children. And yet at the Westin, it is very clear that Ricardo Legoretta has indulged himself and us in a higher order of play.

Play is how we learn the basics, how we discover and relate to our physical surroundings, how we become sensitized to the sights, sounds, forms, shapes, and feelings inherent in our personal and public spaces. And from the moment you arrive at this hotel, it is clear that what Legoretta has created is a liberated sense of space — and flow.

“Architecture is the learned game, correct and magnificent, of forms assembled in the light.” — Swiss architect and urban planner Charles-Édouard Jeanneret-Gris (known as Le Corbusier)

A multilateral space

For those who enjoy architectural-conceptual travel experiences, this particular work by Legoretta will heighten your awareness of the art form, especially because it is a highly sensory experience as well as a very clever contextual frame of reference in which numerous fundamental elements are constantly at play.

This is architecture that appeals to both cognition and the affect. The geometrical elements that Legoretta has incorporated into the hotel are proof positive of the relationship between mathematics and architecture. The lead photograph in this article, for example, demonstrates how the architect must have calculated mathematically in his mind’s eye the equivalencies that would create a harmonious, airy, and elevated space but which would at the same time preserve a human scale.

Note the telescopic effect of the view, which reflects the essential landscape he had to work with; the ocean on one side (behind us) and the lagoon on the other. And given that the space he had to work with was a relatively long (and very beautiful) beach on and equally narrow strip of land, the horizontal and lateral flow he has achieved throughout the entire multi-level series of buildings is quite remarkable.

And even though the actual property is extensive but not sprawling by any means, as you meander through the hotel you can easily get lost. This is part of the structural playfulness that is neither didactic nor pretentious, but instead invites the visitor to take alternate routes throughout the property. In this regards there is a touch of the whimsical in The Westin.

This open concept effect can also be achieved in part because the property is at the far end of Cancun’s famous Zona Hotelera and gives onto a wide beach that is also sheltered by a breakwater, thus extending the interior spaces both visually and literally. Furthermore, because The Westin is not “where the action is” in popular Cancunand has the ocean on one side and the lagoon on the other, Legoretta had a slight advantage in that he could create an architectural environment that can be more uninterrupted, and consequently more idiosyncratic and creative.

Principles, ideals, and ideas

Marcus Vitruvius Pollio was a Roman writer, architect and engineer. He is also a classical source on things architectural and is often referenced when defining the fundamental principles of architecture: order, arrangement, harmony of proportion, symmetry, congruity, economy, to mention the major themes.

As you will see from the slideshow (see link below), each of these principles has been integrated into this particular property. Because it is a resort where guests come in search of the proverbial “island of tranquility in a sea of storms,” the design has inherent in it a quiet sense of order but not the overly ambitious or even arrogant opulence that can actually intimidate some guests.

This understated order is in part created by the many private spaces that Legoretta has managed to insert here and there throughout the property. One does indeed feel far from the madding crowd but never isolated in an ambiance of luxurious excess.

Now don’t get me wrong, The Westin is indeed a luxury property (always a relative term) but Legoretta’s design features do not overwhelm nor intimidate. You never feel that you must make yourself “presentable” before venturing outside your room. This personalization of the space also adds to the spatial economy of scale and congruity of the hotel. It becomes a matrix in which diverse and surprising spaces seem to greet you at every turning. The guest is certainly indulged by this heterogeneity, but you never get the feeling of being overindulged.

Niche architecture

What I enjoyed most about this particular work by Legoretta is the way in which he uses rectangular and cubic shapes and spaces of varying size that give the property both a sense of that which is “inside” and that which is “without.” And herein lies the narrative of Legoretta’s work. All architecture tells a story; some more obvious than others, others subtle and surreptitious.

As I often say, “Landscape shapes culture”; and Legoretta’s very Mexican expression of this form of “high culture” is a three-dimensional visual tale of the aspirations of Cancun and its bold plan.

One is reminded on many levels that The Westin Resort & Spa is also a property in Cancun, Mexico; a tropical environment in a nation with a very distinct culture and sense of place. And when you visit this hotel, you are always aware of where you are; you never feel that sense of cultural anonymity or contrived reality that other resorts sometimes project.

This is indeed “sunny Mexico” and with all due respect to mad dogs and Englishmen who go out in the noonday sun, Legoretta has created an architectural space that filters and diffuses light in many ways.

It isn’t just the obvious design features that allow indirect light to flow through the large airy spaces of the hotel, but there are other elements that use the laws of physics in reflecting and redirecting light to accentuate the interior spaces, and to bring the attenuated Mexican sun indoors. In addition, the carefully juxtaposed flow-through spaces of the hotel convey ocean breezes in which it seems to me both air and light coalesce.

Subtle “accessories”

This is the first Westin resort property to place great emphasis on artistic elements throughout the venue. And this too is in keeping with one of the main principles of fine architecture: the arrangement of “accent pieces” which includes the artful and strategic placing of them in “their proper place” in order to create a desired effect.

Now the accent pieces at The Westin happen to be fine art pieces and artifacts that collectively create a truly Mexican ambiance and a genuine perspective (another key architectural principle) on the art and artistry of the Mexican people both from ancient times and in a contemporary sense as well. The blending of art and architecture also enhances the cultural principles of historical reflection and indigenous self-expression.

And I must not forget to mention the architectural principle of symmetry which, as you will see in the images, is fundamental to Legoretta’s vision. But while he clearly emphasizes harmony, balance, and equilibrium throughout the property, he does not hesitate to experiment nor to integrate elements that are original, even asymmetrical, in their own right.

Legoretta also uses materials, furniture, and other design elements that are intrinsic in the cultural landscape of Mexico; creating an overall sense of purpose, common sense, and an affirmation of the culture that nurtured him.

A Mexican architect

The following biographical information is courtesy of The Westin Resort and Spa.

Ricardo Legorreta was born in Mexico City on May 7, 1931. He studied architecture at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). His work is easily recognized for its brightly-colored volumes. Legorreta is a disciple of Luis Barragan who carried Barragan’s ideas of regional Mexican architecture to a wider realm. Barragan, in the 1940s and 1950s amalgamated local tradition and modern movement architecture in Mexico yet his work is mostly limited to domestic architecture. Legorreta uses elements of Mexican regional architecture in his work including bright colors, plays of light and shadow, central patios and porticated corridors as well as solid Platonic volumes.

One of the important contributions of Legorreta has been the use of these elements in other building types such as hotels, factories, and churches as well as in commercial and educational buildings. Among his most famous works are The Westin Resort & Spa Cancun, the Camino Real hotels, the IBM Factory in Guadalajara and the Cathedral of Managua. He now also has a growing presence outside of Mexico, particularly in the southwest of the United States.

The architectural eloquence of Ricardo Legorreta

To see a slideshow of architectural images of The Westin Resort & Spa, click here.

Resources

The website for the architect firm of Legoretta & Legoretta

Here you will be able to learn more about Legoretta Arquitectos which was established in 1963 and which has remained “faithful to our objective to achieve the best architecture inspired in human values.”

At this very attractive and user-friendly site, you will also be able to explore other architectural projects the firm has completed around the world.

The Westin Resort & Spa Cancun

For more information on The Westin Resort & Spa, click on the above link.

The Official Cancun tourism website

For more information on Cancun and its attractions, click on the above link.

Speaking of architecture

“Architecture is the learned game, correct and magnificent, of forms assembled in the light.” – Le Corbusier,  Swiss Architect

“The mother art is architecture. Without an architecture of our own we have no soul of our own civilization.”– Frank Lloyd Wright,  American architect

“Life is rich, always changing, always challenging, and we architects have the task of transmitting into wood, concrete, glass and steel, of transforming human aspirations into habitable and meaningful space.” – Arthur Erickson, Canadian architect

“Good architecture is like a piece of beautifully composed music crystallized in space that elevates our spirits beyond the limitation of time.” – Tao Ho, Chinese/Hong Kong architect

Posted in Destinations, North America, Soft Adventure, Travel in the blogosphere, Travel Lessons, Travel News | Leave a comment

From onlooker to change-maker

Posted on April 25, 2012 by Graham

Travel writing is dead. So say many. Ralph Waldo Emerson went so far as to say: “Travel is a fool’s paradise.”  Or as Foreign Policy magazine writer Graeme Wood puts it, “travel is a sickness that afflicts those who don’t realize that wisdom is inward. Instead of broadening the mind, travel narrows it.”

(Maybe this explains why well-travelled Aussies can enjoy the fine hospitality accorded to them overseas and yet still act with appalling cruelty towards refugees and would-be asylum-seekers.)

Travel writers used to provide valuable insights into places they visited and observed in depth. But no longer. In a world of pressing problems, where hunger and disease are still rampant and exploitation widespread, today’s travel writer instead writes about the quality of the cocktails in his or her five-star hotel.

For myself, a recent travel writers’ luncheon was the final straw. Instead of meaningful discussion about the destination that was the theme of the day, talk focussed around whether you’d be picked up by a vintage Peugeot or a Rolls-Royce by a particular luxury hotel. I felt like puking on the carpet.

So, what’s the alternative? To instead lapse into despair for the state of the planet? Maybe not. According to neuro-conservationists, environmentalists may be sending the wrong message.

“Instead of focusing the spotlight on results of scientific studies that prove our planet is rapidly warming, or on statistics about alarming species extinction rates, they should be talking about how an ocean view will make us feel happy or standing among trees will arouse our feelings of peacefulness, ” says nature writer Candice Andrews.

So instead of becoming a super-narcissistic “travel writer”, maybe it’s better to take a long, sober look at the state of the world – and if you don’t like what you see, then CHANGE IT!

In his brilliant essay “Design’s Invisible Century“, Thomas Fisher argues that much of the world’s current financial and environmental problems are due to atrociously poor design. Most of these problems, he says, are due to badly conceived or simply outdated laws, policies and procedures that have helped create and perpetuate environments that have become inequitable, unsustainable and dysfunctional.

Surely, no sane society would put up with such solvable problems as poverty and urban gridlock! When every person has the potential to help change the world for the better, why participate in instead making it worse?

For me, I’m going back to gardening and landscaping. With a bit of luck I’ll be able to bring to this something of the “spirit of place” that I’ve been privileged to experience while travelling. I might not change the world, but at least it’s an ever-so-small start.

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Desert dreams, discoveries and dalliances

Posted on February 14, 2012 by Philip

This is less about places I’ve been than places I may never reach – but we all need to dream, sometimes.  The Egyptian deserts forming the backdrop for the movie The English Patient (okay, they made the movie in Tunisia) are as inhospitable and as fascinating as anywhere in the Sahara or the Arabian deserts.

The Great Sand Sea in Egypt's Western Desert

The Great Sand Sea in Egypt's Western Desert

In Wadi al-Hitan, the Valley of the Whales, southwest of Cairo, I caught a glimpse of the surreal landforms of the Western Desert. Until then, I had no idea that organised desert safari tours – which only operate for a few months of the year – reach into the magnificent rock art sites, the lost oases and the captivating dunes of this region.  There are also relics of the early twentieth-century exploring parties and of Second World War commando patrol exploits.

Jebel Uwaynat (or Uweinat) is indisputably the most remote place in Egypt. Like a tent peg, this desert plateaux anchors Egypt’s borders with Libya and the Sudan. Immediately to its north lies Gilf Kebir (Great Barrier) where the intrepid few can see for themselves the enigmatic Cave of Swimmers.

One evening in Aswan I picked up a reprint of the travel classic, The Lost Oases, recounting the author’s camel expeditions in the 1920s. Egyptian diplomat and royal advisor, Ahmed Hassanein Bey, a former Oxford scholar and sportsman, spent eight months journeying through the trackless desert to rediscover the ‘lost oases’ of the far southwest corner of Egypt. He also met with the mysterious Senussi brotherhood across the border in Italian-occupied Libya. Later, Hassanein would be followed by European explorers and adventurers, including the Hungarian Laszlo Almassy, the eponymous character in The English Patient.

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Watching the Elephant Next Door … Stateside

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Bob Fisher

Travel marketing is one of the most interconnected and exponential industries in the world. However, it is often asked how smaller destinations can compete against “the giants” in the new electronic world of travel and tourism? Well to some extent these “niche” destinations can compete quite well on an increasingly “smarter” playing field. And herein lies the challenge for the tourism industry in Canada.

Recession Strategies for the Travel and Tourism Industry

There are many advantages to having the United States as a neighbour, on the other side of what used to be called “the world’s longest undefended border.” One of the advantages is somewhat like the childhood game of follow the leader. While pursuing our own national programs and policies, we always keep a close eye on how the largest economy on the continent copes with the latest global crisis — in this case the worldwide recession.

As Pierre Elliott Trudeau, Canada’s most famous former prime minister, said to the Washington Press Club in 1969, “Living next to you is in some ways like sleeping with an elephant. No matter how friendly and even-tempered is the beast, if I can call it that, one is affected by every twitch and grunt.”

And whether we Canadians adopt a “wait and see what the Americans will do” strategy, or whether we just get on with our own business as best we can, the continental and new global reality is that all our “affairs of state” are interconnected and interdependent, especially in the travel and tourism industry.

Because the United States is Canada’s biggest travel market, we Canadians, like any nation, strive to enhance our marketability vis à vis our biggest customer, while at the same time remaining proactive in developing new markets outside the North American continent, because in the era of globalization there is whole new economic model out there.

This is especially true for the travel and tourism industry in these very troubling global economic times.

A generic comparative study

Although I am comparing how Canada and the United States conduct their respective (and very reciprocal) travel businesses, there are many generic lessons in this case study. The lessons of history must not be forgotten, but at the same time, as the U.S. Travel Association has articulated, innovation and renewal are critical survival strategies. And herein I think lies a lesson for travel journalists because as the principal storytellers in the travel and tourism business, we work in a highly collaborative and synergistic mode with our destination partners — and with our fellow travel journalists .

This is also why the Canada-U.S. case study is significant. Although Canada is geographically more or less as large as the United States (9,629,091 km² for the U.S. and 9,984,670 km² for Canada); it is population size that is the critical economic factor in terms of what our two nations have to win — or lose.

The population of the United States is currently estimated at 303,824,640, whereas the population of Canada is only 33,212,696. And this is where the principle of economies of scale is important. In terms of inbound tourism revenues, the more “product” you have to offer and the greater resources you have to get that product to market, the lower your marketing costs will be, and the greater your (global) market share.

And whereas Canada has depended to a great extent on the American market for the bulk of its tourism revenues, for the first time the United States is having to make a concerted effort to look beyond its borders as well as reinvesting in its domestic markets.

No matter what the industry — and travel and tourism is still considered the largest industry on the planet — how any nation keeps that industry alive and flourishing depends on many factors. As we have seen, the global economic situation has resulted in a travel and tourism industry that has become even more interconnected and interdependent.

But changing demographics (Canada and the United States are both “aging” societies) play an important role as well. Travel trends reflect new realities. Sustainable tourism is becoming an increasing priority in nations that recognize that their natural resources are finite but also the main reason why travellers choose to travel there.

In addition other previously unforeseen factors such as the emergence of new technologies like the Internet play a role. The relatively new electronic virtual communities can go a long way to creating a more level playing field in this business; Boise, Idaho can now compete with Boston, Massachusetts for the tourism “dollar.”

Travel journalism is generally supposed to be above and beyond politics, however, whether we like it or not, history and politics have always played a role in the travel and tourism industry. Emerging nations who have achieved a laudable degree of self-sufficiency, are consequently in a much better position to develop very viable travel and tourism industry. They therefore become competitors to traditional markets. This new reality is not lost on the renewed U.S. Travel Association.

And when there is a new Administration in Washington — the U.S. Travel Association has referred to it as “The New Washington” — this national travel and tourism body sees the change in national government as both a new opportunity and a challenge.

Strategies and bold statements

Roger Dow, President and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, recently conducted a “transamerica” conference call of major players in the travel and tourism industry in the U.S. During his national appeal, he made some gloomy predictions, but at the same time he made some bold statements that certainly give food for thought to anyone in the travel and tourism industry anywhere in the world.

His overall theme was the same as that of Barack Obama — it’s all about change. But he also spoke clearly about the “real and perceived barriers to travel in today’s economic environment.” And as travel journalists, we are very much in the business of communicating realities while at the same time enhancing travellers’ perceptions of a destination through the mind’s eye. In this regard we strive to correct erroneous “impressions” about a destination and ultimately to eliminate attitudinal barriers to travel. We are therefore critical players in the growth of our global industry and it is incumbent on us to make governments and other national bodies fully aware of this fact.

Positioning and reorganization

By positioning or re-positioning itself in the nation’s capital of Washington D.C., the U.S. Travel Association has redoubled its efforts to make the travel and tourism industry a major player in the economy of the entire nation.

For example, Roger Dow points out that his association is making decision-makers in Washington aware that the travel industry provides 7.7 million jobs in the United States. A statement that I found especially significant was the following: “Washington simply plays too significant a role in the travel process and business of our industry for us to be anything short of aggressive, assertive and committed for the long-haul.” In short, the Association has re-positioned itself by “[firmly establishing] travel and our industry as Obama’s economic and diplomatic allies.”

The Association has also developed a vigorous strategy to encourage more business, meetings, and convention travel by educating Chief Executive Officers about the bottom-line value and positive return on investment of business travel. Also, the association has created an Economic Advisory Panel of prominent business scholars from around the U.S. who are studying and communicating to policymakers in governments at all levels, to the general public, and to the business world itself the competitive advantage of maintaining travel during difficult economic times. And one of its key modes of broadcasting this message is through the recently launched DiscoverAmerica.com, the official travel and tourism website of the United States.

Now a lot of nations have had official national websites for quite some time, but in the United States where states, cities, and regions have their own official websites (one has to understand American history and how this nation evolved to a great extent as a decentralized democracy in which regional differences deepened when the national government began expanding), creating a central virtual “port of entry” for travellers is a novelty for Americans.

There is also more evidence of a significant geopolitical shift as the U.S. Travel Association launches new efforts in what they refer to as “the potent markets of India, South Korea, and China.” And because the renewed marketing strategies emphasize both international and inland visitors, there is also a domestic version of the site. Working both sides of the travel marketplace, Americans are also encouraging their compatriots to travel more within their own country.

Above all the U.S. Travel Association is stating loud and clear that “We are a valuable resource and asset — not a collapsing industry in need of a bailout…”, and this is the universal principle and practice that we as travel journalists can also embrace.

Travel Matters: the fundamental message

There was a touch of the Wild West to the theme of the 4th Annual Travel Leadership Summit organized by the U.S. Travel Association from in which the rallying cry was “Stand Up for Travel!”

In the information and registration webpage for this national event, you will find this statement:

“The travel business is in a crisis. The recession is taking its toll, but the problem is much larger due to recent mis-characterizations by political leaders and the media about meetings and events travel. The industry has lost billions of dollars in cancellations, and communities across the United States have lost jobs…. The U.S. Travel Association is fighting back — turning the rhetoric around and focusing on the economic impact of travel…. Join hundreds of travel colleagues this fall in Washington to alert Congress about the recovery role that travel can play in our nation’s economy.”

I’m quite sure that, as usual, Canadians are watching what’s happening “south of the border,” feeling the twitch, and hearing the elephant grunt.

For more information on the new world of travel American-style, see the following:

Travel Green

The Power of Travel

See also…

The Impending Crisis in the Canadian Tourism Industry.

From the U.S. Travel Association website

(a) 1 out of every 8 jobs in the United States is linked to travel and tourism.

(b) In a recent survey, 87 percent of Americans say that encouraging people to travel recreationally within the U.S. could improve the country’s economy.

(c) Business travel accounts for $39 billion in tax revenue — federal, state, and local.

Tom Brokaw of NBC News Explains Canada to Americans

See this very popular YouTube video by clicking here.

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Is it safe to go to Egypt?

Posted on January 29, 2012 by Philip

Honest, officer, I’m a big boy now. I can do it all by myself… but the Tourist Police officer seemed less certain, as he walked me to the public toilet in Cairo’s bustling Khan el-Khalili quarter and positioned himself outside the cubicle.

Khan el Khalili quarter, Cairo

Foreign governments urge us to ‘reconsider your need’ to visit Egypt. But unsettled times, when package tours retreat to more predictable destinations, are often precisely when more discriminating travellers can be assured of the warmest welcome – and the most assiduous concern for their safety. Following the 1997 terrorist attacks at major monuments in southern Egypt, troops began to escort each and every tour group and the same concern remains evident in security measures which continue to this day.

All quiet on the Nile

More recently, since the ‘Arab Spring’ upheaval spread across North Africa in January 2011, Egypt’s long-established tourist industry has struggled to dispel images of erupting gunfire, wafting tear gas and blood spilling on the streets around Tahrir Square in downtown Cairo.

In November I found that visitor numbers, whilst definitely reduced from previous highs, were by no means decimated (latest reports indicate a 30 per cent drop over 2011). The Pyramids, St Catherine’s Monastery, the Valley of the Kings… all bustled with tourists. Were these people really taking undue risks? Hardly – apart from visiting the Egyptian Antiquities Museum, most kept well away from Tahrir Square.

This post previously appeared at philipgame.blogspot.com. A full story appeared in the West Australian newspaper.

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Brother André: Simply a Saint

Posted on January 17, 2012 by Bob Fisher

By Bob Fisher, The Philosophical Traveller

Religion has always played a critical role in the history and heritage of many nations. This is particularly true of Québec, the predominantly French-speaking province of Canada.

St. André de Montréal

When Pope Benedict XVI officially approved bestowing sainthood on a simple carpenter from Montréal on February 19, 2010, he completed the final step in a process through which this man of humble origins had already been declared “venerable” and subsequently “blessed”. His canonization was the ultimate recognition of his life’s work.

Brother André is only the third saint in Québécois history; and the only one to have lived in modern times.

Previous to Brother André, Saint Marguerite Bourgeoys 1620-1700, and the Founder of the Congregation of Notre-Dame was declared a saint. And a year after her death, Marguerite d’Youville (1701-1771) was also declared a saint by the Vatican. She was the founder of the Sisters of Charity, more commonly known as the “Grey Nuns”.

But there are other saints a bit closer to home — at least not too far from where I live. They are known as The North American “martyred saints”.

These were the eight Jesuit Brothers who found themselves in the middle of the war between the Iroquois and the Huron. There are a number of reasons why these Jesuits were seen as a threat, primarily to the Iroquois who saw them as allies of the Hurons. The Iroquois perceived the Jesuits, rightly or wrongly, as helping to organize resistance to Iroquois raids among the Hurons. In addition, some have speculated that the arrival of the Jesuit Brothers in New France coincided with the arrival of new diseases from Europe, primarily smallpox, and consequently the Jesuit Brothers suffered from guilt by association.

The Jesuit martyrs were canonized by Pius XI in 1930. See a link to The Martyrs Shrine in Midland, Ontario. See also Ste. Marie Among the Hurons. And there is also, by the way, a national shrine to the martyrs in Auriesville, New York.

Sainthood, saintliness, holiness, and enlightenment

All four descriptors describe the legacy of Brother André, but the veneration and higher honours afforded individuals like him merit further

consideration.

It is a fine distinction perhaps, but the Roman Catholic Church does not create a saint, but through the extensive process of canonization, it formally recognizes a saint. Furthermore sources I have consulted differ somewhat, the theological statement of faith is that all who eventually achieve the ultimate state of grace in Heaven are in fact also saints because they have “perfected” holiness.

Generally speaking however, a “saint” is someone who has been canonized if they lived after the year 1000AD. Furthermore, in 1969 the Roman Catholic Church deleted a number of saints from its liturgical calendar because of a lack of historical evidence affirming their sainthood.

The concept of holiness, however, is at the core of most religions; although that term is somewhat ambiguous and therefore difficult to define. On the other hand, the individual who exhibits exceptional holiness is a universal figure in many of the world’s religions, even in pre-Christian times. The enlightened one is perhaps more correctly described as “illuminated” because of the halo or aureole — a circular light — that has been depicted in religious iconography as surrounding the head of the individual. Such sacred figures were seen as pure beings who had attained the highest degree of perfection.

In his writings, for example, Homer describes a light surrounding the heads of heroes in the field of battle. In Asian art, in particular the iconography of Tibetan Buddhism, flames — halo-like — are often depicted as surrounding the head of the venerated individual. This is also the case in Chinese and Japanese art as well as in some Islamic art. The light emanating from the body, usually the head, of exemplary individuals has also been depicted in images of what have been referred to as Hindu saints.

The narratives of extraordinary human beings who accomplish equally extraordinary tasks, and the attendant light surrounding them, would appear to be universal in its imagery.

And in the vernacular of the 21st century, it is not uncommon to refer to extraordinary individuals as “saints”; which reminds me of the core lesson of Le Petit Prince: “Here is my secret. It is very simple. It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; What is essential is invisible to the eye.”

Such enlightened individuals are also seen as exemplary — usually charismatic leaders in a spiritual sense — special individuals who in some way are able to intercede on behalf of others.  But the concepts of sainthood and saintliness can vary from religion to religion; and herein lie the “hues and shades” of holiness and sanctity as they apply to such extraordinary individuals. What is also universal, however, is that certain “moral” traits are seen as especially worthy of veneration.

In his article “Anatomy of Sainthood”, Jack Crabtree of the McKenzie Institute of Portland, Oregon comments:

“Our English word ‘awesome’ most closely approximates ‘holy’. If someone is holy, something about him moves us to hold him in awe. In the presence of someone who is holy, we will be somewhat intimidated, silenced, subdued, and restrained; because we will be made to feel our lowliness, to feel the humbleness of our own stature and position. We will feel compelled to respect him and to grant him the honor and recognition that he deserves. There is an aura about the holy person, a spookiness or feeling of heaviness which causes us to walk softly and not to be obtrusive, to know our place and not to act presumptuously, and to be respectful and deferential. In other words, the holy person has an aura about him that makes us stand in awe of him. Perhaps we do not stand in gaping wonder; rather we may look upon him with quiet, considerate respect, but in a kind of awe nonetheless.”

To read the full article, click on the following link: “The Anatomy of Sainthood”.

A curious symbol of the history and culture of Québec

From a social history perspective, Brother André is somewhat of an anomaly in Québec because in the centuries-old struggle between the State and the Church in New France, which became especially critical in contemporary times during the lead-up to the Quiet Revolution of the 1960s, the State and the Church in Québec often found themselves at cross-purposes.

The motto of Québec, Je me souviens (I remember), is another of those expressions that “lose something in the translation”. The phrase also has a certain implied ambiguity. The motto is enshrined on The National Assembly buildings in Québec City (other provinces have “provincial legislatures”) and symbolically and somewhat enigmatically conveys various levels of meaning.

To some, the motto is a reference to the fact that the Québécois became “a conquered people”, following the apocryphal 20-minute battle on The Plains of Abraham in Québec City in 1759 in which England and France fought over an expansion of their colonial empires. As history has shown, England won; and the destiny of North America was transfigured.

In Québec, there are those who say that the Québécois were not conquered but rather abandoned by the bourgeoisie, many of whom returned to France when they saw the “writing on the wall”. But for many, the term also suggests a deep historical attachment to French culture — long-standing traditions, and memories which have not been forgotten — and consequently the motto created considerable controversy in Canada.

In 1978, when nationalism was again on the rise in Québec, the guiding principle was changed from its former La Belle Province to Je me souviens. Today there is perhaps no greater populist expression and reminder of the history and heritage of the people of Québec than the “new” motto which can seen on license plates throughout Québec.

Furthermore, la survivance — another term that loses in the translation, meaning roughly cultural survival, on many levels. Cultural survival in its broadest terms has play a key role in the evolution of Québécois society. And according to Claude Bélanger of the Department of History of Marianopolis College in downtown Montréal:

“Without a doubt, the social institution which exercised the greatest influence and had the most impact on Québec was the Roman Catholic Church…. [but] was also echoed by the new social scientists that were trained in Québec in the period immediately following the Quiet Revolution. This group, which sought the modernization of Québec and championed the cause of radical change, condemned widely the obscurantisme that had characterized Québec in the period before the 1960s, and blamed the Church for much of the ills that many believed afflicted Québec in the contemporary era.”

As witnessed by other “distinct societies” throughout the world, social, cultural, and linguistic survival became the renewed and universal elements in the collective memory of the Québécois.

To read Bélanger’s summary of The Quiet Revolution, click here.

In addition, because for a long time Québec was a primarily agrarian society, cultural survival — including most importantly language survival — was also reflected in what came to be called the revanche des berceaux (revenge of the cradle). Because of the population growth in what was then known as Lower Canada (primarily French-speaking); and which doubled every 25 years, the clergy therefore faced enormous challenges in terms of serving what they saw as the needs of their parishioners. The ratio of priests per capita also quickly declined especially when Québec began to emerge as a major force on the world stage through La Francophonie, an international political, social, and cultural organization in which significant numbers of the populations of member countries are francophones.

In due course, the narrative of Brother André, and those who identified with him and supported him, eventually brought him sainthood. He became a populist saint in the hearts and minds of many people even those beyond Québec’s borders, but also was remembered as an ordinary working class man, and an iconic figure who represented the hopes and aspirations of a distinct society.

A Holy Cross Brother

Born into poverty and of very fragile health, Brother André was orphaned at the age of 12. However, he exhibited an intense spirituality early in life. And although he never rose in the ecclesiastical ranks (until he achieved sainthood of course ), he worked primarily as a concierge at Notre Dame College, a job that included many menial duties.

But to be canonized as a saint, there had to be proof of miracle cures, and these were reported initially by word of mouth throughout the Catholic population of Québec. However, throughout his life Brother André steadfastly refused to take credit for any of them. He did however demonstrate an equally intense devotion to St. Joseph and frequently recommended that saint as an intermediary for anyone suffering physical diseases.

When brother André (born André Bessette) died in 1937 at the age of 91, more than a million people filed past his coffin in tribute to a man who would one day become a saint.

Travelling with the Catholic Media

I have been on many media or press trips; however none have been quite as focused or “inspiring” as the one called “Montréal, The City of a Hundred Steeples”.

As a bilingual Canadian, Montréal  is my favourite city in North America and — as you may have already guessed — in some respects it is my “spiritual” home away from home.

Montréal, and this goes for much of Québécois culture, is always among the avant-garde. You only need to look at the artistry of the  Cirque de Soleil to understand Québec’s unique worldview and its intellectual courage. There are many other examples of its contemporary outward-looking worldview, including the fact that it has one of the healthiest and most dynamic music industries in the world. This too is the result of the historical-sociological-political history of what has been formally recognized as a “distinct society” by the Government of Canada.

As we moved from place to place in Montréal, my Catholic colleagues and I engaged in a mutual exploration of such issues as the nature of spirituality and “faith”, the use of the term “The Church”, and the challenges facing the Roman Catholic Church in the 21st century. They did not shy away from any of these issues, but spoke of them with conviction and concern. We also dined well; after all we were in Montréal!

For me, it was a bit like being a lion in a den of benevolent Daniels.

Faith-based philosophies and other worldviews always give me reason to explore the unconscious elements at the core of our species, especially those that speak to our diversity and commonality. I believe in science and the scientific method; but I also believe in the indomitable and catholic spirit of humankind.

I also like Mother Teresa’s statement:

“Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies.”

…

Audio components for this story

Father Marcel Demers of the Basilique Notre Dame in Old Montréal, talking about the state of Catholicism in Québec.

To hear the above clip, click here.

Nelson and the Blessing of the Motocyclettes at Saint Joseph’s Oratory

To hear the above clip, click here.

Organ music from the Mass in the Chapel of the Saint Joseph Oratory

To hear the above clip, click here.

“Make A Joyful Sound,” from the Mass in the Chapel of the Saint Joseph Oratory

To hear the above clip, click here.

…

Iconographic images and imagery to augment this story

Click here to see additional photos taken at St. Joseph’s Oratory in Montréal. In order to view the images as a slideshow, click on “Slideshow” in the upper right-hand corner.

Resources

St. Joseph’s Oratory

The Oratory museum

Quebec Catholics (CBC)

Catholocism and the French Language, Henri Bourassa

The Roman Catholic Church and Quebec

The Quiet Revolution

Le Devoir: “Un patrimoine en danger”

The Catholic Church of Quebec — “Heritage in Danger” (English version)

The Saints of Canada (Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops)

Bob can also be reached by way of Facebook

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Antisocial media?

Posted on January 9, 2012 by admin

Much is said about the rise of Social Media. Never before in history have so many people written (or blogged or twittered or in-your-facebooked) so much about so little. But how much has this detracted from real communication with your next-door neighbour, or the person sitting opposite you on the train?

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The Concentric Worlds of Travel and Engineering

Posted on December 25, 2011 by Bob Fisher

Engineering and travel go hand in hand …

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

   See also …

 

The Concentric Worlds of Travel and Engineering

 

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From the Killing Fields to a Future: Austin nonprofit WOWi aims to give Cambodian kids a future

Posted on December 22, 2011 by Shelley Seale

At the age of 14, Ponheary Ly died and came back to life. At least, that’s how she describes it. The year was 1977, and the Khmer Rouge was on its deadly rampage in Cambodia. After seeing her father killed, along with 13 other family members, Ly was on the run and in hiding when some soldiers accused her of stealing food. They marched her deep into the woods and forced her to dig her own grave.

“The ground was very hard,” Ly recalls. “I only got a few inches down, and then I don’t remember what happened.” The next thing she was aware of was waking up in the shallow pit, covered with dirt. “I must have fallen unconscious, I must have stopped breathing. The soldiers thought I died, and they buried me.”

This was only one of many horrors that Ly survived during the brutal period in her country’s history. After she reunited with her mother and six remaining siblings, the family was forced to start over. Education became her answer.

Today, three decades after the fall of the Khmer Rouge its legacy remains: over 30 percent of Cambodia’s population is under age 14 and uneducated. Nearly all of these post genocidal-era children work or beg in the streets rather than attend school. Without proper education this cycle of poverty cannot be broken and the suffering merely gets passed from generation to generation.

That’s something that Ponheary Ly wants to end—with the help of an Austin-based nonprofit called Windows of Wonder Institute, or WOWi.

When Cambodia opened to tourism in the early 1990s, Ly became a tour guide. But neither she, nor her visitors, could ignore Cambodia’s impoverished children; not when they saw them every day at the Angkor Wat temples, working and begging. That’s when Ly began using her tips to sponsor a child to go to school. That child turned into a few, and then dozens as her tourist clients gave extra donations as well.

Today, the Ponheary Ly Foundation (PLF) enables over 2,000 children to attend school. I met Ly last year when I visited Cambodia, and she told me her story. I also met some of the children her foundation helps, and was amazed by the work being done under the force of a few people – and humbled by how great the needs are.

Kim Smith, co-founder of WOWi, also traveled to Cambodia a few years ago and heard Dr. Beat Richner speak, a physician who founded five hospitals to provide free healthcare to Cambodian children. The experience got Smith to thinking about how he and his WOWi foundation could help.

“Given my depth of experience in digital media, why not start a digital media program in Siem Reap?” Smith asked himself. “And why not model it in part on the Artisans d’Angkor workshops that train youths in traditional Cambodian crafts that are then sold to the over two million tourists who visit Angkor Wat each year?”

Smith knew that if he could train Cambodian youths in digital media production and management, while at the same time supporting humanitarian activities such as those Ponheary Ly and Dr. Richner were involved with, he could have a program with a huge potential impact. Soon after, Smith met Keith Hajovsky, a travel consultant and tour guide specializing in Southeast Asia.

“Keith put the project on a firm footing by facilitating a partnership between WOWi and the Ponheary Ly Foundation,” Smith explains. “The key to the WOWi/PLF partnership is PLF’s new computer lab, and students eager to learn computer-related skills and digital media.”

Smith and Hajovsky began putting together their project, and set up a fundraising program through Crowdrise. The collaboration with donors that they created is so new and unique that it’s been trademarked. Investors of $25 or more into the project will receive what’s called MYtiles, virtual tiles that the donors can fill in with content of their choosing—photos, a graphic, or company logo that can also link to any internet site they wish. Your MYtile can also be created by a graphic designer, or a PLF student.

“This last option will actually directly provide these students with an opportunity to strengthen their technical and creative skills, something that will help them get a better job later on in life and break the cycle of poverty,” Hajovsky says.

All of the MYtiles are then displayed on WOWi’s virtual LIFEwall. The donations will cover the costs to send a group of American university students and digital media industry professionals to Siem Reap, where the team will spend two weeks training PLF students in digital media creation and technology, leaving behind a working digital studio. And they have one of the world’s most awe-inspiring subjects with which to work: the majestic temples of Angkor Wat.

“Ever since I was a little kid looking through National Geographic magazines, I’d always wanted to see the temples of Angkor,” Hajovsky said. “They seemed so exotic to me in all those pictures, but when I actually saw them in person for the first time they were even larger and more magnificent than I had ever imagined—they really blew me away.”

The two week team training will mark the start of an ongoing program that will eventually produce a self-sustaining, sophiticated digital media training school. Through the sharing of these two cultures – the horrific and beautiful aspects alike—the WOWi project is poised to accomplish something amazing: a total reversal of what the Khmer Rouge stood for. “It represents a true step towards returning Cambodia to its ancient glory, now through open exposure to the rest of the world and education rather than through isolation and brutal suppression,” says Duane Conder, WOWi’s Director of Communications.

For his part, Smith hopes this project will become a platform that can be used anywhere in the world to support humanitarian activities. “The internet has an ability to open up windows of contact worldwide,” he says. “WOWi is about forming communities through these ‘windows of wonder.’ Perhaps ultimately, a world community can be formed.”

WOWi will be leading a volunteer trip to Siem Reap, Cambodia on February 4-18, 2012. If you are interested in being a part of this experience in digital training for Cambodian students and visiting Angkor Wat, please visit www.wowi-austin.org, or submit an application at http://4wowi.wordpress.com/cambodia-feb-2012-volunteer-application/.

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Where are you?

Posted on December 21, 2011 by admin

Here’s a website promoting itself as a “social networking travel site”:

 

They say: “Want to share your amazing travel experiences with friends and fellow travelers more easily? Now you can! Come join me on whereRyou.com today. See you there. ”

They also have a page linking to a number of travel blogs, some of which are pretty good.  Why not check ‘em out! It certainly can’t do any harm.

 

 

 

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The Weight of Silence: Invisible Children of India

Posted on December 7, 2011 by Shelley Seale

This is a guest post for TRAVEL BLOGGERS GIVE BACK, a unified movement of bloggers giving back by posting stories about their favorite charity organizations. Join us on Facebook, and please help spread the word! 

me_anchu

Lurching along the dirt road, I gaze out the window at the town of Cuttack in northeastern India as the car bounces over potholes, sending plumes of red dust billowing behind it. The small villages we pass are as familiar to me as if I had been here only last week. The shacks that line the river, their plastic or tar paper roofs held down with rocks. The smell of curry and incense hanging thick in the air. The tiny shops and vendor stalls selling sarees or pots or clocks, the mangy dogs and cows nosing at piles of trash, the rickshaw drivers pedaling through traffic alongside schoolgirls with their braided hair and backpacks. People seem to fill every square inch of space. It is exactly as I left it a year ago.

Passing out of the town, palm trees and a river glittering in the afternoon sun glide past my window as we approach the orphanage I have returned to visit. Questions ricochet silently inside me. What will the kids look like? Will they have grown much? Changed? Will they remember me? Then the driver pulls through the gates into the ashram. The large open space in the middle of the compound is empty, no one there to greet us. I realize they are not yet expecting me. We get out of the car and start up the little pathway that leads between buildings to the interior courtyard.

One by one, they begin to spy us; I see little brown faces peeking out around corners and through bushes. Slowly the ashram comes to life. Word of my arrival spreads and dozens of grinning, jumping children surround me on the path and pour into the courtyard. Within seconds I am engulfed by a hundred barefoot kids grasping for my hands and clambering over each other to smile up at me.

“Hello,” “Welcome,” “Good Evening,” they say. Small arms reach up. Children run up to show me small things I had given them the year before – stickers, crayons, hair clips. They display these cherished treasures; such simple possessions, so proudly owned and taken care of. They ask for nothing from me other than being here. In many ways they are just like other children I’ve known with homes and families of their own – except for their neediness, their raw hunger for affection, love, belonging.

They had been imprinted on my soul forever.

* * *

I never expected to be in India. And without a doubt, I never thought once I had been I would return, again and again.

It wasn’t the exotic beauty that drew me back. It wasn’t the warmth of the people, their gentle and inquisitive nature, their open hospitality. It wasn’t the storied, ancient history of the country or its rich and varied culture. It was not the colors or the spices or the sounds or the spirituality of the place. India is all of these things, to be sure, and I have grown to love them all. But they were not what seeped into my being and pulled me close, becoming a part of me that I missed with a strange emptiness when I left.

It was the children.

They are everywhere. They fill the streets, the railway stations, the shanty villages. Some scrounge through trash for newspapers, rags or anything they can sell at traffic intersections. Others, often as young as two or three years old, beg. Many are homeless, overflowing the orphanages and other institutional homes to live on the streets where they are extremely vulnerable to being trafficked into child labor if they’re lucky, brothels if they’re not. This holocaust is waging a silent war against millions of Indian children. The perpetrator is poverty, and its foot soldiers are AIDS, malaria, gender and caste discrimination, unclean water, illiteracy, and malnutrition. While there may be no Adolf Hitler or Idi Amin behind it, make no mistake – it is a holocaust all the same.

In my journeys over the last six years into the orphanages, slums, clinics and streets of India I became immersed in dozens of these children’s lives. Their hope and resilience amazed me time and time again; the ability of their spirits to overcome crippling challenges inspired me. Even in the most deprived circumstances they are still kids – they laugh and play, perhaps far less frequently than others; they develop strong bonds and relationships to create family where none exists; and most of all they have an enormous amount of love to give.

I wondered when each of them had stopped wanting to go home, or if they ever had. Home is a fragile concept – far more delicate than those of us who have always had one can imagine. When a person no longer has a home, when his family is taken from him and he is deprived of everything that was home, then after a while wherever he is becomes home. Slowly, the pieces of memory fade, until this new strange place is not strange anymore; it becomes harder to recall the past life, a long ago family, until one day he realizes he is home.

The Weight of Silence: Invisible Children of India is a non-fiction narrative that gives a strong and hopeful voice to its most vulnerable citizens, told through my eyes and experiences with them over the course of three years, as well as the amazing adults who work tirelessly on their behalf. It follows my journey from my first visit, where I fell in love with the children, through my realization of the complex and intertwining issues that caused them to become orphaned in the first place. The reader is taken along as I travel throughout the country, researching and discovering – but most of all, getting to know many amazing children and the stories of their lives.

The stories told in this book do not belong to me. They were given to me as a gift, often because I was the only person who had ever asked. The final vision that emerges is one of hope, strength and tolerance that comes from these children.

The Weight of Silence: Invisible Children of India is available for sale through Amazon and other outlets. The author, Shelley Seale, is a freelance writer based in Austin, Texas. Shelley has written for National Geographic, USA Today, CNN and other outlets, and can be found vagabonding around the world whenever possible. Her mantra is “travel with a purpose.” She can be reached at www.shelleyseale.com.

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The Parallel Cultures of News and Travel Journalism

Posted on November 24, 2011 by Bob Fisher

Meaningfulness

News organizations frequently emphasize the importance of investigative reporting, stressing the principle that in order for a story to be “newsworthy” it must be current and it must mean something to people.

It goes without saying that responsible news gathering also results in stories that are informative, accurate, and in the best interests of the general public. And those who work in the news reporting ”business” also emphasize the importance of keen observational skills, in-depth research, and critical analysis.

But isn’t this also what travel journalists do?

Don’t we also strive to find meaning and make sense of the complex issues and cultures inherent in the destinations we visit, whether they are national, regional, or local? Do we also not serve in a problem-solving capacity in that we do our best to put the pieces of the puzzle together in such a way as to engage the hearts and minds of our readers? Are we also not “foreign correspondents” who encourage our consumers to engage in imaginative identification?

So how are the two professions similar? How are they different? In the news journalism business, reference is often made to “hard news” versus “soft news”. Are there equivalents in travel journalism?

Is travel journalism newsworthy?

I have heard it said that travel journalists should avoid contentious issues, and certainly not engage in “political” commentary. Well depending on how you define politics, this is easier said than done. Let me use Ottawa, the national capital of Canada, as a case in point.

This is a very story-rich city in which is inherent a political-historical journey of considerable importance. To truly understand Ottawa you have to examine the geopolitical context in which it evolved. And whereas the historic “issues” in what today is a quiet, unassuming national capital are profound, visitors may initially only see it as the lovely and orderly city it indeed is today. But if you delve deeper, you will find a very meaningful story with universal implications.

Incorporated in 1855, Ottawa was a remote lumber town and the by-product of colonialism. Located on the Ottawa River a “safe distance” from the Canada-United States border, the city was chosen as the capital by Queen Victoria because, as part of ”British North America”, there was always fear of invasion by our neighbours to the south. And as Canada evolved and finally became a sovereign and independent nation (considerably later than our “American” cousins), the imminent threat of cultural and economic hegemony continued to be felt.

As a nation that decided to remain loyal to “the Crown” – as opposed to engaging in a revolution, declaring its independence, and becoming a republic – as a Crown Colony – Canada made a significant collective decision to remain part of the British Empire, and later the British Commonwealth. To this day we still engage in a lot of national introspection in this regard.

And even though we share what once was called (in the days before the 9/11 attacks) “the longest undefended border in the world” with our neighbours south of the 49th parallel, we still find ourselves struggling with problematic transborder issues with them. This is what comes of “being in bed with an elephant”, as our most charismatic prime minister, Pierre Elliott Trudeau, once said to the Washington press corps.

And, although many outside of North America see little difference culturally between the two principal nations of North America, if you ignore the historic and political events that caused each to evolve quite differently – similar of course, but different nonetheless – you will have ”read” only part of the story.

The state of our craft today

In the 21st century, thanks in part to burgeoning new technologies, alternative media and alternative points of view about issues related to travel have increasingly seen the light of day. However, whereas we are no longer obliged (for commercial reasons) to just tell “good news” stories, as reponsible travel journalists and editors we still face the age-old challenge of producing coherent and literate travel stories that emphasize the qualitative features of the information as opposed to simply producing a corollary travel product that “sells” destinations.

A case in point

I became particularly aware recently of the essential “story behind the story” in Martinique.

On this beautiful and resource-rich island (resources that are both natural and cultural), I also learned that the institution of slavery is fundamental to a real understanding of the Creole culture of this French département.

Slavery was a tragic by-product of colonial empire-building; and to sustain itself the latter required exponential wealth and natural resources, such as the sugar plantations of the Caribbean. The African slaves brought to Martinique, as well as to other islands in the Caribbean, were of course considered only property and were treated as such. However, with the eventual abolition of slavery by France, a distinct and multidimensional Creole culture began to flourish and today is an important leitmotif in Martinique.

As is the case in many other post-colonial destinations, a geopolitical power shift and a renewed emphasis on the lessons of history have led to a tourism industry that is truly indigenous.

And Martinique is an important case study for anyone who has an interest in political sociology. Among other issues, this field of study focuses on the relations between state and society; and how social forces create a dynamic that defines what we often refer to simplistically as “culture”. But intrinsic to culture is the question of identity; and this is perhaps the most consciousness-raising aspect of travelling in Martinique – and writing about it.

The nature of news, culture, and storytelling

As travel journalists we are also cultural interpreters, not unlike news journalists who tell their “stories” in such a way as to inform and enlighten their readers. However, defining human culture, as I have suggested above, is as problematic or challenging as defining beauty, justice, or truth.

And yet in so many of our stories creating clarity about human culture is the essence of our message. And whereas we strive to avoid the “one size fits all” generic template of travel writing, we also are constantly challenged by the maxim that “We travel to explore the diversity of the human experience; and in so doing discover the commonality.”

All travel is a cultural experience on some level, whether it be just around the corner or far afield. And when we travel in a physical sense, we also travel in a conceptual sense. We paint portraits of human culture in all its hues and shades, and that includes the flaws. In so doing we collectively define who we are as a species.

And because it is also in our nature and our “job descriptions”, we also develop an experiential understanding of culture and how components such as belief systems, language, history, cultural objects, climate, and geography all shape our perceptions of “the other”.

As objective observers, we are often privileged to see first hand how the dynamic of culture implies power structures. And because we are in a position to constantly renew our frame of reference, we also frequently witness the juxtapostion of majority and minority worldviews.

And as journalists who make conscious and carefully considered choices as to how we will tell the story – not unlike news journalists who also build for their readers a specific frame of reference – we know (or should know) that all media is a construction, a point of view, an interpretation. I suspect that the more we examine how “the reporter” communicates what she or he has experienced (to the best of her or his ability), the better storytellers we become.

Storytelling is an ancient tradition and craft. It is also – like news – often issue-oriented, although the issues may be more universal than specific.

And as travel writers we also begin by asking fundamental questions. What do I see? What do I hear? What do I feel? What is really going on? This too is investigative journalism. As Aristotle pointed out in his fourth-century BCE treatise on the city-state, “politics” deals with the structure, organization, and administration of the state. And the interplay and interconnectedness of the state and the people is a critical question for all journalists, in either the field of news or travel. How do you separate the state from the culture? What is “the state” as opposed to the nation? Or the culture?

Since the recent FIJET Congress in Shanghai, I have had the privilege of engaging in an ongoing dialogue by email with a journalist I met in Beijing. Although for me it is somewhat “after the fact,” and yet ongoing (surely one of the key goals of travel) he has helped me fill in some of the gaps in terms of my awareness of Chinese culture. He has also helped me shed some of my ethnocentric baggage. In a number of ways he has encouraged me to heed the caveat “Judge me by my culture, not by my government.”

The comprehensive skills and challenges of travel journalists

The travel journalists I have met around the world represent one of the most eclectic and multidisciplinary groups of people you could imagine; and they come to the métier from many different backgrounds.

And when in our professional capacity as journalists we explore a destination and strive to define its cultural elements, we are required, of necessity, to play multiple roles including those of public educator, historian, geographer, sociologist, cultural anthropologist, political and social scientist, and economist – to mention just a few.

In brief, when we are really good at what we do we are indeed reporters but also interpreters. And because of the grassroots connections we are privileged to have in this industry, we tend not to lose sight of the fact that the travel and tourism industry contributes directly to the bottom line of any destination. The commercial implications of this can of course make what we do an even greater challenge and problematic in that we may feel compelled to either present a “glowing report” or to not do the story at all.

And this is where the issues of objectivity and neutrality play a role.

At one point in my career I was working with the national news team of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and the people who produce its flagship show The National. During a particular editorial meeting in which we were struggling to decide on the “lineup” for the project I was working on, and whether a certain troubling story had real value as a news story, or whether by emphasizing it we might risk indulging in sensationalism, one of editors spoke about the difference between being objective and being neutral.

I was rather surprised to hear him, a hard-core news journalist, say that although news journalists must strive to be neutral on the issue or issues behind the story, they could not be totally objective because they are also human beings; and thus always subject to the same emotional or affective elements of the story as the general public. And as the reporters who have “been there”, we are obliged on our return to present “a true account”, whether we are news or travel journalists.

And whereas news journalists strive to present a true account of the facts (the “who, what, where, when, and why” of the story), we travel journalists also seek to do the same, at least initially. However given the distinct nature of our medium, we often strive to give our readers, listeners, and viewers something more – our interpretation of the “sense of place” as we have experienced it. We also of course strive for accuracy but in so doing we are also in the position of internalizing in the mind’s eye of the reader a sense of authenticity.

And I believe that in this regard, we may actually lean slightly toward the medium of the novelist, as opposed to that of the news journalist, because our stories often emphasize the aesthetic elements of the destination – and the human theatre we see in it. And herein lie the fundamental elements of storytelling: character, characterization, conflict, rising and falling action, dénouement, and sometimes, a universal lesson.

Role models of eclectic journalism

In the field of human resources, the recognition and enhancement of what are referred to as “tranferrable skills” – the comprehensive skills that an individual possesses which allow her or him to work effectively in multiple fields of endeavour – has became increasingly important in the 21st century.

In today’s interconnected world, such skill sets as the all-important communications skills (verbal and written), the ability to project and predict outcomes, abstract thinking, and other related conceptual skills, are recognized as critical to the functioning of any organization that wishes to succeed in what many see as a constantly evolving “new world order”.

Such individuals tend to have a high degree of cognitive skills but at the same time are also able to express and process the affective components of “the story”. This creative “balanced brain” approach to problem-solving and task management is what allows such individuals to find their niche almost anywhere – in what is becoming in many ways a borderless world.

Jefferson Sackey, a multidisciplinary journalist

A journalist born and raised in Ghana in West Africa, Jefferson Sackey is the kind of broadcast journalist who finds multiple layers of meaning in the stories he does.

For example, his profile of former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan (a Ghanaian himself) in which Jefferson explores the vision of this charismatic and inspiring world leader, is a tribute to the kind of transcendent ethos that Annan represents, and which sustains human civilization. At one point, Jefferson quotes Annan: ‘‘You must listen to not only what is being said, but what is not said, which is often much more important.”

And in Jefferson’s own words, he explains why leaders like Kofi Annan are visionaries.

“What puzzled me was the attention Kofi Annan gave to the various sides of the conflict even after the session closed at midnight. From the little I saw, I came to agree with the fact that no one has done more than Kofi Annan to revitalise the UN.

After taking office as the seventh Secretary-General in January 1997, he managed in a very short time to give the UN an external prestige and an internal morale the likes of which the organization had hardly seen in its over fifty-year history, with the possible exception of its very first optimistic years.

His position within the organization has no doubt benefited from his having devoted almost all his working life to the UN. Experience in a bureaucracy is not always the best springboard for action and fresh approaches to the outside world, but Annan brought about both…. Kofi Annan figured prominently in the efforts to resolve a whole series of international disputes: the repercussions of the Gulf War, the wars in the former Yugoslavia and especially in Kosovo, the status of East Timor, the war in the Congo, and the implementation of the UN resolutions concerning the Middle East and “land for peace” just to mention a few.

On the basis of renewed emphasis on the Declaration of Human Rights, Annan gave his office a more active part to play as a protector of those rights.”

As what I will refer to as a ”crossover” journalist, Jefferson tells stories, especially those with an African focus, that promote global understanding – surely a key objective of travel journalism.

To see a promotional video of Jefferson’s broadcast television show “International Assignment” click on the preceding link.

His documentary on “The Castro Years” is also indicative of the kind of “educational” backgrounder that has the ”added value” effect of encouraging participatory travel.

Julia Bayly and travel as cultural anthropology

Julia is une femme à tout faire, a newspaper journalist, a travel writer, and a dog musher!

She is also an example of a journalist who understand implicitly the diversity of the travel experience and how the latter engenders a much broader understanding of world events. She is also the kind of journalist who encourages people to “go and look”; but at the same time she personifies the principle that looking is not enough – when you travel you must also engage.

In a recent podcast I did with Julia she said the following about the increasingly proactive and enlightened traveller in today’s marketplace:

“They want to do. They want to experience. They want to meet people … to become part of that which they are looking at. At which point they become someone who is looked at both by the others who are there to look and by the people they are visiting. The basis of cultural anthropology is about participant observation … and doing minimal harm.”

To hear the complete podcast, click on the preceding link.

Ian and Tonya Fitzpatrick celebrate the responsible traveller

By way of their online radio show and website, Ian and Tonya have created a public forum in which key issues that have implications for the travel and tourism industry are explored. In their roles as travel journalists they also explore the human values inherent in a destination, as well as the enduring values in human culture itself.

As they say on their site, “Responsible travelers are conscientious and wise travelers. They understand that we all share a common humanity and seek purposeful travel opportunities that are transformative and fun. Responsible travelers enjoy authentic travel experiences and leave positive footprints by fostering global citizenship and cross-cultural understanding.”

For more information on their show and their approach to travel journalism, see Travel’n On Radio.

For additional information related to this subject, see:

“An Irish Scholar’s Challenge to Travel Writers”

“Ottawa: Grace, Dignity, and a Delightful State of Affairs”

“Multidimensional Martinique: Where Landscape Shapes Culture”

“The Redundant Search for a National Narrative.”

“Travel Writing and Humanistic Culture: a blunted impact?”

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One Day On Earth Project – the World in Pictures

Posted on November 12, 2011 by Karen

Volunteer videographers around the world shot footage Friday 1/11/11 for the second “One Day On Earth” documentary, which aims to capture the world in moving pictures.

One Day On Earth is an entirely crowdsourced project. Anyone, anywhere in the world can join. Its website, at the center of the operation, has many social layers — members can share updates and photos, blog and connect with others. The project functions in a close partnership with Vimeo.

The filming was intentionally chosen for 11/11/11 because it’s such a memorable date, much like last year’s date 10/10/10.

One Day On Earth partner organization, the UN Development Programme, has deployed cameras for filming with its teams in more than 120 countries, in locations including Mogadishu, Jerusalem, Colombia and Liberia. Boaz Paldi, head of UNDP’s video unit, revealed they’ve thus far captured footage of Haitian President Michel Martelly clearing rubble in an IDP camp in Port au Prince and a women’s empowerment project in Herat, Afghanistan.

There is still time to upload your videos for the One Day On Earth Project. Submissions opened on 11/11/11 but don’t close until Dec 11 this year, so there’s still plenty of time.

 

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New Seven Wonders of the World Announced

Posted on November 12, 2011 by Karen

The Amazon rainforest, Vietnam’s Halong Bay and Argentina’s Iguazu Falls are among the new seven wonders of nature, according to organisers of a global poll.

The other four crowned the world’s natural wonders are South Korea’s Jeju Island, Indonesia’s Komodo, the Philippines’ Puerto Princesa Underground River and South Africa’s Table Mountain, said the New7Wonders foundation, citing provisional results.

Final results will be announced early in 2012, said the Swiss foundation New7Wonders, warning there may yet be changes between the provisional winners and the final list.

Sites that have failed to make the cut include Tanzania’s Mount Kilimanjaro, Israel’s Dead Sea and the US Grand Canyon.

Residents of Jeju welcomed the announcement, with a 2,000-strong crowd bursting into cheers of “We made it”, the Yonhap news agency reported.

Jeju Govenor Woo Geun-Min said the listing would open “a new chapter” for the island’s tourism industry.

“This will greatly help attract tourists to Jeju, enhance investment and bolster awareness about Jeju’s agricultural products,” he told journalists. The island is renowned for its tangerines.

The poll organised by Swiss foundation New7Wonders has attracted great interest, mobilising celebrities including Argentinian football star Lionel Messi calling on fans to pick his home country’s Iguazu Falls.

The results come after a long consultation process lasting from December 2007 to July 2009, when world citizens were asked to put forward sites which they deemed were natural wonders.

More than a million votes were cast to trim the list of more than 440 contenders in over 220 countries down to a shortlist of 77.

The group was then further cut to 28 finalists by a panel of experts.

Anyone in the world was then able to vote for the final seven via telephone, text messages or Internet social networks.

Founded in 2001 by filmmaker Bernard Weber in Zurich, the foundation New7Wonders is based on the same principle on which the seven ancient wonders of the world were established. That list of seven wonders was attributed to Philon of Byzantium in ancient Greece.

New7Wonders said its aim is to create a global memory by garnering participation worldwide.

But even as the natural wonders poll came to a close, the New7Wonders foundation has set its eyes on a new survey — the top seven cities of the world. Participating cities will be announced on January 1, 2012.

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Reverse travel: a visit to Villawood

Posted on November 8, 2011 by Graham

Those of us privileged to travel overseas and enjoy the hospitality of others should spare a thought for those for whom travel is not a luxury but a necessity. I refer to those called “asylum seekers” – refugees from conflict, war and civil strife.

Virginia Walker, 73 years old and still a dynamo of determination, has become a lifebuoy to inmates of Australia’s Villawood Immigration Detention Centre. Using her own superannuation money, she makes a weekly trip  to Villawood to take much-appreciated supplies to some of the detainees who are suffering from, among other things, an appalling diet.

“Chicken wings and rice is about all we get to eat”, says one Hazara asylum seeker who is awaiting a result on his application for a bridging residency visa. Other complaints heard from inmates are a near-total lack of fresh fruit and vegetables, and “coffee” that tastes like stale dishwater.

I was privileged to accompany Virginia Walker on one of her weekly trips – first to the relatively comfortable quarters used to house families, and then to the high-wire maximum security of Fowler and Hughes blocks. And “maximum security” means just that, with bags X-rayed, mobile phones impounded, and a whole range of goods – from “modems and IT communications devices that allow internet access” to hair tonic – being denied entry.

It’s not hard to see how the Villawood Detention Centre has evolved – from a migrant hostel starting in the 1960s (with old barracks-style blocks) to the SERCO prison dominion that it is today. SERCO, described by The Guardian newspaper (UK) as “the biggest company you’ve never heard of”, has a pretty unsavoury reputation amongst international firms, with its poorly-trained guards flown in from as far away as England to work 12 hour shifts in an environment to which they are neither accustomed nor suited. Maybe this explains the lethargic, numbed-down attitude of the screening staff, some of whom seem brain-dead or even worse.

Strangely, “things are better at Villawood now than when I first started coming here in 2003”, says Walker. But in a classic example of bureaubullshit, the Department of Immigration says that “The Australian Government has committed $186.7 million to transform existing facilities into a place that better protects the security and privacy of people in detention, while maintaining appropriate security.” Do they really mean protecting the security of people in detention, or protecting the cowardice of members of the community?

During my visit, the inmates also complained that there were no meaningful activities to keep them occupied. One gave an example of an excursion to the Blue Mountains in a bus with darkened windows. On arrival, they weren’t even allowed off the bus – although there were eight guards and just three detainees on board. “It was an excursion for the guards, not for us”, said one detainee.

But with nothing to do, it’s little wonder that detainees get depressed. For their depression they are prescribed medication, which keeps them continually is a state of being “on the nod”. “Everyone knows it’s harmful, but we have no choice”, said one detainee.

So, why are we turning fit young people in the prime of their lives into zombies? Aren’t there any win-win alternatives?

Here’s one possible alternative: There are chronic labour shortages in the mining towns of northwest Australia, in the very region where most boat arrivals occur. To put new arrivals to work in the mining industry would give them something to occupy their time while awaiting a decision on their individual cases; it would help solve the labour shortage; and the mining companies could maybe be given a source of relatively less expensive labour in return for dropping their opposition to the mining tax.

And maybe a two- or  three-year stint in the mines (with good behaviour) could be rewarded with a guaranteed permanent residence visa. With this carrot dangling in front of their noses, is there any doubt that the vast majority of asylum seekers would knuckle down and comply?

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