No. 3

I've been thinking a bit about paper no. 3. I found an article on JSTOR, after doing some serious digging, that explored the Western world's imperialistic complex concerning Africa and the continent's countries. What is it about Western civilizations that makes them think they're superior and obligated to assert control over others? It got my gears a'tickin' and made me think; when people travel to countries or locales that are admittedly deigned "third world" or "developing nations" what fuels the belief that they're contributing to the welfare of individuals in said country?

There are dozens of independent companies that offer student budget travel packages, and one of the ones my buddy linked me to offered a volunteering one. I haven't quite grasped the concept of paying to volunteer, it's like a reverse of the whole working structure to me, but paying to visit a third world nation (see the world!) to spend time in a developing village or city or some other sort of township seems ludicrus to me.

I finally got around to seeing Slumdog Millianaire, which was very good, but one scene in particular came to mind when I started thinking about the article. The main character, Jamal, dabbles as a tour guide to unsuspecting visitors. On one occasion, he leads an American couple down to the Dehli river while their taxi is stripped clean in a matter of minutes by a highly efficient gang led by his older brother, Salim. When the driver, Jamal, and the couple return to the car, Jamal receives the brunt of the driver's rage for the robbery. The couple steps in to his defense and the man gives him some money. Clearly his situation requires far more than a handful of money, but they are no more than blips in his life. Right before the stripped car is blamed on Jamal, he takes the tourists down to the river where people are washing their clothes in the filthy water.

The tourists don't think twice about the poverty they see before them, and I wondered long after the movie was over, whether or not that was part of what they'd intended to see in India. An assortment of articles deem this "voyeuristic," and dub it "slum tourism." Whether or not it really is, is left to debate. Unless tours of the slums aim to expose the harsh reality of the environment, and bring change via awareness, they aren't doing much but making a mint for groups that lead tourists around. A careful dissection of the argument on both sides of the issue could conclude that the form of slum tourism that exists may be well intentioned but poorly executed.

Spring Break! Is....Over

I know I promised exciting tales of discovering my hometown this semester, thanks to my Thursday night elective, and so far I've been lax in sharing them. Since I last made mention of the Cultural Guide to L.A. class we've:
-visited a couple in Hancock Park who collect art pieces and incorporate them into their home (imagine living in an art museum)
- saw a show at the famous Groundlings' theater on Melrose (the Progressive lady, "Flo" was the star comidienne)
-walked around the Arts district in Downtown (it felt like another city!) and peeked into galleries
-and took an adventurous ride on the Metro from Union Station to Hollywood for Thai food.

Needless to say, it's been a hell of a semester so far. Riding the subway in Los Angeles seems bizarre, especially given our city's "car culture". Still, I'm always amazed by this city and the people who live here. Just when you think the subways are going to be completely desolate and void of activity, along comes a train jam packed with people, AND THEIR BIKES. At rush hour I wouldn't think twice about it, but at ten p.m.? At least crowds are an opportune place to eavesdrop on conversations. Rude? Perhaps, but I think any person who projects their voice so the entire car can hear is aiming to be heard.

I digress. One of the great things about taking this class is learning about the budget friendly (i.e. usually really cheap, or free!) methods of discovering the city. Public transportation may not be up to par with that of cities like Chicago or New York, but I think Angelinos are embracing it, or trying to. It definitely comes in handy when you're traveling around the city's center. I feel motivated to check L.A. Weekly for shows, museum exhibits, plays, and any other assortment of events.

We'll Be Back After This Short Break

I'm off to Hawaii for spring break to visit family and sight see! See you in a week!

What to do, what to do

I'm probably a cynic, but I don't usually believe in tactics to jump start writing. Mostly because I tend to over think when I'm trying to utilize them (which utterly negates the practice, I know). Anyhow, here are some possible directions I could take this "travel" topic to with the TOPOI. I've got to say, after looking at some of the sources I dragged up, I think I like where this is going...

Topic: Travel
Possible Thesis: Something to do with travel, tourists, and the effect of tourism.

Notes: As applied by the TOPOI.

Contrasts: Visiting tourists create tension when they don't attempt to immerse themselves in, or understand the culture they're visiting.

Values: With the increasing trend of awareness of eco-friendliness, tourists face the ethical or moral conundrum of whether or not to travel to countries with fragile environments or poor economies.

Change: Are we (or can we) work(ing) towards a more economical method of travel, that's both beneficial in terms of our environment and the preservation of remote cultures?

Cause: What effects do tourists have on a local economy? Is it worth it for a country to exploit their natural resources or their one distinctive feature in order for them to generate revenue?

After trying this out, I'm starting to get interested in the we view the rest of the world as Western tourists...possibly exploring how tourism can be both beneficial as well as detrimental to a local environment, or how conflicts can arise when cultures interact...

Tour-tastic

I'll admit, I'm not totally tech illiterate, but I'm not completely up to date with the different types of technologies that continually emerge. Usually I tend to bookmark every single site I find compelling the moment I stumble on it, leaving me with loads of unsorted links that are frustrating to sort through. Sure, I do make folders to segregate them according to topics, but I like to have a visual because it's easier to remember things when I see them. My writing class comes in handy in this instance, we learn about a different service and some new web service every week.

Most recently, we've signed up for Pageflakes, which collects various links and allows users to arrange them to their liking on their respective pages. It's almost like a visual version of Diigo and Bloglines combined. Since this blog is about travel, and traveling as a student with a limited budget, you can guess what my Pageflake looks like. It has two columns to house my RSS feeds on the left, and annotated bibliography on the right.

RSS Feeds

In this column I've got a spattering of nifty widgets that keep me up to date on feeds that I usually check out at Bloglines. Only, this is narrowed down to feeds that solely pertain to travel. I've listed my social bookmarking soulmate's (jeanoid on del.ic.ious) bookmarks, as well as my own for reference. The neat thing about these widgets is that they're refreshable, so the content can be updated at any time. I have a feed to my own blog in the left column as well, which is helpful because I spend most of my time looking at the post window (and writing in here) that I forget what my blog looks like from a reader's point of view. I think it makes me pay more attention to certain entries when I view it outside of the editing "room."

Annotated Bibliography

Thanks to MIT and their awesome creation, Citeline, I can create bibliographies without having to hunt for all of the publishing information or do any typing! Actually, I have to include that last bit myself, seeing as this is an annotated bibliography and all. Check out the notes I've left for each of the sources I've found, I've got to spruce them up a bit, and make them a little more coherent, but they'll do for now.

Searching....searching....got it!

On the right hand side of my Pageflakes page, I also have several search windows, two for news and two for blogs. I've tested "travel" and "expat" as search subjects, but nothing that comes up has grabbed my interest yet. I'm still practicing my search tactics! Just above that I have a mini Google search, which I think it pretty nifty. It looks just like the Google web page, but it fits right into the little package of a flake! It's just as helpful (or not, depending on how successful I've deemed it) as the four little search engines below it.

Annotations the Second

Here are some more resources that are helpful (hopefully I can find four, travel seems to be such an arbitrary search topic, and I'm pulling up articles for the most random things...unrelated to this):

Dunn, Kevin C. (2004).
Fear of a Black Planet: Anarchy Anxieties and Postcolonial Travel to Africa.
Third World Quarterly, 25(3), 483--499

This article looks at the way the Western world has constructed an "otherness" when traveling to Africa and in its consumption and connection to it. This postcolonial approach is exemplified in the exotic image that has been thrust onto the continent's countries as a destination that is both "natural" and "native" (somehow implying primitive) The article looks at the way the Western world has historically viewed Africa as a place that needs external "fixing," and how places that don't adhere to this perceived image are seen as a threat to the Western world. Dunn looks at the way the world has changed its perception of Africa in a post 9-11 world, and the possible implications for its future in international relations.

Koenker, Diane P. (2003).
Travel to Work, Travel to Play: On Russian Tourism, Travel, and Leisure.
Slavic Review, 62(4), 657--665

Diane P. Koenker examines the interrelations of travel, tourism, and leisure through Russian tourists and their contrasting definitions of both the tourist and the traveler. She raises the theme of a quest for knowledge and the importance placed on it, the creation of leisure activities, and the issues that arise from tourists and travels wanting to be in control of their own experiences. Koenker explores the ways travel has formed identities, both national and cosmopolitan, and analysizes the consequences of travel, and leisure outside of the home.

Gabriel, Philip (2002).
Back to the Unfamiliar: The Travel Writings of Murakami Haruki.
Japanese Language and Literature, 36(2), 151--169.

In this article, Philip Gabriel looks at the writigs of Haruki Murakami relative to Japanese travel writings. Murakami's writings are imbued with a sense of nostalgia, loss, and reflection of the limits of knowledge. He writes about Murakami's reactions to his own work and how it's received as well as his philosphy about writing. The article functions as a discussion about the works of another writer and his focus on traveling.

Annotations the First

I'm hardly the best at remembering what I've bookmarked sources for, which is why annotating them is helpful when I need to sort them out at a later time. Plus, I'll admit, I'm lazy and having to reread whatever I've piled up later is a major pain. We're supposed to start forming the skeleton for a paper in my writing class, and utilizing these sources as a spring point from which to develop. I'm not sure where I'll find peer edited sources for travel, or what I want to write about (this seems to be a reoccurring obstacle for this blog....) Anyway, I thought I'd start out at Amazon and look at some of the guide books, or memoirs (since everyone seems to be writing one nowadays)

Tessan, Christina Henry De (2002).

Expat: Women's True Tales of Life Abroad.

Seal Press

Keywords: {Anecdotes, Voyages} and {travels, and Women} travelers

Through a collection put together by 22 contributors, Expat: Women's True Tales of Life Abroad, detail life abroad through the eyes of women. The writers come from a variety of backgrounds, from: students, teachers, and workers, to those chasing after a romanticised ideal of a foreign country. The one thing all of the contributors have in common (aside from this book) is that they've lived as expatriates. Through a recounting of their experiences, the writers reflect on the obstacles they've faced, different perspectives they've come to accept, and the lessons they've learned overall.

Bond, Marybeth (2003)
A Woman's World: True Life Stories of World Travel.
Travelers' Tales

This series of essays is similar to the tales told in Expat: Women's True Tales of Life Abroad, but the tales in this collection aren't from women who've exclusively lived as expatriates. This mix of contributions comes from novice as well as veteran travelers, as well as writers. One of the chapters, an essay by Jo Broyles Yohay, recounts her time in India and and the change in perspective she experienced once she accepted the cultural differences she encountered. With essays spanning countries on a number of continents, the variety of experiences documented offer advice mingled with entertaining anecdotes about cultural misunderstandings