TextB  Heritage from History and Traditions

Major types of cultural touristattractions that are based on man's activities, include the following:

Archaeological, Historical and Cultural Sites: Archaeological(考古学的), historical and cultural sites,including cultural and national monuments, historic buildings, districts andtowns, important religious buildings such as churches, synagogues(犹太教教堂), temples, mosques(清真寺), and monasteries(修道院), and places of historic events suchas battlefields, constitute a major type of attraction feature in most parts ofthe world. Important archaeological and historic sites exist in virtually allparts of the world. Major examples are: Stonehenge(巨石阵), Westminster Abbey(威斯敏斯特教堂), and the Tower of London in the UK;the many classical Egyptian, Greek, Roman and other monuments in theMediterranean region; the Taj Mahal(泰姬陵) in India;Angkor Wat(吴哥窟)in Cambodia; the Imperial Palace in Beijing; Nara and Kyoto inJapan; and many others all over the world.

Distinctive Cultural Patterns:Cultural patterns, traditions and lifestyles that are unusual (different fromthose of the tourists) and in some cases, unique to one place can be of muchinterest to many tourists. These cultural patterns include customs, dress,ceremonies, lifestyles and religious beliefs and practices, and are oftenassociated with rural and village life, but may be prevalent in some urban places. Although of much potentialinterest to tourists, care must be taken in the presentation of culturalpatterns and the interface between residents and tourists so that socialproblems are not generated.

Arts and Handicrafts: The performingart forms, including dance, music and drama, and the fine arts of painting andsculpting can be important attractions, especially when effectively presented.Art forms can be those associated with small-scale traditional performing artscenters, and theaters are often developed at considerable cost for presentationof the performing arts, primarily for the benefit of residents but oftensubstantially supported by tourists. Handicrafts of an area can be both aninteresting attraction for tourists and a source of income for local artisans.Related to arts and handicrafts are the traditional or distinctivearchitectural styles of an area that can be of much interest to tourists. Forexample, the traditional architectural styles in Southeast Asia, which canstill be seen in some places, and the Islamic and Arab styles found in theMiddle East. Well-executed contemporary architectural styles are also of greatinterest.

Interesting Economic Activities: Anoften successful type of specialized cultural attraction is observation,description and sometimes demonstration of interesting economic activities suchas operation of tea and rubber plantations(种植园) andprocessing plants, use of working elephants in tropical forests, traditionalfishing and agricultural techniques in many areas, and operation of modernmanufacturing plants. Traditional market places are also widely popular withtourists. It requires very little investment to effectively present theseactivities to tourists, but knowledgeable tour guides are essential.

Interesting Urban Areas: In contrastto rural and village life, large urban areas with their varied architecturalstyles, historic buildings and districts, civic(市民的) centers,shopping facilities, restaurants, parks and street life are of interest to manytourists who enjoy general urban sightseeing and absorbing the ambience(氛围) of a city's character, as well asvisiting specific attraction features such as museums and public buildings. Inaddition to organized city tours, opportunities should be examined for theestablishment of 'urban trails' that lead visitors through interesting parts ofthe city, with stops at major features on the existing pedestrian and publictransportation system, as a way of encouraging self-guided exploration. In somecities, theater performances, including plays, operas, concerts, and dancepresentations are major attractions for tourists as well as residents. Theateris an important attraction and source of local revenue in such cities asLondon, Paris, New York, Moscow, Sydney and Tokyo. Tourists' attendance attheater performance often provides an important and much-needed source ofrevenue to maintain the theater operations.

Museums and Other Cultural Facilities:Related to various aspects of both the natural and cultural features of an areaare different types of museums, covering themes such as archaeology, history,ethnology(人种学), naturalhistory, arts and crafts, science, technology and industry, and manyspecialized subjects. These are usually developed primarily for residents toenjoy but, if well done, can also be importantattractions for domestic and international tourists. Museums such as theHermitage in ST. Petersburg(圣披德堡), and theMuseum of Anthropology in Mexico City are internationally famous. In additionto national and regional museums, these are also site museums associated withspecific archaeological, historical, or natural features. Thecontemporary museum presentation approach is not only to display artifacts butalso to educate visitors throughinterpretative exhibitsand special programs. Other cultural facilities such as cultural centers,important commercial art galleries, and antique shops or, in some places, wholedistricts should be considered as tourist attractions. Some towns that haveattracted artists and a concentration of commercial art galleries, such as Languna Beach(兰谷娜海滩), California and Santa Fe(圣菲海滩), New Mexico in the USA, are popularstopping places for tourists.

Cultural Festivals: Various types ofcultural festivals related to the local traditions and arts can be majorattractions. Large religious festivals and pageants such as the Carnival in Riode Janeiro(里约热内卢) and MardiGras(忏悔星期二) in NewOrleans, the USA, attract many tourists as well as residents. The various typesof music festivals held annually in Europe and North America are very popular.The annual arts festival in Bali, Indonesia, organized to support Balineseperforming and visual arts, attracts many residents and tourists from all overthe world.

Friendliness of Residents: Although notquantifiable(量化的), a very realattraction for many tourists can be the friendly, hospitable character of localresidents and, more generally, their tolerance and acceptance of touristsvisiting their environment. The honesty and reliability of residents in their dealingwith tourists are also important factors. (963 words)

 

Exercises:

A: Readthe passage and answer the following questions.

1. What are the major types of culturaltourist attractions according to the passage?

2. What kind of cultural patterns can beof interest to tourists?

3. What do the performing art formsinclude?

4. What is essential to the presence ofinteresting economic activities to tourists?

5. What can be of interest to touristswho enjoy general urban sightseeing?

6. Which types of museums are mentionedin the passage?

7. Which examples of cultural festivalsare mentioned in the passage?

8. How do you understand the“friendliness of residents” according to the passage?

 

B:Translate the following sentences into Chinese.

1. Cultural patterns, traditions andlifestyles that are unusual (different from those of the tourists) and in somecases, unique to one place can be of much interest to many tourists.

2. Although of much potential interestto tourists, care must be taken in the presentation of cultural patterns andthe interface between residents and tourists so that social problems are notgenerated.

3. Traditional market places are alsowidely popular with tourists. It requires very little investment to effectivelypresent these activities to tourists, but knowledgeable tour guides areessential.

4. Tourists' attendance at theaterperformance often provides an important and much-needed source of revenue tomaintain the theater operations.

5. Although not quantifiable(量化的),a very real attraction for many tourists can be the friendly, hospitablecharacter of local residents and, more generally, their tolerance andacceptance of tourists visiting their environment. The honesty and reliabilityof residents in their dealing with tourists are also important factors.