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Tourism
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Railroads, ships, buses, and airplanes
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have made travel easier, faster, and cheaper;
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and the number of people who can spare the time and the money
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to take trips has grown enormously.
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It is not reserved to a lucky few, nowadays,
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to admire Inca temples, French castles,
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and Australian kangaroos.
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Millions of people do each year.
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But instead of being called travelers,
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they are known as tourists
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and they are seen all over the world —
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floating down the Amazon, cruising to Alaska,
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flying from Timbuktu to Easter Island,
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and taking pictures of Norwegian churches and Pakistani costumes.
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Surely this represents great progress.
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It is just and good that most of the people
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who dream of seeing the Parthenon should have a chance to do so.
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It is satisfying to know that remote ruins
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are not forgotten in deep forests,
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to be seen only a few explorers at the risk of their lives.
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It is excellent that people of different counties
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should meet and talk to each other.
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But is it really?
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Is it really desirable to have the most remote beach,
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the most hidden temple exposed to human curiosity
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and at the same time to the litter and graffiti
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that humanity leaves in its path?
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Would it be better to leave such treasures to the local population,
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which perhaps doesn?t pay any attention to them?
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The saddest aspect of tourism has been brought recently
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to the attention of the public:
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it seems that the great number of visitors
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is destroying the treasures that they enjoy most.
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Under millions of feet,
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ancient stones wear out,
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ancient floors break down.
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Parts of the palace of Versailles
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may have to be closed to the public
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in order to preserve them,
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and some European caves,
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famous for their thirty-thousand-year-old paintings,
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have already been closed
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because the paintings were damaged by human respiration.
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There may come a time when only specialists in art, history,
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or archaeology will be allowed near the treasures of the past.
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Perhaps we’d better hurry to see them;
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perhaps we’d better take a tour soon.