National Tourism: Industry or Casino?

Many of us know what tourism's definition is, if not:

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/tourism

tour·ism  (trzm)

n.

1. The practice of traveling for pleasure.

2. The business of providing tours and services for tourists.

In some developed countries, tourism is an tertiary industry, or call it "services", which generate much more benefits than raw materials or manufactures. The government puts a lot of effort so that every city or town has its own tourism information center, it gives credit to entrepreneurs that want to establish hostels, restaurants, sports centers, guided tours, etc... Additionally, transport and flight/tour agencies work the best possible to improve this target business segment. Then we have:

Income (Tourists) --> Process (Tourism) --> Product (Happy tourists + Paid Businesses & Taxed Government)

All of the above is what I have seen in some other countries I have lived in.

But now let's check the national (peruvian) tourism sector:

First! Let's start stating that the Government does a supernatural effort on boosting the tourism sector, just go inside this webpage and you can have a more accurate guide to our country's (Perú) treasures! http://peru.travel/. Of course, it could always improve roads, security in highways and lower some tourism taxes.

It is also interesting to remark that some peruvian media such as "El Comercio" which is one of the most read local newspaper, makes campaigns to select the 7 wonders of Peru!

Why do I say that national tourism in Peru is a Casino?

1) The transport agencies make a high effort to get clients, which is good, but they should also make a high effort in reinvesting surplus in better drivers, better buses and more security!

This is a conversation between two people trying to do local tourism via bus:

- A: Hey! Let's go north this summer? They have great beaches!

- B: I would go, but I saw in the news that yesterday a bus crashed with tourists, I'm afraid, but also the plane is expensive, and sometimes they steal in the highways, plus I don't think there is availability those days.

- A: Hmmm. You are right, we better stay here...

2) Flight/Tour agencies charge a high extra percentage in the concept of commission basis, to help you make a purchase of a flight to any local destination. While if we bought directly via internet, we could find less expensive prices, paying with credit card. Then? People don't trust internet, or doesn't know how to buy via IT, or there is phishing/hacking, etc...

3) Even though the local Government makes a lot of effort to supply this industry, it is not enough. IT IS NEVER ENOUGH! And this is because we yet have not come to understand that in "provinces" (term used locally to refer to every settlement excluding cities) we can find a gold mine, not only for emerging businesses, but also for tourism of every type!

It would be good to note the business men and women, the universities and all the private means to support these efforts to generate mixed marketing (public + private) with looks to the descentralization.

We can do our part to impove, I put the example of the "pentagonito" (General Army Headquarters with a 2.55 mi track) in San Borja (a district in Lima-Peru). Some years ago, it was just a military base that generated a bad aura to the zone, but then, the district's authorities improved the area with gardens, mini-public-gyms, recreation zones, water fountains, etc... which generated more affluence of people for exercise and breathing good aura, so now San Borja passed from "sleeping district" to "Move! San Borja! Move!" (Isnt this internal tourism also, even if it is just in a district level?)

I am of the theory that if people get to know better the "provinces" in our country, we will understand more our culture and the opportunities we have! So... LET'S TRAVEL PERU!

Are there more opportunities outside?

First of all, this post works much more for people in a country like Peru, where we have been accostumed to think that there are more opportunities overseas, such as United States or Europe. So, when I say PERU, I am referring to my country, but you can look at it as if I was saying the name of your country. Being said that, I can start with my post.


When some people say: "Opportunities are overseas" because here in PERU (replace PERU by "your country") the only thing we have is misery, poverty, burglars and corrupts, IT IS TRUE, and it has been proven to death! BUT... I ask: If all of us know this already... Why is there so many people who still try to discover something that is already public knowledge?! It's like trying to discover the wheel in this century.

I even think that more people than we imagine, is dedicating their life to share opinions about PERU (replace PERU by "your country"), and HOW BAD it is in all of its aspects, including the economics. And everyday, new people "enlighten" us saying something we all already know...

But they stay there... in an opinion... and as in my first post... "WHAT DO WE DO?"

It is at this moment that those "GREAT MINDS WITH MANY OPINIONS" shut up. They say "it is the government's responsibility" or "it is the private sector's responsibility" or "I don't know, but i'm leaving the country".

I ask... If at this exact moment your computer gets a terrible virus, what would you say?
a) It will fix itself, meanwhile I'll use it as much as I can.
b) I will try to fix it and call a technician, so it works like new.

If the answer is a, then just go and live in another country, leave us, we don't need you. We already have a lot of conformists. The government should PAY for the visas to help you go very far, because if you don't want to give a damn about your country, **** off.

And of course, the personality comes with the person, not with the country. So, if you are a conformist here, you will be one everywhere. Moving to another country, you are just "changing the label, but being the same product"

But, if the answer is b, welcome to the club of entrepreneurship.

Of course, there are always false entrepreneurs, who say they will try to do something, but then get tired or don't get the results they wanted IN THE FIRST DAY, and get frightened and return to their "comfort zone". Well you can leave as well if you want, we don't need you.

Man... Each paragraph, we have less and less population. But, What is PERU (replace PERU by "your country")? Its president or its inhabitants?

If we want to live well, we have to CREATE WEALTH, CREATE OPPORTUNITIES, CREATE SOCIETY, CREATE POLITICS, CREATE FAMILY, CREATE ORGANIZATIONS, CREATE TOURISM, etc...

So this is an invitation to STOP WASTING TIME criticizing what has been done, and giving opinions of the same thing over and over again, when we could be using this time to CREATE THE PERU (replace PERU by "your country") WE ALL WANT...

A Penetrating Phrase

This time it wasn't a trip, but a very close person to me, let's call her Jane Doe, who decided to have a short travel to gather with her family.

Jane has always had a good life, thanks to the effort she has put into things with her husband, to maintain a united family through respect, ethics and fighting against conformism.

In Caracas - Venezuela, she found something that would change her way of looking at life totally, and I can say that the result is amazing, not only she has changed, but also her whole family, and little by little with example and perseverance in spite of the detractors, she achieves in helping more people find a new possibility in their lives. And, what is change, but another opportunity inside of us.

The fact that a person can see change as opportunity and another as a threat is personal and depends on the point of view, maturity and the consecuences that this change may bring to his/her life and envirnoment.

Nevertheless, returning to Jane. In her family gathering trip, she tried to express her new way of life, to her brothers, sisters and close family members, the benefits and virtues of change.

As it is well known about families or relationships between people, family or not, the first thing that happens is that you tell something, and the other person (as if it was a necessity) comments in a destructive way, for example: "That doesn't work, it's all fantasy", or "I know someone that does it better". I don't know if they do this because it makes them feel superior or they are trying to call our attention, of maybe because they are envious, but what may be the cause is not the reason of this post.

Between the destructive criticism, there was a very strong one that could kill anyone that has not enough mental discipline to resist it. This was: "The instrument that you gave me a year ago, which is supposed to make me rich, doesn't work and I am still poor".

Please, before you continue reading, take your time, and try to think of how would you feel if you, with the best intentions give thie instrument as a present to the other person so that he/she wears it as an amulet or adorn, and after a few months, they spit it in your face the way this person did.

Well, What happened? How did Jane Doe react to this devastating comment? Well, surprisingly with this penetrating phrase: "You have just made a great investment, built a house the way you like it, you have a prosperous family who can study in a private university, you are not unemployed, you have all your basic services covered, you can eat, and still... you consider yourself poor?"

Really, what Jane told me surprised me a lot. With this phrase, she basicly highlighted the real troubles of people who consider themselves POOR in the world. And it is this: They don't value what they have, even if they have all the physical richness they actually have, if in your mind you are POOR, then you will live POOR forever, because there is no worst poor man than that who has the resources to step ahead but prefers to criticize and complain about life.

Thanks Jane Doe, for telling me this experience, it was very useful, because it has opened my mind. I love you mom.

The need for travel

Since I was a child, I've been accustomed to travel, live in different places, even countries, meet new cultures, make new friends, have unique experiences, etc...

If we talk about countries, I've lived in Peru, Bolivia, Puerto Rico, Colombia and Venezuela. All these in Latin America. I've studied in 8 schools in total, graduating at a british one in my birth country (Markham College). My parents always cared to give me the benefit of speaking english as well as spanish, which has served me most so far, and I am infinitely grateful.

I've made friends in all these countries, and by consecuence have a long list of contacts, and now with the Facebook it is easier to keep in touch.

I've studied in 2 universities (because of travel), and I'm thinking on going to live to Australia in about 2 or 3 years, since I went for 50 days in 2007 to see how it was, and I loved it. It's another world, a country where everyone can do ANYTHING inside the limts of law and individual freedom.

Well, the purpose of this article is to highlight a need I would call "The traveller's sindrome" (if there isn't one already).

I'll explain it with my example: I can't stay in one place, doing the same routine for more than 4 months, and I have measured it almost exactly. Past the 4 months I start to feel bored, powerless, desperate, and all of its synonyms. And I think it is because even though we human beings have turned into sedentary, sometime boring, rutinary and monotonous, we still have our nomadic side, that which pushes us into looking for new things, adventures, discoveries. If not... Why would tourism even exist?

I have the belief that people need to travel at least 2 or 3 times a year, even if it is not far. Raise the adventurer spirit, that curiosity that we need so much in today's life to stand out, hability that can be developed via a travel. Another competence to develop is improvisation, because even though it is always better to plan a trip, so when we arrive we are not lost in the air (unless you are a veteran backpacker), usually not all we have planned happens, because as one English friend I met in Australia told me once (her name is Lucy): "Life is what is happening while you are planning your future, so don't plan TOO MUCH, or you'll never life".

I will continue on with this in another post, because this is enough as background information.

Progress.. creates or destroys cities?

It's a good question... Yesterday I talked with my friend Diego Vera, and between the emotion of telling him about my trip to Australia and the natural beauty that country has, as well as its industrial development, he showed me a video which he thought was AWESOME. Unfortunately it is in spanish and I have not found a translated one, but if you still want to see it, here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PcQUtLOhfvQ. It is seriously AMAZING!!!

It's plot is about the end of the cities due to progress. Interesting... And that is why I used this question as title. Because it is important to think and meditate about how us, seeking everyday for more progress, more material things, as if it was a race, as if the world was gonna end, as if we had ignored all the beauties nature gives us and instead, create our own artificial (man-made) nature.

Industry is necessary for the progress of our cities, and is also the cause of the destruction of them. But, without industry, could we survive? Would today's human being throw away the change of having a car, going to the disco with music at max loudness, having a job, buying a better house everytime he can, and, most of all, consume the incredible ammount of electricity which bills don't reflect in their numbers?

Australia has a 21 million population aproximately, and a surface area of about all Europe Together. Maybe that is why there is way much of natural wildlife still existing, but another reason is that its people don't want to see their country devastated by pollution and deforestation. Imagine if that happened, people in other countries could never again say "I wanna go to the land of the kangaroos" because they wouldn't exist anymore.

So then... WHAT DO WE DO?... and one more time WHAT DO WE DO!!!!!!?

That is the hardest question to answer, and still we have a lot of time before the earth's resources deplete, including the oxygen in the air... but this is an answer we would expect from a conformist, isn't it? Why wait for everything to be in red alert, when we can start right now!

I don't have an answer yet, and that is why I write about this, because I know that at least one person is going to read this and will be able to answer it from a point of view he/she finds convenient, and please consider I am open to criticism, but! I also want you to write a solution that comes into your head, and that way we can begin to contribute with our bit :D