So that’s how it feels

During a recent trip to the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria, Australia, I had an eye opening experience. While the coastline was incredible and the people there were completely accommodating, this wasn't what opened my eyes. These aspects were great, but my actual mind-expanding experience had nothing to do with great surf, sand and food. It had to do, in fact, with seeing other tourists descend on a predominantly Anglo-Saxon, English speaking nation. This was a new experience for me. 

While the United States does get tourism in droves, the fact is, it is a lot different than that of the tourism in Australia. Much of our tourism is domestic, and with our difficult laws around visas, as well as our proximity from many cultures that differ greatly from ours, we don’t always see a lot of foreign faces. This is the exact opposite of Australia.

What really made me think was a trip to a resort hot springs in the Peninsula area. Though the Easter Holiday had passed, the tourism had yet to subside. The interesting aspect, though, was that the majority of tourists were of Asian decent. Much like when Western, English-speaking tourists descend upon the world, the tourists at the springs came in large groups, and many of which didn't speak the language.

The staff was completely overwhelmed trying to serve multiple people with a single translator and the local tourists were totally out numbered. While all the guests of the group were gracious, kind and welcoming to the other guests, the sheer number, mixed with the added aspects of working with a different culture, seemed to take over the entire resort.

While I love traveling myself, having seen an experience like this was a huge eye opener for me. Being able to see the impact of large groups of differing cultures descending upon one place (in a culture I identify with) gave me a good look about my impact as a traveler. The vivid image of what tourism looks like from the local end was an experience that I’ll hold with me for a lifetime.

Photo courtesy of SMH