Would future generations forgive us for erasing our past out of greed? While tourism is an important portion of the economy, it must not come at the expense of the preservation of our heritage.
Tourism plays a crucial role in the economic growth of many by creating new business opportunities and forging income for the state and the country. For instance, Urfa, a city in Turkey, was not considered a touristic area until recent years after the accidental discovery of Gobeklitepe, which turned out to be an invaluably important historical site. Now, people are surging to see this magnificent discovery, providing people with many new job opportunities.
Another gain of tourism is that it generates new atmospheres for people to socialize and get to know different cultures. On many occasions, people form bonds even overcoming language obstacles. Traveling is a very exciting chance to learn how people live continents away and maybe even how your ancestors lived centuries ago.
However, being respectful of the past of the country you are visiting is not always the case for some tourists. This mostly leads to being disrespectful towards the artifacts, especially at the display outside or in an area where they cannot be fully protected from outer threat. For example, many historical paintings had the sacred people’s faces carved off by the visitors or even the locals because they could not respect the beliefs of the people who lived there before them. This situation is extremely sad for many important relics are lost just because of disrespect.
On the other hand, when excessive tourism is done, physical deterioration of the cultural heritage can be seen just like it does in Machu Picchu, Peru. This historical place faces irreversible erosion because of the constant foot traffic that comes with a very large number of tourists.
In conclusion, tourism forms new bonds between cultures while providing many people with new opportunities and contributing to the economy of the country. However, we must not let economic gains come at the expense of heritage preservation. More sustainable tourism practices and better preserved and protected historical sites and artifacts should be provided by the government.
