Paper short abstract:

By analysing places on Koh Tao (Thailand) the authors will show, that the boundaries between "insiders" & "outsiders" are not permanent but constantly reconstructed. Drawing on ethnographic field research the paper will clarify geographic and social barriers between locals and non-locals on Koh Tao.

Paper long abstract:

The paper will deal with Koh Tao, an island situated in the Gulf of Thailand, which covers an area of about 21km². Koh Tao has become a major tourist attraction in recent years. With the influx of "outsiders" on the island geographical and social boundaries changed. The article will show that although small, Koh Tao has a diverse population structure. Thus one can not only distinguish tourists from locals but has to account for other groups as well, e.g. seasonal workers. Due to this diversity there are a large number of different social and geographical spaces and places. Nevertheless the boundaries between "insiders" and "outsiders" are not static, and can change depending on different variables. E.g. different types of tourists prefer different places, while some tourist types tend to invade more local space others stay in their "designated" spaces. The paper traces these boundaries and shows that they can blur, be partially lifted or can harden. While tourists, as a rule, prefer spaces and places that are closer to the beach, locals spend their free time in more secluded spaces with a more private character. By means of analysing spaces on Koh Tao the authors will show that boundaries between locals and non-locals are always dynamic and are restructured constantly. The analysis will build on field research, conducted in 2009, of one of the authors.

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Paper short abstract:

A comunicação analisa as representações que configuram a identidade turística dominante de uma praia cosmopolita do nordeste brasileiro associada ao "turismo sexual" e as estratégias locais de desconstrução dessa identidade indesejada.

Paper long abstract:

Actualmente, a praia de Ponta Negra, localizada em Natal, capital do Estado do Rio Grande do Norte, está sujeita a uma tentativa de redefinição da sua identidade, nomeadamente por via dos discursos e das práticas de amplos sectores da sociedade local, com destaque para a elite política. Praticamente desde o seu crescimento como contexto turístico de massas, na segunda metade dos anos 90 do século passado, é identificada como destino do chamado "turismo sexual". Esta identidade turística tem vindo a consolidar-se como hegemónica à medida que determinados actores, agentes e instituições locais (responsáveis políticos, comunicação social, ONG, Igreja), exacerbam e dramatizam o fenómeno, criando fantasmas colectivos e uma histeria moral generalizada. Os seus posicionamentos tendem a diabolizar a procura turística masculina estrangeira (os gringos) e, simultaneamente, a definir estratégias de repressão desses fluxos turísticos. Todavia, parece provável, que estas tentativas para gerir, deslegitimar e esvaziar uma identidade turística considerada indesejada têm tido, de um modo geral, um efeito contraditório, intensificando imagens que, embora não correspondam à realidade empírica do contexto, se reproduzem como a sua principal marca identitária, muito em especial para o exterior.

Trata-se de uma comunicação baseada em diversas estadias de trabalho de campo realizadas pelos auores na cidade de Natal, desde 2005.

Paper short abstract:

Festivals designate the phenomenon of the planetary supermarket in combined with cross-cultural and tourist movements, burearucratic policy and political strategies. I will present the famous festivals in SE Europe and I will stress the problem of festival colonial politics of profit and the festival as an open society in proximaty of the people.

Paper long abstract:

Festivals designate an phenomenon of the planetary supermarket in combined with cross-cultural and tourist movements, burearucratic policy and political strategies. From such positions, great invasion of festivals exceeds their artistic and cultiural mission - they become a significant factor in reflecting and modifying global trends, local values and politics which depend on social, economic and political circumstances. How festivals produce spaces and how spaces take over festivals; how people shape spaces of living-in-festival and how spaces function as living-out festival; how to articulate people moving and people living; how to plan city-maker city-making policy and coordinate with developement of tourism? To ilustrate this phenomenon I will present the famous festivals in SE Europe and Serbia: EXIT festival of techno and rock music, The Folk trumpet playing festival, and the concept-project city festival. During the time of crisis and transition in postsocialist Serbia, festivals were incorporated into current politics and creation of the whole corpus of values and lifestyles. They represented ambivalent sides of Serbia - those which capitalise national - folklor and unilateral traditional values with elements of traditionalism, and others which remain on the positions of urban culture and cosmopolitians values, and of, multiculturalism perceived as standing against prejudices, xenophobia and violence. My research stressed the problem of festival colonial politics of profit interests concentration of power, and the viewpont of festival as an open society in proximaty of the people. In that sense, festivalization of places could be relevant with regard to creating potential for inovations and network communication.

Paper short abstract:

This paper should be included in the research field that explore the relation between spatiality, embodiment and emotionality and, from that perspective, aims to explore the differences between pilgrimage and procession.

Paper long abstract:

The term itinerary or route is related to cartography, where the route plan shows the road and stops along the way, incorporating those elements that must be protected. Another conception of itinerary, characterized as a systematic displacement, which determines the use and consumption patterns of the geographical space based on the type of travel and its main goal.

This paper seeks to apprehend the religious from a geographical approach and use the body and emotions as a way of understanding the social. To this end, we propose to utilize the pilgrimage and the procession, two religious paths, as forms of fusion of space, emotions and body.

In this respect it should be noted that the pilgrimage is a personal or collective initiative made by the believers to a place considered sacred, which is done for religious reasons and as an act of faith. It usually involves more than a walk day.

For its part, the procession is a journey that has different degrees of solemnity, is made in a place considered sacred to another of the same nature and is intended to acknowledge a benefit or beg for help "God" is done singing or praying.