Tourism
The beach, the sun and the sea
Teresa Capol on what the tourist wants|
Tourism
The beach, the sun and the sea Teresa Capol on what the tourist wants |
| The beach, the sun and the sea TPF: THE TOURIST TRADE is one of Penang's economic mainstays. It makes up a large part of our income and the trourists are increasing. You must be very busy with taking them round? TC: Yes, we are all busy but tourist activities are more varied nowadays. Do you know there are some visitors who simply can't be bothered "to see the sights". This group prefers to laze on the beach, get a bit of the sun and the sea and are not interested in anything else. For them coming to the Penang beach is simply great. Mention of George Town only raises a yawn. Some like it so much they stay as long as 6 months. TPF: Yet horse riding is allowed and water scooters shoot dangerously along the coast where swimmers play? TC: I used to worry for my daughter when she played on the beach; I was afraid she might be trampled on by a horse TPF: All right, that's one group that will not use your services. Are there any other categories? TC: Yes. There are those who don't want to be guided by us; they like to roam about on their own with guidebooks like "The Green Planet, where every nook and corner of Penang seems to have been described. These are highly individualistic and they get a thrill of making discoveries on their own. TPF: Arabs? The state government says we are expecting 100,000 this year. TC: Yes we do get Arab tourists. Though they speak English they do not join bus tours, for some reason. They confine themselves mainly to the area of the beach hotels, particularly the swimming pools. They visit the butterfly farm and fruit farms nearby, supermarkets, McDonalds, Nandos. But if they venture further they will take a taxi into town to the goldsmith and the jeweller. Occupational tourists TPF: We occasionally see groups of middle aged tourists in the wet markets. Why these visits? TC: Yes, there are some tourists who want to see how their counterparts overseas live and work. Thus the butchers like to talk to butchers, fish mongers, fish mongers and so on. They ask their fellow tradesmen about prices and so on. TPF: We have seen them in the Pulau Tikus market taking video pictures and sitting down and having coffee with the stall holders. TC: Yes, this is typical of what we call the "occupational" tourists. They take pictures and have coffee and enjoy themselves very much even if they have to talk in the sign language. Campbell Street Market is most frequently visited because they are easily reached by trishaw. TPF: But it looks as if that market is destined to be destroyed. TC: That will be a pity because it is a popular site. TPF: What do they discover about our markets? TC: You will be surprised. Many in Europe have never seen chicken being slaughtered and are rather shocked to see that here. They see only frozen boneless chicken in their supermarkets. TPF: Singaporeans don't even see live chickens anymore! TC: Yes. The other day we took a group from Singapore to a Malay village across at Province Wellesley. The kids were astonished to see chickens. They were delighted to be able to touch the goats which were unbelievably tame to them. This gives you some idea of what a tourist likes - the living cultures and everyday life of the people. TPF: Let's go back to trades. Apart from the market what else interests the "occupational" tourists?. TC: Well we take them to the heart of George Town to the basket makers, clog makers, goldsmiths Handicrafts are a big attraction. TPF: What about "shopping" tourist? TC: We do have them. This group likes to shop for batik. We encourage this long before anyone else. The attraction of batik is that it is light and Malaysian. TPF: What about the young? Are they different? |
| Environmental tourists TC: Yes, there is a growing group of what you might call environmental tourists. They are not interested in monuments or museums. They want to climb the hill, they want to walk through the Pantai forest. They are whatyou might call "green". They ask questions about out concern for the environment. They are very distinct from the group that loves heritage buildings, old buildings, the history of the place. For this group we organise heritage tours. TPF: There are those who claim that there are no "attractions" on the hill This rather sinisterly suggests "development", disneyfication. TC: Penang Hill is an attraction itself. Nature should be left well alone. TPF: That's a great variety of tastes to cater for. What else attracts? TC: You will be surprised that some are interested in the Nyonya beaded shoe and we arrange demonstrations for them. Some even fall in love with the local food and so we have even organised cooking classes. TPF: To be forgotten? TC: Oh no! When they get home they cook things like curries and write to us to tell us about it. TPF: How do you cope with such a motley collection of tastes. One can just imagine that where one bus would do you would need 4 or 5 to head for different directions. TC: There are altogether 450 guides speaking various languages. Yes we do have to spread out a bit and it's financially a bit of a burden. Our fees haven't increased at all. Prices are going up everywhere. TPF: We read about what may only be described as the disneyfication of heritage sites in Malacca and from the way people talk about "tourist attractions" we worry that that too may be the fate of Penang. What we would call the tinsel mentality seems to have overtaken the authorities - false silver and gold attracts them and they think that too will draw the tourists. An example is the replacements of the chains marking the boundary of the three police courts (now the state assembly) with a "buckingham palace" fence and lamps and the destruction of the band stand at the Esplanade and the appearance of that attrocious "millenium project" on the seafront. TC: Tourists do not want to see what's made for them to see. The want to see the real thing - the living cultures, traditions and heritage. TPF: Like the various Teochew and Hokkien operas very often staged in honour of some diety? |
| Neem trees TC: Yes, if it's the genuine stuff, not imitations. I wished they wouldn't give us half-clad girls singing pop songs. TPF: We didn't like the improvements" along Pitt Streeet the cutting of the neem trees and the laying of paving stones suggestuve of Europe and not at all of Penang. TC: Talking of neem trees, I take tourists to the site where the branches of three trees, a bodhi tree which is sacred to Buddhists, a ficus - sacred to the Hindus and a neem are entwined over a Chinese shrine (now no more) and another for the Hindu deity Ganesh. The three trees bent towards each other with interlocking canopies are truly a sight to behold. Tourists, from as far as Holland, have always been fascinated by the neem trees. They love to hear stories related to the neem trees and the medicinal benefits they possess. The leaves are used by Hindus during Thaipusam People from other ethnic groups also use these leaves to treat skin problems. It is also used to cool a person down who is suffering from chicken pox.. TPF: The Seah Boey market has been destroyed. Do you think it should have been preserved? TC: Well, the Penang Heritage Trust opposed the proposal to demolish the historical site but now it's gone. There is always an excuse to destroy something that is a tourist attraction but these days tourism products are new things - there is no effort to preserve old ones. TPF: Visitors complain about stalls at the Stathuys Malacca and picnics on the grounds of historical sites. TC: I feel sorry for Malacca and Penang. Their potential is in their history and heritage and their living cultures . These are taken for granted. But slowly we are losing the gems of our history to "development". Something has to be done to stop this and to preserve what we have. The feed back from our tourists is, "We don't want to see things we can see in our own countries" TPF: What improvements would you like to see? TC: Look at Singapore. When you land at Changi airport, you can get free books on heritage attractions. Heritage Penang is left to people like us . Cultural infrastructure means protecting not only buildings but also the living communities around them. It means a good public environment, pavements to walk on, clean public toilets, information booths and signboards in the right places and lots of cultural activities. Cultural tourism is a big industry in the west. They have people as professional planners and promoters. In Australia, for instance, if anybody wants to restore their old houses and turn it into a tourist attraction, they can go for a special training programme. Well, no wonder so many Malaysians keep visiting Australia even though they (apart from the aboriginals) only have 200 years of history! Unlike in Europe where all things old and grand are appreciated, the modernising East seems to be in a hurry to get rid of its heritage and embrace the modern West. Is this the root obstacle to heritage conservation? TPF: What about the Chinese tourists said to number 421,563 from Jan to Sept 2004 : do the above remarks apply to them? TC: What the Chinese tourists like most of all about Penang is its food. # Teresa Capol is a member of the Tourist Guides Association and the Penang Heritage Trust. She is also a member of the International Women's Association |
 Teresa Capol also runs the Edelweiss Cafe along heritage Armenian Street. The cafe is surrounded by history. Soo Hong Lane, surely the meanest lane ever named after a prominent person, and the Cheah Kongsi which dates back to 1820, are next door. So also is the hotel for early Teochew immigrants - Swatow Lodging House.The much hyped Khoo Kongsi is within walking distance |
| ______ INDEX Point to the article that you want to read, and CLICK Index page Book review Food guide Hang Li Po myth Malay words from Chinese Preparing the bride Letter from Pulau Tikus Raffles College Tourism
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_____________________ The Penang File Issue 38 |