Reflections and Responses: Imagination - Essay Example

The two gazes of tourism are real, at least from my personal experiences and readings. Just as John Urry claims, the first gaze of tourism occurs because people are reluctant to promote domestic tourism but they wait for tourists from other countries or regions to tour their area. Most of the institutions that deal with tourism have commercialized the industry by forgetting about the consumption part. They only focus on the production aspect and this threatens the industry a great deal.

By putting more emphasis on productivity and profitability, it is possible to forget about the cultural and social aspects of tourism, just as John Urry explains in his book. In essence, the first gaze is all about the visual element of tourism in the sense that tourists will get what they see. Focusing too much on the visual aspects may not necessarily be the best way of enhancing tourism in a particular region. The commercial aspect of tourism is mainly concerned with ego in the sense that completeness and self-sufficiency are the primary driving factors in such a form of tourism.

In as much as Urry’s tourist gazes appear to make sense, it is important to note that the first gaze is far from monopolizing the tourism field. Concerning the second gaze of tourism as posited by John Urry, it is worth noting that there is a great contradiction with the first gaze. Usually what a tourist sees is not exactly what he or she will get. Therefore, they must understand that seeing may not necessarily lead to believing. It is not advisable to believe everything that one sees or encounters because even the most elaborate books or tourism guides have some hidden information that is not available to the public.

In this regard, the presentation of any tourist attraction plays a primary role in the second gaze compared to the attraction itself. By enticingly presenting tourist attractions, people are more likely to believe what they see even if what they have been told does not correspond with the actual situation on the ground. Response to Meditation 1Runyon Canyon’ photo is okay only that it depicts scenes that most ordinary Americans are not familiar with. Although it is a good thing that the photo has not revealed the major landmarks of Los Angeles, it is also negative that most people will fail to identify with the photo. The photo is beautiful and acceptable in the sense that it shows the skyline of Los Angeles as the sun goes down.

The image of Griffith Observatory at night creates a sense of peace for the viewers because of the beautiful lighting that is evident in the image, especially in the background.