Not a Tourist
June 16, 2014
I am not a tourist. I am a traveler. Until this summer I did not realize that there is a difference. Long ago I discovered the difference between a trip and a vacation, but the tourist/traveler dichotomy has never hit me until a conversation with my friend, Josh, atop Philopopou hill in Athens. Ever since I lived in Rome I have not really considered myself a “tourist.” The tourists were the ones I gave tours of Rome to, not me. Though I knew I wasn’t truly a part of this group I still believed I was an offshoot of it. After all, I was an American living and working abroad temporarily. Not a true ex-pat, but not just passing through either. During my conversation with Josh I realized that we are not tourists. We don’t buy the chintzy crap that the tourist shops in the Plaka sell. We don’t get t-shirts and key chains for our friends and family back home. We’re not preoccupied with getting those who are not with us gifts or sending postcards (but don’t worry mother, your yearly supply of gifts is still happening). If… okay, when we do buy gifts, these are not things with ATHENS or HELLAS scrawled all over them. Why would you need to advertise your trip to the world anyway? Shouldn’t it be something you do just for you?
A traveler is someone who wants to really see a place and truly understand the culture. A tourist is someone with a laundry list of things to do and see and then get the heck out of that place. “See four countries in five days!” is a tourist tag line. But my friends and I have evolved past that point. It’s not longer just about checking items off a list or spending half of your time buying cheap junk for other people. I know that I don’t understand Greece well yet, but I know that I want to keep learning more about the modern culture… and language. My modern Greek is laughable, at least in my mind. Until I learn how to speak modern Greek enough to be able to have a conversation with someone I will never fully understand Greek life. This is another difference between a traveler and a tourist. A traveler makes an attempt to learn a little of the language in each country he/she visits, even if it’s only pleasantries and “please” and “thank you.” Tourists (okay, American tourists, to be specific) bank on everyone else speaking English. I feel awful being an archaeologist who can’t speak Greek, but at least the Greeks are pleasantly surprised with I can order my food in Greek. “Ahhh, milas hellenika?!” (You speak Greek?!) “Ligo.” (A little.)
But everything comes in time. I think every traveler has started off as a tourist, if even only a little bit. The transition happens as you continue to travel, but I also think that there are those who will forever be in tourist mode. This crowd raves about their one night in a particular city in which they had a real cultural experience. I’ve noticed a pattern in the “best times” conversations that tourists have when bonding with each other. Each “best time” usually involves eating dinner somewhere “off the beaten path” and actually interacting with the locals instead of treating them as though they were subordinate beings. Why not make all of your experiences like this?
While I still have lots to work on in order to become a full-fledged traveler, it’s nice to realize that I have entered this category. For those who are still in the tourist realm, know that being there is not a bad thing, but also that there are a lot more ways to really see the world. Step 1: learn the language. This is the most rewarding thing you can do and something I hope to get better at in the coming year. Next year when the Greeks ask me if I “milas hellenika” I will authoritatively answer “nai!” (yes!).
