Hi Jennifer

Urry in 'The Post Tourist', also some time ago, wrote something similar
about tourists and their desire for authenticity. If I understood and
remember correctly he sais that tourists want an authenticity that is 'true'
to their own nostalgic view of the past rather than to any version
nearest to reality that we can make it. Visitors to Africa want the same
thing ie. 'the authentic African experience' without the real hassles of an
African 'safari'-hard ground, mosquitoes, unfriendly wild animals,
snakes, civil war, etc.

I am not sure that authenticity is possible in museums, after all they are
artificial environments even if they do conserve and exhibit the real thing.
Should we be pretending that a museum experience can be authentic?
South Africa is full of dreadful 'authentic tribal villages', many associated
with museums with good collections or archaeological sites, both of
which become secondary to the  'village'. Tourists, however, appear to
love Shakaland, with its Sangoma, bare-breasted maidens and sorghum
beer. It does not bother them that it was originally a film set.  Others have
written extensively on this, though, so I won't go on.

Kathryn Mathers