The Cruiseshipper Daytripper Malaise

Pattie recently wrote the following comment to an earlier post I made about leviathan cruise ships that bob about in the lagoon:

Saw one of these monsters ("Star Princess") docked by the Arsenale vaporetto stop a few weeks ago. It was almost nauseating in its size (quite a shock after taking photos of cats sitting up on pillars in the nearby park). I had met one of the cruisers on the vaporetto earlier, and she and her daughter only got one day in Venice on a 2-week itinerary, which I thought was sad.

My response:

The cruiser and the ship are part of a team. The ship's job is to move 'em in and out in a production line fashion. The cruiser's job is to consume quickly and superficially. They are part of the same malaise. It encourages ignorance and detachment on the part of the insta-tourist.

I strain to avoid being crotchety. I genuinely hate to preach. It´s too, too easy to have disdain for those who fail to understand something you love (be it bottle caps, hip-hop or fine wine). But to me, it feels like there is a problem here that CAN be corrected. This form of tourism CAN be slowed with policies that limit the access of these hulking giants.

Venetians and others that love Venice chafe at the Disneyland effect, and rightfully so. But these cruiseshipper daytrippers are the number one contributor to the themepark feel. A person arrives at Disneyland not to understand its context and their place within it. They want to go on the rides, snag a dog and chips, buy something with mouse ears and split.

There´s no doubt that the money that these monster ships bring in is a kind of heroin. It creates a local lobby group of the hooked (merchants, restaurateurs , etc.) who perpetuate and even accelerate the cycle.

--- posted from Mexico

Comments

[Pattie O'Donnell]

Just correcting a mistake I made in the comment that's cited (a glaring error when I saw it in big print in the blog!)

The vaporetto stop was probably Giardini or Arsenale, whichever is at the foot of the wide walkway that runs from Garibaldi statue to the gardens at the water. I can't imagine the monster I saw going in much further, although maybe they do.

Thanks for the blog - it's helping me get my Venice fix until I'm able to get back again!
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Noted and corrected, la mia amica.

N.