158 Pages
by Routledge

158 Pages
by Routledge

158 Pages
by Routledge

Explore the travel/tourism possibilities of this exotic yet tourist-friendly country Vietnam Tourism presents a unique ethnographic-semiotic analysis of some of the most important touristic icons in Vietnamese culture. In addition, it offers a firsthand analysis of many aspects of daily life in Vietnam and a semiotic analysis of Vietnam’s dominant cultural symbols. A twelve-page photo... Read more
  • Foreword (Ross K. Dowling)
  • Preface
  • Acknowledgments
  • Introduction
  • A Note on Ethnography
  • The Design of the Book
  • Why People Become Tourists: Uses and Gratifications
  • PART I: VIETNAM AS A TOURIST DESTINATION—AN ANALYTIC PERSPECTIVE
  • Chapter 1. The Pros and Cons of Vietnam Tourism
  • Statistics on Tourism in Vietnam, Thailand, and Cambodia
  • Visitors in Vietnam by Country in 2001
  • Some Problems of Vietnam’s Tourism Industry
  • Benefits of Vietnam As a Tourist Destination
  • Chapter 2. The Consumer Culture and Vietnam
  • Tourism and Consumer Cultures: The Grid-Group Typology
  • Consumer Cultures and Tourist Choices
  • Travel Preferences in Vietnam and Cultural Alignments
  • About Imaging, Interpreting, and Remembering Vietnam
  • PART II: VIRTUAL VIETNAM—IMAGINING VIETNAM
  • Chapter 3. Vietnam: Image and Reality
  • Vietnam As an Imagined Place
  • Pico Iyer’s Picture of Saigon and Hanoi
  • Two Writers on the Vietnamese Passion for Food
  • The Vietnam War
  • Chapter 4. Touring Vietnam in Safety and Comfort
  • Logistics
  • TF Handspan Group Tour Itinerary
  • Annie, Thu, and Problems with Names
  • Adventure Wear and Magic Glasses: I Go High Tech
  • Teaching the Vietnamese About American Culture
  • Escaping with One’s Life While Touring Vietnam
  • A Rainbow the Day We Leave
  • On the Matter of Vietnam’s Appeal for Tourists
  • PART III: SEMIOTIC VIETNAM—INTERPRETING THE COUNTRY
  • Chapter 5. Understanding Vietnam: Culture and Geography
  • Scholarly Approaches to Studying Foreign Cultures
  • The Ideas of Roland Barthes
  • Quoc Ngu: The Vietnamese Written Language
  • The Cao Dai Cathedral at Tay Ninh
  • Sapa and the Hill-Tribe Girls
  • The Mekong Delta
  • Hanoi
  • Ho Chi Minh City/Saigon
  • Chapter 6. Exploring Vietnam’s Culture: Food and Entertainment
  • Pho
  • Nuoc Mam (Fish Sauce)
  • Vietnamese Metal Coffee Pots
  • Spring Rolls
  • Non La (Conical Hats)
  • Ao Dai: The Traditional Vietnamese Costume for Women
  • Ho Chi Minh’s Body
  • General Giap: The Snow-Covered Volcano
  • Green Pith Helmets
  • Cu Chi Tunnels
  • CD Cafés
  • Dong and Dollars
  • Roi Nuoc (Water Puppets)
  • PART IV: REMEMBERING VIETNAM—BACK IN THE UNITED STATES
  • Chapter 7. Reflections on Touring Vietnam
  • A Jumble of Memories
  • The Actual Vietnam versus the Virtual Vietnam
  • Street Cultures and House Cultures
  • An Age-Old Question
  • Chapter 8. Conclusion
  • The Tourist As Stranger in a Strange Land
  • A Final Word
  • Bibliography
  • Index
  • Reference Notes Included

Biography

Arthur Asa Berger