Tourist Attractions: "The Bilbao Effect" - Teacher's Copy

A tourist attraction is a place of interest that tourists visit in order to appreciate something that they value in that destination. The English expression, “Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder,” fits here because these attractions are visited for their visual, cultural, historical, or natural appeal. Of course, sometimes they are just plain fun to visit! Some examples include historical places, monuments, zoos, aquaria, museums and galleries, botanical gardens, buildings and structures (e.g., castles, libraries, former prisons, skyscrapers, bridges), national parks and forests, parks and carnivals, living history museums, ethnic enclave communities, historic trains and cultural events. Many tourist attractions are also landmarks.

As you snorkel past coral reefs and angelfish in the warm, shallow waters of the Caribbean Sea, you suddenly come across an eerily beautiful tableau: hundreds of life-size human sculptures. No, this isn’t treasure from some sunken pirate ship. It’s the world’s largest underwater museum.

This ingenious twist on Cancun’s popular dive tourism shows that tourism sights get bolder and more innovative each year, often thanks to the involvement of big-name architects, artists, and designers. As destinations vie to create their own “Bilbao Effect,” tourists are getting savvier about what to see and what to skip. It takes more than tall buildings and new museums to titillate today’s tourist.

Take 1111 Lincoln Road, for example. The word “garage” doesn’t begin to do it justice. Dreamt up by Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron, it’s better described as a modernist, open-air “parking sculpture.” The eye-catching mixed-use venue has become Miami’s it-spot for dinner parties and events while its hip shops, restaurants, and public art lure daytime crowds.

Another traditional, everyday space—the plaza—has been radically made over in Seville. Architect Jürgen Mayer’s trippy, fantastical design for the Plaza de la Encarnacíon looks like something out of Alice in Wonderland. The undulating blonde timber structures have a honeycomb roof that shelters a marketplace, bars, and archaeological exhibits. It gives both locals and tourists a new reason to explore Seville’s medieval center and corresponds to a greater design awareness.

“More and more nondesigners are scoping out architectural destinations,” says Ben Prosky, assistant dean of communications at Harvard Graduate School of Design and co-founder of Architizer.com, a Facebook of sorts for architects. “We see this played out every day on Architizer—architects post their buildings on their profiles, and visitors to the website scan these profiles to look for unusual buildings or installations that they might not otherwise find in a guidebook.”

As the Internet Age matures, we find many travellers seeking more than just the most famous tourist attractions. Creating new and innovative experiences for the New Age tourist is something that all those in the Tourism and Hospitality Industry must work towards in order to continue attracting crowds to their holiday hotspots.

II. Vocabulary & Definitions

1. cultural
   of or relating to the shared knowledge and values of a society
   EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

   The English expression, “Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder,” fits here because these attractions are visited for their visual, cultural, historical, or natural appeal.

    
2. monument
   a structure erected to commemorate persons or events
   EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

   Some examples include historical places, monuments, zoos, aquaria, museums and galleries, botanical, buildings and structures (e.g., castles, libraries, former prisons, skyscrapers, bridges), national parks and forests, parks and carnivals, living history museums, ethnic enclave communities, historic trains and cultural events.

    
3. aquarium
   a tank or pool or bowl filled with water for keeping live fish and underwater animals
   EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

   Some examples include historical places, monuments, zoos, aquaria, museums and galleries, botanical gardens, buildings and structures (e.g., castles, libraries, former prisons, skyscrapers, bridges), national parks and forests, parks and carnivals, living history museums, ethnic enclave communities, historic trains and cultural events.

    
4. ethnic
   denoting or deriving from or distinctive of the ways of living built up by a group of people
   EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

   Some examples include historical places, monuments, zoos, aquaria, museums and galleries, botanical gardens, buildings and structures (e.g., castles, libraries, former prisons, skyscrapers, bridges), national parks and forests, parks and carnivals, living history museums, ethnic enclave communities, historic trains and cultural events.

    
5. community
   a group of people living in a particular local area
   EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

   Some examples include historical places, monuments, zoos, aquaria, museums and galleries, botanical, buildings and structures (e.g., castles, libraries, former prisons, skyscrapers, bridges), national parks and forests, parks and carnivals, living history museums, ethnic enclave communities, historic trains and cultural events.

    
6. event
   something that happens at a given place and time
   EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

   Some examples include historical places, monuments, zoos, aquaria, museums and galleries, botanical gardens, buildings and structures (e.g., castles, libraries, former prisons, skyscrapers, bridges), national parks and forests, parks and carnivals, living history museums, ethnic enclave communities, historic trains and cultural events.

    
7. landmark
   the position of a prominent or well-known object in a particular landscape
   EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

   Many tourist attractions are also landmarks.

    
8. sculpture
   a three-dimensional work of art
   EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

   As you snorkel past coral reefs and angelfish in the warm, shallow waters of the Caribbean Sea, you suddenly come across an eerily beautiful tableau: hundreds of life-size human sculptures.

    
9. innovative
   being or producing something like nothing done or experienced or created before
   EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

   This ingenious twist on Cancun’s popular dive tourism shows that tourism sights get bolder and more innovative each year, often thanks to the involvement of big-name architects, artists, and designers.

    
10. crowd
    a large number of things or people considered together
    EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

    The eye-catching mixed-use venue has become Miami’s it-spot for dinner parties and events while its hip shops, restaurants, and public art lure daytime crowds.

     
11. traditional
    consisting of or derived from tradition
    EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

    Another traditional, everyday space—the plaza—has been radically made over in Seville.

     
12. exhibit
    to show, make visible or apparent
    EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

    The undulating blonde timber structures have a honeycomb roof that shelters a marketplace, bars, and archaeological exhibits.

     
13. local
    people belonging to or characteristic of a particular locality or neighborhood
    EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

    It gives both locals and tourists a new reason to explore Seville’s medieval center and corresponds to a greater design awareness.

     
14. explore
    travel to or penetrate into
    EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

    It gives both locals and tourists a new reason to explore Seville’s medieval center and corresponds to a greater design awareness.

     
15. communications
    the discipline that studies the principles of transmiting information and the methods by which it is delivered (as print or radio or television etc.)
    EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

    “More and more nondesigners are scoping out architectural destinations,” says Ben Prosky, assistant dean of communications at Harvard Graduate School of Design and co-founder of Architizer.com, a Facebook of sorts for architects.

     
16. experience
    the content of direct observation or participation in an event
    EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

    Creating new and innovative experiences for the New Age tourist is something that all those in the Tourism and Hospitality Industry must work towards in order to continue attracting crowds to their holiday hotspots.

     
17. holiday
    leisure time away from work devoted to rest or pleasure
    EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

    Creating new and innovative experiences for the New Age tourist is something that all those in the Tourism and Hospitality Industry must work towards in order to continue attracting crowds to their holiday hotspots.

     
18. diving
    a headlong plunge into water
    EXAMPLE SENTENCE:
    They went diving during their trip to Fiji.
      
19. hip
    informed about the latest trends
    EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

    The eye-catching mixed-use venue has become Miami’s it-spot for dinner parties and events while its hip shops, restaurants, and public art lure daytime crowds.

     
20. design
    the act of working out the form of something (as by making a sketch or outline or plan)
    EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

    These companies have been focusing their innovation on design.

     

     

     

    III. Exercise: Match the Definitions

    Use: community, cultural, event, experience & explore

     

     

    1. ________________: the content of direct observation or participation in an event

        (experience)

     

    2. ________________: something that happens at a given place and time

        (event)

     

    3. ________________: of or relating to the shared knowledge and values of a society

        (cultural)

     

    4. ________________: travel to or penetrate into

        (explore)

     

    5. ________________: a group of people living in a particular local area

        (community)

     

     

    IV. Exercise: Fill in the Gaps/Blanks for Part I

    Use the following words: communications, design, diving, innovative,

                                                   landmarks, locals, sculptures & traditional

     

     

    1. Many tourist attractions are also ________________________.

        (landmarks) 

     

    2. It gives both ___________________ and tourists a new reason to explore Seville’s medieval center and corresponds to a greater design awareness.

        (locals)

     

    3. As you snorkel past coral reefs and angelfish in the warm, shallow waters of the Caribbean Sea, you suddenly come across an eerily beautiful tableau: 

        hundreds of life-size human _________________________.

       (sculptures)

     

    4. This ingenious twist on Cancun’s popular dive tourism shows that tourism sights get bolder and more _______________________________.

        (innovative)

     

    5. “More and more nondesigners are scoping out architectural destinations,” says Ben Prosky, assistant dean of _____________________________ at 

         Harvard Graduate School of Design and co-founder of Architizer.com, a Facebook of sorts for architects.

        (communications)

     

    6. Another __________________________, everyday space—the plaza—has been radically made over in Seville.

       (traditional)

     

    7. They went ___________________ during their trip to Hawaii.

       (diving)

     

    8. These companies have been focusing their innovation on ___________________. 

       (design)

     

V. Exercise: Match the Picture

Use: aquarium, crowd, honeycomb, monument & skyscrapers

  ____________________­­­­­­­___________________

(honeycomb)

    ______________________________

(monument)

  _____________________­­­­­­­___________

(crowd)

  _____________________­­­­­­­___________________

(skyscrapers)

  _____________________­­­­­­­___________

 (aquarium)

VI. Listening: Tourist Attractions

Cocoa Beach Hotel Deals

http://www.youtube.com/user/CocoaBeach4less?v=CkC7ZE62TAo

1:01

Alcatraz

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Amw5iBEO1Ec

2:30

VII. Just for Fun