Faux Tourism

I constantly find myself surprised at the popularity of destinations that are solely designed to sell products. Places like M&M World in Times Square have the feeling of a tourist destination, but in reality is nothing more than a place to sell M&M products and memorabilia rather than an Enlightenment sense of education and self-improvement. There is a sophistication to these stores, including using smells to directly stimulate the senses of those who enter. Patrons are charged almost as much as a film at the mall cinema for a 30-minute film (complete with 3D and fragrances). This consumer tourism creates an imperative to spend more money by fostering (debatable) nostalgia. Many people readily buy in (pun fully intended).

I took my niece and nephew to Hershey’s Chocolate World – a place that is big on hype, but rather short on intellectual engagement. The gratis ride through a “chocolate factory” gives the air of information and education. Actually, it is a poor substitute for an actual factory. As the ride makes its way through video screens and plastic mock-ups of chocolate producing machinery, a happy voice describes the process of making Hershey products. The narrative is all but drowned out by singing cows that extoll the health benefits of the milk in milk chocolate (“It’s Moo-tritious”). In the penultimate display, the visitor is told to smile for a photograph, which can be purchased in the gift shop. Finally, while exiting the ride, we are told that Hershey’s number one goal is to keep a smile on your face. (All this time I thought it was to make money!)

Call me cynical, but very little attention is paid to Milton Hershey (1857-1945), his inventions or good works. No doubt that there are dissenting views, but the Hershey School (f. 1909) and his model town for employees are certainly admirable. There is a collage of him and his work at the entrance to the ride, but it is overshadowed by lights and noises that beckon the visitor to singing cows, as over-stimulated kids and frustrated parents carelessly walk by. 

Avarice in the shopping aisle

I finished re-reading A Christmas Carol late on Christmas Eve. In the tale, which originally appeared 170 years ago, Dickens paints a picture of the wages of a man’s avarice. Although the story is well known, some of the more interesting points of the narrative are not. Case in point is the author’s commentary on Malthusian views of poor people, which do not figure into modern interpretations of the story. Nevertheless, the central theme of how Scrooge allows his greed to overshadow the spirit of Christmas, or more importantly our duty to our fellow humans, remains central to the message. By the end of the book, Scrooge (as well as the reader) learns that there is more to life than material wealth and that our connection to others is what makes our lives complete.

It seems that we live in a world where our desires for trinkets and gadgets outweigh the feelings and familial connections of those who are not as fortunate. We want to buy our goods when it is convenient for us, whether our actions have consequences or not. Thus, if we want to shop on Thanksgiving, then we expect the stores to be open and enough workers to be there to run the tills to satisfy our demands. Never mind that we could wait a few hours to complete our shopping; or, plan ahead and do our shopping a little early. This year major retail stores broke a taboo by opening on Thanksgiving. The effect is that many people, with a low salaried jobs, were forced to give up a meaningful holiday with their families to service those of us chasing a good deal. In fact, those deals are probably suspect. Now that Thanksgiving Day has been added to the list of shopping days it is hard to imagine that Christmas is not too far behind. Christmas will be the next new major shopping day for people who did not do their shopping before or are looking for post-Christmas sales early. The result will be, despite the rhetorical idea of Christmas as a day to spend with family and loved ones, more people will be forced to come to work to satisfy our avarice. 

A rare sight: Walmart closed

Walking in Fredericksburg

Making new friends in Fredericksburg

Mid-December found us enjoying good food and shopping in Fredericksburg, Virginia. In addition to unique restaurants, there are also a couple of good bookstores for bibliophiles. The town as has been the site for many important historical events, some of which will be explored in future posts. But this time it was a limited visit, I took a long walk around the town and observed some interesting building.

The exploration of Fredericksburg reminded me of an important maxim I share with students: If you want to know a city, you must walk the city. Walking south on Caroline Street, I was surprised at the number of extant eighteenth century homes remained in Fredericksburg.

Walk signal on Caroline Street

The downtown section of the city retains a small-town Americana feel. The pedestrian indicators retain the green “walk” sign that was prevalent when I was a kid.  Old drugstores and businesses with lunch counters are still operating in the center of town as well.

Old Power Station between Caroline Street and
Rappahonnock River

Looking through the power station to the River

A fascinating derelict building on the banks of the Rappahannock River is an abandoned power station for the Virginia Electric and Power Company. The station, which is at the intersection of Ford and Caroline Streets, looks to have been abandoned several years ago.