Good, sound, logical advice. And for these very reasons it will not be heeded by the powers that be.

Thanks Carl, I stand corrected.   ÂÂ

In my enthusiasm for the opportunity to comment on tourism I wanted to emphasize on the question of how, and not how much. But you are right : the landlocked mountain country Austria has 20 million visitors every year, not 50 (that would be annual arrivals in Spain, Italy, France). Still, for those with a sense of economic reality, that brings in over 20 thousand million US $ of foreign cash net into that country, every year.ÂÂ

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Do I believe that Nepal can reach 20 million visitors within one generation ?   Hell yes !   If you want it and understand the potential and importance of tourism for Nepal. You have 20 years of single minded pursuit, intelligent planing and execution to make your guests happy � and you will reach that goal.   Get to work, get them out of the polluted cities, to the edge of the valleys, into the country, onto the hilltops and treat them well !  ÂÂ

(If anybody among you has a better idea for another, equally sized industry for Nepal to reach a similar annual revenue, please let me know� write hhoefer@mac.com)   ÂÂ

Slarti,

Your comments are very weird. It reminded me a comment, generally attributed to Trotsky, "Everybody has the right to be stupid. But comrade MacDonald abuses this privilege."

What is wrong if a group of people make money by amusing/entertaining others? Actors, athletes, singers everybody does that.

I don't look down upon anyone's job. As long as they are not forced to do so, we should respect their choice. We have rights to comment on our job, not more than that.

If you have problem being looked at by tourists, go to an island and live a life of Robinson Crusoe. Also, once you realized that your comments are incomplete and perhaps dumb, you should be wise to acknowledge it rather than try to act smart about it. I mean, what value added industry are you talking about rightnow? What value can we add in Nepal that Chinese/Indians can't do? At least be more articulate about your ideas. shabda thupari ke hunchha, bhaw bhae po kabita hunchha bhanne poem sunnubhaeko hola.. don't just write words that carry no meaning.

By the way, I can see that Mr Hofer is a sentimental man. He means good for Nepal. I concur with him that , at least in the short term, tourism industry is the major employer for Nepal.  More than that, I think we should learn from the experience of tiny countries like Austria that has made themselves successful tourist destination. I liked Vienna very much when I visited the city, Mr Hofer.

Tourism is first and foremost a social endeavour with economic consequences, and should not be mistaken as an economic endeavour with social consequences.

I wonder if one of the consequences of so many Nepalis going abroad to work will be the impact on tourism and the way tourists are treated. The fact that so may Nepalis have suffered/benefitted from being guests abroad will, hopefully make a positive impact on this sector.

In my experience the reason why the tourism industry, even so one of the biggest in the world (after weapons, drugs and energy), gets such a bad rap is because it remains a relative unsophisticated industry and in the majority of countries is badly managed. Maybe this is because it is perceived not to offer much of a carrier path and therefor doesn't attract the cream of intelligence among graduates, or simply because it growth within each new country of destination from scratch. There is little exchange of expertise from one developing destination to the next and no mistake is big enough not to be repeated over and over again. I don't want to go into the details, but I bet, for example, no person "in charge" of the airport has ever visited well functioning airports, like Singapore and Hong Kong (which move millions of people and their luggage with ease and speed) and study and copy their systems. Such "isolationism" is not only true in Nepal : I travel through the constant and colossal mess of London's Heathrow for the last 40 years and taxis there still line up one by one, while in Singapore's passengers board about 20 taxis simultaneously side by side ! On the other hand the most stupid habits of 'tourist entertainment' are copied instantly from country to country and as a result people are animated and join the obligatory local dance group, making fools of themselves worldwide. No wonder that the caricature image of the "ugly tourist" who just snaps pictures from a back seat of a trishaw pops up everywhere in Asia (even to illustrate my comments above), and is turned into a soulless commodity. Believe me, it doesn't have to be that way.  I yet have to meet a person who will declare with pride "I am a tourist". "I am a guest", maybe ...

May I tell you about the "Nobel Savage Syndrome" ?

The human encounter that takes place when people of different level of cultural and economic backgrounds meet (called tourism) is as multilayered and complex as people themselves.  And so are their reactions.  The "Nobel Savage Syndrome" is a deep rooted guild feeling, combined with misinformation and misconceptions, of visitors of the financially or "culturally privileged" kind, who unexpectedly are confronted with what they perceive as poor or underdeveloped people and in "natural setting and traditional life style". Of course, they would never give up or reduce their privileged existence themselves, but hastily compensate for that by beating their chests and proclaiming the need to protect these "poor people" from the evils of progress and, of course, western style material and cultural development. (It's their 'holy day', after all, and a good time to discover the inner Mother Theresa ... at least for a while)  

Beware. Nepal is full of them, and some stay for longer. 

Do I want to examine the deeper reasons why some western diplomats still sympathizes with the Mao movement, which is busy every day of this "Tourist Year" to extort and intimidate the entrepreneurs of Nepals hospitality industry ? No, not really

What I want to point out is that tourism in its many forms and shapes, is part and parcel of growth and development of nations and people, an integrated part of change and progress, but simultaneous mutual respect and understanding, in a merging modern world. If you ask me, this is where Nepal belongs. The "guest industry" is one of the best vehicles for better understanding and expanding horizons on both sides of the encounter. 

"What do they want?" asked me a young Nepali once. "do they want me to live like my grandfather ?"

Hey Hans, I see no point in pursuing the differences beyond a point.

But, just for saying that, and since you have talked about noble savage syndrome, the hippies and romanticism, let me share a few thoughts that I had in more serious and depressing moments.

I find it hard to imagine what kind of romantic urge to see some noble savages would arise in a German visiting Austria.

Excited German kid, "Utt mein gott, look ma, zat man iz wearing no ledder paantz." German Ma, "Hush baby, you know zat's zust zis Oztrian, they are not as civilized az us Bavarianz, you know".

Since an American would have no such incentive to visit Austria, I can only think of this conversation between an American pair.

"Honey, these people don't look like savages to me, nor much noble. Are ya sure we are in Nepol"

"Utt mein gott, look Ma, Americanz."

In a lighter vein though, I think people visit other countries as tourists or guests because there is something strangely fun about being in a strange country.

For instance, the only other country I have ever been is India, and after seeing the train for the first time there were some odd things that I noticed.

The first thing that strike you is how they build their houses on top of the roads, and the children use the road as playing ground, while shops are set up further in farms. Of course, this is after you have established that they are not driving to kill other people, in sharp contrast to Nepal, where people drive with the objective of killing themselves.

The fun thing about these people is how bright they seem when they react to you being Nepali.

"Oh, you are Nepali, how come you don't look Chinese?".

"Hey, where are you from", it really is amazing how many times Indian's ask each other this question when they meet for the first time, you respond,"Nepal", "Oh, right,..ummm.....sorry...um...right..so, how come you don't look Chinese?".

Not really.

I think your point that Nepal needs tourism for its growth and development and also to bring itself closer to the rest of the world is well taken. I do not see any opposition to that view.

I am sure things will move back to normal in the long term, given how the current environment is, we could all be dead in that time.