Page 264 - Volcano and Geothermal Tourism

Under the Volcano – Can Sustainable Tourism Development be Balanced with Risk Management? 241

The Greeks introduced viticulture to Campania, advances in 3-d computer simulations and
home of Mount Vesuvius and Pompeii, in the eighth computer generated images (CGI);
century B.C. Grape growing spread throughout the • improve guiding services, including geological/
peninsula, but flourished most notably in the volcanic volcanological guides but also linking to
soils of Campania. By the end of the first century guides with local cultural and environmental
B.C., the region was supplying wines to the entire knowledge;
Roman Empire. The writings of Horace, Virgil and • increase the range and quality of interpretation
Pliny the Elder attest to the fame of the region’s wines. and signage around Vesuvius;
(Coopers Oak Wine of the Month Club, 2008) • involve a wider spread of local stakeholders
especially from those who can draw upon aspects
Today the most renowned wine from the region of the intangible heritage of the region and
is called Lacryma Christi (the tears of Christ), present those features to touristic audiences; and
which is produced mainly in the municipality of • ensure that local accommodation (B & Bs and
Terzigno (see Figure 16.4). But again, this tradition hotels) are supported with further hospitality
and opportunities for activities such as wine training and have access to other information
tasting are not currently connected to the tourism on Vesuvius and to the emergency plan.
product presented to visitors.
(From personal communication with Vesuvius
National Park officers in 2008 and the Legambiente
Breathing new life into Campania branch, 2008 and 2009.)
A demonstration of a more creative and
Vesuvian tourism thoughtful style of heritage presentation has
In response to the situation outlined above, the already emerged in the town of Ercolano. There,
national park authorities, local municipalities and the ruins of Herculaneum continue to unveil
NGOs are ‘leading the way’ in looking for ways to stories from the AD79 eruption of Vesuvius. In an
support such tourism developments and have been attempt to try and convey the extent and drama
considering local and national funding, plus EU both of the eruption and the now 300 years of
programmes that might support such interventions. archaeological exploration of Herculaneum, a
After years of disconnection, this would appear to new ‘virtual archaeological museum’ or MAV
be an ideal opportunity to link and embed new (www.museomav.com) has opened a few hundred
tourism development proposals, which could be metres away from the site of the ruins. This
pursued for the benefit of many more parts of the museum in its own promotional language is:
local community. Such developments could then be
used to provide alternative methods of … a contemporary look at the past (where) thanks
communicating more clearly and more systematically, to the opportunities provided by new technologies,
what the hazards of the volcano are, how they are the visitor can experience a multisensory and
manifested and what actions all sections of the emotional visit to the archaeology of the Vesuvian
population (including tourists) would need to take area. Unlike traditional museums, the MAV is an
in the case of a major eruptive sequence. immersive experience where the visitor isn’t in
It is acknowledged locally that approaches to contact with physical, crystallized, static objects – but
these issues will need to incorporate more lives a dynamic and atmospheric journey through
contemporary, dynamic and interactive ways of virtual reconstructions and visual interfaces that
engaging with new audiences, as many attempts recreate and reveal the reality of the past, before the
thus far have been static and unimaginative. Recent Plinian eruption of AD 79.
suggestions to improve this situation include: (Museo Archeologico Virtuale Ercolano
(MAV), 2009)
• update and expand existing museum spaces in Similar approaches to the MAV have significant
the region; potential to be developed and used to engage and
• create a wider and more mobile range of expand the levels of interest and understanding
exhibitions and events, taking advantage of concerning the geological and volcanological

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