mass tourism Venice before after
Venice, Before and After
Vocabulary
| angle | resident | coronavirus |
| bridge | submerge | speak/spoke/spoken |
| mass | suffocate | mass tourism |
| stress | take a photo | go out of control |
| selfish | lockdown | at the time of |
| elbow | selfie stick | back in the day |
| crowd | stick (2) | elbow my way |
| avoid | hotspot | point of view |
| disturb | admire | |
| anxiety |
Video
Transcript
Marianna Purisiol, Venice Resident: “Now I can take a photo or a video from every angle of the bridge. Eighteen months ago, we spoke about how the city was being submerged and suffocating from mass tourism.
It’s become really stressful.
It’s gone out of control.
Marianna Purisiol, Venice Resident: “Well, this is my city at the time of the coronavirus.
With tens of millions of visitors per year, Venice usually looks like this.
The city is now under lockdown like the rest of Italy.
Marianna Purisiol, Venice Resident: “This is one of the most photographed places in town. This is a tourist hotspot.
And back in the day, I had to elbow my way through the crowd, and avoid the selfie sticks from all directions . . .
Now I can take a photo or a video from every angle of the bridge.
From a selfish point of view, I feel privileged, because I can now admire the beauty of my city undisturbed.
Whats for the future?
That’s my anxiety.
Questions
1. Normally, thousands of tourists descent upon (visit) Venice every day. True or false?
2. What was the daily situation like in Venice? How did Marianna describe the tourist hotspot?
3. Was this good or bad? Did Marianna love, like, or hate the usual situation? How did she describe the normal life in Venice in the past?
4. Have things in Venice changed? What is the situation like in Venice now?
5. Today, Marianna feels much better. Is this right or wrong? Why does she feel this way?
6. “From a selfish point of view, I feel privileged . . .” Why did she say, “from a selfish point of view”? What did she mean by that?
7. Is she optimistic or pessimistic about the future?
A. I have visited Venice. Yes or no? Have your friends visited Venice?
B. Do all your friends, colleagues and neighbors want to visit Venice?
C. Are there tourist hot-spots in your city or country? Is it very famous? Do many tourists go there?
D. Is (mass) tourism good, bad, both or neither? Is tourism entirely positive, mostly good, good and bad, in the middle, so-so, most negative or totally negative?
E. What might happen in the future?
F. Should anything be done about (mass) tourism? What should people and governments do?
