Foreign Investment
On a recent trip in Aqaba I was invited on a train ride that was to take a promotional trip from Aqaba to Wadi Dana in the desert. All the big folks involved with tourism in Jordan and those investing in the future of tourism were invited along.
The ride was long enough for me to think about the effects of tourism on a developing country, and who benefits from the revenues and who doesn’t. What it also made me think about was the way these forces guide a society in certain directions and how this guidance can come from outside money and influence.
This image made me think of how strange and alienating foreign investment can be in tourism.
Posted March 4th, 2006 in Uncategorized.
An interesting juxtaposition to the current bruhaha over potential management of 6 US ports by Dubai The world IS flat.
As for the influx of tourist dollars, hey, just think Quechee Lakes – an influx of tourists/urban emigres who want to live in Vermont without needing to deal with the realities of living in Vermont.
Hey – maybe we can have Jordanian management of Quechee Lakes, and rename it – Aquecheeba.
March 7th, 2006 at 6:02 pmI’m wondering if you feel the same way in both directions. Apparently Bush is trying to figure out how to save our airlines by letting foreign countries invest in them. This is of course different than the ports, as investors are really owners. Any thoughts?
March 9th, 2006 at 3:04 pm