Robin and I were on our way to Syria to visit World Heritage sites and meet professionals in cultural heritage, but Robin was turned away at the border when the border patrol discovered a luggage sticker from Israel. So I headed on without her. Other than the anger and frustration of the rigid political stance that bans arrivals from those who have visited Israel (even though a visa was issued!), my visit was a transformative experience.
At every turn perceptions and myths were rapidly erased as a lone American traveler winded his way through days of exploration and conversation; amidst travelers from many nations, but not the United States.
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You’re going where? Isn’t that a terrorist country? Be careful. I was warned by many friends before heading out on my tenth trip to Jordan since 1998 and a first-time visit to Syria. The mission was to assess eye-to-eye what is happening in World Heritage Sites in the Middle East from one key country to another, where UNESCO is placing some priority, and reporting where tourism can help.
I recently returned from Advancing Sustainable Tourism at Cultural and Natural Heritage Sites held at the request of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee in the remote area of Dun Huang, China, which I attended by special invitation. It was an honor to be asked to attend such an event with the leaders of global conservation organizations — UNESCO, national governments and others — at a critical time in world tourism history.
In June 2009 in Sevilla Spain, I witnessed several days of testimony amongst delegations of 100 nations regarding the all-time high UNESCO World Heritage Endangered List. These are irreplaceable places of outstanding cultural and natural value. This poses a key question for the travel industry, can we help “reverse the irreversible?”
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