Literary Routes: Contributions to Natural/Cultural Heritage Tourism

Informe de conferencia 2012 UNESCO patrimonio cultural sobre rutas touristicas.

Literary routes inspired by landscapes is a topic, where cultural and natural routes merge to form an added value of heritage that is greater than either one standing alone. Landscape is traditionally defined as a consequence of transformations by humans, and its scope rarely takes into account how nature has inspired literature to advance the intellectual development of humankind, hence transforming heritage. Literary routes paralleling transhumance routes can actively transmit traditional technologies, biodiversity, and cosmic philosophy for the betterment of humankind. The depth of literary heritage inspired by landscapes enhances our collective memory through a network of archives (libraries, collections). The continuous dissemination of this literature traversing borders, language barriers, and time periods has stimulated literary routes to emerge as a function of moving the experience from an intangible heritage based on imaginary landscapes to a tangible sensory experience in situ following a plot, author s life, or storyteller. Literary routes respond to the demand of the growing target traveller, who is more literate and active today than in the past. They are excited followers of their favourite writers and seek ways to meet them and rekindle the collective memory, expand the literary dimension, and offer a sensorial in situ experience by adding the literary link. In Spain, Arcipreste de Hita s novel Buen Amor (1330) which describes traditions and gastronomy as it criss-crosses the Guadarrama mountains, and Don Quijote of La Mancha (1603) as a literary route was first made tangible in 1780. Economic investments in literary routes in natural settings have been initiated by worldwide government ministries of culture, recreation/tourism, environment, economy, and/or education, demonstrating commitments to the conservation of landscapes, which inspired literature. Hence, literary routes can highly contribute to cultural itineraries in natural settings. Sponsored by : Laval University Departement de geographie: GEO UNESCO, UNI TWIN, Université Paris.