Chernobyl as a tourist destination

Today is the 27th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant explosion. According to the Wikipedia, the Chernobyl disaster was a catastrophic nuclear accident that occurred on 26 April 1986 at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine (then officially Ukrainian SSR). An explosion and fire released large quantities of radioactive particles into the atmosphere, which spread over much of Europe. The Chernobyl disaster is widely considered to have been the worst nuclear power plant accident in history, and is one of only two classified as a level 7 event on the International Nuclear Event Scale (the other being the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in 2011). Common sense would suggest that people should avoid this place at all cost. Instead, tourism is flourishing in the area. This type of alternative tourism belongs to dark tourism, which is also called catastrophy tourism, grief tourism or black tourism. But people also want to visit abandoned amusement parks.

Dániel Panka wrote a comprehensive report about tourism in and around Chernobyl.
http://issuu.com/adorjanmary/docs/chernobyl_tourism_by_daniel_panka

A Japanese study tour in Hungary (with possible English script)

A Japanese study tour in Hungary

Good morning, dear viewers! Today we’re continuing our exciting journey through the countries of Europe. Our next station is Hungary!

Welcome to Budapest, the heart of the continent. This wonderful city, which is colourful in every aspect, has a rich history and is situated in the middle of the country. Buda and Pest, the 2 main parts of the city are connected by 9 bridges, altogether.

-We’re travelling now on the Danube, the biggest river of Hungary which separates the two parts of the city. This is the Pest side. Look, this is the Parliament! Isn’t it majestic? Did you know that it’s the 2nd largest parliament building in Europe and the 3rd largest in the world?

And on the other bank of the Danube, it’s the Buda Castle. And that’s the Chain Bridge, and we’re going under it now, it’s so much fuuuuun! 😀

Budapest has about 1,7 million inhabitants. Especially at night, when the public lighting glistens, it has a special atmosphere and also a busy nightlife. They don’t call it “Pearl of the Danube” for nothing.

-And at last, we’re here! This is the famous statue of Empress Elisabeth of Austria-Hungary.

Empress Elisabeth was the wife of Franz Joseph, the Emperor of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. The royal couple was crowned King and Queen of Hungary in 1867. The event was immortalized by the famed painting of Eduard Engerth. Elisabeth’s life inspired a successful musical which was translated into several languages and arrived to us into Japan, as well.

-Elisabeth lived here. Oh my God, the architecture is breath-taking. The chandelier is such an impressive artwork!

-And we’re here in the confectionery now. Those delicious cakes! I think I will try one of them, I can’t miss it. They look so yummy!

But Hungary is much more than that. If we travel towards the east, we arrive at the Great Plain with its diverse species of plants and animals. Hungarians are proud of their domestic animals, such as the Puli (one of the 9 dog breeds originating in Hungary), Grey cattle, Mangalica and the Racka sheep.

– I can’t believe. They’re so cute with those twisted horns.

The other main river of the country is the Tisza. Every year, the hatch of the mayfly in mid-June is a great tourist attraction, known as “Tisza blooming”.

Niche tourism in Great Britain – famous Harry Potter sights

photo by Annamária Kótay-Nagy

Interested in visiting Harry Potter locations?

Annamária Kótay-Nagy has written a brilliant report on movie tourism in Great Britain describing the attractions, the type of tourists who visit the sights, and the economic, social and cultural impacts of HP tourism, followed by a SWOT analysis. The link below leads to Issuu.com, the site where I publish reports created by the Business English specialization group. (If you click it once more, you can read it in a book format.)

Harry Potter tourism