The Road to Recovery and Rebirth - WUR
Transcript of The Road to Recovery and Rebirth - WUR
The Road to Recovery and Rebirth
The Social Construction of Tourism Development in Bandipur,
Nepal
Master Thesis
Wageningen, 2012
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The Road to Recovery and Rebirth
The Social Construction of Tourism Development in Bandipur, Nepal
Student: Elīna Ruska,
850517-717-010
Supervisor: Dr. Chin Ee Ong
Master Thesis Report: SAL-80433
Master programme: Leisure Tourism and Environment (MLE)
Chair Group: Cultural Geography
Department: Environmental Sciences
Wageningen University and Research Center
Wageningen, December 2012
This thesis is a student report produced as a part of Master Programme in Leisure, Tourism
and Environment (MLE). It is not an official publication and the content does not represent an
official position of Wageningen University and Research Center.
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Abstract
This study aims to gain understanding on the activities that have stimulated development in
Bandipur and to explore how Bandipurians socially construct and interpret tourism development and
related socio-cultural tourism impacts. Bandipur is a remote village located in Nepal. This village has
experienced boom-boost-boom development and within the last decade the number of its
inhabitants has almost tripled. Moreover, in line with the activities of Bandipur Eco-Cultural Tourism
Project, Bandipur has become a recognised tourism destination for both domestic and international
travellers. Due to tourism activities, Bandipur is experiencing a great change that affects the local
way of life. Accordingly, this research aims to capture this change by analysing opinions of the
residents and travellers concerning the development in Bandipur and related socio-cultural tourism
impacts. Consequently, tourism development in Bandipur is explained through three main themes,
namely: from “dark ages” to “bright” future, road as a way to modernity and socio-cultural impacts.
Through analysis of the development from “dark ages” to “bright” future, this research shows that
people in Bandipur are very positive due to current tourism development in the village. Additionally,
Bandipurians associate the incoming flows of new residents and travellers with an opposite situation
to the past when most of people who had a possibility to emigrate abandoned the village.
Subsequently, the current immigration of people in Bandipur is socially constructed as an
opportunity for better future. Further it is explored that the development in Bandipur was triggered
by a road link to the highway connecting the country’s two main tourism destinations, Kathmandu
and Pokhara. The presence of a good quality road not only ensures mobility of people, but also
provides accessibility to goods and products. Since the accessibility of the village was the main
precondition why the village was developed as the Eco-cultural Tourism Project area, the presence of
a good quality road is socially constructed as the main cause for development and modernity in
Bandipur. The study shows that the change caused by development may also transform the social
environment of the village; this research has revealed that the respondents are very positive about
the socio-cultural tourism impacts in Bandipur. While majority of the respondents are denying the
negative aspects of the socio-cultural change, such issues as water accessibility, garbage
management, demonstration effect or visual change of the village due to up-coming numbers of new
modern buildings are often reflected as negative effects of the development. In order to minimise
the undesirable tourism foot-print in Bandipur, the recommendation section is oriented on
improvements concerning social environment of the village, attractiveness in terms of sense of place
and necessity for management activities.
Keywords: Interpretivism, rural development, social constructionism, socio-cultural tourism impacts,
Nepal.
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Acknowledgements
The time in Bandipur for me will always remain as unforgettable experience. I experienced the village
as a traveller during my first visit and as a researcher during the second one. Both of these positions
have brought me unforgettable experiences that I am going to cherish for the rest of my life. It was
surprising to me how welcomed local people made me feel through their encounters, even if I was
just a stranger in their environment there.
First of all I would like to express my very great appreciation to Dr. Chin Ee Ong as my supervisor for
his valuable and constructive recommendations during the planning and development of this
research. His critical comments and suggestions during this thesis writing process have been very
much appreciated. I would also like to thank the team of Leisure, Tourism and Environments master
programme who prepared me to go and explore the unknown.
Furthermore my appreciation goes to Lisa Choegyal whose advice and information attracted my
attention to Bandipur as a research area for this master thesis. Very special thanks go to Mrs. Jharna
Joshi (the project manager of Bandipur Eco-cultural Tourism Project) whose enthusiasm and interest
in the project outcomes gave me additional inspiration and new perspectives concerning
development in Bandipur. Further I would like to express my gratefulness to Mr. Bikram Piya whose
excellent work while approaching local people as a translator provided me with the in-depth
understanding over the happenings in the village. Besides, I would like to thank to Bhandari Family
who treated me as their family member and were willing to accompany me whenever exploration of
souring’s was planned.
This research would not be possible without a regular support of my Family in Latvia and friends. The
feeling that I am not alone during this thesis period gave me extra stimulus and motivation to achieve
the goal. I wish to thank my friend and classmate Lusine Margaryan, who always managed to cheer
me up with her comments and optimistic notes. And additional cheers go to my fiancé Rudy van
Bruggen who with his presence supported me either through my stay in Nepal as well as actual thesis
writing process back in the Netherlands. Without you being next to me, the work would seem much
harder and the distance further…
Thank you all!
Sincerely yours,
Elīna Ruska
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Table of Contents
Abstract ................................................................................................................................................... 3
Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................. 4
Words to Explain ..................................................................................................................................... 7
Abbreviations .......................................................................................................................................... 7
1. Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 8
1.1. Bandipur .................................................................................................................................. 8
1.1.1. Historical Development ................................................................................................... 8
1.1.2. Tourism in Bandipur ........................................................................................................ 9
1.1.3. Bandipur Eco-cultural Tourism Project.......................................................................... 10
1.1.4. Destination Life Cycle of Bandipur ................................................................................ 11
1.2. Problem Statement ............................................................................................................... 12
1.3. Research Objective and Research Questions ........................................................................ 13
1.4. Thesis Structure ..................................................................................................................... 14
2. Literature Review .............................................................................................................................. 15
2.1. Interpretive Paradigm ................................................................................................................ 15
2.2. Social Constructionism ............................................................................................................... 16
2.3. Socio-cultural Tourism Impacts .................................................................................................. 17
2.3.1. Tourism Impacts and Sustainability ..................................................................................... 17
2.3.2. Socio-cultural Impacts ......................................................................................................... 20
3. Methodology ..................................................................................................................................... 27
3.1. Research Design ......................................................................................................................... 27
3.2. Sampling ..................................................................................................................................... 29
3.3. Data Collection ........................................................................................................................... 32
3.4. Data Analysis .............................................................................................................................. 33
3.5. Limitations .................................................................................................................................. 34
4. Results ............................................................................................................................................... 35
4.1. From “Dark Ages” to “Bright” Future ......................................................................................... 35
4.2. Road as a Way to Modernity ...................................................................................................... 39
4.3. Socio-cultural impacts (SCI) ........................................................................................................ 50
5. Discussion .......................................................................................................................................... 62
6. Conclusion and Recommendations ................................................................................................... 66
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6.1. Main conclusions ........................................................................................................................ 66
6.2. Recommendations...................................................................................................................... 71
6.3. Suggestions for Future Research ................................................................................................ 73
Literature list ......................................................................................................................................... 74
Appendix. List of Interviews .................................................................................................................. 80
List of Tables
Table 2.1 Ways of categorizing socio-cultural impacts………………………………………..…………………………. 23
List of Figures
Figure 1.1 Location of Bandipur …………………………………………………..……………………….……….………….……. 9
Figure 1.2 Change in Bandipur …………………………………………………………………….…….…..…..……………….. 10
Figure 1.3 The position of Bandipur in Butler’s Destination Life cycle Model ……..……..……...…………. 11
Figure 2.1 Dimensions of the impacts of tourism ………………………………………………………….………………. 19
Figure 2.2 Host and guest relationship ………………………………………………………………………………………….. 21
Figure 2.3 Model of socio-cultural impacts ……………………………………………………….…………………………… 25
Figure 3.1 Interviewed actors ………………………………………………………………….……………………………………. 30
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Words to Explain
Ward – a territorial division in Nepal
Newari – an ethnical group in Nepal
Banda – a political unrest
Roxy – a local vine
Abbreviations
BECTP – Bandipur Eco-cultural Tourism Project
NTB – Nepal Tourism Board
SC- social constructionism
SCC – Social carrying Capacity
SCI – Socio-cultural impacts
TIC – Tourism Information Centre
T - Tourism
TNR – Tourism nonrelated
TR – Tourism related
VDC – Village Development Committee
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1. Introduction
In this chapter background information over Bandipur as a tourism destination is provided. Overall,
this chapter is subdivided into four sub-chapters. In the first sub-chapter information over Bandipur
as a tourism destination is given. The sub-division is started with an introduction over historical
development of Bandipur. Then, continued with an assessment on existing tourism statistics of the
village. Since Bandipur Eco-cultural Tourism Project (BECTP) is often described as the main trigger for
(tourism) development in Bandipur, information over this project is presented in the section 1.1.3.
Thus, as the last division in the first subchapter, Bandipur Life Cycle is designed and explained. In
second sub-chapter problem statement of this thesis is given. Based on problem statement, the
research objective and research questions of this thesis are provided within the third subchapter of
this introduction. Accordingly, the concluding sub-chapter of this section explains the structure of the
thesis.
1.1. Bandipur
In order to provide in-depth background information over Bandipur as a tourism destination, in this
section tourism development related aspects are provided. Within the first sub-division information
over historical development of the village is provided. As it turns out after literature study, the
happenings in the past are directly contributing to the present tourism development. This section is
followed up with insight information over tourism statistics of the site. In order to provide a visual
impression of the current tourism development, Destination Lifecycle Model of Bandipur is created
and explained in subsequent division. Finally, the section is finalized by providing in-depth
information over Bandipur Eco-cultural Tourism Project that is believed to be the main trigger for the
rapid tourism growth in the village.
1.1.1. Historical Development
“During my stay in Bandipur, I found the single most popular topic of
conversation of my informants was discussion of what Bandipur was like in the
past. There was no end to the countless reminiscent stories and heroic tales
which the people were able to recount to me. I observed that these legends, in
conjunction with related physical evidence, suggested a rich historical base from
which the culture of this area today has, in part, evolved.” (Iltis, 1980).
The above mentioned quote comprises the informative stories of how Bandipur being a free-malaria
location was established as a trading hub between Tibet and India by Newari traders from Bhaktapur
(Kathmandu Valley) on 1768 (Bhattarai, 2012).
Shown in Figure 1.1 this ancient trading village lies 8 km up the hill from one of the main country´s
highways connecting two of Nepal´s must-see destinations - Kathmandu (about 135 km) and Pokhara
(approximately 80 km) (NTB, 2012). Bandipur Village Development Committee (VDC) covers at
around 45 km2 and includes 9 wards (Joshi & Rajoparhyay, 2007) that are located in altitude of about
1000 m above sea level (McConnachie and Reed, 2009).
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According to Badruddin (2010), Bandipur is a story of
“boom-bust-boom” development, since its history can
be divided in three general phases. Firstly, Bandipur
can be seen as a part of the trade route attracting
merchant and trader population due to whom the
village still benefits with its Newari culture and
ancient architecture that is reflected in its buildings,
temples as well as people’s daily rhythms. As a second
wave, Bandipur experienced rapid population
decrease due to the relocation of district
headquarters and construction of the Prithvi highway
(early 70’s) connecting Kathmandu and Pokhara.
Through reflections on this period, Bandipur is often
described as a “ghost town” (Bikram, 2012), since
many inhabitants emigrated from the area to search
better living options. As pointed out in the citation
above, during this period of the down-fall,
Bandipurians were reflecting on their past as an
important part of their current lives.
(Source: Bandipur Eco-cultural Tourism Project, 2007)
Figure 1.1 Location of Bandipur
Nowadays, Bandipur is experiencing its re-birth since the village is recognised as a picturesque
town/village nestled in the Himalayan foothills defined also as a hill queen place (Bhattarai, 2012) or
living museum of Newari culture (Lonely Planet, 2009). In the late 90’s a good quality road was built
linking Bandipur with the Prithvi highway, which stimulated the progress of the village (Badrudin,
2010). The literature sources present that the presence of better road has not only resulted in
increasing number of inhabitants in Bandipur - from 1600 people in “dark times” (Bikram, 2011) to
more than 5000 inhabitants, nowadays (Joshi & Rajoparhyay, 2007); but the village is also receiving a
steady flow of international and domestic tourists.
1.1.2. Tourism in Bandipur
The information available over visitor statistics in Bandipur is contradictory. During the desk and field
research, two sources over tourism statistics in Bandipur were found. The first source published in
Nepali national newspaper on May, 2010 comprises information over 60 daily visitors visiting
Bandipur in 2010 (The Himalayan Times-a, 2010). On the other hand, in the publication of an
interview with the formal chairman of Bandipur Tourism Development Committee taken in
November 2010, the data differ, informing the visitor growth till 200 daily visitors, if previously there
were only 40 new (daily) arrivals (The Himalayan Times-b, 2010). Although there is a high
inconsistency in this data, the difference may be explained by the period when the data is published.
Consequently, it can be assumed that the article published on May, 2010 reflects the incoming
tourist numbers during low tourism season and the second article provides approximate statistics of
tourist arrivals in Bandipur in high season. Furthermore, in none of the sources information over the
characteristics of the visitors (e.g. international, domestic) has been included. Therefore it is not clear
if these statistics reflect international visitors or international and domestic visitors combined.
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Additionally, there is also no information about the ways how any of these statistics have been
collected and by whom.
Moreover, there are no further statistics or tourism development plans discovered that would
provide information over the tourism scenarios of Bandipur. Nevertheless, based on the destination
analysis it can be said that there are three main groups visiting Bandipur: domestic tourists,
international independent travellers or backpackers as well as organised international travellers
(Cooper et al 2005). Thus, it has been observed, while organised international travellers are mainly
up-market and middle-class target groups who are staying overnight in the local resorts, then
majority of international backpackers traveling in Bandipur are budget travellers. Bandipur is
receiving a steady flow of visitors and there are evidences that tourism development in Bandipur
experienced a rapid growth due to the activities related to Bandipur Eco-cultural Tourism Project
(BECTP) that was run from 2003 till 2007 in Bandipur (Joshi, 2012).
1.1.3. Bandipur Eco-cultural Tourism Project
According to Bhattarai (2011) the main objective of BECTP was: “to develop Bandipur as sustainable
eco-cultural tourism centre with a network of similar hill towns to revitalize, protect and promote
their cultural and natural resources with programmes that have replication values.” The project was
designed as a sustainable approach to new destination promotion and it was supported by the Asia
Urbs Programme that was launched by the European Commission in 1998 as an initiative in
decentralised (city-to-city) collaboration, to bring together local governments from Asia and
European Union (in this case Municipality of Hydra (Greece) and Comune di Riomaggiore (Italy))
(Joshi & Rajoparhyay, 2007). During the project period, the village experiences both physical change
of place through infrastructure development (see Figure 1.2) as well as growth in tourism related
knowledge gathered through workshops, trainings and communication with local people.
(Source: Jharna Joshi, BECTP, 2003)
(Source: Author’s photo, 2012)
Figure 1.2 Change in Bandipur
Advocated by Bhattarai (2011) BECTP was established to provide support for cultural and heritage
conservation, education and training, documentation, development of cultural inventory and for
foundation of Bandipur tourism information centre. The main focus of this project was orientated on
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the potentials of Bandipur as a sustainable eco-cultural destination that would contribute to the
development of other related tourism activities in a way that this experience could be implemented
also in other similar destination of the country (Joshi & Rajoparhyay, 2007). BECTP has been
described as successful in raising self-confidence of the local people as well as in providing them with
an essential knowledge and skills related to eco-cultural activities, heritage preservation as well as
tourism development and promotion (Bhattarai, 2011). Currently, although the project has been
accomplished for several years, Bandipur Eco-Cultural Tourism Project is still explained as the main
pull-factor for the growth of Bandipur as a tourism destination by various stakeholders. In order to
demonstrate recent tourism development in the village, Butler’s Destination lifecycle has been
applied and explained in the following section.
1.1.4. Destination Life Cycle of Bandipur
Although several authors for some case studies are criticizing Butler’s Model for destination life cycle,
this model has been applied in terms of this research in order to demonstrate the current (2012)
tourism development in Bandipur. Displayed in Figure 1.2, the model consists of six following stages:
exploration, involvement, development, consolidation, stagnation and decline/ or stagnation
followed by rejuvenation (Getz, 1992).
Though, these segments have a tendency to co-exist (Mason, 2008), the stage marked with a circle
between consolidation and stagnation might describe the current situation of tourism development
in Bandipur. In this phase the number of visitors still increases and the local efforts are made to
extend tourism season (Murphy, 1985). Additionally, there is a believe that visitor numbers in the
future could increase due to Bandipurs proximity to Pokhara (a must-see destination of the country)
and the accessibility from a highway connecting Pokhara and Kathmandu. Therefore, there is an
assumption that the destination has not received its peak number of visitors, yet.
Figure 1.3 The position of Bandipur in Butler’s Destination Life cycle Model
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While there is a chance that the number of visitors could increase in Bandipur, it has been observed
that the overall capacity level has been reached and there is a concern of increasing negative
environmental, social and economic impacts (Devashish, 2011) related to tourism development. The
development in the village is getting close to the final stage that reflects a range of option from
rejuvenation to decline (Mason, 2008). Lack of any centralized tourism planning and management
institutions in Bandipur raises a question, if tourism development in Bandipur can be developed in a
viable manner so that tourist experiences are kept high and local tourism awareness remains
positive? The future of the destination is unclear. Though, Bandipur has high competitiveness in
comparison to other similar Nepali destinations due to its location and popularity between domestic
and international visitors. This research is focussed on discovering socio-cultural tourism impacts in
Bandipur from the lens of the destination related stakeholders. An explicit problem statement for
this research is provided in the next sub-chapter.
1.2. Problem Statement
The starting point of this study involves seeking to understand how social, cultural, economic and
environmental processes operate on and through tourism development (Mowforth & Munt, 2009). It
can be said that tourism is increasingly seen as an attractive development opportunity for many parts
of the least developed world (Talfer & Sharpley, 2008). Tourism is one of the largest and fastest
growing industries in the world and it has an impact far beyond its economic and business aspects
(United Nations Economic and Social Council, 2005). Based on the explanation provided by Mowford
& Munt (2009), development can be best understood as a hegemonic discourse that originates from
and is largely affected by transnational institutions, governments, agencies and theoretical
knowledge generated by the First World. In purposes of this paper, the term developing countries or
the Third World: “embraces all nation states that are not generally recognised as being developed
(Telfer& Sharpley, 2008)”. Nevertheless, is it the First World or the Third World, the main driving
force on which rapid tourism development over the past century is based on is generally associated
with economic benefits (Cooper et al, 2005).
Nepal is a low-income developing country (Murshed and Gates, 2005) with a weak law and order
situation, poor information management and political uncertainty in terms of national development
of the country (Holmes&Uphadya, 2009). Lack of centralised management affects not only life in the
cities, but also in rural parts of Nepal. Nepal (2007) based on her research done in Anapurna Trekking
Region argues that the effects of international tourism on a remote destination in developing country
are similar to the effects of counter-urbanization in the developed Western countries. Thus, in the
case study of Bandipur counter-urbanization movement affects the destination in two ways. Firstly,
Bandipur as a rural destination is receiving a steady flow of people (Nepalese) from urban (as well as
other rural) areas who are building new houses and are settling down in the village. And secondly,
this steady population increase from about 1600 till at around 5000 inhabitants (Bikram, 2012)
during the last decade is raising the question: Is Bandipur still a village (currently run by the VDC) or is
it becoming a town?
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To support the above mentioned question, farming in Bandipur has been discovered as another
sector of unalterable change. Several developing countries try to embrace the tourism industry and
link it with local agricultural production as a means of expanding local markets which, in turn,
contributes to economic development (Anderson & Juma, 2011). It has been explored that Bandipur
is not this case, since several families are giving up their traditional income from farming and are
shifting (at least partly) their occupancies to rapidly growing tourism sector or they are going abroad
for better income possibilities. So to say, the global forces are affecting the local life in Bandipur in
various ways and in order to ensure further destination’s viability, there is a need to assess the
impacts that the development is creating.
There seems to be a research gap about impacts created by tourism development in rural
destinations of developing countries. Hall & Lew (2009) describes impact as a positive or negative
change of a given state over time as the results of external stimulus. Thus, the impacts of tourism are
“usually considered in the context of the destination where tourism development occurs, where
tourists come into contact with local people and the environment, and where there is arguably the
greatest need to identify measure and manage such an impacts” (Telfer& Sharpley, 2008). Yet, there
is a significant amount of confusion related to the meaning of sustainability and whether or not, it is
achievable with respect of tourism sector (Cooper et al, 2005).
As Bandipur in the national level is recognised as an eco-tourism destination, this destination is
frequently described as a positive example of sustainable tourism development in Nepal. Bandipur
Eco-cultural Tourism Project (BECTP) is often described as the main pull-factor that has stimulated
tourism growth in the village. For example, according to the manager of BECTP, there are unofficial
data that contain the growth from 2 guesthouses on 2003 (before the project was started) till about
55 accommodation providers in 2011 (some years after the project was implemented) (Joshi, 2012).
Thus, the development is observed also in other related sectors and there are evidences that the
destination is still experiencing a steady growth in terms of tourism numbers.
This study has been conducted after discovering that there is no previous research done that would
focus on tourism impacts in Bandipur. Tourism as an industry has been often criticized for causing
more problems in terms of unequal benefit distribution, socio-cultural issues and much
environmental damage (Sin, 2012). The main motivation for this research is to give voice to diverse
destination related stakeholders in order to explore and understand the processes that stimulated
development in Bandipur as well as to discover people’s attitudes towards tourism development
with a special focus on socio-cultural impacts. Badruddin (2010) describes Bandipur as a village which
is trying to balance economic growth with the prevention of the pollution and preservation of its
heritage. However, there are more sectors where awareness should be raised in order to stimulate
future viability of the destination.
1.3. Research Objective and Research Questions
In this section the research objective and research questions of this thesis are identified. Based on
the problem statement presented within previous section, the following main objective of this thesis
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has been established:
To gain understanding over the activities that have stimulated development in Bandipur and
to explore how Bandipurians socially-construct and interpret tourism development and
related socio-cultural tourism impacts.
Complementary to the main objective of this research, two main research questions were identified:
RQ1. How do Bandipurians socially-construct and interpret tourism development in Bandipur?
RQ2. What are the socio-cultural tourism impacts in Bandipur and how are they socially
constructed?
Additionally, the sub-questions of this study have been derived from further theoretical study and
therefore are recognised after model of socio-cultural impacts was created in section 2.3.2.
1.4. Thesis Structure
This thesis is comprised of six chapters. In general, each chapter of the thesis starts with an
introductory section in which the main aims of the section are explicitly stated. The first chapter
introduces the reader to the context and background information of Bandipur. It has been done with
an aim to create better understanding of the destination as a complex system. Within second
chapter theoretical framework of this thesis is provided. As the main three theories, interpretive
paradigm, social constructionism and socio-cultural tourism impacts are emphasized within this
chapter. Methodology section of this thesis is covered within the third chapter. In this division
research design, sampling, data collection, data analysis and limitations are reflected. Methodology
section is followed up with a result chapter. In this chapter, the research results are subdivided into
three broader themes: migration, development and socio-cultural impacts. Thus, each of these
themes are analysed as a separate sub-chapter from three different views: respondents reflections,
my reflection on these issues as well as general reflection on my positionality. In order to answer the
research questions of this thesis, fifth chapter contains the discussion section. Consequently,
conclusion is provided in the final sixth chapter.
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2. Literature Review
To date, there has been little tourism- research in Nepal. By doing desk research, it was noted that
tourism research in Nepal is mainly focused on the Himalayas and Anapurna region. Thus, the
research themes are mainly dealing with climate change and conservation. As Bandipur is a
destination that has been developed through the activities of Bandipur Eco-cultural Tourism Project
(BECTP), it was surprising to find out that there is no follow up research to measure locals’
perception of the development. Subsequently, it was observed that Bandipur is lacking research and
attention. This thesis is aiming to fill up this research gap.
Although there is an opinion that measurement of destination accessibility is not more subjective
than the measurement if destination attractiveness and spatial separation (Fortheringham, 1986),
this aspect has been assessed as the main pull-factor for rebirth of Bandipur as an acknowledged
destination. Though the BECTP includes the objective of developing Bandipur as a sustainable eco-
cultural tourism destination, the success of these efforts are questioned. While there is a steady flow
of travellers visiting Bandipur, concerns over viability of Bandipur as a tourism destination is
increasing. Consequently, there is a worry over the further development of Bandipur life cycle. Will it
be rejuvenation or a decline? Accordingly, the main attention is focused on the factors that influence
the extent and/or importance of tourism impacts on host communities and environments (Prosser,
1995). As this research aims to discover opinions over development and tourism in Bandipur from
the perspective of the community members, social constructionism and interpretive paradigm have
been applied as basis for theoretical approach of this thesis.
Through this literature review, a theoretical framework representing mine as author’s point of view
concerning the subject-matter is designed. This study has been conducted to learn socio-cultural
impacts (SCI) perceived by destination stakeholders in rapidly growing rural tourism destination of
Bandipur village, Nepal. The objective of this chapter is to provide this research with appropriate
theoretical background on topics, methods and theories related to this study. Therefore, three main
concepts have been applied as the basis of this literature review: Social Constructivism,
Interpretivism and Socio-cultural tourism impacts (SCI). Outcomes of this literature study are further
displayed in a theoretical framework that is applied as a model of this thesis.
2.1. Interpretive Paradigm
Based on the ideas of Boeije (2009, pp.6), interpretivism may be explained as the ways “how people
construct reality while interpreting the acts of others and the world around them and grafting their
own behaviour on these interpretations.” So to say, through application of interpretive paradigm, the
main aim is to understand the subjective world of peoples experience (Jordan & Gibson, 2004).
According to Putnam (1982) in interpretivism reality is socially constructed through the subjective
understandings of its members. More explicitly, the social entities are not pre-given, but people
ascribe meaning to their social reality, therefore the people’s actions can be considered meaningful
(Boeije, 2009). Consequently, explained by Ford-Gilboe et al (1995) reality in interpretivism exist as
multiple mental construction of everyday life experiences that are often conflicting and mainly
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situation and context dependent. It can be said that the behaviour of people through interpretive
paradigm are viewed within the context in which it emerges (Bedim & Guinan, 1996).
Reflecting on tourism research, Hollingshead et al (2009, pp.432) says “nothing is ever seen nakedly
or found to be in and of its own raw/pure/original self.” This means that every happening and
experience of a human’s life is perceived based on everyone’s personal background and earlier
understandings. Therefore this thesis seeks to discover the ways how diverse stakeholders in a
selected tourism destination construct their understanding of the social place they are living/being
in.
2.2. Social Constructionism
During the last three decades, social constructionism (SC) has developed as a powerful source in
social sciences (Halling and Lawrence, 1999). In the literature related to SC the emphasizes are on
researches that explore interactional basis of social organisation in diverse social contexts and at
different levels of analysis, staring from one-to-one relations and including also researches on
society-wide social problems (Kemeny, 2002). Based on the philosophy of social constructionism, the
social world is not something that exists independent of the views and ideas of the persons involved
in it (Jackson, 2007). It is rather seeking to study the process of interaction within a focus group
(Silverman, 2011).
Due to its complexity, there is no one common standpoint how SC is described in literature sources.
Different authors are reflecting on SC as a movement, a position, a theory, a theoretical orientation
or as an approach (Stam, 2001). Although its status is insure, opposite positivist, realist or rationalist
approach, social constructionists reject the idea of knowledge being a direct perception of reality,
but explain it with the indication of having different realities constructed by individuals based on
their own backgrounds and experiences (Burr, 1995). Explained by Turner (1998), constructionists
share an argument of something being constructed as a fact based on the resources and knowledge
that this constructor ensures. As a result, through the research process, epistemology should not be
seen separate from ontology and vice versa, since the knowledge what is gained and the way of how
it is gathered are related to the process of social construction (Phillimore and Goodson, 2004). In
general, SC is seen as a part of interpretive paradigm and it is challenging modernist assumption
about the possibility to have an objective science (Halling and Lawrence, 1999). Silverman (2011)
defines constructionism as:
“A model which encourages researcher to focus upon how phenomena come to be what they
are through the close study of interaction in different contexts.”
Seen in the definition above, constructivism is perceived as a model rather than a paradigm. Since SC
do not have determined boundaries related to assured ontological and epistemological assumptions
and as it does not combine pre-stated methodologies and methods supporting epistemological
assumptions, it cannot fulfil the philosophy of paradigm (Parnecky, 2012). In general, the approach
of social construction supports the assumption that everyone can be a “knower” (Phillimore and
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Goodson, 2004). So to say, the constructionist’s argument that: “something is constructed as a fact
through means that are available to the constructor (Turner, 1998)”.
The idea of social constructionism has serious implications, since it suggests that even if the basis of
our opinions is based on broader social concepts and values, we do not only engage them simply and
live them out in our lives (Burr, 1995). There are views supporting the idea that human nature is
socially constructed (Halling and Lawrence, 1999). In tourism research, a growing concern is related
to tourism researchers, as they are frequently indefinite about the philosophical underpinning and
the use of constructionism/vism in their researches (Parnecky, 2012). Acknowledged by Phillimore
and Goodson (2004) through SC in tourism, tourism spaces are rather seen as socio-cultural
constructions than physical locations. Yet, tourism development brings a dilemma, since new
opportunities may lead to associated costs (Telfer & Sharpley, 2008). The associated costs or tourism
impact study is further explored in the subsequent sub-chapter.
2.3. Socio-cultural Tourism Impacts
Due to the specific of this subject, this subchapter is further divided into two following sections:
tourism impacts and sustainability and socio-cultural impacts. Based on theoretical study a model of
socio-cultural impacts is designed in the final stage of this theoretical framework. Additionally,
followed up to the theoretic study, two additional sub-research questions for this thesis are set.
2.3.1. Tourism Impacts and Sustainability
Starting from late 1980’s, the term sustainable development has developed as a buzzword for both
development studies in general and in tourism research in particular (Zhenhua, 2003). However,
tourism often contradicts this term, since it is a highly resource competitive activity and it often gains
the supremacy over its competitor-industries (McKercher, 2008). In spite of this fact, for many
countries and destinations tourism has become as an essential source of income and employment
(van Egmond, 2008), as well as many new destinations are seeing this industry as the trigger for their
future empowerment. Though there are literature sources which support the idea that the economic
gain is the main significant reason used by actors in public and private sectors for tourism
development (Page & Connell, 2009), the future vision of tourism industry is full with promises
(Geoldner & Ritchie, 2012).
From a positivist point of view, tourism is a magnificent industry that provides job opportunities for
destination related people from all: skilled, semi-skilled and non-skilled levels (Swain & Mishra,
2012). However, by seeing tourism through sustainability perspective, sustainable tourism
development should be seen as a part of sustainable development; consequently it also should be
developed with the main aim to fulfil the objectives of this phenomenon (Tosun, 2008). Bruntland
Report’s (1987, pp.261) defines sustainability as following:
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“Meeting the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs”
Nowadays, sustainability in tourism is one of the most common concepts used in tourism
development discussions (Cooper et al, 2005). As a sub-branch of sustainable development,
sustainable tourism has achieved overall acceptance in both – academia and practice (Sebastian &
Rajagopalan, 2009). In spite of increasing popularity of the idea, principles of sustainable tourism are
easy to manipulate with; therefore, it is always necessary to analyse who are applying the new
knowledge and for what reasons (Mowforth & Munt, 2009). Therefore, sustainable tourism
development is a highly controversial concept (Telfer & Sharpley, 2008). Defined by World Tourism
Organisation:
“Sustainable tourism meets the needs of present tourists and host regions while protecting
and enhancing opportunity for the future. It is envisaged as leading to management of all
resources in such a way that economic, social and aesthetic needs can be fulfilled while
maintaining cultural integrity, essential ecologic process, and biological diversity, and life
support systems” (Worlds Tourism Organisation, 2002).
Based on the above mentioned, sustainable tourism should:
• Make optimal use of environmental resources,
• Respect the socio-cultural authenticity of host communities, as well as
• To provide socio-economic benefits to all stakeholders (UN-WTO, 2008).
Following up the sustainability definition, in literature, four dimensions of tourism impacts are mainly
elaborated when reflecting on sustainability in tourism: economic impacts, environmental impacts,
social impacts and cultural impacts. Presented in Figure 2.1 several authors tend to combine the last
two impacts as socio-cultural dimensions while measuring tourism induced cultural change (Hall &
Lew, 2009). As Cooper et al (2005) acknowledges, traditionally SCI are seen as joint outcome due to
the difficulty to make a distinction among social and cultural impacts. Hence, in some literature
sources new sub-categories of impacts are created by combining each two of the above mentioned
dimensions (see Figure 2.1).
While relating on sustainable tourism development, Miller et al (2010) emphasizes that in case if
tourism can develop as a part of more sustainable lifestyle, there are changes needed to the patterns
of behaviour adopted by the communities. However, research practice shows, when doing impact
study, it is complicated or impossible to draw a line between consequences that are brought from
tourism and aspects affected by other processes related to globalisation and development (Hall &
Lew, 2009). Since several processes determine how we perceive various situations and contexts,
different realities are lying in the lived experiences of individuals (Humberstone, 2004). So to say,
what we feel is partly dependent by how we perceive the world around us (Jokinen & Veijola, 2012).
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(Source: Hall & Lew (2009), pp.55)
Figure 2.1 Dimensions of the impacts of tourism.
The assumption stated in the previous paragraph is supported by several authors who have found
that tourism is bringing uneven distribution of benefits (Nunkoo & Ramkissoon, 2011) among various
stakeholders, while most of the community is affected by positive and negative impacts related to
behaviour and lifestyle of travellers (Small et al, 2005). Due to the inequality, the possibility is high
that when reflecting on tourism impacts, diverse actors may assess similar aspects through different
lens of view. Mbaiwa (2004) explains this idea with an unalterable change caused by tourism impacts
that may threaten the quality of life in the particular destination.
Yet, change is often wanted by the communities and tourism is frequently applied due to its
economic benefits even if at the same time there is also a fear of change within the society (Wall &
Mathieson, 2006). Nonetheless, all society members should not be measured in the same way, since
based on their lived experiences as well as diverse situations and contexts of reality, similar aspects
might be perceived differently (Humberstone, 2004). So to say, if one community member sees
tourism as a very positive feature, for someone else presence of tourists can bring highly negative
experiences.
It has long been recognised that introduction of tourism is bringing impacts to any site and culture
(Telfer & Sharpley, 2008). Stated by Wall & Mathieson (2006), the supporters for an idea of
sustainable development frequently in tourism literature are putting emphasizes on considering
positive aspects of economic and environmental impacts while the significance of SCI are often
disregarded in discussions concerning sustainable development. With a respect to the overall focus
of tourism literature, this study aims to explore socio-cultural impacts in Bandipur village; therefore
an in-depth theoretical framework concerning this dimension is provided in the following section.
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2.3.2. Socio-cultural Impacts
Tourism has emerged as a growing sector in many economies in national, regional or destination
levels, and consequently an increasing part of World’s inhabitants are becoming directly or indirectly
affected by this industry (Faulkner and Tideswell, 2008). As consequences to tourism activities,
various forms of impacts are brought to destinations. Starting from early 70’s, the issues related to
socio-cultural impacts (SCI) have been the research subject for several scholars (Nunkoo &
Ramkissoon, 2011). Butler (2008) emphasizes three generalized areas where social impacts affect
destination’s communities the most: resources used by local residents, economic wellbeing, and the
lifestyles of the local people.
In tourism literature the population of a destination or concept society is defined as a community,
nation, broad grouping of persons who have common traditions, institutions, activities and interests
(Cook et al, 2010). Thus, explained by the same authors, the definition of culture represents the
practices of a society. By linking these definitions to tourism sector, it may be resolved that the
exchange of values, views and the ideas brought through tourism is also leading to the change in
socio-cultural environment of a destination (Góssling, 2008).
Although there is a strong assumption that destinations are experiencing social and cultural change
due to presence of tourism, the degree of change may be influenced by various factors, e.g. the type
and numbers of tourists/ tourist behaviour, the size and structure of tourism industry, the relative
importance of tourism industry (dependence of it), the pace of tourism development (Telfer &
Sharpley, 2008). Subsequently, there are different ways in which the relationship between tourism
development and socio-cultural change can be examined (Cooper et al, 2005). However, it is always a
complex process, since broader processes related to Worlds economics and social changes are
affecting destinations all over the globe (Hall & Lew, 2009).
By applying these acquaintances to tourism destinations, it can be witnessed that based on the
interconnections both guests and hosts in some level are affected by a socio-cultural impacts.
Evaluated by Wall and Mathieson (2006) SCI are the outcomes of specific types of social contacts that
occur between tourists receiving community and tourists themselves. Nevertheless, Telfer &
Sharpley (2008) argues that in cases when one culture is stronger and more dominant than the other
one, there is a high possibility that this cultural borrowing will be a one-way process, since tourists
mainly do not stay long in one and the same destination, but destinations are receiving a regular
visitor flow. Subsequently, tourism impact studies are receiving more and more attention (Hall &
Lew, 2009). Although social and cultural impacts are often analysed as one phenomenon, there is a
significant difference in them which Telfer & Sharpley (2008) explains with the following description:
“Social impacts may be thought of as the more immediate effects of tourism on local
people and their lifestyles, whereas cultural impacts refer to longer term changes that occur
in the context of social values, attitudes and behaviour, as well as changes in the production
and meaning of cultural art forms and practices.”
Due to the specifics of this research, SCI are perceived as one joint dimension rather than two
separate ones. As a result, sociocultural impacts are understood with the subsequent definition:
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“Socio-cultural impacts are the ways in which tourism is contributing to the changes
in the value systems, morals and their conduct, individual behaviour, family relationships,
collective lifestyles, creative expressions, traditional ceremonies and community organisations
(Mathieson & Wall, 1982).”
In summarizing this definition, SCI of tourism are established through high number of aspects which
are mainly dependent on differences in socio-cultural features between hosts and guests like: basic
values and logic system, religious beliefs, traditions, customs, lifestyles, behavioural patterns, dress
codes, sense of time budgeting and attitudes towards strangers (Cooper et al, 2008). Based on these
differences tourism is a prime threat to the destination cultures due to its culture of exploitation,
dislocation and desecration (George, 2002). Consequently, there is a complexity of factors that are
affecting destination from socio-cultural perspective.
Summarized by De Kadt (1979), community attitudes towards tourism and therefore also host-guest
relationships depend on: type of contact between host and guest, importance of the tourism
industry to the community as well as community tolerance threshold. Page and Connell (2009)
explain guest and host relationship with the model shown in Figure 2.2. This model demonstrates
that there is a little doubt that the most dramatic socio-cultural tourism impacts are received where
there are major cultural and economic differences between the host and guest society (Butler, 2008).
So to say, tourism activities practiced in a destination have the potential to either increase or reduce
the quality of experiences for the members of both, guest and host societies (Hall & Lew, 2009).
(Source: Page and Connell (2009))
Figure 2.2 Host and guest relationship
Advocated by Buttler (2008), socio-cultural impacts is one of the major areas which in spite of its
importance appear to be researched the least in comparison to economic and environmental
impacts. Through comparing literature sources, it has been discovered that here is no one common
way how social scientists are indicating SCI. To support this statement, three authors and their ways
of categorising SCI are presented in table 2.1.
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Author Impacts Impacts
Telfer & Sharple,
(2008)
S: Demonstration effect, crime,
religion, prostitution.
C: Acculturation, commoditization,
redevelopment of traditional art forms
and production techniques, behavioural
change (clothing and language).
Wall & Mathieson
(2006)
S: Demonstration effect, Prostitution,
Crime, Gambling, Religion, Language,
Health, overcrowding with tourism
facilities, labour and employment.
C: Staged authenticity, commodification,
preservation and renaissance of traditional
art forms, deterioration of traditional art
forms, cultural arrogance.
Cooper et al (2005) +: Tourism fosters local pride, socio-
cultural awareness, Shared
infrastructure, conservation and
restoration.
-: Sex, crime, health, other
(commodification, staged authenticity,
standardisation, alien cultural experience
of tourists) labour factors, behavioural and
demonstration factors, Resource use
factors.
S - social
C - cultural
“+” - positive
“-” - negative
Table 2.1 Ways of categorizing socio-cultural impacts
Specified by Page and Connell (2009) various ways of evaluating the extent of SCI have arisen over
the last three decades with the main aim to provide some proof over the effects of tourism on host
communities. Throughout the development it has emerged that some authors are distinguishing SCI
as social and cultural impacts while in other literature sources these impacts are analysed as positive
or negative ones. Based on desk research results, various indicators explaining SCI of tourism in
literature sources has been collected and explained further in the text in alphabetic order:
acculturation, commodification, conservation and restoration, crime, demonstration effect,
gambling, health, infrastructure, labour and employment, life styles, preservation of cultural values,
prostitution, religion, resources, staged authenticity, socio-cultural awareness as well as
standardization. Thus, these impacts purposely have not been classified in subcategories, but are
rather perceived just as independent samples of socio-cultural tourism impacts.
ACCULTURATION - process may be described as a psychological process that occurs after two
distinct cultures interrelates (Berman, 1990). In the intercultural encounter of tourism either
of both guest society and tourists are experiencing a change (Funk and Bruun, 2007).
COMMODIFICATION – is a process during which the demand of tourism leads to the
transformation and sometimes destruction of the meaning of cultural performances and
events in the host community (Cooper et al, 2005). In some literature sources
commodification is compared with inauthenticity that would be already consequences of this
process (Hannam and Halewood, 2001).
CONSERVATION AND RESTORATION – is one of the most cited positive tourism impacts on
host destinations, since it stimulates revitalization of traditional arts (Hall & Lew, 2009) and
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other forms of cultural characteristics.
CRIME – as socio-cultural impacts is rather as an assumed impact, then actual one (Wall &
Mathieson, 2006). On the one hand there is a little evidence which would prove the increase
of crime with the development of tourism, but on the other hand, there is inevitability that
where there is a steady tourism flow, also the level of crime is increasing (Telfer & Sharpley,
2008).
DEMONSTRATION EFFECT – is reflecting the change of values and attitudes from people in
tourism receiving destinations after they get to know tourists as consistently “wealthy
people” who are constantly enjoying all the good things in life (Cook, 2010). By referring on
Telfer & Sharpley (2008) domestic people may try to copy behaviour and ways of dressing as
well as to strive to attain well-being demonstrated by tourists.
GAMBLING – on its basis, in literature sources is recognized as a tourism attraction, but
nowadays it lies between the growth industries of the World (Wall & Mathieson, 2006).
HEALTH – together with fire, police and transportation is between the sectors where
development is often stimulated by steady flows of tourists in a way that also locals may
benefit (Butler, 2008). In general four ways how tourism and health are linked are
distinguished in travel literature: the health of tourists going to particular destinations (e.g.
health education), medical tourism, the standards of health services in destinations are
increased to tourist needs as well as diseases that can be brought by tourists (Wall &
Mathieson, 2006).
INFRASTRUCTURE – on one hand by meeting the needs of tourists is often facilitating also
the needs of the domestic population, but on the other hand, through infrastructure
development the common resources may be used for tourism needs in a level that local
people are experiencing difficulties in terms of accessing these resources (Cooper et al,
2005).
LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT – is a sector that in tourism literature is explained with positive
benefits and changes at least to some members of destination communities (Buttler, 2008).
LIFESTYLES – are between SCI that are the hardest to measure. By connecting people from
wide variety of different places and cultures together, hosts and guests have a possibility to
learn about each other’s differences and similarities (Cook et al, 2010). Through this learning
process, the cultural change is induced through both – internal and external factors (Wall &
Mathieson, 2006).
PRESERVATION OF CULTURAL VALUES - or tourism fosters local pride may be described as a
positive development, since destination’s heritage may be inspired through tourism growth
(Cooper et al, 2008). Explained by Butler (2008), tourism may become as an agent of
preservation, as long as local culture is concerned.
PROSTITUTION – The fact that numerous tourists during their travel abroad are willing to
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24
appreciate casual sexual encounters is a known phenomenon (Cooper et al, 2005).
Furthermore, van Egmond (2008) acknowledges that prostitution of women, men or children
is indissolubly connected with development of mass rather than low scale tourism.
RELIGION – in several tourism destinations, religious buildings, shrines and practices are
becoming commoditized and are becoming as a part of tourism product (Telfer & Sharpley,
2008). This kind of development is dangerous, since it can bring conflicts between domestic
communities and their guest visitors.
RESOURCES – in many areas tourism development means that all the resources which used
to be used only by local communities, after tourism development has been started also have
to be shared with guests, or even pre-empted by visitors for their own use (Butler, 2008).
SOCIO-CULTURAL AWARENESS – through tourism travellers have a possibility to learn from
other cultures and environments (Cooper et al, 2005). By showing the interest in the
destination also local people are starting to notice that there are special because of their
traditions and lifestyle.
STAGED AUTHENTICITY – is a process during which “pseudo-events” are used to provide
tourists with new experiences (Cooper et al, 2005). Argued by Wall & Mathieson (2006), this
process is dangerous to destination communities, since it can lead to establishment of
contrived attractions or experiences as well as dilutions of the tourist desire for unaffected
authentic experiences.
STANDARDIZATION – is a long-term process during which the search of tourists for the
familiarities, leads to the loss of cultural diversity (Cooper et al, 2005) in a destination.
Although academic researchers are mainly tended on negative tourism effects (Wall & Mathieson,
2006) socio-cultural impacts should be perceived as positive and negative consequences triggered
through tourist and guest contact. By questioning if there are cultural limits to tourism, Craik (1995)
concludes that often cultural products in tourism are positioned as cultural experience. Thus, these
experiences can lead to both – satisfaction and irritation. To measure the irritation generated
through tourist and host interrelation, Doxey has developed Irritation Index that measure overall
attitude on guest-host interaction (Cooper et al, 2005). In this index, five levels of scenarios are
distinguished: the level of euphoria, the level of apathy, the level of irritation, the level of antagonism
and the final level (Hall & Law, 2009). In the first stage of this index the hosts are very positive due to
tourism development while in final level the destination is starting to lose its identity and
attractiveness in the eyes of both – hosts and guests.
As an option to prevent destination from the undesirable phases, calculation of social carrying
capacity (SCC) as well as strong destination management policy is suggested by quite a few authors
(Mowforth & Munt, 2009). The definition of SCC refers to: “the amount of visitor use that individual
visitors can sustain before the number of visitors begins intrudes upon individual quality of the
experience (Manning, 1997)”. Nonetheless, since there are difficulties in assessing and measuring the
thresholds, the concept of SCC is often criticised and delimited as a research tool (O’Reilly, 1986).
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Explored by Cooper et al (2005), in order to provide a common framework for the SCI, the
researchers from Bournemouth University have attempted to link the SCI within the environmental
and economic model of tourism impacts. In the result, such a model applied to socio-cultural impacts
works in two ways. Firstly, it allows considering SCI as direct and indirect impacts. And secondly, it
contains an option to study social and cultural change as a result of non-tourism related factors or
induced impacts. While no source defining these three terms from socio-cultural impact perspective
was found in tourism literature, Zamora’s (2009) definitions related to chain of effects in the context
of economic impacts is applied:
• Direct – directly affected by business activity/ development;
• Indirect – impacts caused by inter-industry exchanges;
• Induced – impacts created by household spending by those directly and indirectly
employed by the industry/ development.
Through relating these themes to the case of socio-cultural tourism impacts, the samples provided by
Cooper et al (2005) when taking “demonstration effect” as an example are displayed further in this
paragraph. According to the authors, demonstration effect is an aspect of direct socio-cultural impact
of tourism, since the presence of tourists is directly affecting the behaviour for tourism sector related
members of host community. Thus, there is a big chance that these tourism related demonstration
effect affected stakeholders will bring behavioural change to tourism non-related population of the
community; this second phase of alteration is explained as an example of indirect SCI of tourism. The
third or induced SCI are dependent not only on tourism sector, but on overall economic growth in
the destination. Explained by the authors, induced SCI are the result of raising income levels and
consequently changing consumer spending habits within the local population (Cooper et al, 2005).
Figure 2.3 Model of socio-cultural impacts
Due to the nature of indirectness, several authors are seeing SCI as difficult to measure (Ratz, 2000).
Therefore, mostly in the research process, these impacts are approached in two simplified forms –
positive and negative impacts (Kreag, 2001). To demonstrate this effect better, based on literature
study a model of socio-cultural impacts has been designed and presented in Figure 2.3. In this model
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it can be seen that SCI consist of all - direct, indirect and induced impacts. Hence, these impacts
further are classified as positive or negative impacts. Furthermore, since not always a clear
distinction can be made, the little arrow between positive and negative impacts demonstrates an
interrelation between both of these aspects, depending from the perspective through which SCI are
analysed. Subsequently, based on the literature study in terms of this thesis, two sub-research
questions for have been set:
SRQ1: What are the positive socio-cultural tourism impacts in Bandipur?
SRQ2: What are the negative socio-cultural tourism impacts in Bandipur?
The intention of this study is to show that the consequences of tourism development related to SCI
should not be viewed from a simplistic and descriptive perspective, but there is a necessity to
manage destination resources in a manner which respects domestic values, customs as well as local
development needs (Telfer & Sharpley, 2008). Tourism and its impact studies are formed through our
ways of analysing it (Phillimore & Goodson, 2004); therefore to create an understanding over the
methods applied for this thesis, methodology is explained in the next chapter.
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3. Methodology
This thesis is written by applying qualitative methods. From my viewpoint, qualitative research is
equally a way of conceptualizing and approaching social inquiry as it is a way of doing research
(Phillimore and Goodson, 2004). Since I aimed to gain in-depth understanding of how people in
Bandipur socially construct and interpret tourism development and impacts in the village it was
decided to apply semi-structured interviews and field-observations as the main data gathering
method. Therefore, this thesis is all about exploring issues, understanding phenomena and
answering research questions by using people as the main source of information. I assume that the
outcomes of this research have relevance beyond a single case of Bandipur. Since Bandipur is located
in the rural area of Nepal, there is a chance that the outcomes of this research may be somewhat
contextually applied also to other rural destinations of the country. However, Bandipur has been
acknowledged as an outstanding case, since its raise as a tourism destination has been mainly
triggered by the activities of Bandipur Eco-cultrural Tourism Project.
This chapter is designed in a way that it discusses the research methods with which the objective of
this study is fulfilled and research questions and the problem statement answered. Belsky (2004)
argues that methodology frames the questions being asked, determines the methods and types of
evidence to be used and shapes the analysis. In order to do that, details about the applied type of
research, research sample, as well as the ways how the respondents have been approached is
provided in this section. Additionally, the means of the data analysis are discussed. Thus, in the final
stage of this chapter research limitations are indicated.
3.1. Research Design
This study has been conducted as a cross-cultural descriptive research made by a white, Latvian,
female student studying in the first world country (the Netherlands) and doing her research in one of
the Worlds least developed countries – Nepal. The research country was selected based on the
researcher’s personal interest as well as previous experience gathered through doing an internship at
Bhaktapur Tourism Development Committee, Nepal. During the internship period, the student made
a roundtrip in the country during which also Bandipur was visited. The visit in Bandipur (September,
2011) attracted her professional interest due to its uniqueness in comparison with other popular
Nepali destinations. During this visit and through conducting further research, the researcher learned
that the village is experiencing a fast growth that is partly stimulated by tourism (eco-tourism)
development in the site. The more preliminary research was conducted, the more questions arose,
like: What were the preconditions why this remote village have its historical centre? What aspects
stimulated to make this village traffic-free and how do locals experience it? Who are coming here
and why? How local people perceive the change? Based on the in-depth study, the interest into
development and socio-cultural impacts of Bandipur become as the research issue for this thesis.
The main objective of this study is to gain understanding over the activities that have stimulated
development in Bandipur and explore how people in Bandipur socially construct and interpret
tourism development and related socio-cultural tourism impacts. During this study the perspectives
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28
from people related to Bandipur have been collected through semi-structured interviews. This
method has been chosen to have an opportunity to learn about social life of Bandipur through the
perspective and experience of those people who are living in it (Boeije, 2010) or who are in other
ways related to the village. Thus, as Tribe (2004) acknowledges, there is difficulties in communication
between those operating in business of tourism and those who directly don’t benefit of tourism
activities. This study, therefore, intentionally includes opinions of all groups – tourism non-related
stakeholders, tourism related actors and tourists. Furthermore, the sample has been selected in a
way that the voice from people of lower and higher social castes is present.
During data collection process, Bandipur has been selected as a case study of this thesis. The data
was collected through actual fieldwork during March and April, 2012.In order to support researcher’s
argument additionally to the interviews, field observations have been conducted. Since there is a
high possibility that researchers as well as the researched construct their own multiple versions of
reality (Goodson and Phillmore, 2004); in this research interpretive study approach is applied. This
means that the interviews are treated as topics rather than as a research resource (Silverman, 2011).
Furthermore, the analyses of this study are conducted from the lens of respondents. Only in the final
stage of the data analyses, an expert-orientated approach is applied. The research has been
conducted through application of interpretive paradigm. Through application of interpretivism, the
data were gathered by conducting in-depth face-to-face interviews (for some translator was
arranged) during which the respondents were asked to reflect on their experiences and to bring up
issues that are important to them (Jordan & Gibson, 2004). In this way, the interview questions were
rather used as research methods in order to stimulate the discussion as well as to discover new
viewpoints concerning the research project.
All the interviews were conducted on voluntary basis and respondents were informed that they can
stop the interview at any moment, if it is necessary. Based on the outcomes of preliminary research it
was decided that no voice-recorder will be used in order to increase trustworthiness and openness of
the respondents. Instead, the researcher was taking interview notes that were transcribed shortly
after every interview. In cases where interview notes were not taken, the researcher tried to
memorise the interview content and wrote it down straight after the interview took place.
Nonetheless, with some of the respondents it was agreed that their responses will be treated
anonymous. Based on this, for some respondents their real names are given and some other
respondents are categorized with changed names. Thus, emphasize of this research is put on the
respondents relation to the tourism sector in Bandipur (tourism non-related stakeholders, tourism
related actors and tourists). It has been done to recognise if the views vary when different actors are
reflecting on similar issues. Translator was used for conducting some of the semi-structured
interviews.
Although some social scientists state that translators are the medium of interaction and dialogue,
relaying questions and answers between researcher and the respondent (Jobbins, 2004), due to the
specifics of the destination, seven interviews for this study were conducted by employing a local
English speaking translator. As the research was conducted by a European student in Nepali rural
environment, the need of translator was recognised while planning the research. Before reaching the
destination, tourism specialists in Kathmandu valley were approached and asked to suggest a reliable
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tourist guide whose help could be used for research needs. Apparently the selected translator – a
local tourist guide - was not reliable and new translator had to be found. This aspect worked out
better than expected, since a principle of Bandipur Campus couple of days after the interview with
him showed an interest into the further research and offered help as a translator. By noticing that all
approached persons agreed to make an interview appointment, it could be concluded that this
person in Bandipur is well known and respected that resulted into in-depth communication with the
respondents. This person not only translated interviews through face-to-face communication with
the respondents, but also approached these people, introduced with the research topic and
relevance as well as asked if the respondents would like to take part in this research.
In general it was concluded that it has been a valuable action to arrange a locally respected, English
speaking male person as a translator or a gatekeeper in communication with local people in
Bandipur. Although translators as a gatekeepers are being perceived as medium of interaction and
dialogue, communicating between researcher and a respondent (Jobbins, 2004), they also became as
collaborators which reinforce the accuracy of language-based inquiry (Larkin et al, 2007). So to say,
this person knows the environment and understands the issues what local people are reflecting on.
Furthermore, through participation in an interview himself, the translator understood the aims of the
research that created a smooth communication between the respondents and gatekeeper as well as
between the translator and the researcher. However, by using a translator there is a chance that the
interviews have been steered or translations changed according to the translators personal
perceptions. Additionally, the interviews with English speaking respondents were organised based on
snowball sampling method or by approaching respondents directly. Sampling methods are more
elaborated in the next section.
3.2. Sampling
In terms of this research, the nonprobability snowball sampling method is applied. This means that
only those people who are connected to Bandipur have been chosen for convenience and the results
of this study are not generalizable (Vaske, 2008); but rather should be perceived as a single case
study. Through asking initial number of participants to provide names of other relevant persons and
approaching these people (Boeije, 2010), the existing research sample has been selected so, that
representative study can be created. To fulfil the research objective, only those respondents who
had a connection to Bandipur were invited for an interview.
Nevertheless, not only the relation was important, but it was also of a high importance that the
sample includes variety of respondents: Bandipurians, the people who moved out in the past and
have returned recently, people from surrounding villages who are coming to Bandipur for study/
business purposes, tourism related actors, tourists as well as tourism non-related stakeholders.
Additionally, the respondents were selected in a way that they cover different age groups;
consequently, the youngest respondent was 15 years old and the oldest one – 71 years old.
To ensure the data quality, a local person was employed for translating the interviews with people
whose English was not sufficient and whose opinion (in researcher’s point of view) should be heard
The Road to Recovery and Rebirth
30
(porters, farmer, tailor, local driver etc.). Although the research response was high and there were no
people who refused to participate in the research, some of the interviews were ended when just
started, because of various reasoning’s from the side of interviewees. Nevertheless, some of the
short interviews have been kept as actual research material due to the information they contain.
Presented in Figure 3.1 a total number of 29 valid interviews with end number of 32 respondents
(see Appendix ) were conducted.
Figure 3.1 Interviewed actors
The main focus of the field work was to organise individual interviews, since in that way people do
not steer or interrupt each other. However, also three interviews with a focus-group were arranged –
one with four female porters, one with a local family and a repeat interview with the project
manager and assistant of BECTP. It was observed that during the group interview there are positive
and negative aspects. On the one hand respondents are starting also discussion with each other and
more in-depth information can be gathered and on another hand some of the respondents stop
sharing their opinions. Based on this observation individual interviews were selected as the main
method of data gathering.
Additionally, the interview with a project manager and a project assistant of Bandipur Eco-cultural
Tourism Project (BECTP) was taken more than once. It was done before and after field-work in order
to gather the insight information of the village as well as to clarify some data that was collected
during the field research. These above mentioned interviews were conducted in Kathmandu Valley
(Bhaktapur and Patan) and the rest of the research material was collected during the actual field visit
in Bandipur and its area. Moreover, although the project manager and project assistant have
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31
contributed to the tourism development of Bandipur in the past, in terms of this research, they are
classified as tourism non-related stakeholders (see Figure 3.1.) due to their present relationship to
the destination.
The first contact with the manager of BECTP was established through an e-mail. Thus, the contact
information was gathered during the preliminary research while I was consulting with tourism
specialists in Nepal in addition to my internship. After more than two months e-mail communication,
the first meeting was arranged during which the insight information over the project (BECTP), overall
development of the village and the change in Bandipur was collected. In order to gather contact-
information over the local people whose opinion should be represented during this thesis research, a
follow up interview was conducted and another pre-fieldwork meeting with both the project
manager and the project assistant was organised. After arrival in Bandipur the actors mentioned
during the interview were approached. Furthermore, these people were also asked to suggest other
local persons whose opinion should be included.
As another method, some respondents (e.g. tourists) were also approached directly, including one
Bandipurian family with which a friendly relationship was developed during my first visit in Bandipur
(September, 2011). All of the interviews were conducted through face-to-face communication and
for seven of them translator was arranged. More detailed list of the respondents is provided in
Annex 1. Furthermore, the interviewees were selected in a way that the opinion of local people
related to tourism business are present, the view of the inhabitants unrelated to tourism business
are discovered as well as attitudes of tourists are obtained.
Although the research process went smoothly, during first days after arrival it was observed that
some locals were taking a distance after learning my purpose of visit in Bandipur. It could be
explained with the fact that no previous research was done in Bandipur and people are not common
with the idea that somebody wants to gather their view-points. Nevertheless, after they got used to
the presence of researcher, various locals were showing interest in my work through asking
questions about it. This observation led to a conclusion that people in Bandipur are not used to and
are not common with researches which sometimes led to unfinished interviews. It seemed that they
are rather shy or confused from the attention they got. Based on that, some interviews included in
this research are short in length, but are kept due to the relevance of information provided. It was
also observed that people are confused when their opinion over their everyday life is asked,
especially when speaking with people from a lower caste. There were some encounters when people
agreed to participate in interview and after first couple of questions they acknowledge that there is
not much they can tell about their own experiences, because it was weird that I am actually
interested in their own life story. Additionally, it was witnessed in various ways that majority of
people in Bandipur perceive researcher as a volunteer, because they are receiving voluntary tourists
on regular basis and according to various locals, this study was the first research conducted in
Bandipur after the BECTP was completed on 2007.
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3.3. Data Collection
In terms of this research semi-structured interviews were used as the main data gathering method.
This data collection technique was applied to the research needs and the main focus of the study was
orientated on exploring respondent perspectives over the change in the village throughout time –
past, present and future. Advocated by Joshi & Rajoparhyay (2007) the essence of Bandipur lies in:
its proximity to the major tourist destinations in Nepal, its temperate weather, its culture as well as
the variety of tourism attractions. All mentioned characteristics of Bandipur stimulate steady
increase in the number of both new residents and tourists. Thus, these regular movements are
contributing to increasing demand for living area, which arouses physical expansion of the village.
During the preliminary study it was discovered that majority of Bandipurians sees (tourism)
development mainly in terms of positive economic aspects (Talfer & Sharpley, 2008) and they are
disregarding other sectors where impacts are brought to. In order to fill the gap, this study is aims to
explore and raise awareness about the processes related to socio-cultural impacts (SCI).
Before the data collecting process started, all interviewees were introduced to the project purposes
as well as they were asked to confirm their willingness to participate in the project. After receiving
approval, the respondents were instructed that they are free to stop the interview at any time they
wish. Moreover, they were asked to give permission on taking research notes so that their main
ideas could be fixed and afterwards transcribed. Although the researcher was using a previously
prepared list of topics that should be covered, follow-up questions were asked based on the
direction of the interview. Thus, all the questions were open-ended and related to the following
bigger question groups:
• How was the life in Bandipur in past?
• How is the life in Bandipur nowadays?
• Have you noticed significant change and if so in which sectors?
• How do you think, what caused the change?
• Have you noticed any positive aspects in Bandipur caused by this change?
• Have you noticed any negative aspects in Bandipur caused by this change?
• How do you see the future of Bandipur?
The interview structure given above was an end-result, which was created based on the practical
experiences during interview conduction. Furthermore, during interviews with tourists (with one
exception) no questions were asked related to the past or change, due to the specific of this target
audience. Rather their future vision of Bandipur was questioned. Additionally, in all cases the
respondents were not introduced with literature related to the topic; yet, interview questions were
designed in a way of conversation so that above mentioned issues related to SCI in Bandipur would
be covered. The collected data from all respondents afterwards have been transcribed and analysed.
The methods used for data analysis are comprised in the following sub-chapter.
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33
3.4. Data Analysis
Although within the social constructivism paradigm the question: “do individuals determine the
society or does society determine individuals?” (Burr, 1995) is of a discussion, this research is not
about determining the human-society relationships, but rather to explore and understand the ways
how the people in Bandipur see and explain the change in their society. In order to do that, a total
number of 29 valid semi-structured interviews with 32 respondents (see section 3.2) were conducted
and transcribed. Additionally, researcher’s field observations were made in order to gather in-depth
understanding over the processes of the destination. For the data analysis a theoretical framework of
interpretivism approach is applied.
After the data collection the researcher repeatedly was analysing the transcripts with the main aim
to break up the data and divide the research material into relevant pieces. By making constant data
comparison some initial themes were derived. Several data analysis attempts were made and as a
result, some certain basic issues were established on which the final coding categories are based.
Overall, the whole transcript at different points of the thesis writing process was coded and re-coded
for several times due to the need of data analysis. Explained by Boeije (2009) coding is the most
important tool for qualitative data analysis. Therefore, in order to make the coding process more
efficient, Nvivo qualitative data analysis computer software was applied and the responses were
coded by using inductive and deductive codes. In general, it can be said that the data are categorised
in codes with the main aim to discover common themes and categories presented in the transcript.
As a result of the data analysis, three bigger themes were derived - mobilities, development and
socio-cultural impacts. Since due to migration flows in the past Bandipur had become a ghost town
(as the locals name it), the related subchapter describes the ways how respondents socially construct
their past, present and future in relation to these mobilities. The development in Bandipur is closely
linked with the modernization of the village. As Bandipurians were almost isolated before the main
road connecting with Prithi Highway was built, in the second sub-division I am telling how the
respondents socially construct the road as a symbol of modernization of Bandipur. Thus, in the final
section, people’s perceptions of various socio-cultural activities in the village are combined and
through application of theoretical knowledge they are related to socio-cultural impacts in the
destination.
Furthermore, the analytical part is structured in a way that firstly respondents’ voice is represented
by summarizing their opinions and providing quotes. In the further stage, my personal reflection on
the respondents’ opinions is provided. Moreover, in order to reflect on my own positionality, in the
final section of each sub-division I am reflecting on my field experiences where I am providing the
reader with my own understandings and background information on which I am basing my personal
reflection. Additionally it can be noticed in the text that on my own perspectives I am always
reflecting in first person while for respondents opinions third person is used.
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34
3.5. Limitations
In order to deal with possible subjectivity, data analysis have been consciously organised in a way
that in different sections diverse viewpoints are presented (see 3.4). Through separating the voices of
the respondents from my personal opinions, the research reliability and validity has been aimed to
increase.
Since snowball sampling method was used in order to gather contacts of the persons relevant to the
research, there is a possibility that interviewees were nominating people whom they know very well
and therefore there could be some similarity in their answers. To avoid this trend, the researcher
asked different interviewees for suggestion. Furthermore, through collaboration with the translator
the researcher made a list of the occupancies which preferably should be included in the research
sample. Additionally to the sector of employment in several cases I indicated the area of the village
where the respondent should be coming from. In this way, the representativeness of the sample was
ensured and opinions of residents from different parts of the village gathered.
Nevertheless, since seven interviews were conducted with the help of the same person as a
translator, there is a chance that similar issues are described in exactly the same way so that the
individual way of expressing opinions has been modified. In general the research was conducted in
English in Nepali speaking environment and therefore there is a chance that interviewees were
expressing themselves differently than if the same interview would have been done in Nepali. In
addition, the researcher herself is a white person studying in the Western World which also could
affect the respondents’ behaviour and responses given during the interaction.
Moreover, the researcher was aiming to gather more in-depth interviews. If there were no difficulties
when local people were approached, then interview conducting with tourists turned out to be a
more complicated task, since most of the respondents were on a short stay in the destination and
acknowledged that they do not feel confident in assessing it. Nevertheless, to increase data
representativeness, also short tourist opinions were gathered and included as valid data sources.
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35
4. Results
In this section findings are presented. The data results have high importance in order to recognise
the activities that have contributed to tourism development in Bandipur. Based on the historical
development, the village suffered from mass emigration in the past so that very little people were
left there. The locals reflect on this period of time as a very difficult phase for everyone and they are
naming Bandipur as a ghost town while reflecting on this period of time. In comparison with
nowadays, the situation has significantly changed. Due to the presence of a good quality road,
Bandipur has been opened for new development and nowadays it is known as a rapidly growing
tourism destination. Consequently, this thesis aims to reflect on the change in Bandipur by using
respondent’s perspectives as evidences of these happenings. These outcomes contribute on creating
an understanding over the processes that have stimulated tourism development in Bandipur as well
as to provide resident perspectives over these activities. The findings are further divided into three
subsections. In the first division From “Dark Ages” to “Brighter” Future I narrate how migration has
affected the central flow of residents in Bandipur and the related social history of the village what
local people call “dark ages”. In the second section I reflect on how the presence of a good quality
road was socially constructed by Bandipurians as signs of development and modernization of the
village. Subsequently, respondent perceptions of development related socio-cultural impacts in
Bandipur are revealed in the final division. Consequently, in the last section of each division what has
been named as Living in the Field, I am reflecting on my own interpretations in order to create an
understanding over the processes and experiences that have affected my own opinion provided in
this chapter.
4.1. From “Dark Ages” to “Bright” Future
During the field work I was experiencing Bandipur as a person from the outside who has already
known and experienced several destinations in Nepal and five other countries of South-East Asia. In
general, throughout the field work I observed that respondents with long-time connection to
Bandipur are becoming sensitive when issues related to migration are asked. Momentarily it was
discovered that this anxiety is related to the past experiences, rather than present activity. People in
Bandipur while reflecting to the life in the past are relating it with the “dark ages” of the village, the
period when Bandipur was a “ghost town”. This time span matches with the end of 60’s and start of
90’s. In the words of Mr. Bikram Piya (TNR),
“The movement was caused by the fact that Bandipur was not a district headquarters
anymore that was shifted to Damoni (town in 25 km distance from Bandipur). After that
happened, people started to move out in order to find better business options. As a second
main cause why Bandipur population decreased was construction of highway connecting
Pokhara and Kathmandu. This new road excluded Bandipur from the “business map.” People
started to shift to Dumre, Landzung etc.”
Although there were attempts to attract new inhabitants in Bandipur during the “dark ages”, it was a
difficult task for a place with hard access and limited facilities. According to Sister Evanzuela and
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36
Sister Mirium (TNR),
“When Notre Dame School was opened in Bandipur, as a result of construction of Kathmandu
and Pokhara road as well as relocation of the district headquarters, Bandipur was a ghost
town. The school was made with a hope that more people would be attracted to the village.
At that time the village was empty. Almost any house could be used for school at those
times.”
Many local people remember the difficulties which they had to face during the “dark ages” of
Bandipur. In the words of Mr. Nawal, (TR),
“Before, it was difficult in Bandipur. More than 60% of the people were poor and also for
those who had a shop, the business went slowly. During that time many people left Bandipur
and now, when there is development, more people are returning, including me.”
While educational possibilities are mentioned as one reason for the rebirth of the village, the main
factor attracting new visitors and inhabitants in Bandipur is the presence of a high quality road
connecting Bandipur with Prithvi Highway. Accrding to Mr. Manihumar Pradhan (TNR),
“When the road was finished it increased possibilities to move. The number of people
circulation increased. Thus, the road also stimulated people from surrounding villages to
come to Bandipur that brought increase for business possibilities.”
Additionally, the accessibility is the main precondition why Bandipur was selected as the destination
for running the (Bandipur) Eco-cultural Tourism Project (BECTP). Specified by Mrs. Jharna Joshi and
Mr. Manoj Rajopadhyay (TNR),
“A possibility to access Bandipur by good quality road was the key reason why Bandipur was
selected as a project area.”
Indirectly the road and evidently the BECTP are the two circumstances that contributed to the
development and tourism in a scope as they are, nowadays. Recognised by Mr. Basudev (TR),
“After ECTDP was run in Bandipur, many people are returning in the village as well as new
people are arriving and are building their houses. Although I used to know everyone in the
village, nowadays there are people I do not know anymore due to immigration, what is
unusual.”
Bandipurians see the population increase as a very positive development, since more opportunities
are created. According to Mr. Bikram Piya (TNR),
“Change is prevailing in Bandipur. Due to development of tourism, the population of the
town is growing and also farmers are able to sell their meat, vegetables, milk…”
Overall, local people are seeing tourism as a good sector for empowering different social groups.
Furthermore, it is also a niche they are relating the future development with. Explained by Mr. Ram
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37
Sharan Shrestha (TR),
“When tourists are coming, everyone has a job. In comparison with situation 12 years earlier,
everything in Bandipur has been changed. At that time almost nobody came there, but now
also domestic travellers from Chitwan, Pokhara, Kathmandu etc. are coming”
The local people in Bandipur support tourism development greatly and relate it positively with the
development of the village in general. According to Mr. Marihuman Pradhan (TNR),
“I have not noticed people who would be negative due to the change in Bandipur. People,
who do not want change, also do not want development. I am happy to experience the
change – I myself believe in it.”
Through interaction with local persons it could be noticed that people in Bandipur when asked about
their past were a bit shy at the first moment. While reflecting on peoples’ experiences I tried to draw
similarities with other Nepali destinations (like Bhaktapur) where I was visiting and conducting
research. However, soon I had to realise that Bandipur is different. I could observe that people, due
to the hard times in the past, may be over-optimistic about the future of the village, which they
argue should be based on tourism development. So to say, through experiencing difficult times in the
past aggravated by emigration, Bandipurians perceive new arrivals as a chance for having a better
future. From my personal knowledge, I see positive and negative aspects in tourism development,
but it was observed through the interviews and fieldwork in Bandipur that many local people do not.
It can perhaps be assumed that Bandipurians due to their hard times in the past, by noticing
increasing numbers of inhabitants, perceive it as a positive sign that gives them safety feeling about
their home village and further development in it. However, the author doesn’t share the same
feeling.
Within the last years the numbers of both new arrivals in Bandipur as well as presence of domestic
and international tourists have experienced a rapid growth. Mostly, locals perceive this tendency as a
very positive development without questioning the local capacity. Therefore local (tourism)
awareness should be investigated. For example, it has been experienced that some locals by greeting
tourists with namaskar (the most polite and respectful form of greeting in Nepali language) are
showing a very welcome attitude to the guests; while some other field experiences show that there is
also a part of society that is annoyed by the presence of regular visitors.
It has been learned that increasing number of inhabitants and visitors in a destination does not only
means more flows, but also a need for management and planning. By experiencing a situation where
some local people are giving negative comments on tourists I could experience that the local optimal
capacity at least in some parts of the village is reaching its limits. Consequently, I think that this
situation may lead to negative consequences in future where uncontrolled migration becomes
problematic for both development of the site and the local way of living. By this it is meant that
conflict situations among the locals and tourists and locals and locals may occur if no attention on
carrying capacity for both Nepali immigrants as well as tourist flows is paid.
By observing local people and having conversations with them it may be noticed that people are
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38
consciously or unconsciously starting to divide into a group supporting further development and a
group being annoyed by the development. Although this division is on a small scale so far, there is a
risk that it could lead to increasing struggles in future. Based on the author’s personal travel
experience in South-East Asia, a lack of tourism support by the local people can significantly reduce
the quality of travellers’ experiences in a site that could possibly lead to overall decrease in tourism
numbers as well as shortening of destination life cycle.
Although majority of people in Bandipur are relating their future economic growth with tourism
development and related flows, there is a doubt if tourism sector may fulfil the needs of increasing
numbers of population. It is very likely that increasing population in Bandipur will raise the tourism
supply while it is doubtful if there is a possibility for further increase in tourist numbers visiting
Bandipur due to the lack of capacity for the only international airport of the country through which at
around 75% of all international (except Indian) travellers are arriving in Nepal. As a result, the
current development may lead to increasing competition. Thus, competition may result in changing
relationship between stakeholders in the village.
Living in the field
This reflection I would like to start by an overview of my brief bibliography and some information
that would provide a better understanding of the ways how and why I am reflecting on the issues in a
way I do. First of all, I originate from a very remote village in Latvia (a Second World country). My
childhood I spent in Soviet Latvia where situation dramatically changed all around the country after
Latvia becomes a sovereign state at the beginning of the 90’s. Together with this shift the life in the
country and very much in the countryside changed and people were changing with the time, too. It
was surprising how fast the priorities and overall relationships of people there were affected by the
influence of new “conditions”.
While growing up, during my study years, I had a possibility to go for exchange studies in the
Netherlands. Till then I was mainly living in the low density destinations and poorly inhabited places
in Latvia. It is approximately five years since I live in one of the cities of the Netherlands that is one of
the dense inhabited countries of the world. Based on this change I often realise, that I am looking
back into my past and I am trying to understand what happened with the small place where I spent
my childhood? Although Bandipur is located in a different country, I have noticed that probably
based on my own roots, I am interested in the developments of remote destinations rather than
urban ones in whatever country I am visiting at.
During my stay in Bandipur I was prepared that the presence of a European female researcher
approaching local people could be a difficult task due to the low participation level of the local
people. Fortunately, the research went better than expected and opposite to the expectations,
people in Bandipur were very open to my presence in their environment. After conducting two
researches in Kathmandu Valley I already learned that the locals (for some reason) are more open to
the person from outside (non-Nepali), since they are assumed of not having subjective interest on
steering research outcomes. In Bandipur this assumption was reaffirmed even when translator was
used. Furthermore, it was a strange situation for me to hear from my translator that the outcomes of
some interviews were unexpected and interesting for him, as well. At these moments I felt that my
The Road to Recovery and Rebirth
39
work has an added value already, since the locals can also have a possibility to learn from each other
views.
Nevertheless, I was unprepared for how many of the respondents would reflect with some sorrow
and a kind of happiness at the same time while reflecting on their past. On the one hand sadness
could be observed even in peoples facial-expressions while reflecting on their past, since those were
difficult times for everyone. But on the other hand, people emotional expressions changed
immediately when they were reflecting on their life nowadays and possible future. During the first
couple of interviews I did not realise why there is happiness in their eyes. Only after having
communication with more actors I understood that in spite of the lack of water or electricity, people
are happy to see new arrivals, because the increase in population means that the village is not going
to become a “ghost town” again. By discovering this fact I was a bit confused and uncertain while
approaching my next respondents. From one side I understood their point, but on the other side I am
seeing the development in Bandipur from a current perspective and in my opinion some
management is needed and soon. And at the same time I am wondering if I as a person from the
outside should interrupt this little idyll by providing information which nobody (with some
exceptions) really wants to realize. Of course, tourism is a sector that brings many benefits to
different stakeholders of the value chain. However, it also has its limits, preconditions and impacts
that have to be managed.
To discover the opinions of the locals on management or the lack of it during some of the interviews I
was steering people to look at and potentially cover this issue. It was a difficult task, since mainly
people were not willing to reflect on this issue. At that moment I assumed that they are afraid of the
management since it could (possibly) change the current way of working in Bandipur. However, while
looking back I remember that some of the people were reflecting on me as a person who is coming
from more developed country (by assuming that I am Dutch, since mostly people did not know about
country named Latvia) and therefore this fact could made them shy to reflect on their own
incompetence’s. I have to say, as longer I stayed in Bandipur the more I had a feeling that there is
kind of anarchy in that village due to the lack of management. However, I could notice that there is
also some way of ordering in the place, which probably is very normal for locals, but difficult to see
for people from outside.
4.2. Road as a Way to Modernity
During the first arrival in Bandipur it was very common for me to experience that there is a good
quality road to ride my motorbike up to the village. I was enjoying the little traffic and numerous
curves on the road. Most of the times the bike went slowly due to the low visibility and these eight
kilometres up felt like double the distance… At that time I did not know that twenty minutes till half
an hour for managing eight kilometres can be super-fast for people who used to make it on foot on
their daily basis. While driving the road and seeing some cars and buses every now and then, it was
difficult to imagine that in the past the goods including building materials used to be carried to the
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40
village by human power. After learning this fact, I realised that the road for Bandipurians is the main
aspect affecting the recovery and rebirth of the village. Specified by Manihumar Pradhan (TNR),
“The people who stayed in the village started to approach people who left Bandipur and
requested them to return. And if they could not return, they were asked to help in terms of
education, health, water supply etc., including the road. Consequently, people from Bandipur
living outside used their social networks to build a good road.”
Although the local actors are satisfied with the current quality of the road, there are people who are
expressing their fear that with the current development the quality and width of the existing road
may become insufficient. From the perspective of the local experienced driver, the future of
Bandipur is dependent on the quality of road and accessibility of water. Reflected by Mr. Gehendra
Kayastha (TNR),
“The road to Bandipur has only one line and if the road will not be made wider, there is a
chance for increasing numbers of accidents.”
Although the villagers are starting to get concerned about the future use of the main road connecting
with Prithi Highway, most stakeholders are expressing their gratitude for the traffic-free central
streets of the village. I have to acknowledge that after receiving the request from local people to park
my motorbike outside the village area during my first visit in the destination (September, 2011), I was
very surprised. Since I spent more than four months in one of the country’s top destinations, often
reflected as the living museum, i.e. Bhaktapur, I was asking myself what is so special about this place
to have traffic free central streets while a very touristic city cannot refuse the pressure of local
people? Afterwards I learned that BECTP has been run in the village and the Bazaar has been made a
traffic free area as a part of this project. Specified by Mrs. Jharna Joshi and Mr. Manoj Rajopadhyay,
(TNR),
“The central streets of the village have been made vehicle free to increase working
possibilities for porters and other unskilled and uneducated inhabitants as well as to provide a
better atmosphere.”
And indeed, through communication with different stakeholders I learned that people in Bandipur
although they were sceptical about this development in the beginning, are very positive about it
now; especially the porters,
“Before we had more domestic animals, but nowadays we are keeping them only for basic
needs. We think that the life is good, now. We have a possibility for regular income, if we are
able to carry. After the bazar was made vehicle free, the working possibilities have
increased.” (Kamala, Aite, Suku and Kamala, TNR).
A visit to Bandipur indeed can surprise. Many travellers reflect that the experience while visiting the
village is better than the expectations before reaching it. There were people met who acknowledged
that they have come to the village to spot the beautiful range of Anapurna Circuit. During the
research period the visibility was poor and almost no visitor succeeded their plan. However, there
was mostly no bitterness in their reflections. Majority of tourists in Bandipur if they were not able to
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41
reach their expectations compensated them with other experiences. A traveller from Germany
reflects,
“After spending half a day in Bandipur I am amazed by the village. This village… When I came
here I expected a Nepali village with the road, you know… but here it really looks like in
Europe! I did not expect this here.” (Alexander, T).
Additionally, not only tourists, but also other local people are reflecting on the central streets being a
traffic free area as a very positive development, which could be related to the modern approach in
the village. For example, the Sisters Evanzuela and Mirium (TNR) have observed that the quality of
life in the village has improved. According to them, the amount of dust has decreased and
consequently villagers have become less annoyed by each other. Moreover, Bandipurians are also
reflecting on other facilities that have improved within recent years. Specified by Mrs. Luna Pradhan
(TR),
“Such possibilities as education and hospital are important improvements in the village.
Bandipur is just a village, but you can have the same services as in a city. The life for people is
easier here.”
Consequently, through the interviews it was experienced that the respondents do not have a
common understanding of the status of Bandipur. Although officially Bandipur is led by a village
development committee, different respondent in various moments reflect on it differently – a city, a
town and a village. As one of the reason mentioned for this increasing confusion are the various
educational opportunities provided in the village. Thus, there are respondents in Bandipur who are
relating education also with the further change/ development of the village. Explained by Mr. Patthar
Pradhan (TR),
“If seven years ago there was a choice of three governmental schools in the village, then
nowadays there are 7 schools including 2 colleges for better education.”
For example, the founders of Notre Dame School acknowledge that their intentions are related not
only to provision high quality education, but also on minimising caste system in the village. Their aim
is to teach equality in the society and therefore they have introduced uniforms in the school. They
believe, if girls and boys as well as pupils from low and high castes look the same, also the gender
and caste inequality may be decreased.
However, in terms of tourism education and training, even if it is five years after the project was run
in Bandipur, the respondents are emphasizing the importance of BECTP. For example, Bhandari
Family (TNR) recalled that during this project, home stay programme was created during which local
people were trained to provide accommodation for tourists. Overall, almost every respondent
reflected on this project and could somehow relate it also to their personal experiences or as a
positive event for the village as such. According to Mr. Bikram Piya (TNR),
“The main pull factor for tourism development was Bandipur Eco-cultural Tourism
Development Project, that helped to develop Bandipur through: 1) Promotion work inside and
outside Nepal; 2) Infrastructure development, such as: signing, stone streets in the main
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42
streets of Bandipur, renovation of houses etc.; 3) training for local guides, plumbing, cooking,
hospitality, electricity etc.”
In general it was explored that local people are seeing a further need for tourism education and
training. This reflects in the fact that shortly before the research was conducted a tourism school has
been founded in Bandipur that provides training in hospitality, cooking, service and English language.
In addition to this, employees of upper-class accommodations acknowledged that in each of the
guesthouse they are providing a special training during the first months of test period. Moreover, the
representatives of one guesthouse were reflecting over the importance to attract volunteer tourists
who are involving also society into various educational activities. Specified by Mr. Ram Sharan
Shrestha (TR),
“We regularly attract voluntary tourists and participate in various projects, like: children’s
library, garbage collection, renovation of temples (including wooden carvings), repainting
hospital… As a part of these projects we also educate local people how to work in tourism
sector, because in the hotel itself we are employing only locals from Bandipur and
surrounding villages.”
Aside of tourism-related activities, the respondents acknowledge that the founding of goat and silk
farms have significantly contributed to the development of the village. On the one hand, these
businesses are providing additional income for people who are recruited there and on the other
hand, Bandipurians have an easy access to meat products. Additionally, the respondents specified
that both of the companies can be visited by tourists as unique tourism attractions of the village.
Although it was not explored if tourists have ever used the services provided in the local hospital, the
respondents are relating improvements of the health system in Bandipur with tourism development
of the village. In general the improvement of health system has been positively assessed by most of
the interviewees. Reflected by Mr. Bikram Piya (TNR),
“Like 6-7 years ago, doctors were not attracted to come to Bandipur due to bad salary and
practice. At that time community medical axillary was running instead of hospital. There were
no doctors and there were less nurses operating at that time.”
While the respondents are sharing a common opinion on most of the facilities, the views on the food
and accommodation sector differ. On the one hand interviewees are acknowledging that the number
of accommodations has dramatically increased. And on the other hand there are respondents (also
apart from tourist) who are claiming low quality standards for the services. Explained by Mr. Patthar
Pradhan (TR),
“Nowadays people are cheating and providing low quality. Competition is high; just there is
no orientation on quality. Some rooms are cheap and dirty… It is not good for the place.”
Several respondents are explaining this situation with their personal observation. According to them,
in the past there were only two guesthouse opportunities in Bandipur, but nowadays they are
everywhere. Some respondents claim that there were fifty-five accommodation possibilities during
the research period, thus it was explored that also new accommodations are being built and
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43
prepared. According to an individual traveller,
“Bandipur is losing its attractiveness and is getting too crowded with guesthouses and
facilities that soon it could lose its attractiveness in the eyes of visitors.” (Klauss, T).
In any case, tourism development cannot be made without the provision of food and
accommodation possibilities. Thus, while the respondents are reflecting over the origins of tourism
development in Bandipur, they tend to relate it with the opening of the first accommodation or
Bandipur Mountain Resort at around 20 years ago; or, with the activities run by BECTP. Specified by
Mrs. Jharna Joshi and Mr. Manoj Rajopadhyay (TNR),
“The preparation and proposal submission for the project started in 2003; and the actual
project duration was from the 1st of January, 2005 till the 31st of March, 2007. At that time,
Bandipur was highly affected by Maoist conflict; therefore the project was mainly led from
Kathmandu. Nevertheless, during the project planning process Nepal Tourism Board already
listed Bandipur on a list for tourism development. Based on that, the project (BECTP) received
support.”
Explained by Mrs. Jharna Joshi and Mr. Manoj Rajopadhyay (TNR) their preliminary goal of BECTP was
to encourage domestic travellers for visiting places (in this case Bandipur) without religious reasons.
The manager and assistant of the project acknowledge that the project was realised more
successfully than expected and the destination is receiving not only domestic visitors, but also
international tourists are attracted to Bandipur. Respondents are mentioning the following attraction
as the main tourism products of the site: silk and goat farms, picnic spot, Tourism Information Centre
(TIC), Paragliding, Mountain View, Bazaar (central traffic free streets), souvenir shop, Siddha cave and
hiking route to Ramkot.
Although Mountain View and traffic-free Bazaar by most of respondents are described as the main
tourism products contributing to the atmosphere for international travellers, the local picnic place or
Tundikhel (big, empty and picturesque field) is attracting organised buses with domestic travellers on
weekend. Although, the village is receiving high numbers of domestic picnickers on the weekends,
Bandipurians acknowledge that they are not highly satisfied with this target group due to their little
expenditure and big disturbance in terms of noise and visual pollution. Explained by Mr. Kalpana
Piya (TR),
“The existing picnic spot in Bandipur will be replaced, since it makes too much noise and
pollution. A park is planned to be created in this place instead.”
While Bandipurians are not satisfied with the presence of domestic tourists (the general attitude
towards international tourists has not been discovered), the international tourists are reflecting on
the poor service, limited information and irregular opening times of the Tourism Information Centre
(TIC). It is possible that the provided services in TIC do not fully match the expectations of the
international travellers. However, the work of TIC has been started by BECTP and is continued as a
voluntary project by the initiative of Mountain View Resort who is also paying a salary for the
employee there. While TIC is only a small issue reflected by the visitors, the attractiveness of the
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44
village is questioned by both – locals and travellers. Reflected by Mr. Ram Sharan Shrestha (TR),
“Bandipurians are supporting tourism and it is important to preserve its traditions (typical
culture) in an approach of keeping the old ways. Many new buildings for tourists are made,
but they should be made in the old way.”
In spite of their occupation and relation to Bandipur, most of the respondents are seeing the physical
appearance of the village as a threat to further tourism development. Although the visitors in
Bandipur appreciate the traffic-free streets, they also acknowledge that the appearance of the rest of
the site is also of a high importance. Some respondents have recognized that it is already difficult to
take a picture of the village without the big concrete buildings. Thus, more of these modern houses
are being built. Overall, Bandipurians as well as their guests are seeing that the village is changing,
but nobody specified the exact ways how/if this change is changing their perception of the village.
In general, the respondents see tourism development as a very positive trend in the village. The
interviewees express their satisfaction with such statements as “nowadays it is better”, “the locals
are happy”, “tourism makes people come to Bandipur” etc. People from various sectors see the
positive aspects of tourism. Explained by Mrs. Luna Pradhan (TR),
“Many people in the surroundings are very happy that tourists are coming. Even non-
educated people who are working as porters, farmers, builders etc., they have regular job
possibilities, nowadays. I think that because of tourism people can send their children to
school and support their family.”
For some reason, in many cases respondents while asked to name some negative tourism influences
could not name them and were rather starting to defend the industry and convince how good it is for
different actors of the village. Overall, people in Bandipur reflect on tourism as an important sector
through which empowerment may be reached. According to Mr. Gehendra Kayastha (TNR),
“Presence of tourists does not affect harvest, tourists rather are providing with extra
possibilities and job. I don’t think tourism is bringing any bad impacts.”
While some Bandipurians share the belief that together with the new income possibilities, also the
living costs in the village have increased, they also acknowledge that together with the tourism flow
more diversity is offered in the market so that also local people may benefit. Reflected by Mr.
Patthar Pradhan (TR),
“In the village only basic products as rice, oil etc. was available. Together with tourism
development more variety came into the market. People can also buy water, chocolate, meat
etc.”
Though locals are relating the attractiveness of the village with the daily expenditures, from the view
point of some travellers in Bandipur, the village is losing its attractiveness. Before visiting Bandipur,
travellers are expecting a countryside since the village is promoted as a remote and undiscovered
area. However, from the view-point of diverse respondents, the reality has been changed and so has
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45
the village. Explained by a traveller visiting Bandipur,
“There is a feeling that people here (in Bandipur) run guesthouses and other services not
because they love doing it, but because it seems an easy way of income” (Klauss, T)
Although some travellers are not optimistic over the current development of the village, the
mainstream of local people are seeing a promising future for Bandipur. Nonetheless, diverse actors
see the future of Bandipur through different lenses. On the one hand, there are interviewees who
are orientated on improvements brought by development but on the other hand there is a minority
of the respondents who are reflecting on possible treats in the future. These future concerns are
mainly related to: increase of garbage, water supply, people basing their income only on tourism
industry, lack of management, decrease in farming production, Bandipur becoming retirement village
as well as Bandipur losing its attractiveness as a tourism destination.
Only some of the actors were reflecting not only to the actual consequences, but were also sharing
their ideas about what should be done in order to improve the life of Bandipur in future. However for
most of the scenarios tourism development is reflected as the main theme or solution. According to
Mr. Manihumar Pradhan (TNR),
“In case if the flow of tourism increases it could happen that the development becomes
unmanageable, that could affect the image of the place. Local people want to keep tourism
development under control. It has to have slow and steady development not only in Bandipur,
but also spreading to the surrounding villages.”
In spite of the various concerns and possible scenarios, the mainstream of the respondents in
Bandipur are expecting positive development in a long term. With the words of the respondents
themselves, they are seeing a bright future for the village. Reflected by Mr. Birja Lal Pariyar (TNR),
“The future of Bandipur is bright. Bandipur will achieve more progress. Even if it will not
happen in my lifetime, at least it will be for my sons.”
Although in this sub-chapter I have assumed that the road is the main reason for the rebirth of the
place and modernisation; by approaching this issue from a broader perspective, it is not clear, if the
presence of the road is going to remain as a positive development for most stakeholders, or it is
going to become an issue of conflict in a future. This assumption is mostly based on the impacts of
regular circulation of new people in the village. During the field work it was experienced that in some
(mainly non-touristic) areas of Bandipur, local people are getting annoyed by presence of tourists in
their private space. A direct encounter with locals was experienced while reaching one remote
guesthouse located in the suburbs of the village. In order to visit this particular accommodation, the
guests always have to walk through the yards of other people’s houses. In this way there is a feeling
that in some cases the “backstage” of people’s lives is exposed to tourists (MacCannell, 1976), which
has resulted in annoyance from the side of the villagers.
Different situation has been observed in the central, traffic free streets of the village. There you have
a feeling that people perceive tourists as their big possibility for better future. On one hand, people
living in this area seem to share a silent pride about the space they inhabit. In this area it can be
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46
often observed how adults are instructing their children to greet tourists and to wave at them while
they are passing. On the other hand, the vehicle-free area is quite big in comparison to the village
itself and it is surprising to see the amount of upcoming tourism services locals provide there. It
almost feels like the majority of the new entrepreneurs are not even orientating to fulfil the needs of
tourists, but are rather providing a service, because his/her neighbour was/is successful with it. In
general, Nepal is practicing so-called copy-paste economy. It means that if one person is successful
with one product, the same service will soon be provided by the neighbours. In Bandipur it is not
happening on a large scale, yet; nevertheless this is an issue which can not be left without attention
since there is a chance of Bandipur losing its attractiveness.
Before doing the research in Bandipur, I was doing my internship in Bhaktapur which is a UNESCO
World Heritage city in Nepal. During my stay there I learned that by seeing that the place is
acknowledged, the local municipality is asking an entrance fee for visiting it. In Kathmandu valley and
surroundings of it to ask money for visiting a part of a city is a common practice. Accordingly, the fact
that there is no entrance fee for visiting Bandipur was a relief. It is not because of the amount you
save, but rather because the fees are changing my expectations and in paid destinations I am
expecting an added value to the destination.
Not only travellers but also local people are reflecting over diverse facilities that are making their
living easier in the site. Various services such as education possibilities, the hospital, goat and silk
farms as well as food and accommodation, are making the life in Bandipur more convenient. In the
country where I am coming from, a place may receive a status of town after it is inhabited by five
thousand people and has basic facilities for its residents and guests. Consequently, it may be said
that in some perspectives I also perceive Bandipur as a town located in a rural environment.
In spite of its remoteness, the local supply of accommodation and food possibilities are evaluated
with mixed feelings. While some service providers are trying their best to satisfy the needs of
travellers, in some places (both accommodation and restaurants) there is a feeling that the business
is run not because people have knowledge and interest, but rather due to positive experiences from
the side of co-villagers. Not only by me, but also by other travellers it was experienced that some
providers in Bandipur tend to overcharge their customer for services of rather low quality (in terms
of speed, cleanness, variety) in comparison with others similar service providers in the village.
As a part of my research I was visiting different restaurants for almost every meal. In this way I was
trying to get an idea what is the service quality in Bandipur. Personally I am positioning myself as an
individual traveller who is mainly consuming budget or middle class services while being on the
move. At the end of the fieldwork I could conclude that the service quality in Bandipur varies a lot.
Subsequently, in numerous cases I had a feeling that local entrepreneurs do not understand
travellers and their needs. Therefore a necessity for training and additional knowledge was
recognised. Nevertheless, in my opinion the service provided in Bandipur is adequate for various
budget groups and interests.
In my opinion, every one of us has different backgrounds and therefore also diverse ways how we
perceive reality. Some people explain the start of tourism in Bandipur with the first two guesthouses
founded at around 20 years ago. Some other people rather relate it to the building of the road while
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47
some others believe that Bandipur became a recognised tourism destination after the activities of
BECTP. I think all the opinions contain some truth in them. However, I see that the current tourism
development in Bandipur is highly affected by the activities run by BECTP. And somehow after the
project has been accomplished for more than five years already, it has been noticed that no recent
activities related to infrastructure development, training or information provision can be found.
Bandipur is included as a destination in the Lonely Planet and other guide-books that are providing a
lot of insight information over the destination. During the field visit it was observed that the village is
still relying on the amenities developed during BECTP. Based on the informational materials
available, during this project, the infrastructure, signing and informative materials (booklets) were
developed so that the visitor could find their way without an actual need of a guide. Since the street
signs are getting less readable or they are getting broken, a need for tourism infrastructure
improvements is recognised.
Through the encounters with the local people I have an impression that for the majority of
Bandipurians it is evident that tourists are visiting Bandipur to enjoy the traffic-free central streets
and the mountain view (which mainly cannot be spotted). But is it really so? While some actors have
mentioned that they are looking for possibilities to increase the average visitor stay in the
destination, I have noticed that there are no additional activities organised that would stimulate
backpackers to extend their stay. Most of backpackers in Nepal are long-haul and long-term
travellers who are mainly a flexible market group if their interest is attracted.
However, the attractiveness of Bandipur has been questioned by various actors. In spite that the
village has its traffic-free Bazaar, the numbers of modern buildings outside the main streets of the
centre area are a disturbing factor. By noticing the great change in the landscape of the village I am
wondering how long the visitors are going to find Bandipur attractive if the growth will continue in
the present way? On the other hand, it would be ridiculous to ask people not to orientate on their
own needs and stop building in order to fulfil the interests of tourists instead.
Aside from the visual image, also behaviour of inhabitants in Bandipur is affecting the attractiveness
of the destination. Tourists are often reflecting on issues such as: paying extra for public transport,
being pushed to take a guide (in Siddha cave) while other (Nepali) tourists do not have to do it, being
asked for money, long waiting time in restaurant, people being pushed to take a room etc. These
examples underline the importance of small experiences that are contributing to the creation of the
destination image.
With reference to the popularly-cited Butler’s Destination Life Cycle model, there is a worry
concerning the future of Bandipur. Based on the researcher’s observations, Bandipur is reaching the
stage of stagnation and it is not clear yet what will follow – rejuvenation or decline. Although I have a
personal attachment to Bandipur, I have my doubts that the current way of development will bring
rejuvenation. I would rather like to assume that in terms of tourism, with the condition that political
situation of Nepal will remain stable the destination will get stuck in several years of stagnation. This
assumption is based on the accessibility of Bandipur and its proximity to one of the must see tourism
destinations of the country – Pokhara.
Based on the knowledge gathered through travelling and academic activities, it has been learned that
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48
many destinations in the world after being taken off of the tourism map are experiencing a deep
recession. Although there is no actual ground for coming to this conclusion, no part of the world has
a guaranteed flow of tourism, especially not within developing and post conflict country. Therefore, I
recognize a need not only to orientate on current issues, but also manage the destination in a way
that it is viable also without a presence of tourism in it. Although I am a passionate traveller, I believe
that the interests of the local people living in the destination should always have a priority over the
interests of tourists.
Living in the Field
It does not really matter where we are coming from and what are our beliefs, the human mind is
shaped to search for improvement. The reality and theory sometimes become contradictory,
because it is so easy to get confused in different terms. It was obvious during the fieldwork in
Bandipur that the local people are interested in growth. It does not matter if the impacts of tourists
or the effects of TV are related to the new ways, there is a feeling that majority of people in Bandipur
are ready for development. What about the interests of the minority? How about the people who are
seeing tourists as intruders into their lives? It is fashionable to state that every voice matters, but it is
difficult to believe if it is really so. I do not have enough knowledge to state that the society of
Bandipur is becoming fragmented but there are evidence indicating the lack of common tourism
awareness among the villagers. Based on the knowledge gathered through theoretic studies, tourism
development of a destination may be endangered if there is no support of the local people.
Another threat for the destination is the lack of coordination. I have a feeling that everyone in
Bandipur is doing what feels the best for themselves. But would not it be better if some common
goal would be set to strive for? While writing this I am completely aware that my idea could be
rather written for a Western audience, since the working style in Bandipur (and Nepal in general)
significantly differs. Nepal is a post-conflict country where actual unrests (or Banda, as locals call
them) are still taking place; therefore I have a feeling that people in Bandipur are focused on their
immediate future rather than sustainable long-term plans. Based on the way how the respondents
express their opinions, I have a feeling that people are carrying a fear within themselves. I mean,
people in Bandipur are afraid of possible changes in Nepal’s political stability and its possible effects
on their community. Moreover, if I understand the Maoist impacts on Bandipur appropriately, I can
imagine that for the locals, the main focus is related to their current lives rather than some abstract
tourism attractiveness of the village.
Nevertheless, from my personal point of view, in addition to its tourism product, Bandipur is
attractive due to the fact that no entrance fee for visiting the site from international travellers is
required. It is possible that this situation is also due to the lack of management. Yet, the experience
that many smaller and bigger Nepali destinations are requiring entrance fee, brings a welcoming
feeling while discovering Bandipur as a destination where travellers are being treated/ seen
differently. Overall, based on my backpacker experiences while exploring the country, I have a feeling
that majority of Nepali people are seeing white travellers as rich people who never have to work.
Anyhow, through my stay in Bandipur I managed to try out around twenty different restaurants and
two guesthouses. I experienced that the service quality differs from place to place, while pricing was
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49
mainly set similar. While looking back to my fieldwork period I remember that in many places a
similar menu by its looks and content was provides with equal pricing system although the difference
in service quality was huge. In addition, I had a feeling that the main principle of these businesses
was to have a pricing strategy similar to their competitors in the neighbourhood, whereas the quality
of the services was of secondary importance. Moreover, with this example I do not mean only the
situations when tourists are overpriced. Especially while visiting very local restaurants, I could notice
that the service was often much better than experienced in some tourist-oriented place and people
more motivated to communicate with you, although their English skills and my Nepali skills were not
sufficient enough. By this I mean, even if I am suggesting that some additional tourism training for
service providers in Bandipur is needed, there were many cases recognised that service providers are
trying to learn about the needs of tourists.
Although Bandipurians are trying to improve their tourism supply in many ways, I find the issue
related to heritage preservation of the village as a difficult one. After several respondents informed
me that during BECTP two guesthouses received a soft loan to repair their enterprises and
afterwards did not give this money further to other accommodation providers for preservation of the
village, I could notice that my attitude to the place was changing. According to the project conditions,
after the loan receiving guesthouses would earn some money through tourism, they were expected
to give this money to other guesthouses for building preservation so that more of the old houses of
the central streets may be preserved. I see this as a very negative practice and based on the amount
of respondents who did reflect on this issue, I have a feeling that the villagers are feeling sorry for the
way this money was managed and are still carrying a weak hope that maybe one day the money will
be given further for the village development. In general, I am reflecting on the suburbs of the village
as an ugly part due to the modern buildings and changing visual image. At the same time I am feeling
compassionate to those people who are still carrying a hope that there will be a chance for
conservation also for other buildings of the main streets of Bandipur.
Based on the respondent’s reflections (especially those of tourists), the guests are noticing that due
to the visual change of the village, it is becoming unattractive at least for some of the travellers. By
experiencing that the tour from Kathmandu to Pokhara and vice versa may take up to eight hours if a
fast tourism transport is used, I do believe that Bandipur will remain included in the tourism map due
to its location and proximity to the Prithi Highway. Moreover, the village has a positive image among
the Nepali people living in the Kathmandu Valley. Bandipur is often suggested as an adorable
destination by local travel agencies and it is included in several travel guide books which are used by
individual travellers… In my opinion, the image of Bandipur as a tourism destination is positive and as
long as it is developed by respecting travellers’ needs, it will continue receiving new visitors.
Nevertheless, there is no viable destination without support of the local people; therefore the
interests of the locals should be fulfilled before the tourist demands.
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4.3. Socio-cultural impacts (SCI)
Accidental encounters with local people helped me to understand Bandipurians way of living.
Through communication with the respondents it could be noticed that people in Bandipur are aware
of their castes and often are sharing some kind of pride in their status. In comparison, it was
observed while doing research in Kathmandu Valley, that people from lower castes there would be
trying to hide their roots or they would be telling a different story about themselves. In Bandipur
people seemed to be more open while reflecting on their own social groups. Reflected by the female
porters in Bandipur,
“We remember that 10-20 years ago there was a very strict caste system. It often happened
that when we were going to the well for collecting water, we were not allowed to, because
we cannot go close to the people from higher caste. Nowadays we are allowed to go into
hotels and have a tea in restaurants. We are only not allowed to enter the homes of the
Brahmins’ (highest caste), but in other ways we are free… People are becoming more
educated in comparison to the past. So they are more flexible on castes” (Kamala, Aite, Suku
and Kamala, TNR)
The research material shows that not only persons from lower castes, but also people from higher
class are noticing the change into caste system of Bandipur. Thus, also the general opinion from the
side of respondents showed the opinion that the caste system is getting weaker in Bandipur in
comparison to past. According to a local student representing Brahmins,
“The caste system is slowly losing its importance in several parts of Nepal; but in Bandipur
and surrounding villages it matters what is your surname. For example, I am a Brahmin and
for me it is not important, but for my grandfather caste is very important. And it happens that
some people are not allowed to enter the house.” (Krishna, TNR).
However, local people agree that there is a significant change while reflecting on the caste system in
Bandipur. Some of them explain this change with education and the influence from the outside. For
example, Mr. Bharat Kumar Kayastha (TNR) reflects that in Europe and USA, the only distinction
between people is female and male. Moreover, there are respondents who believe that not only
caste system is changing, but the village is receiving a bigger mix of ethnical groups. Stated by Mr.
Bikram Piya (TNR), if historically Newari ethnical group dominated in Bandipur, then nowadays there
is a big mix of ethnical groups living in the village (Brahmins, Chetri, Newar, Magar, Gumrin, Sarki,
Sunar, Kami etc.) and Newari ethnical group is in minority. Besides, the respondents are reflecting
that in spite of the differences between various ethnical groups living in Bandipur, there is a vast
difference among people who are living in Bandipur and tourists. Explained by Mr. Manihumar
Pradhan (TNR).
“Local people are seeing tourists kissing in the street and they do not like this disrespect.
There is a big cultural difference and it affects our culture because local people are copying
tourists. Also local people (especially younger generation) are doing this. The young
generation is copying the foreign culture and I am afraid that there is no way how traditional
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51
culture can be preserved.”
Although it is difficult to estimate the exact impact of tourism in demonstration effect of Bandipur,
local people are noticing that the behaviour of their community members is changing. In general
opinion of the respondents, they are seeing demonstration effect as a negative change. Thus, it is
complicated to estimate in which scale the change is brought by tourism and what are the effects of
other factors, like TV and internet. Supported by Sisters Evanzuela and Mirium (TNR),
“We think that because of the electricity people have TV. And instead of playing outside,
people are watching TV and they are less naïve, nowadays. TV is changing children
behaviour.”
On the one hand, local people understand that tourist culture differs from the Nepali one. Based on
respondent views, the presence of tourists in Bandipur is not only causing changes in terms of
demonstration effect, but also some behavioural change in the host society has been noticed by the
interviewees. As two negative aspects begging and cheating are mentioned. Explained by a traveller
in Bandippur,
“Also tourists should be educated. Begging as a problem is increasing and if tourists did not
stimulate it, it would not happen.” (Jeffry, T).
To prevent the possibility of interest conflicts, some of the quotes in the text further are published
anonymously and respondents’ relation to the village is given instead. As one of the most reflected
issues related to cheating is the situation where two guesthouses after receiving a soft loan for
architectural preservation of their buildings did not pass it further to the next guesthouses. Another
aspect often reflected by the respondents is the increase in food and living costs:
“Due to the development food and living costs have increased in comparison to the
surrounding villages (e.g. Dumre). Partly it is explained by the transportation costs. However,
if increase should be with 1 Rs, in many cases the actual rise is with 5rs instead” (TR)
Unreasonable change in pricing system in Bandipur is reflected by both, local inhabitants and
tourists. Thus, while locals are noticing an increase in prices for products, tourists are reflecting on
the pricing differences for travellers in comparison with Nepali people as well. This difference in
pricing has been reflected starting from public transport till prices in regular shops of Bandipur.
Nevertheless, while reflecting on the services in Bandipur some local people also feel overcharged
while using the facilities of the local porters:
“Also the Dalits – or the caste who are porters- they are overcharging for their services. For
example, if a jeep for bringing the stuff 8 km up charges 25 Rs per bag, then the porters for
carrying it from the bus-stop to the house are charging 30 Rs per bag” (TNR)
In spite of some factors that are affecting the life in Bandipur, the respondents perceive the village as
a safe destination where the level of crime is very low. Based on the opinion of the local people, the
crime is not a problem in the village. Moreover, from the perspective of respondents, the life quality
in Bandipur is improving. And the growth can be observed not only for entrepreneurs, but for all
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52
social groups. This situation is stimulated through tourism development, since tourism value chain is
providing benefits to various related stakeholders. Explained by Mrs. Luna Pradhan (TR),
“Even non-educated people who are working as porters, farmers, builders etc., have regular
job possibilities nowadays.”
People in Bandipur appreciate the change. According to Mr. Patthar Pradhan (TR) nowadays many
people in Bandipur are directly or indirectly related to tourism – some provide accommodation,
some vegetables and some meat. Local people emphasize that in comparison with the past, the
situation in the village has significantly improved. Supported by Bhandari Familly (TNR),
“Before people were farming and if they did not, they had difficulties to survive. Nowadays
there are more working possibilities – so it is easier for everyone.”
On the one hand, local people are seeing tourism development as an opportunity for further
development of the village. But on the other hand, there are respondents who see tourism as a
threat to future growth. Some respondents are getting worried while seeing the scope in which the
development of the village is being based on tourism development. While some people are
emphasizing the potential of green/ organic farming, some other respondents reflect on the
necessity to find the ways to stimulate local youth not to leave the village. Specified by Sisters
Evanzuela and Mirium, (TNR),
“More jobs for example in education should be created, otherwise educated young people will
leave Bandipur and it will return into a retirement village where some people are employed in
tourism – restaurants and lodges.”
While some respondents are reflecting on the future change, there are respondents who
acknowledge that the village has been changed already. Many interviewees are reflecting on
conservation and restoration efforts with sadness. On the one hand they reflect on the past (BECTP)
where two guesthouses received a soft loan for their development with an idea that they would pass
it further to other accommodation providers after earning it back, but these guesthouses did not.
And on the other hand, respondents are expressing their doubt over the upcoming numbers of new
buildings which are built without respecting the old tradition. Reflected by a grandfather of a local
family,
“There was forest everywhere in the surroundings and the area of Bandipur in the past. There
were little houses and mainly they were in a distance from each other. But nowadays the
forest is gone and tourist houses are being built.” (Bhandari Family, TNR).
Definitely, the lifestyle for people in Bandipur is changing and so does the environment. According to
some opinions, the rising numbers of buildings is representing also increase in incoming tourism that
in general is assumed as a positive phenomenon in villagers’ view. Furthermore, together with
tourists also the numbers of Nepali people starting their lives in Bandipur are increasing; therefore
respondents are seeing increase of new accommodations as a common consequence. Nonetheless,
complementary to maintaining the site according to the tradition, respondents (mainly tourists) are
suggesting managing the destination in a way that it does not become overcrowded with tourism
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53
facilities,
“If you look from the hill, the Bazar still looks beautiful but the suburbs do not” (Mrs. Jharna
and Mr. Manoj, TNR)
Opposite to the tourists, the Bandipurians do not reflect on tourism facilities as a problem, but are
rather expressing their worry concerning the resources that have to be shared between the villagers
and their guests. The main concern of the people there is the accessibility of water. Reflected by Mr.
Bikram Piya (TNR),
“There is a water crisis in Bandipur and the lack of drinking water is an increasing problem.
Two water projects were run within last 50 years in the area. But nowadays the number of
houses is increasing and people are looking for possibilities to get more access to water
sources. There is no alternative to water.”
During the semi-structured interviews almost all respondents reflected to water as an increasing
worry for the local people. From one side, respondents are expressing their gratitude that in most of
the houses water tap has been built, but on the other hand, it often happens that there is no water
supply in it and people still are forced to carry water. Furthermore, the opinion of most respondents
embraces a believe that the water problem has been decreased compared with the situation in past.
Explained by Bhandari Family (TNR),
“Because of the water problem sometime there is no water in our tap. At those moments we
often have to walk half an hour to gather it and carry it home. It also happens that other
people sometimes are coming to our tap to take water… And then it is also no problem.”
In addition, the local entrepreneurs and guesthouse owners are emphasizing their efforts on
decreasing the water problem in the village. While one owner of a guesthouse acknowledges that he
is collecting and recycling rain water in his guest-house, some other bigger hotels are bringing water
from the outside. However, respondents acknowledge that the water issue is becoming harder and
no solution is seen to solve this problem in future. Electricity and regular power-cuts is another
concern where no solution has been seen by the respondents, since also this problem is countrywide.
Overall, the respondents are acknowledging that the village is getting developed, only as a price of
development they also have to cope with the increasing amount of garbage. In general, waste,
garbage and noise pollution have been stated by several respondents as the sectors where the most
attention should be paid to. Nevertheless, there are people in the village in whose opinion the village
itself is cleaner in comparison to the past. Suggested by Mr. Patthar Pradhan (TR),
“With the rapid increase of inhabitants, pollution in some places can be observed. Also air
pollution is noticeable. Before the air was neutral, but nowadays - you can smell some
plastic.”
Another sector where improvement has been noted by the respondents is sanitation and actual
existence of toilets for households in the village. Based on the respondent opinion, the improvement
in sanitation possibilities has improved the life of Bandipurians. Nevertheless, only some respondents
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54
were reflecting on this issue during the interviews. According to Sisters Evanzuela and Mirium (TNR),
“Nowadays almost everyone has a toilet. Like 5-6 years ago, village people made an
organisation that would cover half costs for building private toilets for local households.
Before many families were without one.”
In general, respondents acknowledge that there is a convenience in their life with the current
development in Bandipur. Nowadays there is variety of goods, electricity, phone, transport etc.
Based on the responses, there was a limited choice that was mainly based on the seasonal products
so that even getting an egg was exclusive in past. According to the respondents, product accessibility
has increased not only because of the transportation possibilities, but also due to the fact that the
local people are producing more goods nowadays. Supported by Mr. Patthar Pradhan (TR),
“Together with tourism development more variety came into the market. People could also
buy water, chocolate, meat etc. This development is important, because nowadays there is
also a goat farm and a chicken farm in the surrounding which was not there before.”
In addition to the accessibility of goods, also local dance may be arranged if such a demand arises in
Bandipur. Dancing has been mentioned as a tourist entertainment in the village and this activity is
perceived by the local people as preservation of culture rather than commodification. Explained by
Mr. Bikram Piya (TNR),
“Development of tourism has helped preservation of culture. For example, when hotels
request to perform a traditional dance, the dancers receive 10.000 Rs. Consequently dance is
becoming a source of income.”
Explained by Bhandari Family (TNR), Bandipurians through experiences gathered from the presence
of tourists are also learning about their own culture. In their opinion, people are getting aware of
their own culture as well as they have a chance to learn from/about other cultures. For example, the
local tailor has acknowledged that due to the presence of tourism the traditional purses are being
made and sold to domestic and international travellers. According to Mr. Birja Lal Pariyar (TNR),
these purses almost disappeared but are getting noticed again. Moreover, there are voices which
confirm that the development in Bandipur is stimulating communication and social interaction also
among local inhabitants of Bandipur:
“The development brought awareness in the village. At the beginning people did not use to
go out of their houses and did not communicate with each other; but nowadays they are
taking active participation in community life” (Mr. Bharat Kumar Kayastha, TNR).
During the first couple of days in Bandipur I was quite confused through communication with locals
due to their openness while reflecting on caste system. At that time I still had an image that Bandipur
is mainly inhabited by Newari ethnical group. During my internship experiences in Bhaktapur (a city
mainly inhabited by Newari people) I learned that mainly people there are not open when the issues
related to their social group are touched. Moreover, in Bhaktapur I was told that in a city people are
less orientated on their castes than in countryside’s where the caste still maters very much. After
reaching Bandipur I was impressed. Although I was located in a rural destination, people there were
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55
more open to their social status than in the city. However, this situation could be explained with
Bandipur being a village where in general people know each other and therefore there is no use to
give a false identity.
From one side it is known that people in Nepal (especially women) on many cases, and often in
everyday life, would be wearing their traditional clothing. But on the other hand, it has been
observed that on several occasions, traditional dress has been replaced with western or modern
fashion. It is difficult to estimate in which level presence of tourists is involved in this tendency and
could it be related to demonstration effect. But since it has been observed all over the country, there
is a reason to believe that tourists are not the main cause for this change in Bandipur. Through
observing many students proceeding to their schools in non-Nepali fashion clothes, there is a feeling
that this trend is affecting peoples’ dressing style more effectively. Since school children have to
wear their uniforms six days a week, it is quite likely that people who are used to school uniforms
would also use similar every-day clothes.
Concerning the behavioural change, it is also very difficult to say where the influences are coming
from. Especially the young generation in Bandipur and Nepal are very attracted to Internet, sites like
Youtube and Facebook. Therefore it would be incorrect to blame only tourism development for the
behavioural change of younger generations. By experiencing the actual change from Soviet Latvia to
Democratic Latvia, I have to say that young people are adapting fast to the change. Only the aspects
which they are following and cultivating in their own behaviour are always dependent also on their
families and society they are living in. For example, some respondents were reflecting over tourists
sharing their intimate moments in public places. It was noticed that although locals do not appreciate
this behaviour, they also for some reason do not object it. It is possible that it is a cultural thing not
to reflect on inappropriate behaviour. Just, if nobody is setting it as a bad example, then it is quite
possible that some people are starting to cultivate it also in their own behaviour. Therefore, it can be
said that the local society and everyone’s family is playing an important role due to people’s
perception of and willingness to copy the behaviour of strangers. The same could be said also about
begging in Bandipur.
Although the respondents are acknowledging behavioural change in Bandipur, there was a feeling
that the change is occurring faster than Bandipurians realize. In the case of Bandipur there was a
feeling that often children would ask for something just for fun. I think that the main aspect that
stimulates begging in Bandipur are the positive stories of people benefiting from tourists. It has been
heard that some people are making friends with travellers and their school or living costs are paid by
these travellers. Or that somebody would give a nice watch to a kid just because this kid looks lovely
in the picture. There are several motives that stimulate this activity; however, I do not believe it
happens without an influence of adult’s world.
On these moments I tend to remember one encounter while visiting an old part of a non-touristic city
in Nepal. During sightseeing and taking some pictures of architecture and pottery, some local kids
started to approach me with a question to take a picture. I had no intention to do that, but finally I
agreed and by thinking that I am making a favour to kids by letting them to see themselves on a
screen I had their pictures in my camera. Apparently, their intention was not the pictures, but the
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56
sweets what they are supposed to receive after posing to the tourist. The kids were small and there
were some adults constantly giving instructions how they should ask for their chocolates. In general
it was very sad to see how big the footprint has been left in the destination already.
In case of Bandipur it seems that the main begging targets for children in Bandipur are organised
groups. An encounter of kid running after tourists or even hanging on them, is the reality how several
children are doing their business in Bandipur. Thus, for some reason the begging activities are mainly
taking part in the suburbs of the village (e.g. surroundings of the picnic spot) and in very rare
situations in the touristic streets. From the one side it could be said that kids and tourists should be
educated not to do this. But on another hand, it has been observed that when Nepali visitors are
coming to Bandipur (especially on Saturday) they are offering money or sweets to children.
Therefore, it can be described as a very normal situation if children are also trying their luck with
international travellers.
If begging in Bandipur is rather related to children’s habits, then cheating is mainly done by adults. In
general, I do not experience little increase in prices for tourists as something bad. However, the open
cheating encounters I perceive as a very negative sign. I was experiencing the site from two
perspectives – as a tourist during my first visit in Bandipur (September, 2011) and as a researcher
during my second one (March/April, 2012). Overall, I do not see cheating as a problem in Bandipur,
however some places were recognised where tourists are offered one price, but at the moment of
payment a higher price is asked. If you are a traveller in developing countries, it is a regular practice
to pay more than locals have to. However, the way how it is done is what matters. Even if I as a
tourist know that I am paying double the price for the service I will not mind it, if it is done in a good
manner. But, if somebody will push me into using some service and afterwards I will have to pay
more than previously agreed, it will be considered as cheating. Hence, I have to conclude that actual
cheating problem has been recognised on a low scale in Bandipur, yet.
In comparison, I have been doing a research in a remote Nong Khiaw village in Laos. I can derive a lot
of similarities between Bandipur and this other village due to various aspects: their location,
increasing movement of new residents, steady tourism flow etc. During the time of the research the
destination was on the tourism map for a short while, but tourism management institutions had to
acknowledge that the development is getting out of control, because a new tendency of theft was
starting to appear. Thus, based on the experiences of other destinations, it has been learned that
often people who are used to little income do not really know what to do with their money received
from tourism activities. I have spotted several examples within numerous destinations where many
people instead of hoped empowerment, are struggling with alcohol and drug problems caused by
irresponsible personal financial management. Although this is not a general tendency, it often leads
to increase in crime.
In general, Bandipurians through provision of job possibilities also to deprived social groups have
made a great step in stimulating social equality among its citizens. Although there are respondents
who state that Bandipurians are becoming more money-oriented, it has to be acknowledged that
without money in Bandipur parents can’t even send their child to school due to the school fees.
Thus, it has been recognized, although there are job possibilities in the village, these are mainly low-
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57
paid jobs.
As a contradictory occupation, porters were recognized. Although the situation of porters and their
working conditions in Nepal have received wide attention of Western media, in situation of Bandipur,
they can be mentioned as a group who are receiving a lot of benefits due to the fact that the central
streets of the village are traffic-free and only some castes may be working as porters. It is not certain,
but it has been witnessed that some respondents are describing the pricing asked for porter’s
services as very high in comparison to their work. However, since only one respondent reflected on
this issue, it should not be taken as an overall opinion.
There is a concern that more and more people in Bandipur are seeing themselves providing tourism
related services. This anxiety may be frightening, since there are people who by seeing success
stories of their neighbours are also willing to shift their traditional sources of income to tourism
related occupancies. From one side there is nothing bad about it. But on the other hand, there is a
worry that by orientating on tourism sector, Bandipurians could forget about their own
development. This assumption is based on the fact that there is no realistic possibility that
international tourism flow in future could vividly increase in Bandipur to satisfy the needs of the
rising businesses. This is supported by the fact that the vast majority of international travellers are
arriving in Nepal through Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu and the capacity of the
airport is already maximized.
By visiting such touristic places as Thamel in Kathmandu, Pokhara or Nagarkot, it was observed how
tourism development in Nepal is restructuring the local way of living. Although tourism development
in Bandipur has not yet reached the level of mentioned destinations, there is an anxiety that through
opening more and more tourism orientated services (including souvenir shops) also the destination
could lose its uniqueness in comparison to the rest of Nepal. From my viewpoint Bandipur is a very
nice destination which has future potential if the development is managed well.
From the first moment I entered the main streets of Bandipur, I knew this place took a part of me. So
uncommon in Nepal, most of the balconies were decorated with pots of natural flowers which added
up to the atmosphere. I was thrilled how nicely these plants contributed to creating a sense of
ancientness for the architecture of Bandipur in its main streets. This feeling was changed after
several stakeholders were reflecting on the situation that a loan was given to Bandipurians to
preserve and restore the city centre, but it was taken by two individuals and not given further for the
development of the place. Every time this information was given by some of the respondents, I could
notice that my attitude to Bandipur is changing. I am still seeing it as a beautiful place, but
additionally there was also some feeling of pettiness for the people who are still hoping to have a
chance to improve their properties.
When thinking of the overall sense of place in Bandipur I remember the first research days when I
was walking around the place with my camera to make a nice shot from a distance. Even after
climbing a hill I could notice that there is no way how to take a nice picture of the central streets,
because there are very many new looking buildings that would spoil the view. At that moment I
realised that the place is actually experiencing a great change and I did not really like what I was
seeing. The ancient look can be noticed while you are within the central streets of Bandipur, but
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while looking from a distance the beauty is being disturbed by modernity.
Another modern approach in Bandipur is to offer a traditional dance as tourism entertainment.
According to the interview material, the respondents relate the use of traditional dance for tourism
entertainment as a form of cultural preservation. Personally I rather relate it to commodification.
However, Bandipur is inhabited by various ethnical groups and there is a possibility that by
performing for tourists the actual tradition is being preserved.
For Example, throughout internship period in Bhaktapur Tourism Development Committee (Nepal), I
had a possibility to experience and participate in organization of two big cultural (dance) events –
one public and another private one. During both of these events which took place in the main square
of the city, I observed that even if both of these events were orientated on some particular audience,
it was most enjoyed by the local people who were queuing around the stage. This encounter made
me realise that even if the dance is actually aimed on entertaining international visitors, it also
attracts the attention of the locals. And there is a chance that through these dances more people are
attracted to learn how to dance and pass this cultural tradition further.
While some parts of the World is experiencing water as a common resource, for Bandipurians and
Nepal as a country it is highly socio-cultural issue. In order to satisfy their own needs people have to
communicate and collaborate with each other. In general, I think Nepal is not a country where
people collaborate willingly. However water is a sector where community strength was observed. It
does not matter from which caste people in Bandipur are, they all are sharing the same problem and
consequently they are also looking for a common goal. It is similar also with the waste management
issues in the village. I had a feeling that people do not really know how to cope with increasing
garbage problem in Bandipur. Through actual participation in a weekly waste collecting campaign, it
was experienced that after collection of the waste from the streets, it was further dumped in some
other place for burning. In my opinion by replacing visual pollution with smell pollution the problem
is not solved, but it makes the main streets more attractive to the visitor eye.
Overall, I am a bit sceptic about respondents being too positive about tourism development in
Bandipur. Of course I am seeing the positive learning possibilities and chances for unique
experiences. However I do not see a very bright future of Bandipur if it will be developed in the way
as it is at the moment. In the current moment, the locals are stating that tourists are necessary for
them. However, it would be more viable if the people would discover a way how to demonstrate
travellers that Bandipur is a place that adds up to tourist experiences. I believe that by saving the
local culture and presenting tourists the local traditional lifestyle, the villagers could not only
preserve their own culture, but also share it with the rest of the world. There are many options for
developing new products in the village by relating them with the sense of place and narratives. Or
just by involving tourists in everyday duties, like farming, cooking or religious rituals. By assessing
similar projects all around the world, the demand arises as soon as supply is in the market.
Furthermore, these activities can be perfectly used to increase socio-cultural awareness also among
the locals. Besides, tourist involvement in everyday activities could also raise an interest among
locals to keep their traditions alive.
While it was sometimes observed that people do not know how to behave in front of the tourists or
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59
their behaviour seemed unnatural, it was explored that majority of inhabitants in Bandipur are happy
with tourism development and relate it to more positive aspects. In general, people in Bandipur are
sharing the idea that tourists are coming to the village because of its traffic free Bazaar and relaxing
atmosphere. Through communication with travellers it was noticed that there is more than that. One
reason of course is Bandipur’s convenient location between Kathmandu and Pokhara. But otherwise,
visitors are expecting a village life up there and a possibility to take a glance of an actual life in a
country side. Since mainstream tourists in Napal are mainly covering only three must see
destinations (Kathmandu Valley, Chitwan National Park and Pokhara) not a high percentage of all
travellers manage to get off of the beaten track, and Bandipur is their chance.
However, it was noticed that people in Bandipur are trying to learn from the visitors coming from
different cultures. It was presented also through conduction of the interviews. The people who were
organized for an interview mostly took a chance to ask also the questions related to my experiences
and opinions over the destination. Through different encounters with travellers, Bandipurians are
learning also about themselves. Thus, as a very important aspect related to increasing socio-cultural
awareness of the respondents in Bandipur, is the fact that not only international visitors are finding
the destination attractive, but more importantly steady flow of domestic travellers are visiting
Bandipur and people who left in the past are returning.
Living in the Field
I have to admit that first days of my stay in Bandipur (end of March and start of April, 2012) were
strange. The research in Bandipur for me was a part of almost eight month stay in Asia. During this
whole period (from September 2011till mid-April 2012) I was staying or travelling together with my
fiancé. But not this time… During my thesis fieldwork in order to gather in-depth contact with local
people I decided to be there alone. It was a great change for me, since I got used to having someone
around by then. I believe this fact was affecting my experiences not only as a person, but also as a
researcher. Moreover, I could notice that more people were approaching me when I was alone which
was beneficial for my research needs.
Looking back to my research period in Bandipur I realize I learned a lot. In some ways this fieldwork
changed my perception of tourism development in Nepal as well as I started to look at the Nepali
people differently. I mean, I was still just a visitor in the country, but I had a feeling that I could start
to understand why the things in Nepal happen the way they do. Even though I did not reach
profound understanding, I learned that there is a big gap between the way I think and act and people
in Nepal do. This is an important conclusion in terms of this study, because there is a big chance that
the meanings comprised in the paragraphs of this thesis may be interpreted differently, based on
readers personal background knowledge over the destination and its customs. I have to admit, while
reflecting on the issues concerning the caste system in Bandipur and Nepal I was trying not to hurt
anyone’s feelings. At the same time I could notice that, even after five months spending in the
country I am not able to understand the different meanings and hierarchies how Nepali society
works. Or maybe I am making this issue too complicated in my mind, since I am not familiar with the
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Nepali way of working.
Not only customs, but also dress-code was often raising questions in my mind. I was told that people
in Nepal are very conservative in their dressing habits. In order to respect them, even in the warmest
days I was wearing long trousers. Nevertheless, soon I could observe that this custom is changing not
only in the behaviour of tourists, but also for the locals all over the country, including Banbipur.
Moreover, some respondents were stating that Bandipurians are copying the behaviour of tourists.
The question is which tourists, international or domestic ones? Since Bandipur is visited by a steady
flow of domestic travellers, it could be often viewed how Nepali couple is exploring the village hand
in hand. In general, any physical public contact between people of different genders in Nepal is
considered to be inappropriate. Therefore, I started to wonder – who are the ones to blame? Are
they international travellers who do not respect the customs, domestic travellers who are giving
themselves some freedom while out of their own environment, or is it the mix of all in combination
with the Internet and TV? I believe no exact distinction can be made. Hence the fact that the local
people do not react to this disturbance while it is observed in the streets was surprising in any way.
In addition, I also think that begging is pretty much stimulated by the attitude of the society.
Personally I rarely satisfy request of a beggar. However, while being in Bandipur I could hear several
cases where an encounter with a foreigner has brought a positive change for a family. This makes me
to believe that based on positive stories when someone has been lucky to receive some benefits
from tourists, this activity is further promoted. I also personally experienced how local children are
asking for a pen, my watch, money or some other belongings. These encounters were rather
occasional leaving it up to me to choose.
Unlike the case described in the previous paragraph, we (me and my fiancé) were not left with a
choice by the guesthouse owner while visiting Bandipur for the first time. During the stay we were
provided with rather low service and before we left we were charged unexpectedly high price. It was
not a problem to pay the amount asked, but I could notice that because of this incident for some
moment I lost trust in the Nepali people while continuing my trip. This encounter definitely affected
my travel experiences as well as the image of Bandipur. Consequently, when I arrived in Bandipur for
my field research, I had rather low expectations. However, I am glad to admit that my reflected
experience was an exceptional case and my preliminary image of the village was vividly improved. So
to say, during the fieldwork period I was feeling safe in the place.
However, after noticing all the upcoming new services in Bandipur, I wonder if their needs may be
satisfied with the current visitor flow. From my perspective the tourism supply in Bandipur is
sufficient already and every next service provider is increasing the competition. I am not sure if this
assumption may be related to high class accommodation providers and restaurants, just the numbers
of guesthouses orientating on individual travellers or backpackers (middle and budget travellers)
seemed to be outrageous. There is a feeling that almost every household who has an extra space is
willing to attract visitors or other additional income. While I am also a person who prefers homestay
and interaction with the locals over a regular guesthouse room, I am seeing a danger in this
disordered development. Consequently, I hope that Bandipur manages to save its identity and does
not become a souvenir and tourism service Bazaar.
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61
Instead, I am hoping that people in Bandipur will start to add an additional value to their village and
stronger sense of place will be created. As far as I have learned, Bandipur has a rich history that may
be used as a storyline to link the travellers with the destination. Although this kind of practice has not
been experienced in Nepal till now, the information boards with actual facts presented in a form of а
story would definitely increase the experiences of the destination. I happened to meet some
travellers who were visiting Bandipur in the past. By hearing that I am doing this particular research
in the village they started to question me. I told them some little facts about the presence of Notre
Dame School, Bandipur Eco-cultural Tourism Project, trading times between India and Tibet etc. After
a brief discussion over our experiences they had to conclude that they would love to return to the
village one day and try to look at it from a different perspective.
Based on my personal impressions and the experiences provided by travellers, tourism development
is lacking the added value that Bandipur has a potential to provide. It is possible that my idea is a bit
naïve for the moment, but I believe that there is a chance to link the two sides (tourists and locals)
without further harm to the social environment. I can see a bright future for Bandipur, but I also see
a lot of initiative that is required from locals in order to reach it.
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5. Discussion
During my research I learned that the outcomes of this research may have a high local value since
opinions of people representing different social groups have been gathered and combined for the
first time. This study is conducted with the main aim to gain understanding of the activities that have
stimulated development in Bandipur and to explore how Bandipurians socially construct and
interpret tourism development and related sociocultural tourism impacts. In order to do that,
interpretivism paradigm is applied as a theoretical basis of this study. In this chapter I am covering
the outcomes of this research from two perspectives. In the first section I am discussing the
development in Bandipur as a tourism destination. And in the second one, I am relating the
outcomes of this study with other existing case studies by linking them with the chosen theoretical
framework.
Development of Bandipur as a Tourism Destination
This thesis is aimed at understanding the development in Bandipur through combining knowledge of
subjective human experiences in the destination (Jordan & Gibson, 2004). It is important to
understand that the outcomes of this research are rather non-generalizable. Yet, for those who
believe that generalization is unavoidable, required and possible (Williams, 2000), I propose to relate
their generalizations to rural destinations of Nepal and not country as such. Moreover, the findings
illustrate that tourism development in Bandipur in a form as it is nowadays is mainly caused by the
activities of Bandipur Eco-cultural Tourism Project (BECTP). It means that most probably tourism
development related issues in Bandipur significantly differ in comparison to other Nepali and world’s
rural destinations where no projects have been run.
Additionally, Bandipur is an outstanding destination, which is still highly benefiting from the activities
of BECTP even if this project has been finished five years ago (on 2007 (Joshi, 2012)). During the visit
in the destination, it can be noticed that local people are carrying some kind of pride about the place
they are living at. On the one hand Bandipurians have their rich history and dreams of future
improvements. But on the other hand, the village has gained its name as a tourism destination
among both domestic and international travellers. So to say, tourism sector in Bandipur has
increasing importance and more and more families are benefiting from tourism activities there.
Stated by Van der Duim (2011), only around twenty percentages of all projects run in tourism
destinations are feasible to continue after the project activities have been accomplished. Bandipur
definitely seems to be among the positive scenario destinations. But is it?
Bandipur Eco-cultural Tourism Project in Bandipur was developed with the main aim to reach
sustainable development through practice of ecotourism and cultural tourism activities (Joshi, 2012).
Just while visiting the site itself, there is a feeling that the development is not orientated on any
common goals, but rather has its focus on short term economic empowerment. Stated by The
International Ecotourism Society (1990) ecotourism includes responsible travel to natural areas that
conserves the environment and improves the well-being of local people. According to the research
outcomes, the local people are seeing benefits created by tourism sector; however, in general the
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conservation activities are lacking due to the absence of centralised management activities and
missing leadership. Subsequently, I have a great doubt if the destination is managed towards
sustainability. Therefore, I am also not seeing the bright future stated by the respondents of the
destination, yet.
By assessing tourism development in Bandipur, I can see that the activities (although effective) of
one project are not enough for a long term development of a destination. In this perspective I agree
with the idea of Claver et al (2006) who are stating that in order to fulfil the needs of increasingly
demanding tourists and to ensure competitive position of the destination sufficient tourism supply
and quality services should be provided. In other words, the future development of the destination
depends on both supply and demand (Cooper and Jackson, 1989), while the actual demand is highly
affected by the product provided. Moreover, while making attempts to improve the local tourism
product, it is vital to assess and demonstrate the local awareness of tourism, which is an essential
element in the empowerment process of local people (Saarinen, 2010).
After visiting Bandipur and Nepal in general, I have a feeling that people there do not see different
market groups among travellers, but rather are assessing all white travellers as wealthy people from
whom the locals may benefit. Supported through study conducted by Hepburn (2002), people in
Nepal do not categorise tourists into target groups, but rather generalize them as a separate group/
ethnic/ caste of white, developed people in South Asia. In my opinion by perceiving all tourists as
equal, destinations are making a great mistake; since various target groups tend to bring different
footprint on destinations and their socio-cultural environments.
Change in the lives of the local population is among the main impacts brought through tourism
development (Kariel and Kariel, 1982). Although it is difficult to assess the scope in which tourism
contributes to the socio-cultural change in a destination, in case of Bandipur the local people
acknowledge that their lives have been changed significantly. Yet, by relating this assumption to the
model of socio-cultural impacts presented in Figure 2.3 of this thesis, mainly people in Bandipur
refuse to notice the negative aspects of tourism and would rather reflect on the positive change in
their environment instead. There is an impression that in case if community attitudes towards
tourism development would be taken as the main criteria of destination’s sustainability (Zhang et al,
2006), then Bandipur would be rated as a highly viable destination. Hitherto, through discovering the
motives why the local respondents are highly supporting tourism development in Bandipur, the
emphasis should be focussed on the historical backgrounds of the site that are more deeply
discussed in the next section.
The Research Outcomes in Relation to Other Studies
Since there has been no previous research in Bandipur done, this case study represents an
unexplored niche. Yet, by analysing Bandipur as a tourism destination in a developing country, there
is sufficient amount of literature making it possible to compare the findings with relevant case
studies. Consequently, in this section I am reflecting on three bigger themes in relation to the case
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study, namely: mobilities, modernization through development and socio-cultural impacts.
In terms of this study it was concluded that migration, tourism and accessibility are three main
sectors contributing to the development of Bandipur as a tourism destination. Explained by Findley
(1987), it is expected that peoples’ decisions on adopting some form of migration is affected by
accessibility of their living place. And indeed, there are evidences supporting the idea that a lack of
good quality road in Bandipur motivated local people to emigrate from their home village in the past
on the one hand; and a construction of a new road at the end of 90’s is stimulating immigration flow
nowadays for both new arrivals who are planning to start their lives in Bandipur as well as travellers.
Supported by Williams and Hall (2002), there is a minor difference in conceptualization between
tourism and migration, therefore both of these aspects are perceived as interlinked activities. Based
on research results it is concluded that through developing tourism in Bandipur, the village has
become more attractive also for the Nepali people that can be explained with a fact that the number
of the local inhabitants in the village has increased more than three times during the last decade
(Bikram, 2012). Accordingly, a presence of a good quality road is socially constructed as the main
force for migration in the village.
By assessing the scope of inhabitant increase and related change in the destination, I was expecting
negative associations due to the current development from the side of Bandipurians. In spite of
several tourism case studies where new population mobility is related to the loss of traditional sense
of community (Singhanetra-Renard, 1999), the respondents are seeing the current development as
highly positive and, moreover, they also reflect on their possible future as very bright. From the first
look, this situation doesn’t make sense, but through deeper investigation it was explored that
respondents are expressing a kind of fear of their past, which they themselves tend to describe as
“the dark ages”. Accordingly, by supporting current migration flows, people in Bandipur are ensuring
that the village will not become a ghost town again.
Moreover, not only the numbers of inhabitants in the village are experiencing a rapid change, but
also the community comportment. Accordingly, Bandipurians did not tend to communicate with each
other much in the past, while nowadays development has stimulated interaction among people in
the village. Overall, there is a feeling that Bandipurians are enjoying their development; only the
inconsistency in people’s thoughts while reflecting on the village is raising a question if Bandipur is
still a village or is it transforming into a town?
While respondents are underlining the need to save their traditional culture, the effects of
“modernization” are most evident. Perhaps, modernization in Bandipur is reflected in its architecture
the most. While central streets of the village are preserved in the traditional manner, the outskirts
are transformed by increasing numbers of modern, concrete buildings. Through relating this to
destination attractiveness I agree with the notion of Formica and Uysal (2006) where they state that
development activities are reflected into attractiveness of a destination. This means that with every
improvement a destination may become more/less attractive.
I do not imply that modern approach is eradicating the local tradition, but I do agree that the feeling
of belonging to the destination is important for the development of a more rooted sense of place
(Hay, 1998) for both travellers and the local people. While no respondents were acknowledging that
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the village is losing its attractiveness in their eyes, there are various travellers according to whom the
visible changes in the destination are negatively affecting their experiences even when they are
visiting the site for the first time. This is a dangerous assumption, since there are several studies
supporting the idea that tourist destinations are largely dependent on the image it creates on its
visitors (Goodricht, 1978). Therefore, through improving existing services and facilities, there is a
chance to attract more travellers by providing better experiences. Nevertheless, while some local
entrepreneurs are explaining the existing change in Bandipur with the associated costs of
development, the interests of Bandipurians should be placed above those of the tourists.
By respecting the resident needs while developing tourism, there is a possibility to decrease the
negative impacts and increase positive ones. Nonetheless, it is a difficult task, since impacts in
Bandipur are differently perceived by diverse groups of stakeholders. Although it is not the aim of
this study, comparatively the opinions of diverse respondents (related to tourism sector, non-related
to tourism sector and tourists) significantly vary. In other words, there is some pattern that unites
the views within each of these groups. But on the other hand, the general opinions of the respondent
groups on similar issues tend to differ. While this assumption could be explained with my role (as a
researcher) that I have chosen to take during this study it was not my intention to compare opinions
of different respondents based on their relationship to the tourism sector.
Overall, all respondents have acknowledged that importance of caste system in Bandipur is declining
and they are noticing a change in the behaviour of local people. When questioned into further detail,
the respondents (although arriving to the similar conclusion) are providing diverse reasoning’s that
had caused this change. The difference in opinions may be explained by various realities through
which respondents interpret and construct their opinions (Jordan and Gibson, 2004). Though, it was
a bit confusing while conducting this research in Bandipur, since mostly respondents were reflecting
over the positive aspects of socio-cultural change. Opposite to these experiences, tourism literature
is mainly orientating on specifying and discovering negative impacts (Pizam, 1978) what made this
research a little contradictory for me. Even after the research has been accomplished I still have not
found the actual reason why the local respondents where reflecting mainly on positive aspects of the
development. Do they really share believe that tourism does not affect them negatively and
therefore rejects any undesirable consequences? Or did they try to make a better impression over
their home village? Further conclusions and recommendations are provided within the next chapter.
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6. Conclusion and Recommendations
By taking Bandipur as a case study, this research provides insight information over the aspects that
have stimulated tourism development in the village and the ways how local people socially construct
this development. Consequently, this section has been orientated to give an answer to the problem
statement through answering the research questions of this case study. In combination with theory
and empirical findings included in the result division, this section will assist in gaining understanding
over the activities that have stimulated development in Bandipur and explore how Bandipurians
socially construct and interpret tourism development and related socio-cultural tourism impacts.
Furthermore, this is followed up with recommendation and implication section, which is created
based on knowledge gathered through this research. These suggestions are mainly orientated on
creating Bandipur as a more viable and sustainable destination for both, its hosts and guests. By
following the derived recommendations, the stakeholders and policy makers in Bandipur can have an
insight over several options for prolonging the lifecycle of Bandipur and improve its attractiveness.
Moreover, proposals for future research in Bandipur as a tourism destination will be provided within
the concluding section.
6.1. Main conclusions
In order to gain understanding of the activities that have stimulated development in Bandipur and to
explore how Bandipurians socially construct and interpret tourism development and related socio-
cultural tourism impacts, two research questions and two research sub-questions based on literature
study were formed. In order to answer the first research question, I am relating the fragmented
opinions or realities of individual respondents with the main aim to provide knowledge of how the
respondents socially construct and interpret tourism development in Bandipur. Further, based on
respondent views, sociocultural tourism impacts in Bandipur are identified. Moreover, to fulfil the
aim of this study, these impacts are further distinguished and analysed as positive and negative
socio-cultural impacts in Bandipur.
How do Bandipurians socially construct and interpret tourism development in Bandipur?
The main motivation of this research is to give a voice to different stakeholders of Bandipur in order
to gather overall opinion over the aspects affecting tourism development in the village. The fact that
currently rapidly developing village was abandoned in the past attracted my attention through
raising a lot of questions over its historical happenings leading from deep regression in the past to
steady growth in the recent years. In spite of its rich history, Bandipur is a village about which not
much written information (especially in the English language) is available. Therefore, as an added
value to this study, this research orientates not only on current tourism development in the site, but
also covers the past occasions that have contributed to respondent’s current perceptions. In order to
do that interpretivisim approach is applied as the theoretical framework of this study. As the target
group various stakeholders were selected with an intention to collect opinions from people with
different background. Moreover, since it was evident that tourism development of Bandipur has a
strong relation with historical development of the village, the research intention is orientated on all
times – past, present and future.
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Already after conduction of my first interviews I realised that although majority of the information
gathered was similar, in some aspects various respondent were providing the same facts from
different perspectives. By paying more attention to this, I understood that respondents indeed are
mainly basing their opinions on their personal backgrounds and relation to the particular question.
This could be evident also by asking respondents to reflect over the issues that stimulated rebirth of
the village. Various stakeholders were explaining this issue with dissimilar argument. For example,
respondents who are related to education would relate it with the foundation of Notre Dame School,
guesthouse owners would most probably link it with the development of the first two hotels in
Bandipur at around twenty years ago; and main audience would relate development with tourism
activities and Bandipur Eco-cultural Tourism Project (BECTP). It was clear that the respondents in
Bandipur are reflecting on different aspects through their own realities; therefore, the research
outcomes are analysed through the lens of social- constructionism.
People in Bandipur interpret tourism development as an opposite situation to their difficult past. By
noticing steady flows of migrants in the village, most of the villagers are socially relating it with the
opportunity for brighter future. In this perspective, the presence of tourism is interpreted as the
occasion to improve the social environment in the village. From one side this statement seems
feasible, just the future development of the destination is not known, yet. While reflecting on
tourism development there is a feeling that people in Bandipur are seeing it from the current
perspective and are not trying to look a step ahead. For example, it is visual that the numbers of
tourism facilities in Bandipur is steadily increasing while international tourist flows in the country
tend to remain consistent. This shows that more and more people in Bandipur are relating tourism
development in the village as their direct or indirect occupancy, by not knowing if there will be
demand for that.
The respondents are relating the change that is occurring within the village with construction of the
road and accessibility of the village. From one side, the village would not have been chosen as BECTP
area if the road was not there. And on the other hand, people could not migrate to and from the
village as easily as it occurs nowadays. Consequently, the presence of the road has high social
significance in Bandipur. In other words, the road is the first precondition for mobilities to be
possible in Bandipur and the road is also among the main causes why tourism and development is
possible there. Therefore, there is an assumption that through the presence of the road, the village is
experiencing a touch of modernity in various sectors.
Construction sector is often criticised in this thesis. However, it would be inappropriate not to
underline another cause of modernity in Bandipur. Opposite to the increasing numbers of modern
buildings, the intentions of making Bandipur central streets a vehicle free area is assessed positively
by all the stakeholders of the village, especially travellers and porters. While this invention positively
reflects on travellers experiences, it is also used to provide an income to the deprived groups of the
local people on daily basis. From this perspective the activities related to tourism development in the
village or Bandipur Eco-cultural Tourism Project in particular are representing a unique approach in
terms of long term job creation through the sustainability efforts.
While most of the respondents are interpreting tourism as a positive sector due to its direct and
indirect benefits, there are common development related issues that Bandipurians see as threats to
their future development. The accessibility of water seems to be an aspect that unites opinions of all
respondents. From this perspective the respondents are seeing tourism development as a threat to
their water accessibility. Many of Bandipurians associate accessibility of water as a social process,
since it is not always accessible even if people have a tap in their house. Subsequently, through
increasing numbers of the residents and stable flow of travellers, Bandipurians are concerned about
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the future of the village in terms of water accessibility.
Although it is not a common respondent opinion, there are people in Bandipur who are wondering if
tourism development will be/ is replacing the local way of living. While some respondents are
acknowledging that they are feeling relieved that they can afford to give up their fields, some other
interviewees are looking into future with a doubt if Bandipur with its current production will be
proficient enough to survive without products from the outside in case if such a need would occur. In
either of ways, the village is experiencing a great change that is partly caused by tourism
development. Although tourism is affecting the local life in Bandipur from various perspectives, it is
unusual to acknowledge that people in Bandipur are socially constructing tourism sector and its
development as a way to better future.
What are the socio-cultural tourism impacts in Bandipur and how are they socially
constructed?
During the fieldwork preparation stage, due to my knowledge about the activities of BECTP, I had an
image of Bandipur as a destination where tourism development is highly organised and local people
are aiming on sustaining their social and physical environments. I have to conclude that my
preliminary image was mistaken. First of all, I had to acknowledge that the life standards in Nepal
significantly differ and people there (mainly) are worried about satisfying their basic needs, such as
having accessibility to water. And secondly, Bandipur is located in a post-conflict country where
people are often struggling for their existence, therefore the expectation of having organised
governance and a concrete plan for further development is rather a western ideology and not a
priority within a destination itself.
While approaching the respondents in Bandipur I realised that after gathering theoretical knowledge
over socio-cultural impacts and implications of guest host interactions, my way of looking at things
during the fieldwork was different from the local people. At some moments I could notice that there
is some confusion between me and the interviewees, because mainly people in Bandipur are not
searching for deeper meanings, but rather distinguish everything what happens into good
developments and bad developments from their own stand-point. Moreover, interviewees’ opinion
related to one issue could be opposite depending on the respondent’s background. For example,
Bandipurians while reflecting on their customs and traditional lifestyle are frequently reflecting on
the farming practice. From one side there are people who are stating that farming as a sector should
be stimulated in order to ensure viability of the village in case if such a need would occur. And from
another side there are people who are/ have been actively involved in farming activities and are
expressing their happiness with the existing development where they have more time for their
children and families.
Respondents admit that the social structure in the destination is changing and people are having
more interaction with each other. Especially while reflecting on the caste system, Bandipurians are
specifying that it is becoming weaker and people from the lower social groups are getting more
rights. It has been explained by various examples, like a tailor who is receiving money for his services
instead of goods as it used to be in the past; as well as porters who are allowed to enter social places
like restaurants and hotels whereas before they were not welcomed etc . Although the role of
tourism concerning this aspect is not clear, there are opinions stating the presence of tourism as an
important factor contributing to this social change. While there are differences in the target groups
(age, budget etc.) visiting Bandipur, there are evidences that residents perceive all international
white travellers as a separate and uniform group of people who all have equal rights and social
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status.
As a result, there are respondents who believe that the presence of tourism is affecting not only the
opinions of Bandipurians about the social groups, but it also is bringing behavioural change among
the local people. Though no actual distinction between the effects of tourism, TV or internet may be
created, most of the respondents are concerned that the tourists are affecting the behaviour of the
locals in terms of the behaviour change, demonstration effect and begging. Without intention to
protect travellers’ interests, I have to acknowledge that all these unintended social effects created by
travellers in Bandipur are also partly stimulated by the local residents. Although I have experienced
various occasions when international and domestic travellers are expressing their intimacy in public
places, are wearing inappropriate outfit or are offering local people some gifts on daily basis during
the fieldwork period, I do not recall a single encounter when any of the local people would try to stop
this behaviour by explaining their customs in order to protect their environment from inappropriate
behaviour. It has not been discovered why local people remain uninvolved during these encounters,
but I have a feeling that by not setting these cases as bad examples on the spot, the local society is
encouraging people to overtake these unwanted practices.
Besides, with the increasing number of the new residents in Bandipur, the social environment of the
village is changing and the site is receiving a bigger mix of residents there. Although tourism
development as one of the factors indirectly attracts immigration of new people in Bandipur, a
situation of increasing numbers of inhabitants is significantly changing the social situation in the
village. Bandipurians acknowledge that they used to know everyone in the village, but it is changing
nowadays. The social situation is complicated in Banidpur. There is a feeling that based on the
difficult times in the past, the respondents are perceiving new residents as a guarantee that Bandipur
will not become a ghost town again; but on the other hand the development has led to the situation
when the local people are starting to question if Bandipur is still a village or is it becoming a town.
What are the positive socio-cultural tourism impacts in Bandipur?
During the encounters with the respondents it was noticed that people in Bandipur are
overoptimistic about tourism development in the site. While asked to name specific aspects related
to the development, majority of Bandipurians reflected on different opportunities that tourism
development in the village brings to the local population or their households in particular.
Consequently, tourism development in Bandipur is reflected through the economic aspects rather
than the socio-cultural ones. Nevertheless, these two impacts are interrelated, since financial
stability in a family may increase social security of its members.
Based on the respondent opinions, the fact of having steady circulation of people in Bandipur
strongly contributes to the local socio-cultural environment. The dark period has left a great impact
on the locals so that the tourism development in Bandipur is seen as a contrast to the difficult times
in the past that can also explain Bandipurians’ optimism while reflecting on their possible future.
By going more into details, the local people are reflecting on the preservation of their culture
through involving traditional elements (like dance) in the tourism product. By seeing that travellers
are interested in the aspects related to the local living, the local socio-cultural awareness is
increasing as well. Especially it can be observed in preservation of the local houses. Although there
are no existing regulations, the local people are trying to keep at least the central Bazaar as an
authentic area which is tried to be conserved according to the Newari tradition. Thus, by creating the
central streets as a traffic-free area, the working possibilities for deprived social groups have been
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increased. Additionally, directly and indirectly tourism development is providing social security to the
increasing number of families, including farmers, meat producers, transport providers etc. At the
same time by increasing product availability the local people are benefiting as well.
Surprisingly, according to the respondents, the situation regarding crime and abuse in Bandipur has
improved in comparison to the past. Bandipurians are more satisfied with their lives nowadays and
therefore they are more eager to communicate with each other by contributing to the positive
change in the local way of living. In addition, several respondents have acknowledged improvement
in the local health accessibility as an important social aspect insuring social security to the local
people. In general, people in Bandipur are acknowledging that after tourism is developed in
Bandipur, they are socially and culturally more aware also over their own traditions and customs.
What are the negative socio-cultural tourism impacts in Bandipur?
The fact that Bandipurians are overoptimistic concerning the tourism development in Bandipur may
be explained by the opinions of the majority of the respondents who acknowledged that tourism
development is not bringing negative impacts in Bandipur. However, by continuing the interviews it
turned out that there are negative socio-cultural impacts that could be caused by tourism, only the
people do not consider them so. For example, accessibility of water as a resource is a current
concern and Bandipurians are expressing their future worry concerning this resource. This may be
named as the main socio-cultural concern where all the respondents were reflecting upon. Thus, it
may be derived from the respondent responses that for many local families in Bandipur, water
collection is still a social event.
Another socially increasing problem is waste and waste management. Together with the
development the amount of the waste is increasing, leading to a problematic situation, since there is
no waste management in Bandipur. By trying to find some solutions, the local people are either
dumping their waste on the hill-side or burning it. In this way, although the central streets of the
village are regularly kept clean, visual and smell pollution is noticeable in the village. Since together
with tourism development more products are coming into the market, so far there are no solutions
recognised how this problem may be minimised.
Together with changing environmental concerns, the respondents are identifying a shift in the
lifestyle of Bandipur. There are people claiming that the population in Bandipur is becoming too
orientated on tourism sector, that they are leaving their traditional occupancies (e.g. farming) and
lifestyle. In other words, tourism business is perceived as an easy income source that explains the
rapidly increasing number of tourism service providers in Bandipur. Although respondents living in
Bandipur rarely reflected on this subject, tourists are explaining the existing change as harmful to the
destination and its social environment. If currently travellers are disturbed by the service quality in
some of the enterprises, then there is a chance that in the future unorganised development may lead
to unhealthy competitiveness between local entrepreneurs, since new accommodations are
appearing disproportionally to the tourism growth.
Additionally, the building process of the new modern buildings is affecting the landscape, changing
the local environment of Bandipur. Many local people are reflecting over the needs of travellers and
how much this visual change may affect travellers’ experiences in the destination. However, more
importantly, it should be discovered how the local people are feeling about this development and the
fact that the number of inhabitants in the destination is growing. In relation to the migration flows in
Bandipur, the local inhabitants are affected by the pressure created by constant presence of
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strangers in their living space. While several respondents are reflecting over consequences of
demonstration effect that has been cultivated in the behaviour of the local people, the actual level of
acculturation caused by tourism development in Bandipur may not be recognised due to various
approaches how this theme is dealt with from the side of the respondents.
6.2. Recommendations
Based on the study outcomes, several sectors for improvement were recognised. In general these
suggestions have been set with the main aim to improve socio-cultural environment in Bandipur
through improving tourist experiences in the destination. In this section recommendations for
improving social environment, attractiveness of Bandipur as tourism destination as well as
management issues are provided.
Social environment
In order to increase the tourism awareness and minimise possible conflict situations in the future,
the local capacity should be investigated and tourism awareness should be raised in Bandipur. With
the main aim to prevent irritation between hosts and guests, it is suggested to discover resident
attitudes to tourism development in different parts of the village and to look for solutions in areas
where people are not satisfied with the presence of travellers.
With the main aim to minimise begging and behavioural change of the residents, the attention on
possibilities to inform tourists over the local customs should be found. Widely practised around the
world, posters with information over do’s and don’ts while being in the destination should be
provided. It may be done either by placing informative stands at the entrance of the village and by
putting informative materials in restaurants and guesthouses.
Attractiveness
In order to spread tourism benefits, the local entrepreneurs and institutions should find possibilities
to increase the average visitor stay (e.g. of individual travellers) in Bandipur by creating/ improving
tourism attractions/ infrastructure in the village. Since Bandipur has a rich history, by installing signs
and information boards with the narratives of the village a stronger connection between a visitor and
the local community may be created. In this way, through developing a stronger sense of place the
visitor may be linked to the destination and therefore additional value to the visit may be added.
Bandipur has several hiking routes that may be marked and designed as tourist paths. By signing
these paths and providing boards with information over Bandipur, its development and people,
strong connection between guests and hosts may be created without actual contact needed. These
routes may be further used for both individual travellers and guided tours so that visitors have
information over possibilities to prolong their stay and to gather new experiences. Aside the route
orientated on discovering the village itself, there are several other options for a day tour recognised
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within surroundings of the village. Sidha cave, Ramkot and goat and silk farms are already known
hiking routes, but by providing additional information and signing they may be turned into unique
experiences. In addition, there are some temples located in the surroundings of Bandipur. Although
some of them are difficult to be reached, they may be developed as an educational and cultural
destination through providing the meaning and a story about these temples. Nevertheless, for the
creation of new tourist products it is suggested to orientate them on all international and domestic
markets as well as individuals and organised groups.
Travellers are mainly people who are visiting places with an aim to gather new knowledge over other
people’s lives and their own customs in respect to that. Since Bandipur is a rural destination, it may
use the local life as a tourism product. I have recognised that such processes as rice collection,
participation in preparing local meal, Roxy (local vine) making are common activities for the
residents, but they also could be a great day activities for tourists. By giving tourists a possibility to
have active participation in the daily activities of the local people I am seeing benefits for both local
people and travellers. Thus, in this way the local tradition may be preserved. However, by creating
new products the social environment and the customs of Bandipur should be respected.
Management
Management or lack of it is an issue noticed and reflected in Bandipur by almost all respondents and
from different perspectives. By assessing general development in Bandipur, it is noticeable that there
is no common idea or goal how the destination should be managed. Several respondents specified
that there is no strong governmental institution in Bandipur; however, based on experiences of
different case studies, a destination may be managed also by creating an umbrella organisation that
is led by local stakeholders and therefore also represents their interests. Nonetheless, in order to
protect people of Bandipur, it is suggested to develop destination in a way that it is viable also in case
if tourism flow would decrease. In other words, in order to minimise possible negative impacts in the
future, tourism should be developed as a secondary sector, while main attention should be paid to
sectors like farming, education, production etc. Consequently, Bandipur should be managed in a way
that the needs of local people are given priority while keeping tourists in the second role.
Nonetheless, it was recognised during the field research that several service providers do not have
understanding of visitor needs and necessities. Therefore it is highly suggested to provide some
educational training possibilities for restaurant and guesthouse owners in terms of cleanliness,
service speed and communication.
Although there are increasing numbers of tourism destinations in Nepal who are relating incoming
tourism with entrance fees for visiting a city or a part of it, it is recommended for Bandipur not to use
this practice. In travel blogs travellers visiting Nepal are often negatively reflecting over the
increasing costs for basic services in the country which contributes to creating the image of Nepal as
an expensive destination. This applies especially to individual travellers who are travelling by
consulting travel guide books.
The Road to Recovery and Rebirth
73
6.3. Suggestions for Future Research
Bandipur has a rich history related to its development as well as tourism activities. In spite of the fact
that Bandipur Eco-cultural Tourism Project was run, this is the first actual study orientated on
tourism development in the village. During the research period a knowledge gap was recognised and
several questions that may be used as themes for future research arose.
First of all, it was recognised that tourism development in Bandipur is not managed accordingly and
there is an assumption that at least in some areas of the village the residents are expressing their
irritation due to presence of tourists. By noticing this fact, the concern over tourism capacity in
Bandipur arose. Although most of the respondents were stating high satisfaction with tourism
development in the village, it is obvious that there are residents who are not satisfied with presence
of tourists in the backyard of their houses. The support and local tourism awareness is crucial due to
the future tourism development within the site. Therefore additional attention should be paid to this
fact before conflict situations between hosts and guests or hosts and hosts arose.
Secondly, since Bandipur is a rural destination a potential to develop community-based tourism has
been recognised. Nonetheless, before that is done, it is highly suggestible to evaluate community-
based tourism development potential in the village as well as to assess the optimal level of visitor
participation.
In general I have noticed various sectors in tourism development of Bandipur where research is
needed. For example, at the moment there is no recognised tourism development plan within the
destination. This means that there is a great possibility that tourism development in Bandipur is not
balanced according to the existing demand. In this perspective tourism feasibility study is suggested.
By investigating the existing tourism supply and demand, the sectors where improvement is needed
may be recognised and action plan for further tourism development in Bandipur created.
Nonetheless, before improving tourism supply, it is important to gather visitor opinion by running
tourist perception and satisfaction survey in Bandipur. By applying this survey, weak points of the
existing service may be recognised and accordingly improved based on data analysis. Moreover,
through visitor survey, not only opinions over tourism destination may be gathered, but it can be also
used in order to gather visitor ideas and opinions over new improvements and activities that would
contribute in order to prolong visitor stay within the destination.
Bandipur is a destination that has experienced current tourism growth mainly based on activities led
by BECTP. There is a chance that respondents in Bandipur perceive socio-cultural issues differently
than people in some other destination where tourism project has not been done. Based on that, a
comparative case study may be conducted (e.g. in Gorkha, a similar tourism destination in Nepal) and
commonalities and differences between respondent answers documented.
And finally, since respondents in Bandipur are expressing expectations of bright future in Bandipur, it
may be useful to conduct a similar research to this thesis in the village after couple of years and to
compare the respondent opinions over socio-cultural tourism impacts in Bandipur from a new
perspective. Therefore, also this research may be created as a repeated and comparative study.
The Road to Recovery and Rebirth
74
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The Road to Recovery and Rebirth
80
Appendix
List of Interviews
Name and occupation Relation to Bandipur
Dates of
interview
Place of
interview
1 Jharna Joshi
Manager of BECTP
TNR – lives outside
Bandipur
25th
of
March
Bhaktapur
2 Jharna Joshi and
Manoj Rajopadhyay
Manager and assistant of
BECTP
TNR - Bandipur 27th
of
March 15th
of April
Patan
3 Krishna (name changed)
Chemistry student
TNR – lives in
surroundings of
Bandipur
29th
of
March
Bandipur
4 Kalpana Piya
Guesthouse and shop owner
TR - Bandipurian 31th
of
March
Bandipur
5 Nowel (name changed)
Guesthouse owner
TR - Bandipurian
(returned 6 years ago)
1st
of April Bandipur
6 Suwal (Name changed)
Bandipurian
TNR - Bandipurian 1st
of April Bandipur
7 Klaus (name changed)
Tourist from Germany
T - German tourists 1st
of April Bandipur
8 Patthar Pradhan
Owner of Bandipur
Guesthouse
TR - Bandipurian 2nd
of April Bandipur
9 Bikram Piya
Principle of Bandipur
Campus
TNR - Bandipurian 2nd
of April Bandipur
10 Bikash Shrestha
Owner of Bandipur Village
Resort
TR - lives outside
Bandipur
3rd
of April Bandipur
11 Luna Pradhan
Owner of Bandipur Souvenir
Shop
TR - Bandipurian 3rd
of April Bandipur
12 Ram Sharan Shrestha
Manager of Old Inn
TR - Bandipurian (lives
long in the village)
4th
of April Bandipur
13 Basudev (name changed)
Guesthouse administrator
TR – lives in
surroundings of
Bandipur
4th
of April Bandipur
14 Aite Maya Nepali
Kamala Koka
Kamala Nepali
Suku Nepali
Four female porters
TNR - Bandipurians 4th
of April Bandipur
15 Manikumar Pradhan
Social worker
TNR - Bandipurian 4th
of April Bandipur
16 Lisa (name changed)
French tourist – a guide
T - French Tourist 4th
of April Bandipur
The Road to Recovery and Rebirth
81
17 Sister Evanzeela
Sister Mirium
Founders of Notre Dame
School
TNR - Bandipur (lives
long in the village)
5th
of April Bandipur
18 Suku Nepali
Female Farmer
TNR - Bandipurian 5th
of April Bandipur
19 Gehendra Kayastha
Local Driver
TNR - Bandipurian 5th
of April Bandipur
20 Tobias (name changed)
Traveller from Germany
T - Tourist from
Germany
5th
of April Bandipur
21 Bharat Kumar Kayastha
Shop owner
TNR - Bandipurian 6th
of April Bandipur
22 Birja Lal Pariyar
Tailor
TNR - Bandipurian 6th
of April Bandipur
23 Ernst (name changed)
Backpacker (stayed more
than a week)
T - Tourist from
Germany
6th
of April Bandipur
24 Bhandari Family
Family living in Bandipur
TNR - Bandipurians 2nd
of April
6th
of April
Bandipur
25 Jeffry (Name changed)
Volunteer at Old Inn
T - Tourist from united
Kingdom
7th
of April Bandipur
26 Hari and Ganesh (names
changed)
Domestic tourists
T – Domestic tourists 7th
of April Bandipur
27 Prashant (name changed)
Nepali Trekking guide
T – Domestic tourist 10th
of
April
Dumre
T – Tourist
TR – Tourism related
TNR – Tourism non-related