The religious beliefs as parameter of food choices at tourist destination The case of Mykonos

Religious beliefs are a basic parameter of culture that affects all aspects of a person’s life and consequently his eating habits. The diet of tourists at destination is an essential and unique component of the overall tourism product and the momentum of the modern dietary concept is enormous. Eating habits determined by the religious beliefs of tourists and followed during their journey and their stay in the selected destination is an important and emerging sector in tourism industry. The case study and the research concern the island of Mykonos, Greece. It is characterized as a “cosmopolitan” tourist destination, known for its “night life” and the opportunity of “getting away from every day’s routine life), that attracts tourists mainly from Europe and the rest of the world. The research was conducted from August 24th to October 10th 2014. This primary and quantitative survey was conducted using a structured questionnaire distributed to tourists with different religious beliefs in six different areas of the island. The questionnaire consisted of 30 different questions was distributed to 140 tourists, but finally 122 of them responded to the survey. The results of the survey show that the island of Mykonos attracts a “special” type of tourists, who do not want to follow the specific diet of their religion. According to the results, the overwhelming majority of tourists choose traditional recipes and the Greek cuisine regardless of religious beliefs and dietary restrictions or particularities, giving the impression that during their holidays want to escape from their daily eating habits and enjoy the Greek gastronomy. Most of them stated, that the religion does not play any role in the selection of Mykonos as a journey destination and do not associate the religion with holidays and eating habits

Tourists, Pilgrims and Cultural Routes: The Case of the Kumano Kodo Route in Japan

Cultural Routes are one of the most important tools for the promotion and the interpretation of cultural heritage. They are itineraries designed around a core theme and they include, inter alia, monuments of archaeological or historical interest, architectural monuments, industrial heritage buildings, religious heritage edifices, traditional settlements, spiritual places. In Japan, one of the most important routes, in Kii Mountain Range, is the Kumano Kodo religious-cultural route. The route reflects the merging of the ancient worship of nature – which is believed to be inhabited by Gods or spirits - Shintoism and Buddhism. The route, due to its great importance, was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2004 and was the second to be named after the Santiago de Compostela Route (1987). Both religious-cultural routes have started a close collaborative partnership, in order to enhance visibility and attract visitors, by twining the cities of Santiago de Compostela and Tanabe and awarding a ‘Dual pilgrim status’. Τhis article is an attempt to describe and explain the innovative ways of harnessing cultural, religious, and natural heritage in Kumano Kodo and the results to the local community. Both routes are followed not only by pilgrims but also by tourists who want to experience nature, local traditions, and customs. The region in the Kii mountains is promoted as a destination for pilgrims, religious tourists and generally for tourists who wish to walk around in a unique natural environment, to enjoy the hot springs, to engage in sports, to visit neighbouring beaches, to attend festivals, to visit temples and cultural venues etc. All those who travel on the route, are still known as ‘pilgrims’. A question therefore arises whether the use of the term ‘Dual pilgrim’ is accurate, as those who follow the path cannot be faithful to both religions

Pilgrimages Through Time and Space. The case of Marian Pilgrimages in Greece

Since ancient times and throughout history, religious sentiment has been one of the motives for people undertaking pilgrimages, seeking to communicate with the divine in sacred places. Travelling for religious reasons fulfilled a spiritual need and their undertaking was considered to be a redeeming action. It is indeed difficult to identify any other human activity so widespread in space and so resilient in time as undertaking a pilgrimage to shrines. Since antiquity there has been a firm belief that praying or fulfilling one’s religious tasks is more efficient when it takes place in specific sites: in places where gods or saints were born, spent a part of their lives, died or performed miracles, in areas with statues, cathedrals, churches, relics of saints and miracle icons or in sites where the most important events of the history of each religion took place. Many of the Christian pilgrimages are associated with the Holy Mother of God (Theotokos). In Greece, shrines monasteries and churches have been established in areas related with the miracles performed by the Virgin Mary (Panagia or the All Holy One in Greek). Apart from the basic Marian feast days, the life of the church and folk piety have added many more, which are associated with the Virgin Mary, the Miracle- Worker, or the foundation of churches dedicated to the Mother of God, or the finding of miracle-working icons portraying the Virgin Mary. Almost everywhere in Greece one can find a miraculous icon representing the Mother of God, each one with its own history and legends, which creates a mystical experience. Moreover, many of these pilgrimages are significant cultural monuments and attract tourists’ interest. This paper describes some of the main Marian pilgrimages in Greece as well as their management agencies and techniques in order to enhance travellers’ experience

Preserving traveller’s memory in religious destinations

Preserving memory from the visit of a tourist destination plays an important role in tourist activity. In pilgrimage in particular, and in religious tourism in general, the preservation of this memory constitutes a spiritual process associated with the sanctity of the place. Obviously, the degree of spirituality varies according to the traveller’s personality and religious beliefs. Following the return home, the religious memorabilia and ‘souvenirs’ play an important role in the ‘confirmation’ of the trip or the fulfilment of the vow, as well as in the preservation of the memory. At first one could claim that religious souvenirs serve or have similar functions and symbolisms as the usual souvenirs bought in a traditional tourist trip. However, in their case, the symbolisms as well as the uses are differentiated, since this type of souvenir carries special personal and social value and serves different functions. Frequently, apart from their liturgical or salvation character, they simply exhibit ‘pseudo-religious’ characteristics. In every case, the market of religious souvenirs is growing into a profitable commercial activity and its financial cost rates high in the amount of money spent at the tourist destination. The above findings are based on a survey conducted via the use of structured questionnaire during the summer of 2017 among the visitors to the Church of Saint Dionysios in Zakynthos Island, Greece

Religious Celebrations and Tradition: The Case of ‘Panigiras’ in Sifnos Island

Religions presuppose a set of symbols that evoke feelings of respect or awe and are associated with various rituals (e.g. religious services) in which a community of believers is involved. Ritualistic religious acts include prayers, hymns, dances, use or abstinence from food, fasting, use of symbols, lighting a candle, offering food or flowers to a deity, etc. Religious worship rituals are performed individually by a person or collectively by groups of believers. The formal rituals are ceremonies which take place in sacred places such as churches, temples, mosques, pagodas (depending on religion). The informal rituals are festive events (e.g., fairs, festivals, processions, etc.) and take place on specific dates that symbolise an important incident for the believer (e.g., the appearance of a deity or its envoy, the performance of a miracle, dormition of a holy person, etc.). The celebration of a patron saint or the Virgin Mary is usually accompanied by a religious and social fair. These fairs are very popular throughout Greece especially during the summer. Beyond the general concept of national character, the religious fairs dedicated to Virgin Mary comprise a multitude of events that reflect the local culture of each region. This study describes the actual process of the fair (Panigiri) dedicated to the Sifnos island patron Saint Panagia Chrissopighi (Our Lady of the Golden Spring), which is held every year on Ascension Day (40th day after the Greek Orthodox Easter Sunday). The 16th century monastery Panagia Chrissopigi stands at the south-eastern part of the island. More specifically, the tradition of ‘Panigiras’ (the organiser of the fair who is responsible for the expenses and the festivities) is examined. The data collection method is participant observation. For the celebration of the Virgin Mary of Chrissopigi, the custom of ‘panigiras’ originates from the unwritten rules of tradition, which shows the deep-seated religious sentiment of the inhabitants of Sifnos island, in the Cyclades, Greece. The custom of ‘panigiras’ has a dual nature - religious and cultural. The religious component (pilgrimage) continues to be of great importance to the local community of Sifnos, but at the same time it offers a remarkable cultural dimension for visitors to the island (religious tourists)

Ιστορικο-νομικές προσεγγίσεις και λογοτεχνικές απεικονίσεις της ευζωίας των ζώων στην περίοδο 1821-2021

Η σχέση ανθρώπου και ζώων είναι γνωστή από την αρχαιότητα. Το ζώο ανέκαθεν υπήρξε σύντροφος, φίλος, συνοδοιπόρος, αλλά συχνά και θύμα της ανθρώπινης σκληρότητας. Η σχέση αυτή απεικονίζεται με γλαφυρότητα στα λογοτεχνικά κείμενα κάθε εποχής. Παράλληλα, η λογοτεχνική παραγωγή επηρεάζει τη νομοθετική διαδικασία, με αποτέλεσμα να διαμορφώνεται θεσμικό πλαίσιο για την προστασία των ζώων, με απώτερο σκοπό, στην σύγχρονη εποχή, την ευζωία. Στο πόνημα αυτό, ερευνάται η αλληλεπίδραση της νομικής επιστήμης και της λογοτεχνίας στο ευαίσθητο θέμα της ευζωίας των μη ανθρώπινων ζώων. Το ενδιαφέρον εστιάζεται διαχρονικά στην περίοδο 1821-2021 και απηχεί τις κοινωνικο-οικονομικές συνθήκες της χώρας.The relationship between man and animals has been known since antiquity. Animal has always been a companion, a friend, a co-traveler but often a victim of human cruelty. This relationship is illustrated in the literature. At the same time, literature production influences the legislative process, resulting in the formation of an institutional framework for the protection of animals, with the ultimate goal, in modern times, of well-being. In this paper, the interaction of legal science and literature on the sensitive issue of the welfare of non-human animals is investigated. The interest is focused over time in the period 1821-2021 and reflects country’s different socio-economic conditions

The travel advice as an inhibiting factor of tourist movement

Tourism is significantly affected by unpredictable and uncertain factors such as the occurrence of a terrorist attack, an epidemic outbreak or a natural disaster, etc. The impact of these phenomena on the tourist movement of the country or the place where the event occurred is aggravated by the way it is presented by the media both locally and internationally. The adverse climate gets worse by the issuance of travel advice that usually accompanies such phenomena and has the effect of limiting or even halting tourist flows. In order to identify and study the different types of travel advice that have been issued during international tourism crisis incidents, an internet search was carried out using keywords. Moreover, a study on the travel advice issued by major tourists' origin states, as the USA, Australia, Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom, etc. was carried out. Incidents (terrorist attacks, epidemics, natural disasters) which had a great impact on tourism were then selected. In addition, the issuance of travel advice, their different issuing authorities, the classification level and the impact on the tourism of the country or the place in question were examined. An analysis of the reaction and the instructions of major international organizations (World Health Organization, World Tourism Organization) concerning the management of such crises, directly or indirectly affecting tourism, were also analyzed. The study of the relevant websites, the international literature and the recorded incidents shows that the issuing of travel advice has negative effects on many sectors of tourism activity and is a bottleneck for tourism development. In fact, in many cases, travel advice is used by countries to exert pressure on other countries in order to achieve a desired result. Due to the enormous economic and social effects when issuing travel advice, the states proper management is necessary in order to minimize the negative consequences and avoid obstructing the free movement of tourists, as provided for in international treaties and declarations. As no systematic research on the impact of travel advice on a country and the degree of influence depending on the issuing entity (state, international organization or private entity) has been carried out so far, further investigation of the issue is suggested, by performing research, both on travelers and travel organizations on the effects of issuing travel advice

Religious Tourism Promotion. Good practices from Greek Tourism Office in Milan

The forming and practicing pillar of Greece’s tourism policy is the Greek National Tourism Organization. The primary mission of the GNTO is the international promotion of Greece as a tourist destination. To achieve this goal, both within the country and in the international field, it has established and operates Regional Tourism Authorities in the 13 administrative regions in Greece and the Foreign Offices in major cities abroad. The Regional Tourism Authorities are intended to coordinate the tourism activities at a regional level while the Foreign Offices to promote Greece abroad. Such an important office abroad is the GNTO office in Milan. The office in order to achieve the promotion of Greece as a tourist destination in the Italian market develops actions both in Italy and in the Greek territory. In this effort, an important role has the promotion of religious tourism since this sector is part of the alternative forms of Greek tourism. The research was conducted at the GNTO office in Milan from 15/11/2015 – 29/07/2016. The survey’s data was obtained from interviews with the Director of the Office and the employees working there, by studying files of relevant actions and information collected by the researcher while participating in many of these actions. The research revealed that the public tourism institution of Greece does not simply confine itself only on maintaining a good relation with the press or on ensuring the display of a positive image on the Media, but also establishes communication campaigns and undertakes promotional actions of religious tourism which are beyond the linear flow of information of tourists in order to accurately show the benefits of investing in the two-way communication, with satisfactory results

Generalized h-index for Disclosing Latent Facts in Citation Networks

What is the value of a scientist and its impact upon the scientific thinking? How can we measure the prestige of a journal or of a conference? The evaluation of the scientific work of a scientist and the estimation of the quality of a journal or conference has long attracted significant interest, due to the benefits from obtaining an unbiased and fair criterion. Although it appears to be simple, defining a quality metric is not an easy task. To overcome the disadvantages of the present metrics used for ranking scientists and journals, J.E. Hirsch proposed a pioneering metric, the now famous h-index. In this article, we demonstrate several inefficiencies of this index and develop a pair of generalizations and effective variants of it to deal with scientist ranking and with publication forum ranking. The new citation indices are able to disclose trendsetters in scientific research, as well as researchers that constantly shape their field with their influential work, no matter how old they are. We exhibit the effectiveness and the benefits of the new indices to unfold the full potential of the h-index, with extensive experimental results obtained from DBLP, a widely known on-line digital library.Comment: 19 pages, 17 tables, 27 figure

Gastronomy as a form of cultural tourism: A Greek typology

Foods, as well as other factors, such as accommodation, attractions, recreational activities and transport are key parts of the tourism product of host destinations. It has been found that in recent years, tourism choices have not been determined only by the simple biological need to eat, but also by the desire to try interesting products within an appropriate environment. Modern, experienced travelers look for destinations' quality, as linked to a deeper knowledge of the culture and lifestyle of the inhabitants of the place they are visiting. As lifestyles of people are deeply related to what and how they eat, how they prepare food and in what environment, what the rituals of food consumption are, combined with the architecture and place, a strong demand has been created for local food and a trend of what is called 'gastronomic/culinary tourism'. A survey was carried out in order to explore the forms of product supply, commercialization strategy as well as methods to promote gastronomic tourism in Greece. In particular, the search was carried out through the internet businesses in Greece involved in the field of gastronomy and tourism, using keywords such as gastronomy, Greek cuisine, Greek breakfast, wine routes, olive routes, etc. Then, the findings were classified into categories in order to evaluate their activity. The survey revealed that companies involved in the field of gastronomy are numerous and of various nature. These include restaurants, hotels, guest and rural houses, tourism agencies, food manufacturers, food markets, museums, exhibition halls, etc. Their activities are equally varied and creative (related to wine, honey, herbs, etc, cultural routes that have to do with a product, thematic museums, etc). Due to the lack of targeted central tourism policy in the field, it is proposed to further explore the field and record domestic gastronomic resources at regional administrative levels in order to effectively valorize and promote them with a view to establishing each region as a distinct gastronomic destination