Touristization of traditional Maltese fishing-farming villages: A general model

Touristization of traditional Maltese fishing-farming villages

This paper focuses on the impact of tourism development on the landscape of the village and presents a general model of the process of ‘touristization’ and landscape change. The model and accompanying discussion seeks to synthesize knowledge and understanding of change in the village as it is metamorphosed by tourism.

Keywords: Malta; tourist village develop ment; environmental impact

Dr Young is Professor in the Department of Geography, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario. Canada NZL 3C.5. This article is a revised and edited version of a paper contributed to the Surrey International Conference on “Trends in tourism planning and development”, Surrey University, Guildford, UK, 1-3 September 19%.

1. Surrey International Conference on “Trends in tourism planning and development”, Guildford, Surrey, UK, 1-3 September 1982. All invrted papers published in Tourism Manage- ment, 3 (4), December 1982. 2. Alister Mathieson and Geoffrey Wall have recently reviewed the literature on impacts of tourism, including physical impacts: see Tour- ism: Economic, Physical and Social Impacts (Longman, London, 1982). 3. An accompanying video cassette programme was presented at the conference exhibition. This programme was entitled “Villscape in transition”, a major part of which dealt with evidence of change in a specific village in Malta- that of Marsaskala. Theiideo programme is the third in the author’s 13-part series for tele- vision on the geography of tourism, produced at Wilfrid Laurier Universi- ty. The interest and assistance of the villagers of Marsaskala is gratefully acknowledged, particularly during the author’s 1981 stay there.

A general model BruceYoung

It is encouraging to hear at an international conference of experts in ail aspects of tourism’ so much concern expressed about the impacts of tourism development, and, for an academic geographer, to know that those who are primarily concerned with promoting profit-making touristic projects are by no means insensitive to impacts on the environment and on local and regional landscapes. * Except in zones where regulations are totally constraining (or conserving, depending on your perspec- tive, perhaps), tourism development will certainly have an impact on the landscape, more or less; and the relationship be- tween level of development and degree of impact is well appreciated. One might, I suppose, consider that the developer, and/or the physical planner, and/or the local authority, have done their jobs well wherever the degree of impact on the landscape is generally perceived as being beneficial or positive.

This paper focuses on the impact of tourism development on the landscape of the village. The word ‘touristization’ is coined to denote the impact of tourism development {compare, if you will, industrialization and urbanization); and the landscape of the village I refer to as the ‘villscape’ (we are familiar with seascape and townscape). As the title suggests, the focus is on viilages that traditionally (in pre-tourist times) were fishing and farming viHages; but as the sub-title indicates the objective is to present a general model of the process of tou~stization and villscape change rather than explore particular cases.’

On Malta and Gozo there are villages at all stages of the development experience that I describe in the transition model; and although one may think otherwise, I do not argue here that at any particular stage of touristization the impacts are bad or negative, and evidence of insensitive planning or an absence of planning. What I do suggest is that if all traditional villages were to be transformed into resorts, reaching Stage 6 in the model, then the tourist product on the island would be seriously weakened or diminished.

A further prefatory remark may be added-that my model and the accompanying notes seem to touch on most developmental issues and considerations discussed in the major papers at this conference-from host-visitor encounters, to project evalua- tion, to non-local entrepreneurial involvement, to balanced development, and so on. I even have a casino moving into the

0143-2515/83/010035-07$03.00 @ 1983 Butterworth & Co (Publishers) Ltd 35

STAGE 1 (Early Traditional) STAGE 2 (Late Traditional)

+ Church

S Summer Homes *PS Police Station

T Tourist Rooms TC Tourist Complex

STAGE 5 (Expanding Taurism- STAGE 6 (Intensive Tourism -

SC New School

Figure 1. village.

36 Tourism Management March 1983

Vilfscape in transition: stages in the touristization of a traditional Maltese fishing-farming

Each phase in the model is distinct from the stage before and the stage that follows. The five critical events or developments that move the villscape forward (from Stage 2 to Stage 3, and from 3 to 4, etc) concern:

0

4. I am not here hypothesizing a 0 case of ‘catalytic development’, where a single maior promoter stimulates com$emen?ary developments, but the development process is closer to 0 the catalytic than the ‘integrated’ type (see Douglas Pearce, Tourist De- velopment (Longman, London, 1981), pages 1619. 0

first, the discovery and enjoyment of the (traditional) village by local people (ie folk from inland villages and other centres; domestic tourists); second, the exploration and enjoyment of the village by a few adventurous foreign tourists (explorers; allocentrics; poets and painters); then, Stage 3 moves to Stage 4 when we have the intrusion into the village of the first significant establishment for foreign tourists;4 then, Stage 5 arrives with the construction of the first large


scene, though not to assist the revitalization of a traditional resort.

The paper is divided into four sections, and the graphical, informal model discussed is depicted in Figure 1.

Model components

Six sequential growth phases or stages are identified in the mode1 -with six sketch maps of the village-of the ‘villscape’.

(i) ‘Villscape’ embraces the plan, form and shape of the village, the street pattern, and patterns of land uses, and also the characteristics and appearance of the village vertically.

(ii) Villscape change involves (continuously perhaps, but also in surges) the familiar processes of urban encroachment on rural land and on wasteland; of infilling (development on vacant sites within the village); of invasion and succession of land uses; the acquisition and consolidation of properties; relocations of the natives (residents); increasing commercialization, and shifts in demographic and occupational structures; renovation and re- modelling of built structures; upgrading of infrastructure; and so forth. In the mode1 the landscape changes are basically induced by tourism-by tourist demands and development, ie by touristization.

(iii) The settlement in transition in this model is not initially a ‘resort’: it becomes one. And its attractiveness to tourists is the force generating that transformation-the trickle of local sea- sonal visitors becomes a flood of internal and foreign tourists (as numbers of ‘tourist arrivals’ climbs).

(iv) It also attracts permanent residents. Many Maltese move to the village-to retire, to work, or just to reside in a quiet, picturesque, place away from the crowded urban places (to which they commute daily by bus or private car). For the most part, these in-migrants invest in new villas and apartments. Several non-Maltese couples also settle in the village, all of them retired folk.

Dynamic processes

Tourism Management March 1983 37

luxury hotel, and this is coincident with a surge of residential development and a wave of migrants from the city, and is associated with governmental planning proposals and deci- sions;

0 and finally, the villscape moves into Stage 6 with the completion of many additional visitor and tourist accommodations. and the all-but complete transformation of the place to a fully developed tourist resort.

The six stages of the model

Stage 1: this can be called ‘Early Traditional’-functionally the village is a farming and fishing community, with a few centrally located small shops providing low-order goods and services (including a bakery, a carpenter, a hardware store-‘non-basic, city-serving’ activities); along the waterfront are the homes of the fishermen at the head of the Bay; farmers live further away from the water. A tower, out on the point, recalls defensive needs of earlier days. The only visitors to the village are those who come to see relatives.

Stage 2 is ‘Late Traditional’-still functionally a farming- fishing village, but now also a minor resort (if you wish) attract- ing some wealthier locals seasonally; and so we have the appearance of summer homes (S on the map), and they extend the village linearly along the edges of the Bay, especially on the warmer south-facing shore; the market threshold has been reached for an additional function or two (a hair stylist, a weekly clinic); and the new police station, near the village centre, suggests that government recognizes the growth of the place. The impact on the villscape, then, is observable. but slight.

Stage 3 is ‘Initial Tourism’ (and this corresponds to Dr Richard Butler’s ‘Exploration’ stage).5 The allocentrics and explorers from foreign parts find the village, and the painters and poets. They accept fully the local norms. They number only a handful: a small guest house (a converted private home) and a few tourist rooms (7) are the only villscape changes related to foreign tourism. These tourists make some contribution to the local economy, but a minor one. Villagers still play their games of bowls on summer evenings in privacy; they are understandably ‘apathetic’ about tourists. At this stage, there are also a few more summer homes (S) for Maltese visitors on Bayside sites. And there is an additional bus in the summer schedule-the turn-around point for the bus is close to the old church, in the ‘centre’ of the village.

Stage 4 is ‘Early Tourism’ (approximately the ‘Involvement’ phase of Butler6). A ‘luxury’ tourism complex (TC) has intruded into the villscape, on higher ground, with a view of the Bay, just a walk down to the rock-beach (although the complex has its own private pool), also a modest apartment building (A) or two,

5. Richard Butler, “A tourism area for the increasing number of vacationing Maltese; and some

cycle of evolution”, Canadian Geog- more summer homes further extend the village linearly (from

rapher, Spring 1980. the central nucleus); a restaurant invades the rows of fisher- 6. Ibid. men’s homes, many of which are being modified. The historic



tower, on the point, is converted (internally) to a first-class restaurant, probably by an entrepreneur from out of town (possibly by a Maltese who has returned with capital after several years working in London, Toronto or Sydney).

Socially and culturally, most villagers accept that these changes were inevitable-some mingle with tourists from the cold wet north in village bars (and talk soccer); some sell them fish, vegetables, milk and sunburn creams and copies of the London Times; and the doctor treats their ear infections and upset tummies; some have jobs as maids and handymen in the tourist complex. But there are two fairly distinct social worlds or circuits, and physically some segregation. Many housewives are displeased that self-catering tourists push up the price of vegetables in the dry Mediterranean summer. In the season, at this stage, villagers, local visitors and foreign tourists are about equal in number.

Stage 5 is ‘Expanding Tourism’ (Butler’s ‘Development’ stage, more or less’). The decision has been made externally (by the ‘Minister’) that tourism in the village should be promoted (to relieve development pressures elsewhere on the island and to provide jobs for the locals), and also that the village should be developed/urbanized and upgraded, for the benefit of local people (and for the profit of those owning land in and around the village); the infrastructure is to be improved (sewerage lines, bus services, a new school); an urban plan is prepared for the designated ‘planning area’, with zones specified for villas, ter- race houses, etc, even ‘public open spaces’; and building permits are now readily available; the emerging street pattern is to be more or less rectangular; the built-up area will spread around the shoreline and over the hills flanking the Bay.

The villscape firmly enters Stage 5 with the construction of a major luxury hotel (@)-the project, it is said, is partially funded by an international agency, and convention facilities to encourage business tourism may be added in due course; and the numerical ratio of villagers (residents), local visitors, and foreign tourists soon becomes (in the season) 1: 2: 3. Some of the new villas (V), which depart somewhat from traditional architectural styles, are occupied permanently (by professionals and managers, who commute); others are available for summer visitors. Entrepreneurs (from other centres) open up pharmacies (the locals are pleased that prescriptions may now be filled in their own village), boutiques, hairdressing salons, restaurants and bars, mostly in older, renovated, centrally-located structures; and a gas station appears (near, of course, a busy intersec- tion). The traffic generated by the new tourism and additional permanent residents worries the older folk; but the younger generation believes the village is at last ‘waking up’. They

7. Ibid. comment that ‘the action is arriving’. Once or twice a season the 8. My own empirical enquiries confirm much that has been written

new sewerage system is unexpectedly overloaded, and the au-

on Malta by cultural anthropologist thorities advise residents and visitors not to swim at the Bay-

Jeremy Boissevain (see, for example, head. In several respects, it is a time of considerable stress. Jeremy Boissevain and Peter Jerraci- no Ingloti, “Tourism in Malta”, in E.

Locals, however, come to accept that foreign tourists prefer to

de Kadt (ed), Tourism: Passport to wear a minimum of clothing on hot days, even when shopping;

Development (Oxford UP, Oxford, and that their own children will copy tourist fashions and 1979). behaviour.8



Stage 6 is ‘Intensive Tourism’ (Butler’s ‘Consolidation’ stqe9). Following final approval of the urban development plan for the enlarged village and successful completion of the village water disposal and water supply projects (removing two major con- straints on development), private investment has poured in; and self-catering apartments (A) for both domestic visitors and foreign tourists appear everywhere, with villas (v) and hotels (H) also proliferating. Accelerating urbanization and touristization meant streets full of construction vehicles, and now regularly there are heavy flows of vehicles bringing in food and drink and souvenirs from factories elsewhere on the island. Supplies may now be purchased at one of several, dispersed supermarkets, and there is now a post office and bank-in fact, there has been a rapid build up of the commercial ‘functional mix’-and it is likely that a significant proportion of tourism expenditure ‘remains in the village economy’. The villsca ly transformed into a ‘resort townscape’.’ g

e has been thorough-

At the height of the season, on a fiesta day, there are 20 times as many visitors as residents in the village. Parking is impossible. The sea is full of human bodies. There’s nothing much left for the spear fishermen to spear. (It seems clear that the marine ecosystem has been altered). But everybody is having a great time; especially the ice cream and hot dog vendors and the pizza places. The main attractions in the village are now the new casino (where the staff is mainly foreign), the International Bayhead Marina and the redeveloped Central Area and Waterfront District-with its open-air theatre where traditional folk dances, which are only a year or two old, are performed regularly, for tourists-with its bowlerama and its discotheque (where local youths and female tourists mingle under the watchful eyes of the recently enlarged local consta- bulary).

The only traces remaining of the Early Traditional past (Stage 1) are: (i) the historic tower (the restaurant there now serves only Chinese food; but, while you dine, you can watch an audio-visual presentation on ‘The Great Siege of Malta’ of the mid-16th century)-despite the efforts of the conservation soci- ety, the tower is now partially obscured by the new revolving restaurant atop the adjacent de luxe hotel, from where you can see Mt Etna on a clear day, and the lights of Syracuse, Sicily, on a clear night; (ii) a row of Bayside, conserved, heritage, fishermen’s homes, one of which is now a marine museum, and another the ‘Authentic Art Gallery’-on 1 June each year the Gallery receives crates of original oil paintings of the old village, depicting long gone traditional fishing boats in the Bay, which arrive from the New York studio of the American-born son of a Maltese migrant who left the island at the end of World War Two; and (iii) there remains the village priest’s residence (near

9. Butler. reference 5. 10. I venture to collapse these two

where the old church used tq be).

words into ‘resortscape’, specifically Old Father Salvatore,” however, is now living on the neigh-

to indicate those parts of the bouring island of Gozo, enjoying in relative peace and quiet his landscape or townscape of a resort that are visibly influenced by tourism.

twilight years in a village still at Stage 2 in the typical sequence.

11. Readers of The Kapillan of The only thing that disturbs his summer-time siesta is the whine

Malta by Nicholas Monsarrat will of the big jets as they approach Malta. On board each are eager know why I use this name. tourists bound for luxury accommodations at destinations that


Touristization of traditional iMaltese fishing-farming villages

informational travel brochures available in Manchester, Copenhagen and Hambur g describe as ‘still largely unspoiled traditional fishing villages”.

Comment

This general stages mode1 and the notes attempt to synthesize our knowledge and understanding of change in a village as it undergoes touristization, as it is metamorphosed by tourism. Tourism is seen as an additional activity (coming in at Stage 3), and one that virtually takes over (at Stage 6), physically, econo- mically and culturally. The mode1 has proven pedagogic value, but questions arise concerning:

(i) its generality-how generally valid is the model, in the context of Malta, or, indeed, universally, wherever tourism has impacted on traditional villages?

(ii) appropriate measures of change-which variables should be/can be measured so that the model might be precisely (‘scientifically’) tested?

(iii) planning and controls-should planning prevent the villscape from moving through this sequence; for instance, should it freeze development at Stage 3, or 4, or 5?

(iv) the quality of life-is life better at any one stage for the villagers, or is the tourist-experience better at any one stage, for the visitor?

(v) and the next stage and future stages-how may the villscape change after Stage 6. 3 Will it, in time, lose some of its appeal as a tourist destination?


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Touristization of traditional Maltese fishing-farming villages: A general model