I am putting these thoughts together for BP because I don't know where else to
put them ...

...but having just returned from "the land of the 'gators" (GA and FLA). I am
troubled by thoughts of what we (preservationists) have wrought. I just
visited St. Augustine, FL  -- the "oldest city in America." It has a historic
district that is wonderful -- well preserved streetscape, great old buildings,
and some interesting reconstructions underway, based on archaeological
discoveries of old building footprints and historic images.

HOWEVER, the historic [now] "walking street" is a mall-like environment of
tourist shops -- endless mugs, crystals, ersatz memoribilia, etc. that
tourists like to buy. There was one authentic historic site, which depicted
the city at a particular historic period, but for the most part it was a
historic "theme park" -- crowded with large, ice cream-slurping tourists.

Savannah, GA is much the same -- tour buses cram the streets, there is little
sense of a "normal" city rhythm, and most of the people on the streets are
tourists.

Is this really Good Preservation? Is this the reality of "heritage tourism"
that many feel is the life-blood of American historic preservation/economic
development? It destroyed the authentic historic qualities that I had hoped to
see in the streets of St. Augustine and Savannah. Arg.

I am not sure that I want this -- I don't want to be in those places-as-mall.
I want to feel some semblance of the historic buildings moved into the present
day! I want to be able to sense the history. I don't want to be surrounded by
crystals and mugs and  and very large tourists eating ice cream. Is this the
only way we can help these buildings survive? Somehow, Europe (and other
cultures) seem to be able to preserve their cities and absorb tourists in a
more discrete way -- why not here?

Uck, uck, and uck.

Mary (discouraged in Montclair NJ) Krugman