Markers of the heart: finding spirituality in a bus marked “Tourist”

Abstract

This paper details the experiences of 12 American college students as they travel through India, Thailand and Taiwan studying Buddhism for a semester. The paper discusses their joys and frustrations as they search for spirituality and meaning in a bus marked “Tourist”. The students share their feelings about being tourists, contrasting their desires to have an academic and spiritual experience as they visit sacred sites working with local scholars and religious practitioners. They struggle with their privledge and express their shame at seeing the economic inconsistencies and disparities of locals.As the semester ends, the students become increasingly self‐reflective, embodying humility and compassion. They are transformed as they see the contradictions of religion and culture. Implications for tourism management are offered, as well as an examination of the cross‐cultural issues of being a Westerner on a guided spiritual quest in an Eastern setting.