Russian Orthodox Pilgrims in 21st century Israel: (original) (raw)

Abstract

Russian Orthodox Pilgrims in 21st century Israel: From Niche Tourism to Mass Pilgrimage Amos S. Ron Alona Roitershtein Dep. of Tourism & Hospitality Studies, Kinneret College on the Sea of Galilee, Israel Recent geopolitical developments, particularly the fall of the Iron Curtain in 1989, have led to great changes in tourism patterns to Israel. During the 19th century, Russian Orthodox pilgrims came in great numbers (relative to the period); their spatial imprint on the landscape was very significant, and the construction of the Russian Compound in Jerusalem is just one example. Unlike the 19th century Russian Orthodox pilgrimage, contemporary Russian Orthodox pilgrimage to the Holy Land is an under-reseasrched topic. During most of the 20th century, Russian pilgrimage to the Holy Land was practically non-existant, and can thus be regarded as a form of niche tourism. Data collected in the first decade of the 21st century indicate that “the Russians are back”: in 1999, approximately 37,000 Russians entered Israel as tourists, while in 2008, approximately 350,000 Russian tourists visited the country. The main aim of this research was to observe spatial adaptations to this old-new phenomenon. There are two main findings: 1. The Israeli hospitality landscape has not changed much, and the noticeable changes were the insertion of small but important Russian-friendly elements, such as Russian bibles in the rooms, hot tea after supper and Russian-speaking staff. 2. A significant change was observed in souvenir stores, as many went through a process of rapid Russification, which included (a) signposting in Russian, (b) selling souvenirs that are percieved as Russian Orthodox (e.g. icons) and (c) employing Russian-speaking sales representatives – both Jewish and Arab. A possible conclusion deriving from this research is that in a context of an imposed change in tourist population, souvenir stores are the first to adopt to the change (followed by hotels and sites) - thereby positioning themselves at the forefront of this (re)new(ed) wave of Russian pilgrims.

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