The 'Martinitoren'

How the Martinitower looks

After the first day of arriving, eating typical Dutch pancakes and testing my hotel bed, it was time to visit some things in Groningen on the second day. I heard the 'Martinitoren' is something you cannot miss when you are in Groningen. When you are in the centre of Groningen, you can see the tower because of its height.

I bought a ticket and climbed the tower. First I thought: Maybe the tower is accessible for people with a disability. Then I saw the stairs and I thought: No. The 'Martinitoren' over 500 years old, people did not have tourists in mind back then. The stair has 251 steps, so you have to be fit in order to climb the tower. When you have reached the top of the stairs, you can see the view of the centre of Groningen from above. This is a wonderful sight.

But it is a pity this is not available for people with a disability. They also want to do the same things as other tourists. So they might want to watch Groningen from above.

I thought about dark tourism. Maybe the 'Martinitoren' is an example of a dark tourism attraction. Dark tourism means that you want to take a risk on your holiday (Buda, d'Hauteserre, Johnston, 2014). The risk could be going to a place which is very dangerous at the moment, like Syria now. But it can also be a dangerous activity, like bungee-jumping. Before I climbed the 'Martinitoren', I thought it might be a dark tourism attraction, because you climb to a certain height. When you have reached the top, you know it is a bit dangerous, because it is possible to fall down. So you're feeling excited and maybe a bit nervous. You want to take the risk. But when I had reached the top, I saw fences around the tower. Now it is not dangerous anymore. But people might still feel some excitement when they climb in the tower.

So the 'Martinitoren' is not accessible for people who cannot walk, or are not very fit. For the people who are able to climb the tower, it might be a bit like a dark tourism attraction, but not entirely. They may feel scared, but it is not dangerous, because of the fences.

So that was the 'Martinitoren'. I have done more things about which I will tell in my next blogpost.

Some views from the Martinitower

References:

Buda, D.M., d'Hauteserre, A., Johnston, L. (2014). Feelings and tourism studies. Annals of Tourism Research, 46, 102-114.  

Where to eat?

So I arrived in Groningen and I have found a nice place to sleep. The only thing I still really need is something to eat. I like to go to restaurants.

There is a difference between tourists and travelers. A tourist is someone who is reading all the travelguides to see what the highlights are in the city or country he is visiting. He wants to see all the famous buildings, and experience the typical things for a country (McCabe, 2005). Speaking about food: the Netherlands is famous for their pancakes. This is a typical Dutch meal. So when a tourist is hungry, he surely wants to visit 'het Pannenkoekenschip' in the centre of Groningen.
A traveler has a different look on tourism. He wants to do the same things as locals. A traveller is going off the beaten track. He just wants to experience what the country is like in the normal life of people. He will therefore eat at the same places as the locals do (McCabe, 2005). A place where locals like to go to in Groningen is 'Flinders café'. It is located near one of the canals. I've heard this is a wonderful place.

This is the pancakeship. They serve delicious pancakes!

So I had a dilemma, which place should I choose? Sometimes it is not easy to make a distinction between a tourist and a traveler. This is because a traveler also wants to see the very famous places in a country. A traveler does also want to see, for example, the pyramids in Egypt. He would miss an important part of the culture when he skips the pyramids. So when talking about food in Groningen, I want to eat where locals eat, but I also want to eat the typical Dutch food, 'pannenkoeken' (pancakes). It is a part of the food culture in the Netherlands. So, I've chosen to first eat at 'het pannenkoekenschip'. I went there yesterday. It is a beautiful ship, and the pancakes were delicious! Later this week I will eat at Flinders. So then I will have tried both. This seems to me the best option.

In my following posts I will tell you about the nice things I am doing here in Groningen. You will hear from me soon!

References:

McCabe, S. (2005). ‘Who is a tourist?’ A critical review. Tourist Studies, 5, 85-106.