Touristification and cultural heritage in the Pampas. New ruralities and idyllic stories of rural areas in the province of Buenos Aires (Argentina)

WINTER, CECILIA, ZUSMAN, PERLA

Rural Tourism. An International Perspective.

Cambrige Scholars Publishing

Año: 2014;

Heritage and touristification processes configured idyllic visions of the rural past. Our chapter considers some geographical imaginations about this rural past, depicted within this discourse, particularly those highlighting the role of migrants in the incorporation of the Pampas to ?civilisation?, and the role of gauchos, who are an iconic image of the Argentine rural tradition. These geographic imaginations were promoted mainly by the elite government during the nineteenth and twentieth century, which render invisible the history of native and Afro-argentine peoples, as well as the relationships between rural land owners and (permanent or temporary) workers, who form part of the history of this region in Argentina. These geographical or hegemonic imaginations present a ?gentle? version of the past, which are nowadays recreated and seems acceptable and convenient for the tourist industry development, whether they are private or government initiatives. The research presented in the chapter is based on fieldwork we have been carrying out since 2008 in some Buenos Aires province districts (partidos), especially Exaltación de la Cruz, San Antonio de Areco and General Las Heras, which consisted in interviews to inhabitants and civil servants of each district, and indirect and direct participant observation. These districts are located close to the Buenos Aires metropolitan area and are connected to it through fast access points. Even though each of them have specific agrarian productive histories, heritage, residential and tourist uses have proliferated in all of them since the 1990?s. The chapter is divided into three parts. The first one describes the Buenos Aires province transformations since the 1970?s, leading to a heritage and tourist valorisation of the rural areas. The second will analyse three different narratives about the rural past which have been important in the heritage and touristic valorisations of these three districts. Finally, we offer some thoughts about the political implications of these narratives in the creation of an idyllic rurality.