Doing Transnational Tourism

This chapter explains why the tourists in my study expressed deep sadness and anger about the senselessness of the campaign and developed empathy for Allied and Turkish soldiers. These sentiments occurred for reasons such as admiring the mutual respect for soldiers on both sides by Australian and Turkish guides; viewing a documentary on the war from Allied and Turkish viewpoints; participating in sporting events with Turks; experiencing the general hospitality of Turkish people; and sharing intensely visceral reactions to the battlefields, cemeteries and memorials. I argue a transnational perspective of embodied emotions, commemoration and tourism is necessary for understanding why visitors had these experiences. I also analyse some other cases of transnational healing, reconciliation and empathy involving high school students. I conclude by reemphasising the key role of Gallipoli in the renovation of Anzac needs to be understood with respect to three main features. First , Gallipoli personifies how popular culture is a constant battlefield. Second, there is no “real” Gallipoli to be found. Finally, I contend investigating the protean and resilient myths that shape Gallipoli should be studied empirically in a matrix of local, national and transnational developments, rather than reduced to simplistic concepts like militarisation and methodological nationalism.