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Privileging Indigenous Voices: Narratives of Travel Experiences of Tibetans

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Privileging Indigenous Voices: Narratives of Travel Experiences of Tibetans Privileging Indigenous voices: Narratives of travel experiences of Tibetans by Xiaotao Yang A thesis presented to the University of Waterloo in fulfillment of the thesis requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Recreation and Leisure Studies Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, 2020 © Xiaotao Yang 2020 EXAMINING COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP The following served on the Examining Committee for this thesis. The decision of the Examining Committee is by majority vote. External Examiner Dallen J. Timothy Professor School of Community Resources and Development Arizona State University Supervisor Heather L. Mair Professor Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies University of Waterloo Internal Members Lisbeth Berbary Associate Professor Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies University of Waterloo Bryan S.R. Grimwood Associate Professor Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies University of Waterloo Internal-external Member Steffanie Scott Professor Department of Geography and Environmental Management University of Waterloo ii AUTHOR'S DECLARATION I hereby declare that I am the sole author of this thesis. This is a true copy of the thesis, including any required final revisions, as accepted by my examiners. I understand that my thesis may be made electronically available to the public. iii Abstract In 2012, Peters and Higgins-Desbiolles, wrote “What is wholly absent [from the tourism literature] …is any recognition of Indigenous peoples as tourists” (p.78). Chambers and Buzinde (2015) acknowledged that “tourism knowledge is still predominantly colonial” (p.1). As a response to these claims, this study aims to privilege and center Tibetan peoples’ knowledge as tourists, rather than as objects for tourists to gaze upon. Specifically, three research questions have guided this study: 1. What travel and tourism-related issues do Tibetan participants consider important? 2. How do Tibetan travelers narrate their travel experiences? 3. How does the research contribute to building a critically-informed understanding of tourism issues relevant to Indigenous peoples (e.g., experience, knowledge)? The first research question was purposely left open for the Tibetan participants, leaving room for them to decide their stance on relevant issues. After consulting with participants, we decided to develop codes of conduct for “welcomed tourists’ behaviours” to inform tourists who visit Tibet. Four months of fieldwork was conducted in Tibet, reaching out to 35 participants who generously shared 93 travel stories. Inspired by Indigenous methodologies and community-based participatory research (CBPR), this study adopted a participation oriented approach, guided by three principles: prioritizing community benefits from the research; cultivating sincere researcher-participant relationships; privileging Indigenous knowledge (Chilisa, 2012; Smith, 2012; Wilson, 2008). My study reports on methodological reflections. A series of research practices was drawn from related literature to ensure the application of these principles for opening up different ways of knowing. To address the second research question (How do Tibetans narrate their travel experiences?), I first elaborated on two major forms of travel taking place in contemporary Tibetan society: yukour and neikour. Neikour refer to religiously motivated visits to distant spiritual sites. Yukour, referring to non-religiously motivated travelling, is similar to sightseeing, tourism, or leisure in the literature. Engaging Tibetan concepts might open up new ways of understanding. Participants held two different ideas: yukour is a form of neikour; yukour is different from neikour due to its primary trip purposes. Both views differ from those in extant literature, which normally considers pilgrimage to be a sub- niche market of religious tourism (Olsen, 2019; Fleischer, 2000). iv I next presented Tibetan travel experiences in a narrative form through composing eight narratives largely based on verbatim quotations. Following each narrative, I connected participants’ experiences to Tibetan knowledge recorded in books. Moreover, following Hollinshead’s (2012) suggestion of cultivating dialogue space between Indigenous and non-Indigenous knowledge, I engaged in a critical dialogue with multiple existing literatures, including decolonial studies, dark tourism, posthumanism, eudaimonia experiences, Indigenous knowledge, and travelling workers. Potential working directions for future research were included. Participants’ requested that I advertise their expectations and suggestions for tourists who visit Tibet, which is included as one of my research questions. After consulting with 19 participants, I documented codes of conduct for welcomed tourists, which aligns with religious requirements and moving toward Indigenous communities’ autonomy. Overall, my thesis has established the fact that Tibetans are actively traveling, whether considered yukour or neikour, both within their homeland and outside. Rather than asserting any confirming tone, my thesis serves as a modest opening for the purpose of inviting more studies to broaden our understanding of tourism and pilgrimage via centering on Indigenous voices, such as those of Tibetan people. v Acknowledgements Zhuangzi remarked that providing a list might trigger either good or bad competition among listed and not-listed persons because the action of listing itself is a way of creating binaries and distinctions. That is not my intension here. While looking back on my long, staggering study journey, I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to many lovely people who made completing this dissertation possible. First of all, major thanks to the 35 participants who generously shared their valuable stories and supported me in various ways even after my field work was completed: Lhakpa, Chokyap, Tse Kelsang, Tsering, Jigme, Yangla, Lhakpa Tsering, Tashi Phuntsok, Penpa, Norbu, Wangyal , Drolma, Dorje, Namgyal, Tashi Norbu, Pasang, Chompel, Kunga, Tashi, Kelsang, Youdon, Palzom, Karma, Sonam Tashi, Nyima , Phurbu Dandul, Chimy Dolkar, Nyima Tsering, Tsering Drolma, Tsamchoe, Tsering Youdon, Jo Chompel, Lhosang, Phurbu Tashi, and Nyi Tse. Thanks to Chimy Dolkar, Shilho, and Drolma’s families for your hospitality; to Tsering, Jigme, and Yangla for driving me home on many late nights; and to other non-participant friends for facilitating my stays: Ran, Wu, Lan, Jigme Lha, Zhuzun Danta, Daoyan, Renzeng Drolma, Gongge Jiancan, and Jing. All this help made my fieldwork most enjoyable as well as highly productive. I would also like to extend my appreciation to my supervisor, Professor Heather Mair, who has provided tremendous support, care, and help during my studies. Whenever I lacked confidence about adopting my non-traditional research approach, she encouraged me to listen to my heart and be confident in my study, and always highlighted the beauty of my work. While looking back over my scholarly journey, I have come to realize that navigating uncertainties with curiosity and passion is the essence of doing research. Thanks Heather for helping me with this exploration. I am in debt to Mary McPherson of Waterloo’s Writing and Communication Centre, who has looked over my writing over the years and taught English writing interestingly. I have enjoyed our weekly sessions, especially your “nit picking” about nuance and help in finding the most-precise wording. You are a caring person who generously supports many international students, for instance, when together with Chao Yang, also of the Centre, you host Conversation Circles as our social space. You took us skating, taught us to recognize animal tracks and bird songs and habits, introduced Canadian and indigenous culture, gave travel and camping tips, and tried to help us enjoy (or just survive!) winter. You even invited us over on important holidays. vi My sincere appreciation is due to my internal committee members Professor Bryan grimwood and Professor Lisbeth Berbary for continuously supporting and encouraging me, caring about my work, and critically pushing back to improve its quality. Thank you so much for always opening your offices for a chat, discussing my many struggles, and dealing with any confusion. I greatly appreciate Professor Steffanie Scott and Professor Dallen Timothy’s valuable comments and lovely encouragement of my research. I owe faculty members Professor Kimberly Lopez, Professor Sue Arai, Professor Sherry Dupuis, Professor Steven Mock, Professor Troy glover, Leeann Ferries, Professor Karla Boluk, Professor Bryan Smale, Professor Kam Hung, and Professor Honggen Xiao tons of thanks as well. Thanks Professor Dan McCarthy and Peter Schuler, an elder and Traditional Knowledge Holder from the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation for your innovative teaching. Heartfelt thanks to Sandy and Tracy for cheerfully and efficiently helping me navigate the department’s many forms and procedures; you can have no idea how valuable your support is to frazzled and stressed-out students. To Sandy, special thanks are also due for giving me and other students our first Christmas dinner in Canada. And now a virtual group hug to the various groups who made my study in Waterloo colorful, including RECers—Xiaochun, Irene, Ashely, Julian, Meghan, Meggie, Nancy, Serinna, Holden, Bronwen, David, Shane, Meng W., Christina Appah, Mahshad, Narges, Earl, Sandy W., Tristin, Rasha, Natalia, Simon, and Jacqueline; my support groups—Mark, Johnson, Ben, Don, Mengmeng, Erin Reid, Marwa, Claudia, Jane, Tara, Yuan W., Lily,
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