ABSTRACT
Many of us will recall a personal Kodak moment, that one rare opportunity to capture the perfect photograph to mark a particular occasion. This photographic encounter can likewise be captured when we speak of the cultural moment in heritage tourism, where culture is performed through practicing tourism at heritage sites. What are the intrinsic connections between tourism and heritage, especially when they are considered in a visual realm? How do we understand the cultural moment in terms of the reflexivities involved in tourism performance situated in everyday contexts? How is performance modulated by moments of engagement, and what are the reciprocities of engagement and performance in tourism places? This chapter focuses on tourist practice, in terms of how cultural heritage is consumed not only by tourists but by locals as well. By exploring local consumption of cultural heritage, it becomes evident that cultural tourism needs to be problematised and reconstituted. In other words, aside from attracting tourists, what else happens at tourist places? What else is being consumed and how is this manifested other than traditional notions of tourist consumption?
