The quest for the authentic Other is one of vanishing horizons

“Now the quest for the authentic Other is one of vanishing horizons. One genuine “backstage” is penetrated, only to reveal another fake front-stage: the act of observation changes that which is observed. Hence travelers do not (indeed cannot) succeed in their quest any more than tourists. That is only too clear from the accounts of the great Victorian travelers which are riddled with gross misconceptions. If they were not so serious, as with their concern (for instance) for the ‘mysteries’ of the Middle-Eastern harem, they would be laughable.”

–David Brown, “Genuine fakes,” from The Tourist Image: Myths and Myth Making in Tourism (1996)