4 Data analysis
4.2 Analysis of Taiwanese backpackers’ narratives on experience
4.2.2 what are my traveling experiences like
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4.2.1 Reliability Check
Experience is something singular that happens to an individual and researchers can not directly access (Caru and Cova, 2008). That is the reason to choose
netnography as method for this study, intending to understand the private nature of the experience to be studied. However, this study is more like quasi-netnography, with merely disclosed observation, alone with content analysis. What’s more,
“member check3” is omitted in this study because in this study because all of the narrators are coded with anonymity of all narrators, rather than user name on the Internet. Therefore, to ensure the reliability of the coding without getting any feedbacks from the chosen narrators, stabilities were firstly maintained while all the contents were coded more than once by the researcher.
Second, there is another coder invited to confirm the result findings by the researcher. He randomly chose three narrators’ narratives (M1, F9, and M4) and coded via the guidelines provide by the researcher. The results coded by the two coders are compared through “rate of agreement4”, counting by software Nvivo 8.0.
And, the average rate of agreement is 93.04 %, which is believed to be satisfying.
4.2.2 What Are My Traveling Experiences Like?
–metaphors & imageries used in the narratives
3 Presentations of some or all final research results to the people who have been studies in order to solicit their comments
4 The coding reliability query uses Kappa's coefficient to measure agreement.
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As mentioned in the methodology section, the main
method—netnography—used in this study, would be used in accompany with event-based narrative inquiry technique (EBNIT) (Helkkula andPihlström, 2010), which stresses the importance of analyzing metaphors. And, according to Laing et al. (2009), imagery is conveyed by the travelers in both oral and written
discourse—particularly through the use of metaphors. The categorized results show that there are five types of metaphors which appeared more than three times by the chosen 37 Taiwanese backpackers in reference to their journeys—(1)
paradise/heaven (2) dream/fantasy (3) landscape as painting (4)myth/fairy tales, and (5) in love. The following sections further elaborate the ideas of each metaphor.
Paradise/Heaven
The image of paradise or heaven is mentioned with the highest frequency. In general, all the narrators describe their experiences as being in the paradise because of the surprisingly beautiful natural environment they are in, as if they were being in “a place never before seen, or situations never experienced” (Elsrud, 2001). Such
descriptions include 「一生中真的還沒有看過像這樣的風景，真是迷人。好像我到了另一
個人間仙境(M10)」and 「驚喜的是，下雨後的沙壩，壯麗的山谷、層疊的梯田、靜謐的村 落，在沿著山峰緩緩飄去的雲霧籠罩時分外神祕。這裡肯定是世外，是通往另一個世界的桃
源5。(M16)」
5 The expression shìwaì taóyuán (世外桃源 ‘the Peach Spring beyond this world’) has become a popular Chinese expression, meaning an unexpectedly fantastic place off the beaten path, usually an unspoiled wilderness of great beauty. (retrieved from WIKIPEIDA:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Peach_Blossom_Spring )
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Further, being in a paradise-like place would sometimes trigger travelers’
emotions and feelings. For example, one narrator wrote 「彷彿看到一條鑽入雲端，直 通往天堂的坡路。忍不住倒吸了一口氣後，一陣盈眶熱淚差點霎時奪出(M16)」 to express that he was so touched and almost shed tears; the other narrator wrote down her feelings in one church, stating that 「不是教徒的我也仿佛置身天堂般激起崇敬的肅穆情 感(F19)」, which shows her solemn and respectful emotions.
Other than beautiful landscapes, some narrators feel like being in the paradise because of a more comprehensive experience, including beautiful natural
surroundings, people, and food. Such descriptions are like 「這裡真的很像天堂，風景 美得像幅畫、孩子天真得像天使(M11)」 and 「金色的陽光，澄藍的天，潔白的雲，蔚藍的 海，白淨的沙，飛舞的海鷗，飄揚的旗幟，笑臉洋溢的人們，追逐的孩童，各式各樣的啤酒…
我在天堂(F15)」.
Dream/Fantasy
Many narrators in this study referred to their travel experiences using metaphor of dream—dream of traveling or dream of being in a place. For example, 「那永無 止息的旅行夢(F2)」 and 「這就是夢寐以求的大堡礁啊，原來夢想實現真的不難(F14)」 are excerpts from two narrators.
Dreamlike feelings sometimes transform into fantasies. This state is best
described by one narrator stating that 「這趟旅程中，發生了好多好多事情，常常自己都 覺得它們好不真實，有時虛幻到就像是作夢一樣」. What’s more, one would even have an experience that is too good to be true, like the following statement:
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「...怎麼還沒喝酒就醉了呢，怎麼還沒入睡就出現美夢了呢！... 費娃湖讓人不飲而醉，
不眠而夢，Pokhara 不只是天堂，還是個夢境呢！」(M11, 2008)
Landscape as Painting
Urry (2002) discussed about “tourist gaze” in his work and stressed the tourists’
gaze at the visual excitement. In his finding, a tourist receives visual experiences more than any other sensory experiences. In this study, it is also found that narrators value their visual excitements and tend to describe the beautiful
landscapes they view as paintings, such as 「平靜的像是該配上陶淵明桃花源的水彩插 畫(F1)」, 「走入了明信片上的風景畫裡(M11)」, 「我好像跌入了那幅名畫中 F15」」, or even as what the title of image 4-3 wrote 「這畫面好像一幅畫，好 peace (M10)」.Above narratives show that, the visual excitements that “delight” Taiwanese backpackers are the landscapes which are beautiful as paintings or as postcards.
Myth/Fairy tale
The fairytale aspects of tourism have been considered by Dann (1996). He observes that tourists “are caught up in a fairy-tale world of childhood’ (Dann, 1996, p. 123). Examples are like 「就像童話故事裡的房屋，美得令人秉息讚嘆的風景 (F15)」 and 「每個人才從這個童話跨出來、卻又馬上踏入下一個故事中(F16)」. This proves Dann (1996)’s exploration that narrators “sometimes viewed the new territories they discovered in terms of fairyland.” This may be a good theme while positioning the beauties of local environment.
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In Love
The feeling of being in love is quite a strong affection. When backpackers travel, they depict their emotions as being in love when the physical surroundings make them deeply sense the sweetness of love. However, being in love does not offer happiness only, it sometimes make people hurt. Thus, being in love is a mixed feeling of happiness and sorrow—in a word, strong emotions. The following excerpt best elaborates this kind of strong emotion:
進入歷史的旅行，更多的探索印度，你會更愛她，或是恨她；又或者強烈的愛與恨從來便
不是衝突，你可以愛她、又恨她。沒有一個國度能像她一樣，有著愛情一般迷人的殘酷。
(M16, 2009)
Inferring from this metaphor, it’s of high possibilities that describing a journey as being in love may be workable for positioning in tourism as fairy-tale imagery is.
Table 4-2 categorizes these five types of main imageries and metaphors in a complete overview.
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Table 4-2: Metaphors Used by Narrators
Narrators Descriptions
PARADISE/HEAVEN M2 清邁是天堂
M4 人間天堂 (refer to image 4-1)
我應該是在天堂吧… (refer to image 4-2)
M10 我一生中真的還沒有看過像這樣的風景，真是迷人。好像我有到了另一個人間仙境
一望無際的白色鹽田上，好想下了一場從未融化過的雪一樣。到處潔白乾淨好像人間仙境一樣般的美！
M11 這裡真的很像天堂，風景美得像幅畫、孩子天真得像天使、人親切得一聲聲以「Namaste!」向路過的遊客問候，在 這裡的笑聲是特別清澈、而我更是笑得開懷、笑得放肆、笑得肆無忌憚。
如畫的風景、像天使的人們，這裡不就是天堂嗎？
費娃湖讓人不飲而醉，不眠而夢，Pokhara不只是天堂，還是個夢境呢！
如果人間找得到一個像天堂的地方，那地方叫做尼泊爾。
F15 金色的陽光，澄藍的天，潔白的雲，蔚藍的海，白淨的沙，飛舞的海鷗，飄揚的旗幟，笑臉洋溢的人們，追逐的孩 童，各式各樣的啤酒…我在天堂！
M13 這地原是住宅區，並無商業活動，安靜的社區讓我感到特別舒適。掃掉在蘇黎世的ZIGZAC的鳥氣，在這安靜的社區 散步，感覺這是天上人間。
F16 我們會想辦法再走一趟動物天堂，但即使沒有下一趟，在我們心中，永遠也不會忘記這個地方，一個不屬於人且動 物喊它「天堂」的地方...
Metaphors
Details
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M16 繼續攀升時，突然之間，彷彿看到一條鑽入雲端，直通往天堂的坡路。忍不住倒吸了一口氣後，一陣盈眶熱淚差點 霎時奪出，我從來沒有看過像這樣的地方。
我到的季節是雨季(六月至八月)，午後開始下起磅礡大雨。但驚喜的是，下雨後的沙壩，壯麗的山谷、層疊的梯田、
靜謐的村落，在沿著山峰緩緩飄去的雲霧籠罩時分外神祕。這裡肯定是世外，是通往另一個世界的桃源。
在印度加爾各答的垂死之家，世上最不可能的角落裡，我彷彿看見天堂。
哥德藝術的交叉拱肋、成束的圓柱，透過朦朧光線映照下更有如天國異境
置身其間，欣賞直入雲霄的尖拱、華麗飛扶壁、細柱，幾束穿透窗櫺射進來的陽光，讓整座教堂充滿神秘莊嚴的氛 圍，在那一瞬間，不是教徒的我也仿佛置身天堂般激起崇敬的肅穆情感。
DREAM/FANTASY M1 多少個世紀以來，無數冒險家都夢想著征服這條桀驁不馴的大江！
F2 常不經意的翻閱，以重返那永無止息的旅行夢。
F7 對我來說，亞瑪遜河是一條神奇的河流，能來到亞瑪遜河，就如同遁入夢中一樣，伸手五指都是夢幻的世界，每一 步、每一個映入眼簾的美景，都是你這一輩子難忘的美夢。
F8 走過大街，我終於來到我夢想中想造訪的地方之一「尼加拉瀑布」。
M7 仰望著天上明月及滿天星鬥，實現夢想的感覺真好!
M9 這趟旅程中，發生了好多好多事情，常常自己都覺得它們好不真實，有時虛幻到就像是作夢一樣
M10 尼羅河上遊輪渡假，一切好像在做夢喔
M11 湖畔的螢火蟲，數不清的螢火蟲，與費娃湖面搖晃的燈光投影相輝映，螢火蟲飛向湖岸，就飛在餐桌旁，一眨一眨 地在身邊繞呀繞，怎麼還沒喝酒就醉了呢，怎麼還沒入睡就出現美夢了呢！
費娃湖讓人不飲而醉，不眠而夢，Pokhara不只是天堂，還是個夢境呢！
F19
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F14 心想著，這就是夢寐以求的大堡礁啊，原來夢想實現真的不難。
M16 一段長途旅行是我的夢想。
深藏在阿富汗（Afghanistan）、塔吉克（Tajiskistan）、中國(People's Republic of China)及印度(India)等國 的交會之處，有一座壯麗的山谷。巨大的巴特拉冰川(Batura Glacier)切割出陡峭深遂的罕薩谷地(Hunza Valley)，
還有終年披覆白雪的山脊，拉卡波希峰(Rakaposhi,7788公尺)、烏爾塔峰(Ultar,7388公尺)、迪蘭峰 (Diran, 7257 公尺)和黃金峰(Spantik,7027公尺)，四面圍繞守護著這個夢境
啊～～在印度的恆河裡游泳，是我長久以來一直想做的事啊！一兼二顧，摸蛤蜊兼洗褲，順便拿肥皂東搓西揉，完 成這個小小夢想。
凝望窗外飛快後退的風景，感受南印的熱風吹襲，閉上眼睛，聽那火車轟隆轟隆轟隆轟隆的行進，心好像也掙脫束 縛，隨著夢想自由前行。旅行，就是有一種神奇的魔力。
LANDSCAPE AS PAINTING
F1 只見眼前一條直愣愣的黃泥路向前延伸，沿路農田和雜草交錯無間，偶爾從草地冒出一小幢高腳屋，至於層層疊疊 的小山落則在幾百公尺外，霧氣繚繞，幾隻飛鳥掠過，雨後芳菲，平靜的像是該配上陶淵明桃花源的水彩插畫。
M7 我一直在尋找這是否就是所謂的桃花源呢？穿過洞後眼前又是另一幅風景畫。
M10 不是現代的柏油路而是有感覺的石頭舖成的小街，一片白色房子的最後面，就是烏拉圭人最尊敬的天主教。這個畫 面好像一幅畫，好Peace... (refer to image 4-3)
M11 對面的山，似乎觸手可及，其蓊鬱蒼翠是如此鮮艷欲滴，顏色濃烈得如幅油畫，而在這座山之後的山，位置是一落 一落向後退去，高度是一疊一疊向上堆高，顏色是一層一層往遠方淡去，成了水墨的渲染畫，什麼叫做「山重水複」，
什麼叫做「千巖競秀、萬壑爭流」，在這裡，我才真正明白。
山景在印象派油畫與寫意派水墨畫中遞嬗。
山間的美景在我們的眼前一路展開來，隨著下切山谷越深，脫掉的衣服也就越多。白了頭的山峰、圍著綠圍巾、綴 著小黃花的山腰，走著走著，走入了明信片上的風景畫裡。
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F15 沿路的平原風光，讓我真的是開了眼界。亮麗的陽光，配合著綠草如茵，牛羊成群…天哪！我是不是在畫裡？一群 群牛羊慵懶的吃著草，有的更在草地方打滾，那一份悠哉，我好像跌入了那幅名畫中，嘴角不知不覺持續上揚！
F15 沿路的平原風光，讓我真的是開了眼界。亮麗的陽光，配合著綠草如茵，牛羊成群…天哪！我是不是在畫裡？一群 群牛羊慵懶的吃著草，有的更在草地方打滾，那一份悠哉，我好像跌入了那幅名畫中，嘴角不知不覺持續上揚！