LISBON TO PORTO - AN INTRODUCTION TO GEOTOURISM AND GEOPARKS

The geology program at Missouri State University is part of a mixed department including geography, geology, and planning. The department also offers one of the only geotourism degrees in the world. To encourage interaction between students within the varying programs, the department offers “mixed” field trip experiences, often led by faculty from at least two of the programs. During spring break (2014) we offered a geotourism themed field trip to Portugal. The objectives for the trip were to introduce the fundamentals of geotourism to students and to provide students with an understanding of the importance of geology to the field of geotourism.

Geotourism focuses on tourism that sustains or enhances the geographical character of a place-its environment, culture, aesthetics, heritage, geology, and the well-being of its residents. Students were introduced to Lisbon's culture, cuisine, history, and architecture through a guided tour. The group was given the opportunity to visit parts of the city that survived the 1755 earthquake and those parts that were demolished and rebuilt. The focus of the trip was the Arouca Geopark. Established as a UNESCO Geopark in September 2008, the Arouca Geopark consists of a 328 km² area with ~22,400 inhabitants. The Geopark has 37 members (public and private) and 10 full time staff. The park’s geologic features include the Castanheira Granite, locally know as “Pedras Parideiras – stones giving birth to stones”, and the Canelas trilobite quarry, which is home to some of the largest trilobites in the world. Visiting Portugal without discussing the wine, especially port wine, is unimaginable. As a result, we spent a day investigating the geology of the Duoro Valley and capped it off with a port wine tasting at W & J Graham’s winery. Finally, students were able to compare, contrast, and discuss the characteristics of the Porto that make it culturally, historically, and architecturally unique with respect to Lisbon.

During the course of the trip, students were required to give a presentation regarding a previously chosen geologic, geographic, or cultural topic. Additionally, students were required to keep a daily journal of their experiences, which were subsequently used to write an evaluation of the UNESCO Geopark program and the Arouca Geopark itself.