Language evolves, and has virtually evolved from meaning almost a particular thing or quality, as in “he is a virtual prisoner in his own home.” Virtual shopping, buying online, and virtual meeting used to describe traditional activities taking place online in an almost real world. Virtual reality describes a range of experiences from fantasy to enhanced reality. I wrote here on TravelTomorrow about potentially superior virtual experiences:
“If your interest in art stretches to wanting to have a free, long, close, uninterrupted view of a painting, so that you could see the brush strokes, take a look at Claude Monet’s work. I have recently enjoyed visiting the “digital twin” of St Peter’s Basilica, unveiled by the Vatican last year.”
These are virtual experiences in a very similar way to watching gorillas in a BBC wildlife documentary narrated by Richard Attenborough. When I visited Bwindi, I didn’t venture into the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park to view the gorillas, but rather enjoyed time spent with communities living in the buffer zone. I can converse with them. These are of course, matters of individual preference, but I am not alone in preferring to enjoy a really good coffee table guide to the Inca ruins at Machu Picchu or Chan Chan on Tapestry. The sights devoid of tourists are more interesting to me.
Back in 2022, I wrote here about Barcelona as you have never seen it before. You enter the Mirador Torre Glòries through the basement of the tower, which offers Hyperview Barcelona, created by Media Pro Exhibitions, they present the city as you will never have seen it before: stunning, enlightening, memorable.
“…. using real-time big data to create multi-media sound and visual effects, you feel the pulse of the city. Barcelona is experienced “as a living organism that beats, with rhythms and cycles where people, ecosystems, infrastructures, and technologies all intertwine.” Think of James Lovelock’s Gaia Principle applied in sound and vision to Barcelona. For me, the experience was transformational.”
This is probably best described as hyperreality – the exhibition enhances reality. Reality is made visible to us, the tourist or resident. The language of “digital twins” is used to describe digital replicas, like the “digital twin” of St Peter’s Basilica unveiled by the Vatican in 2024. Virtual cities are increasingly used to explore different “… periods of significant architectural and cultural change for visitors, researchers, local history groups and communities to understand its people’s growth, changes and lifestyles over time.” Kevin Flude runs And Did Those Feet, which reviews ways of exploring cities, for example, Amsterdam, online.
Madrid has developed a Digital Twin, “a virtual representation of Madrid that uses IoT, AI, and 3D modelling for efficient management of the city and its services. The system enables real-time simulation and evaluation of the city’s infrastructure and policies, improving the quality of life and well-being of its citizens. It is also used to ensure the safety of public events and to optimise sustainable urban planning.”
AI offers both different ways for visitors and residents to appreciate the place and assists the city authorities in managing complex places.
