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A FEMALE tourist has sparked fury amongst locals after posing for a photo while pretending to romp with an iconic Florence statue.
The photographs that showed the woman imitating lewd acts on the statue have been shared online and branded “an absolute disgrace”.
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Google mapsIn the images, the unnamed woman was seen climbing up the bronze statue of Bacchus by Giambologna in the Borgo San Jacopo neighbourhood of Florence.
The blonde tourist, whose nationality is unknown, was spotted pretending to kiss the famed statue as she wrapped her arms around it.
In another picture, the disgraced holidaymaker – dressed in black t-shirt and denim shorts – stepped in front of the sculpture and rubbed her rear against it.
Her friend, wearing a white shirt and black shorts, could also be seen simulating a sex act as she knelt in front of the monument.
The offensive snaps have gone viral online, causing widespread demands to crack down on disrespectful tourists with a strict “zero tolerance” policy.
Patrizia Asproni from Confcultura, a cultural heritage organisation, said: “Florence is a city that does not make visitors respect it.
“These continuous manifestations of rudeness and incivility occur because everyone feels entitled to do what they want with impunity.
“We need to apply the ‘Singapore model’: tight controls, very high fines, zero tolerance.”
The statue the woman was photographed holding is a copy of Giambologna’s original bronze Bacchus, which is housed at the Bargello Museum and was made in the 1560s.
In 2006, the original was replaced by the replica which now stands atop an antique marble fountain “del Centauro”.
Police chief Antonella Ranaldi said: “Tourists are welcome, but there must be respect for our monuments, whether they are originals or copies.
“Also because I doubt that this lady, who has my blame, knows the difference.”
The footage triggered an uproar among Italians who called on the female tourists to be arrested over their “disgusting” photo-shoot.
Marco Passeri, a former councillor for Florence, asked: “Are we sure we need this kind of tourists in Florence?”
Anti-tourist measures sweeping hotspots
A WAVE of anti-tourist measures are being implemented across Europe to curb mass tourism in popular holiday hotspots.
Overcrowding has become the main problem in many sunny destinations, with authorities trying to find a solution to keep tourists and locals happy.
Officials have attempted to reduce the impact of holidaymakers by implementing additional taxes on tourists, or banning new hotels.
Earlier this year Venice became the first city in the world to charge an entry fee for holidaymakers after it started charging day-trippers €5 (£4.30) if visiting the historical Italian centre.
It was followed by an area in Barcelona which resorted to removing a well-used bus route from Apple and Google Maps to stop crowds of tourists from using the bus.
Meanwhile, San Sebastián in the north of Spain, limited the maximum number of people on guided visits to 25 to avoid congestion, noise, nuisance and overcrowding.
The city has already banned the construction of new hotels.
The Spanish government has allowed restaurants to charge customers more for sitting in the shade in Andalucia.
Benidorm has introduced time restrictions, as swimming in the sea between midnight and 7am could cost a whopping £1,000.
The Canary Islands are also considering adopting measures to regulate the number of visitors – and charge tourists a daily tax.
Greece has already enforced a tourist tax during the high season (from March to October) with visitors expected to pay from €1 (£0.86) to €4 (£3.45) per night, depending on the booked accommodation.
Officials in Santiago de Compostela in Galicia want to introduce a fee for travellers to remind people to be courteous during their trips.
One person online wrote: “This is the result of years of trying to turn Florence into Disney World.”
Another one added: “The degrade of this city is more abnormal every day.”
A third person said: “With the Florentine tourism, they’re making all the residents run away, so these animals can come in.”
Someone else wrote: “Yuck, Florence is becoming a circus.”
A fifth person continued, saying: “An absolute disgrace. Where are the police?”
Another user added: “How disgusting ….. This vandalistic tourism linked only to money destroys the beauty of the cities and our artistic heritage.”
Over 10million visitors flock to the Italian city, renowned for its collection of Renaissance art, every year.
Last year, a similar incident sparked outrage when a British tourist had carved his and his girlfriend’s name into Rome Colosseum.
Ivan Dimitrov has begged for forgiveness as he faced five years in an Italian prison for defacing the 2,000-year-old monument.
Italian residents have mirrored complaints of Spanish locals who have been protesting mass tourism for months now.
The anti-tourist movement continues to run rife across the sunny Spain as the zealots chant “Tourists go home” and blame “drunken” Brits for ruining their hometowns.
In the latest demonstration, scared holidaymakers had to cower as activists squirted water at them and screamed “You are not welcome”.
Tourists are being unfairly targeted as locals are furious with the cost of living and housing crisis that has reportedly seen home costs rise by 68per cent in the last decade.
Frustrated residents claim they are being pushed out of their neighbourhoods with more properties being converted into AirBnBs and hotels.
Anti-tourism protesters also plan to bring the Balearic Islands to a standstill during the peak season for British holidaymakers.
Activists hope thousands will join the biggest demonstration yet in the Spanish tourism hotspot on Sunday, July 21 — just as many UK schools break up for summer and families head for the sunshine.
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