Déjà Visité

We all know déjà vu: that feeling that a present moment is one we already lived through before.

But it might come as a surprise that déjà vu has two scientifically recognized sub-types.

déjà vécu (day-zha-vay-koo):
”Already experienced.” The more precise term for déjà vu. Event-related.

déjà visité (day-zha-vee-zee-tay):
”Already visited.” Place-based. The less common of the two.

As creators of experiences, we want to avoid déjà vécu. We don’t want our exhibitions and attractions to be eerie repeats.

But we do want a little déjà visité. Visitors should get around easily, as if they’ve visited before. We want no mystery in finding the lobby, the restrooms, or — mais bien sûr — the gift shop.

Here’s the thing:
Like the word “lost”, the word “déjà vu” has two subtypes.

We don’t want much déjà vécu.

But a little déjà visité would be welcome.

Warmly,
Jonathan

P.S. For more reading, you might start with this article.

P.P.S. MtM is now on a Tu-We-Th schedule by popular demand. See you Tuesday. And watch for new episodes of MtM, the podcast, coming soon!