Would you like to inspect the original subtitles? These are the user uploaded subtitles that are being translated:
1
00:00:01,800 --> 00:00:04,500
Let's have a look.
2
00:00:04,500 --> 00:00:07,340
Let's see what we've got here.
3
00:00:07,340 --> 00:00:08,860
Oh, yes.
4
00:00:10,900 --> 00:00:15,140
When I was growing up, I dreamed
of travel and adventure.
5
00:00:17,300 --> 00:00:20,020
Bye! Thank you!
6
00:00:20,020 --> 00:00:22,460
Then, one day, that dream came true.
7
00:00:23,500 --> 00:00:25,140
This is it.
8
00:00:25,140 --> 00:00:27,740
I'm standing on the top of
the world!
9
00:00:31,020 --> 00:00:34,900
For three decades, I've been lucky
enough to travel the world,
10
00:00:34,900 --> 00:00:39,540
making documentaries and sharing my
adventures with millions of viewers.
11
00:00:39,540 --> 00:00:44,820
Michael Palin set the tone for,
I think, all travel TV today.
12
00:00:44,820 --> 00:00:48,500
Ah - it's a bit like a very
friendly steamroller...
13
00:00:48,500 --> 00:00:49,740
He came at the right time.
14
00:00:49,740 --> 00:00:52,740
He had the right daring qualities.
15
00:00:56,380 --> 00:00:58,660
He has huge warmth,
16
00:00:58,660 --> 00:01:03,300
and it's a warmth that spreads
across all kinds of people.
17
00:01:03,300 --> 00:01:07,060
Bye-bye, Sumantu. Bye-bye, Yusef.
Bye, Muhammad!
18
00:01:07,060 --> 00:01:12,460
It expanded my horizons to the rest
of the planet.
19
00:01:12,460 --> 00:01:15,300
All through my travels,
I kept a diary.
20
00:01:15,300 --> 00:01:17,140
I always felt when I've travelled,
21
00:01:17,140 --> 00:01:20,180
it's really, really important
to keep a record.
22
00:01:20,180 --> 00:01:21,820
I mean, every day is precious.
23
00:01:21,820 --> 00:01:26,460
You're seeing things you'll probably
never, ever see again in your life.
24
00:01:26,460 --> 00:01:29,540
Now, for the first time,
I'm looking back -
25
00:01:29,540 --> 00:01:34,020
revisiting my most memorable
journeys, and opening my diaries
26
00:01:34,020 --> 00:01:37,380
to find forgotten moments
from my travels.
27
00:01:37,380 --> 00:01:42,100
My way of looking at each journey as
something different, new, special,
28
00:01:42,100 --> 00:01:45,180
exciting, dramatic, and challenging,
29
00:01:45,180 --> 00:01:49,380
was not really knowing exactly how
it was going to turn out.
30
00:01:54,900 --> 00:01:56,340
THEME MUSIC PLAYS
31
00:02:04,460 --> 00:02:07,900
My first travel series,
Around The World In 80 Days,
32
00:02:07,900 --> 00:02:12,660
had proved that viewers enjoyed my
adventures almost as much as I did.
33
00:02:12,660 --> 00:02:16,420
So it wasn't long before we started
to think about doing another
34
00:02:16,420 --> 00:02:18,540
even more demanding journey.
35
00:02:22,180 --> 00:02:25,700
You've clearly forgotten the horrors
of Around The World In 80 Days
36
00:02:25,700 --> 00:02:28,580
because you're about to go
from pole to pole.
37
00:02:28,580 --> 00:02:31,460
Someone suggested doing this route,
which is North Pole to South Pole,
38
00:02:31,460 --> 00:02:34,300
down 30 degrees east longitude.
39
00:02:34,300 --> 00:02:36,340
It goes right down through Finland,
40
00:02:36,340 --> 00:02:39,380
Russia, Turkey and right down
through Africa, down the Nile,
41
00:02:39,380 --> 00:02:42,220
the Rift Valley, all that, through
South Africa to Antarctica.
42
00:02:42,220 --> 00:02:45,260
And it just sounded, you know...
too good to miss.
43
00:02:45,260 --> 00:02:46,700
So I signed up.
44
00:02:51,540 --> 00:02:53,740
Well, 80 Days,
we didn't pit ourselves
45
00:02:53,740 --> 00:02:56,060
against great physical
obstacles at all.
46
00:02:56,060 --> 00:02:58,500
It was all well-settled ground.
47
00:02:58,500 --> 00:03:01,860
Here straightaway you're going to
one, you know,
48
00:03:01,860 --> 00:03:03,980
literally an end of the Earth!
49
00:03:17,140 --> 00:03:18,580
Where are we now?
50
00:03:18,580 --> 00:03:20,620
We're three miles from the pole.
51
00:03:20,620 --> 00:03:22,260
We'll be there in one minute.
52
00:03:22,260 --> 00:03:24,500
What are the chances
of getting down?
53
00:03:24,500 --> 00:03:27,340
I'd say they're pretty good.
By the pole?
54
00:03:27,340 --> 00:03:30,100
Yeah, well, we can probably land
within at least...
55
00:03:30,100 --> 00:03:32,020
..above or right at the pole.
56
00:03:33,500 --> 00:03:35,460
They said to me, "The guys will fly,
57
00:03:35,460 --> 00:03:37,660
"but we can't land
till the sun comes out."
58
00:03:37,660 --> 00:03:40,300
And I remember saying, "Oh, it
doesn't matter about the weather.
59
00:03:40,300 --> 00:03:41,740
"Let's just get this over with!"
60
00:03:41,740 --> 00:03:44,220
They said, "No, it does matter
about the weather because the sun
61
00:03:44,220 --> 00:03:46,940
"will be shining down and
it will reveal any ridges."
62
00:03:46,940 --> 00:03:48,860
A lot of these ice flows had ridges
63
00:03:48,860 --> 00:03:51,300
which can just flip a plane
over just like that.
64
00:03:52,980 --> 00:03:56,140
I can remember sitting up in that
plane and thinking this was stupid.
65
00:03:56,140 --> 00:03:57,380
This WAS stupid.
66
00:04:32,860 --> 00:04:35,740
NARRATION: The first problem is
where to plant your pole.
67
00:04:35,740 --> 00:04:38,980
The North Pole is on a constantly
moving sea of ice.
68
00:04:38,980 --> 00:04:43,580
So where the pole is now may not be
where the pole is in an hour's time.
69
00:04:43,580 --> 00:04:45,340
That's why,
as the Americans might say,
70
00:04:45,340 --> 00:04:47,140
"Once you've got it, flaunt it."
71
00:04:48,820 --> 00:04:50,260
This is it.
72
00:04:50,260 --> 00:04:53,260
I'm standing on the top of the world
73
00:04:53,260 --> 00:04:56,500
at the North Pole
where the time is....
74
00:04:56,500 --> 00:04:59,220
Well, the time's anything you want
it to be up here!
75
00:04:59,220 --> 00:05:02,220
The temperature is about -25 degrees
centigrade,
76
00:05:02,220 --> 00:05:04,260
so there's no point
in hanging around.
77
00:05:04,260 --> 00:05:08,180
What I'm going to do is make a
journey from here to the South Pole,
78
00:05:08,180 --> 00:05:10,660
which is...in every direction.
79
00:05:12,380 --> 00:05:14,980
It's going to be a hell of a long
journey but...
80
00:05:14,980 --> 00:05:16,220
Well, let's go!
81
00:05:25,140 --> 00:05:30,060
Standing on the top of the world,
there's this incredible sense
82
00:05:30,060 --> 00:05:35,420
of being enormously privileged
because the world is literally
83
00:05:35,420 --> 00:05:36,900
falling away at your feet.
84
00:05:36,900 --> 00:05:39,700
Every direction is south.
85
00:05:39,700 --> 00:05:44,580
And you're... You're in a place
where very, very few human beings
86
00:05:44,580 --> 00:05:45,860
have ever been before.
87
00:05:45,860 --> 00:05:48,660
So that's... I mean, that's just...
88
00:05:48,660 --> 00:05:50,180
What a way to start a programme.
89
00:05:53,900 --> 00:05:55,620
South Pole, here we come.
90
00:05:59,660 --> 00:06:02,740
Pole to Pole was just
exciting world travel.
91
00:06:04,340 --> 00:06:06,860
Beginning to stretch into the kind
of Ran Fiennes territory,
92
00:06:06,860 --> 00:06:08,700
and all these great
Robin Knox-Johnstons,
93
00:06:08,700 --> 00:06:10,020
the big travellers.
94
00:06:11,540 --> 00:06:14,820
There's such a constant threat
of peril.
95
00:06:14,820 --> 00:06:19,100
It's actually a bit like watching
a James Bond film.
96
00:06:19,100 --> 00:06:22,700
It's got that thing of you know
he's going to be fine,
97
00:06:22,700 --> 00:06:25,900
But you still find yourself
slightly worried at times going,
98
00:06:25,900 --> 00:06:28,180
"Oh! How's he going to get
out of this one?"
99
00:06:29,860 --> 00:06:33,820
The idea was deliberately so
engineered to try and get us
100
00:06:33,820 --> 00:06:37,860
from North Pole to South Pole
going through land most of the way.
101
00:06:39,340 --> 00:06:42,740
Epic, I suppose,
is a good word - Pole To Pole.
102
00:06:49,860 --> 00:06:54,460
I thought if you really want to look
hard at the world and places that,
103
00:06:54,460 --> 00:06:57,780
you know, countries that I'd
never been to, for instance,
104
00:06:57,780 --> 00:07:00,820
then this was a greater challenge.
105
00:07:00,820 --> 00:07:02,860
The challenge was important.
106
00:07:05,500 --> 00:07:07,380
NARRATION: We drive
on through the night -
107
00:07:07,380 --> 00:07:10,140
though, at this time of
year, the sun never sets.
108
00:07:10,140 --> 00:07:12,380
It's still there at
3.00 in the morning
109
00:07:12,380 --> 00:07:15,340
when at last we glimpse the first
sign of human habitation
110
00:07:15,340 --> 00:07:17,260
since leaving Ny-Alesund.
111
00:07:19,900 --> 00:07:24,340
It's a trapper's hut standing
on the shores of a frozen field.
112
00:07:26,420 --> 00:07:29,740
The garden furniture is a bit grim.
113
00:07:29,740 --> 00:07:34,220
A rack full of dead seals -
meat for the trapper's dogs.
114
00:07:34,220 --> 00:07:38,420
Our host, Harold Solheim, looks
more like a rabbi than a trapper.
115
00:07:38,420 --> 00:07:41,020
And he's lived here on his own for
15 years.
116
00:07:43,220 --> 00:07:45,180
It's a very lonely life here,
Harold, isn't it?
117
00:07:45,180 --> 00:07:47,940
I mean, why do you choose a life
like this?
118
00:07:47,940 --> 00:07:49,980
Well, that was...
119
00:07:49,980 --> 00:07:54,620
In the beginning, it was some sort
of adventure about the whole thing.
120
00:07:54,620 --> 00:07:57,100
It's not that any more.
121
00:07:57,100 --> 00:07:59,540
No, it's just a way of living.
122
00:07:59,540 --> 00:08:03,780
But, I mean, the idea of a trapper
now is very, very unfashionable.
123
00:08:03,780 --> 00:08:07,940
I mean, environmentally, the idea of
people hunting and killing animals
124
00:08:07,940 --> 00:08:10,500
is now much criticised.
125
00:08:10,500 --> 00:08:12,900
How do you react to that?
126
00:08:12,900 --> 00:08:16,180
It's OK. If they are vegetarians,
then they could blame the hunters -
127
00:08:16,180 --> 00:08:18,020
that I could understand.
128
00:08:18,020 --> 00:08:20,460
But...
129
00:08:20,460 --> 00:08:25,260
People that are going into shops and
buying meat?
130
00:08:25,260 --> 00:08:29,860
And, as far as I know, every meat
comes from living animals,
131
00:08:29,860 --> 00:08:34,460
and you have to kill them
before you eat them anyhow.
132
00:08:34,460 --> 00:08:37,300
If you were a vegetarian,
how would you survive here?
133
00:08:37,300 --> 00:08:39,940
Very badly I'm afraid!
134
00:08:44,420 --> 00:08:47,940
We wave our goodbyes and hurtle on
our way south to goodness knows
135
00:08:47,940 --> 00:08:51,780
what problems and crises, leaving
Harold Solheim's remote kingdom
136
00:08:51,780 --> 00:08:56,380
surrounded once again by the
certainty and comfort of silence.
137
00:08:59,460 --> 00:09:01,860
My three weeks travelling
across the Arctic
138
00:09:01,860 --> 00:09:05,060
was like nothing I'd done before.
139
00:09:05,060 --> 00:09:08,580
But ahead of us was an even more
fascinating and in some ways
140
00:09:08,580 --> 00:09:11,820
more mysterious destination -
Russia,
141
00:09:11,820 --> 00:09:16,420
and the other states that
then formed the USSR.
142
00:09:16,420 --> 00:09:20,140
following the line that we'd chosen,
we didn't know quite what was going
143
00:09:20,140 --> 00:09:22,420
to be happening along that line,
144
00:09:22,420 --> 00:09:26,060
but it would take us through some
very different places.
145
00:09:26,060 --> 00:09:31,340
But what happened with the timing
was quite extraordinary cos
146
00:09:31,340 --> 00:09:36,420
that period, in 1991, when the world
was changing incredibly rapidly.
147
00:09:39,260 --> 00:09:41,700
SPEAKING RUSSIAN
148
00:09:42,900 --> 00:09:44,740
I'm called Michael.
149
00:09:48,700 --> 00:09:52,860
"For me, the first half of this pole
to pole journey
150
00:09:52,860 --> 00:09:55,140
"is dominated by Russia.
151
00:09:55,140 --> 00:09:59,780
"It's Russia I want to know about,
read about, experience, see.
152
00:09:59,780 --> 00:10:05,660
"It is so strange, magnificent,
mysterious, and flawed.
153
00:10:05,660 --> 00:10:08,020
"I feel that I may have an
uncomfortable time there,
154
00:10:08,020 --> 00:10:11,140
"but somehow that's what I expect.
155
00:10:11,140 --> 00:10:13,980
"That's what makes it so unusual
and unfamiliar."
156
00:10:19,380 --> 00:10:25,580
Going into the USSR was a real
change of gear mentally
157
00:10:25,580 --> 00:10:28,220
and, indeed, physically.
158
00:10:28,220 --> 00:10:30,780
I just knew this was going to be
the most difficult
159
00:10:30,780 --> 00:10:34,900
of all the countries we went into
because it was a communist country.
160
00:10:41,180 --> 00:10:43,660
It was difficult to get permission
to film there.
161
00:10:43,660 --> 00:10:46,300
You weren't quite sure whether you
were going to be able
162
00:10:46,300 --> 00:10:48,340
to complete the journey
through there.
163
00:10:48,340 --> 00:10:53,620
They weren't particularly welcoming
to a British film crew.
164
00:10:53,620 --> 00:10:54,820
So there's a frisson.
165
00:10:54,820 --> 00:10:58,900
As soon as you got to the USSR,
everything meant something different
166
00:10:58,900 --> 00:11:00,340
on different levels.
167
00:11:10,060 --> 00:11:14,500
"The roads are in terrible
condition, holed and pitted.
168
00:11:14,500 --> 00:11:18,780
"The chronic shortage of petrol
means that to be sure of supplies
169
00:11:18,780 --> 00:11:23,220
"our regular drivers have to fill up
at three o'clock in the morning.
170
00:11:23,220 --> 00:11:27,300
"And the chronic shortage of glass
is why every other windscreen
171
00:11:27,300 --> 00:11:29,580
"in the city is cracked."
172
00:11:32,580 --> 00:11:37,620
Michael is very good at conveying
facts in an utterly informal way.
173
00:11:37,620 --> 00:11:39,540
So, at the end of it,
you find that you really know
174
00:11:39,540 --> 00:11:41,220
quite a lot about that place.
175
00:11:42,540 --> 00:11:46,820
He's like a really cool,
chilled-out teacher.
176
00:11:47,860 --> 00:11:52,380
You could tell that this was a
country that was
177
00:11:52,380 --> 00:11:57,180
of immense potential,
but resources were very low.
178
00:11:57,180 --> 00:12:00,100
The amount of food
in the shops was fairly low.
179
00:12:00,100 --> 00:12:02,140
It was very difficult to buy things.
180
00:12:02,140 --> 00:12:04,980
There's enormous amount
of bureaucracy.
181
00:12:04,980 --> 00:12:09,180
You knew that something was wrong,
that the communist system was not
182
00:12:09,180 --> 00:12:12,420
working in the terms of giving
people what they wanted.
183
00:12:12,420 --> 00:12:14,220
NARRATION: Today, there's a bustle.
184
00:12:14,220 --> 00:12:17,140
A consignment of Buffalo brand
vodka has arrived,
185
00:12:17,140 --> 00:12:21,140
and since the anti-alcohol laws,
the bottle is a prized possession.
186
00:12:21,140 --> 00:12:23,180
THEY SPEAK RUSSIAN
187
00:12:28,020 --> 00:12:31,100
I have the money, but it doesn't
seem to be that simple.
188
00:12:31,100 --> 00:12:32,980
"Vodka by coupon!"
189
00:12:32,980 --> 00:12:34,340
No?
190
00:12:34,340 --> 00:12:35,380
Coupons?
191
00:12:35,380 --> 00:12:37,820
Maybe I could buy a coupon from you.
192
00:12:37,820 --> 00:12:39,420
Yes?
193
00:12:39,420 --> 00:12:41,420
How much? I not sell.
194
00:12:41,420 --> 00:12:43,500
No? No sale.
195
00:12:43,500 --> 00:12:46,740
But while the state seemed to be
crumbling, the spirit
196
00:12:46,740 --> 00:12:49,380
of the Russian people shone through.
197
00:12:49,380 --> 00:12:52,620
There was something really engaging
about the way of life
198
00:12:52,620 --> 00:12:54,260
of the people in the USSR.
199
00:12:54,260 --> 00:12:59,940
For them, Russia meant something
more than the communist regime.
200
00:12:59,940 --> 00:13:03,180
It was a place where,
if you made your own way,
201
00:13:03,180 --> 00:13:06,180
you could be as independent
as you want, which surprised me.
202
00:13:08,380 --> 00:13:12,140
It didn't seem as cowed and as
oppressive as I thought it would be.
203
00:13:12,140 --> 00:13:15,820
We kept meeting these jolly people
and they'd all drink a lot of vodka
204
00:13:15,820 --> 00:13:18,020
and we'd be toasting and all that.
205
00:13:18,020 --> 00:13:20,260
Everyone seemed very
pleased to see us.
206
00:13:20,260 --> 00:13:21,460
Here we go.
207
00:13:22,500 --> 00:13:24,260
Mm!
208
00:13:24,260 --> 00:13:26,540
By my count, that's number 23.
209
00:13:26,540 --> 00:13:28,820
This is the...
210
00:13:28,820 --> 00:13:31,220
..Leningrad TF Express,
which is going to take us
211
00:13:31,220 --> 00:13:36,540
about a 1,000km further south in
19 hours of travel tomorrow.
212
00:13:36,540 --> 00:13:40,660
And the station is known not only
for its fantastic nightlife,
213
00:13:40,660 --> 00:13:42,780
but also because
this was the station
214
00:13:42,780 --> 00:13:46,260
where the last tsar of Russia,
Nicholas II,
215
00:13:46,260 --> 00:13:49,940
abdicated - or decided he was going
to abdicate - in 1917.
216
00:13:49,940 --> 00:13:53,540
So this is where the tsar decided
to call it a day, give up.
217
00:13:53,540 --> 00:13:56,020
And I can understand, having been
here for an hour myself,
218
00:13:56,020 --> 00:13:59,460
how he felt. So, er...
219
00:13:59,460 --> 00:14:01,060
Better get on the train.
220
00:14:01,060 --> 00:14:02,980
So should you - come on!
221
00:14:16,100 --> 00:14:20,980
Well, just as I was having lovely
dreams of breaking my day's fast,
222
00:14:20,980 --> 00:14:24,300
we've had a bit
of bad luck with the train,
223
00:14:24,300 --> 00:14:28,220
and we're going to be stopped here
in the middle of the forest.
224
00:14:29,340 --> 00:14:35,220
This is a piece of Russian life
that I think sort of sums up
225
00:14:35,220 --> 00:14:36,780
what I like about the place.
226
00:14:36,780 --> 00:14:39,060
For some reason, there was a problem
with the engine,
227
00:14:39,060 --> 00:14:40,860
and people straight off the train,
228
00:14:40,860 --> 00:14:45,820
and going to the village, and
getting water, vodka, and tea...
229
00:14:45,820 --> 00:14:48,740
Suddenly, they found a pond nearby.
230
00:14:48,740 --> 00:14:51,860
And so it's an impromptu sort
of afternoon off.
231
00:14:53,860 --> 00:14:55,140
MICHAEL SHOUTS
232
00:14:56,540 --> 00:14:59,180
People all sort of
swimming, jumping,
233
00:14:59,180 --> 00:15:01,220
throwing themselves in the water...
234
00:15:03,020 --> 00:15:07,940
You couldn't imagine
this happening outside Didcot!
235
00:15:24,340 --> 00:15:27,140
"After a swim,
I returned to the train.
236
00:15:28,460 --> 00:15:32,900
"I search the map and locate the
spot in case I should not believe
237
00:15:32,900 --> 00:15:34,820
"all this ever happened.
238
00:15:34,820 --> 00:15:39,500
"As I do so, I notice that less
than 100 miles to the southwest
239
00:15:39,500 --> 00:15:43,540
"the name of the small town
of Chernobyl."
240
00:15:43,540 --> 00:15:45,700
The Soviet Union
admitted this evening
241
00:15:45,700 --> 00:15:49,180
that there's been an accident at
one of its nuclear power stations.
242
00:15:49,180 --> 00:15:51,900
The accident happened
at Chernobyl in the Ukraine.
243
00:15:51,900 --> 00:15:54,780
It sent a wave of radiation
across Scandinavia,
244
00:15:54,780 --> 00:15:57,620
which was recorded several hours
before the Soviets admitted
245
00:15:57,620 --> 00:15:59,540
that something had happened.
246
00:16:03,100 --> 00:16:06,820
Now there's an exodus of children
going on from Kiev.
247
00:16:06,820 --> 00:16:08,780
Parents have been sending their
children away
248
00:16:08,780 --> 00:16:10,740
as their level of anxiety mounts.
249
00:16:15,180 --> 00:16:18,300
It was now five years
since the accident.
250
00:16:18,300 --> 00:16:22,660
I was curious to see where it
happened and what was left behind.
251
00:16:22,660 --> 00:16:24,700
NARRATION: This plant is wormwood.
252
00:16:24,700 --> 00:16:27,860
The Book of Revelations tells
of a burning, poisonous star
253
00:16:27,860 --> 00:16:30,780
called Wormwood which at judgment
day will fall to Earth
254
00:16:30,780 --> 00:16:32,900
infecting the waters.
255
00:16:32,900 --> 00:16:36,260
The Ukrainian word for wormwood
is "Chernobyl".
256
00:16:37,900 --> 00:16:41,540
It grows abundantly here in
Narodychi, only 40 miles
257
00:16:41,540 --> 00:16:45,540
from the scene of the world's
worst nuclear accident.
258
00:16:45,540 --> 00:16:47,460
Michael, you carry this one.
259
00:16:47,460 --> 00:16:49,300
If it emits a loud wail,
260
00:16:49,300 --> 00:16:52,260
just get out of the area cos it
means it's a hot spot.
261
00:16:52,260 --> 00:16:55,220
No-one knows quite how dangerous
this area is
262
00:16:55,220 --> 00:16:57,700
but none of our Russian guides
would come with us.
263
00:16:57,700 --> 00:17:00,620
Only Vadim would join me.
264
00:17:00,620 --> 00:17:03,260
Now, this is something
which I look back on now
265
00:17:03,260 --> 00:17:05,700
and I think this was
a very audacious,
266
00:17:05,700 --> 00:17:08,140
and possibly risky bit of filming.
267
00:17:10,140 --> 00:17:14,060
NARRATION: The poison that infects
these ghost villages is invisible,
268
00:17:14,060 --> 00:17:17,500
but - as happened outside this old
village shop - it can be heard.
269
00:17:19,860 --> 00:17:22,380
DEVICE RINGING
270
00:17:28,660 --> 00:17:30,660
This was a maternity hospital.
271
00:17:30,660 --> 00:17:33,540
It was closed when the village it
served was officially declared
272
00:17:33,540 --> 00:17:35,900
unsafe for human habitation.
273
00:17:35,900 --> 00:17:37,700
That was last year.
274
00:17:37,700 --> 00:17:39,860
Four years after the disaster.
275
00:17:43,300 --> 00:17:48,660
Equipment, notices, even medical
records remain here untouched.
276
00:17:48,660 --> 00:17:49,820
Tainted.
277
00:17:53,260 --> 00:17:58,340
"There is still confusion and debate
over the effects of the disaster.
278
00:17:59,340 --> 00:18:01,820
"Flowers are in bloom.
279
00:18:01,820 --> 00:18:04,500
"Yet scientists say
it could be 700 years
280
00:18:04,500 --> 00:18:06,860
"before this place
comes back to life.
281
00:18:08,580 --> 00:18:12,580
"Whatever curse lies over these
villages is more frightening
282
00:18:12,580 --> 00:18:14,020
"for being invisible.
283
00:18:15,620 --> 00:18:17,820
"It's how one has heard
the countryside would be
284
00:18:17,820 --> 00:18:21,700
"after a nuclear war -
benign, smiling.
285
00:18:22,700 --> 00:18:24,140
"Deadly."
286
00:18:24,140 --> 00:18:26,580
On our way out, we catch sight
of the only two people
287
00:18:26,580 --> 00:18:28,220
we've seen all day.
288
00:18:28,220 --> 00:18:30,220
The old lady is 90.
289
00:18:30,220 --> 00:18:32,020
SHE SPEAKS IN OWN LANGUAGE
290
00:18:45,060 --> 00:18:48,700
TRANSLATOR: I would love...
I wish I could die in my own house.
291
00:18:48,700 --> 00:18:51,980
But my house is fenced off,
and the windows are all broken,
292
00:18:51,980 --> 00:18:53,980
and I can't stay there any longer.
293
00:18:53,980 --> 00:18:55,820
We're the only ones left here.
294
00:18:57,220 --> 00:19:00,700
This lady here who decided to stay.
295
00:19:00,700 --> 00:19:03,140
Everyone else moved out.
296
00:19:03,140 --> 00:19:04,780
She just wasn't going to move.
297
00:19:04,780 --> 00:19:08,820
And that's that spirit - you tend to
think of Russia as very conformist
298
00:19:08,820 --> 00:19:11,180
and everybody just toeing the line.
299
00:19:11,180 --> 00:19:13,300
But, in fact,
when you look more clearly
300
00:19:13,300 --> 00:19:17,980
there's a number of very eccentric
and independent spirit
301
00:19:17,980 --> 00:19:19,100
throughout Russia.
302
00:19:22,660 --> 00:19:28,740
These are not documentaries which
have a view or a thesis.
303
00:19:28,740 --> 00:19:31,380
This is not Michael Palin's
version of history.
304
00:19:31,380 --> 00:19:35,660
He doesn't need to say,
"I'm here at a historic moment."
305
00:19:35,660 --> 00:19:38,900
What he's doing is he's capturing
the reality
306
00:19:38,900 --> 00:19:40,500
of history as it unfolds.
307
00:19:46,420 --> 00:19:49,460
When I start thinking
about the land, I...
308
00:19:49,460 --> 00:19:56,340
It would be so rich if it were not
for Bolsheviks, for Chernobyl...
309
00:19:56,340 --> 00:20:00,300
As I continued south across Ukraine,
which was then still part
310
00:20:00,300 --> 00:20:04,220
of the Soviet Union, a chance
encounter with a young Ukrainian
311
00:20:04,220 --> 00:20:08,940
nationalist reinforced my sense
that change was in the air.
312
00:20:08,940 --> 00:20:10,980
I see Ukrainian history
being revived.
313
00:20:10,980 --> 00:20:12,580
I see Ukrainian culture.
314
00:20:12,580 --> 00:20:17,300
You know, the culture which many
people thought is gone forever.
315
00:20:17,300 --> 00:20:19,780
Now we're getting back
to some of our roots.
316
00:20:19,780 --> 00:20:21,540
There is so much to do here.
317
00:20:21,540 --> 00:20:26,020
If one feels Ukrainian,
if one feels it's one's roots,
318
00:20:26,020 --> 00:20:29,100
this is a very exciting period
to live through
319
00:20:29,100 --> 00:20:31,420
in the history of this land.
320
00:20:31,420 --> 00:20:34,740
And he said, "You know,
it may seem crazy, but I think
321
00:20:34,740 --> 00:20:37,980
"if not in my father's lifetime,
certainly in my lifetime,
322
00:20:37,980 --> 00:20:41,060
"Ukraine will be a free,
independent country."
323
00:20:41,060 --> 00:20:44,900
And it was free and independent
within the next three months.
324
00:20:44,900 --> 00:20:46,660
He just seemed to be right next
325
00:20:46,660 --> 00:20:51,820
to these incredibly historic
moments in geopolitics.
326
00:20:51,820 --> 00:20:54,220
And it does add a poignancy
to the journey.
327
00:20:54,220 --> 00:20:56,900
Really, after he goes through Russia
328
00:20:56,900 --> 00:21:00,540
and just after he gets out
the other side, there's a coup!
329
00:21:00,540 --> 00:21:02,580
The Soviet Union
is back under the control
330
00:21:02,580 --> 00:21:04,620
of hardline communists tonight.
331
00:21:04,620 --> 00:21:07,780
They took over the country with
the help of the army and the KGB
332
00:21:07,780 --> 00:21:09,500
before dawn this morning.
333
00:21:09,500 --> 00:21:11,500
They said the country had
become ungovernable
334
00:21:11,500 --> 00:21:13,460
and was in mortal danger.
335
00:21:13,460 --> 00:21:16,340
I could hear the radio going
and our interpreter said,
336
00:21:16,340 --> 00:21:18,620
"That is saying Gorbachev is gone.
337
00:21:18,620 --> 00:21:21,660
"The Communist Party is
going to be declared illegal."
338
00:21:21,660 --> 00:21:22,940
Extraordinary.
339
00:21:27,580 --> 00:21:31,220
We had spent 18 days crossing
the Soviet Union,
340
00:21:31,220 --> 00:21:33,660
followed by a few days in Turkey.
341
00:21:33,660 --> 00:21:38,740
Then after a short hop to Cyprus,
we docked at Port Said, Egypt...
342
00:21:42,060 --> 00:21:45,380
..where I soon found myself
back in the familiar melee
343
00:21:45,380 --> 00:21:48,380
of an Egyptian railway station.
344
00:21:48,380 --> 00:21:51,900
Excuse me, do you know
the train to Luxor?
345
00:21:51,900 --> 00:21:54,420
Luxor? Yeah. Number eight.
346
00:21:54,420 --> 00:21:55,980
Number what? Number eight.
347
00:21:55,980 --> 00:21:59,260
Number nine.
Right through that art. OK.
348
00:21:59,260 --> 00:22:01,900
It's eight. Eight or nine?
Nine. Nine.
349
00:22:01,900 --> 00:22:03,900
You say platform eight for Luxor.
350
00:22:03,900 --> 00:22:06,780
Luxor? Yeah. Yes, one back over...
351
00:22:06,780 --> 00:22:09,420
Platform 11. 11?!
352
00:22:09,420 --> 00:22:10,620
Anyone else?
353
00:22:10,620 --> 00:22:13,060
Luxor, 11, eight, nine.
354
00:22:13,060 --> 00:22:15,500
Which is the platform for Luxor?
355
00:22:15,500 --> 00:22:17,540
"Day 52.
356
00:22:17,540 --> 00:22:19,500
"I think this is just Egypt,
357
00:22:19,500 --> 00:22:23,620
"where confusion seems an
essential part of everyday life.
358
00:22:23,620 --> 00:22:26,060
"There's no feeling here
that life is a series
359
00:22:26,060 --> 00:22:28,060
"of problems to be solved.
360
00:22:28,060 --> 00:22:31,780
"Rather, that there is a human
state which is chaos,
361
00:22:31,780 --> 00:22:35,020
"and that peace, calm and order
is a heavenly state
362
00:22:35,020 --> 00:22:38,540
"to which we wretched mortals
may one day aspire."
363
00:22:40,500 --> 00:22:44,740
But then, for our journey south down
the Nile, we swapped Egyptian
364
00:22:44,740 --> 00:22:47,380
trains for something
a bit more sedate.
365
00:22:47,380 --> 00:22:49,500
The tourist trail.
366
00:22:49,500 --> 00:22:51,580
At this time in the early '90s,
367
00:22:51,580 --> 00:22:55,100
the world was becoming
more open to travel.
368
00:22:55,100 --> 00:22:57,900
NARRATION: Cultural cruises down
the Nile have become big business
369
00:22:57,900 --> 00:22:59,580
in the last ten years.
370
00:22:59,580 --> 00:23:02,220
But the Gulf War has
scared customers away.
371
00:23:02,220 --> 00:23:05,180
There are only 30 passengers
aboard The Isis as we move
372
00:23:05,180 --> 00:23:07,700
at a leisurely pace towards Aswan.
373
00:23:10,340 --> 00:23:13,180
If you're going down the Nile,
as we chose to do
374
00:23:13,180 --> 00:23:14,820
on one of the Nile cruises,
375
00:23:14,820 --> 00:23:17,580
they're for tourists - so you're
going to meet a lot of tourists.
376
00:23:17,580 --> 00:23:20,740
And there were two who were
particularly wonderful,
377
00:23:20,740 --> 00:23:23,820
a couple from Sheffield.
378
00:23:23,820 --> 00:23:26,180
Do you like the guided bits
of the tours?
379
00:23:26,180 --> 00:23:28,420
As long as it's not too much.
380
00:23:28,420 --> 00:23:31,060
Well, I think it's proven
after 20 minutes,
381
00:23:31,060 --> 00:23:32,700
the mind goes blank, doesn't it?
382
00:23:32,700 --> 00:23:34,540
I mean, I proved that at school!
383
00:23:36,180 --> 00:23:39,660
I remember her saying to me
wonderfully one day,
384
00:23:39,660 --> 00:23:46,220
"My husband can write
'National Westminster Bank'
385
00:23:46,220 --> 00:23:49,140
"in hieroglyphics."
386
00:23:49,140 --> 00:23:51,980
And I said, "Well, why would you
want to do that?"
387
00:23:51,980 --> 00:23:56,060
And she looked at me and said,
"Because he works there!"
388
00:23:56,060 --> 00:23:57,460
25?!
389
00:23:57,460 --> 00:23:59,940
I bought one better than that
for 20 on the boat!
390
00:23:59,940 --> 00:24:02,980
Touch the scarf!
Yes, it was, it was jolly good.
391
00:24:02,980 --> 00:24:04,540
OVERLAPPING SPEECH
392
00:24:04,540 --> 00:24:05,980
It's so Brits abroad!
393
00:24:07,020 --> 00:24:09,660
10 Egyptian pounds...
394
00:24:09,660 --> 00:24:11,100
OK, give me 20 English money...
395
00:24:11,100 --> 00:24:16,220
The cheek of English people
going to a market in Egypt
396
00:24:16,220 --> 00:24:19,980
and saying, "Oh, I can get one
of them better at Debenhams!"
397
00:24:19,980 --> 00:24:22,660
It's not clicked on, Gerald...
398
00:24:22,660 --> 00:24:24,900
But it just shows you how
interested he is in people,
399
00:24:24,900 --> 00:24:29,780
because not everyone wants to do
travelling like Michael does.
400
00:24:29,780 --> 00:24:32,020
So...he wants to show that.
401
00:24:32,020 --> 00:24:36,060
And also, they're both equally
valid approaches to travelling.
402
00:24:36,060 --> 00:24:39,780
And that's why he's so good because
he's not in any way snobby.
403
00:24:39,780 --> 00:24:42,380
In Brazil, it's even better.
You can sit in a cafe
404
00:24:42,380 --> 00:24:44,580
and the shop comes to you -
buy anything you like
405
00:24:44,580 --> 00:24:46,500
sat in a cafe in Brazil!
406
00:24:46,500 --> 00:24:48,580
Where HAVEN'T you been?!
407
00:24:48,580 --> 00:24:49,980
DONKEY BRAYS
408
00:24:53,540 --> 00:24:58,420
It feels like Michael Palin
comes from a better time.
409
00:24:58,420 --> 00:25:02,500
Where you felt lucky to go and do
a big adventure
410
00:25:02,500 --> 00:25:06,540
and you weren't just doing it
to put it on Instagram.
411
00:25:06,540 --> 00:25:11,380
And, unfortunately, that's how
a lot of travel is these days.
412
00:25:11,380 --> 00:25:14,860
Michael never did any of those
things to say he did it.
413
00:25:14,860 --> 00:25:18,500
He always went for a reason and to
find something interesting out
414
00:25:18,500 --> 00:25:21,980
about a person or the place.
415
00:25:28,820 --> 00:25:32,300
When we got to Aswan,
the cruises all go back north
416
00:25:32,300 --> 00:25:35,820
because they can't go south cos
there's a huge dam, Lake Nasser.
417
00:25:35,820 --> 00:25:39,500
We went south
on Lake Nasser into Sudan.
418
00:25:39,500 --> 00:25:41,700
Totally different group of people.
419
00:25:41,700 --> 00:25:43,700
MAN ON TANNOY SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE
420
00:25:51,860 --> 00:25:55,060
All migrant workers from Egypt
crammed on the deck
421
00:25:55,060 --> 00:26:00,020
of a very small ferry, chugging
its way across to a town
422
00:26:00,020 --> 00:26:03,620
in northern Sudan that no-one
really had ever heard of,
423
00:26:03,620 --> 00:26:06,780
and probably never had a film crew
ever going there.
424
00:26:13,380 --> 00:26:16,420
"We're on our way
out of Egypt, at last.
425
00:26:16,420 --> 00:26:18,540
"From tomorrow we
shall cease for a while
426
00:26:18,540 --> 00:26:21,700
"to be tourists,
and become travellers
427
00:26:21,700 --> 00:26:25,100
"in a country which my guidebook
describes as - quote -
428
00:26:25,100 --> 00:26:28,700
"'fraught with political turmoil,
economic chaos,
429
00:26:28,700 --> 00:26:33,700
"'civil war, drought, famine,
disease and refugee crisis'."
430
00:26:37,340 --> 00:26:40,180
The idea of going to Sudan,
to someone who loves geography
431
00:26:40,180 --> 00:26:45,780
and countries and names and all
that was just absolutely enticing.
432
00:26:45,780 --> 00:26:49,340
You didn't know really anything
about what happened in Sudan,
433
00:26:49,340 --> 00:26:52,580
who populated this enormous,
great country.
434
00:26:53,780 --> 00:26:55,420
It was a mystery.
435
00:26:58,380 --> 00:27:01,340
NARRATION: Sudan,
the biggest country in Africa,
436
00:27:01,340 --> 00:27:03,820
is an overnight
ferry ride from Egypt.
437
00:27:03,820 --> 00:27:06,140
But life here is very different.
438
00:27:06,140 --> 00:27:08,540
Sudan does not encourage visitors.
439
00:27:11,060 --> 00:27:13,580
As soon as you landed off the ship
at Wadi Halfa,
440
00:27:13,580 --> 00:27:16,180
which is the northern Sudan -
441
00:27:16,180 --> 00:27:17,980
the British had been stationed there
442
00:27:17,980 --> 00:27:19,940
in the war and called it
"Bloody Hellfire" -
443
00:27:19,940 --> 00:27:23,660
and it wasn't a place with schedules
and timings and all that.
444
00:27:23,660 --> 00:27:25,860
For our journey across Sudan,
445
00:27:25,860 --> 00:27:29,260
we had reservations on a legendary
service that looked like
446
00:27:29,260 --> 00:27:33,980
it had seen better days -
the Nile Valley Express.
447
00:27:33,980 --> 00:27:36,220
The train didn't leave on time.
448
00:27:36,220 --> 00:27:38,260
The train left when there were
enough people
449
00:27:38,260 --> 00:27:40,220
to make it worth leaving!
450
00:27:40,220 --> 00:27:44,380
No-one was rioting because
the train left two days late.
451
00:27:44,380 --> 00:27:47,620
Imagine that at Paddington
or something like that.
452
00:27:47,620 --> 00:27:50,260
"Excuse me, we've been
two days on this train.
453
00:27:50,260 --> 00:27:52,260
"Haven't we reached Reading yet?"
454
00:27:57,500 --> 00:27:58,580
Bye!
455
00:27:58,580 --> 00:27:59,700
Thank you!
456
00:27:59,700 --> 00:28:01,020
SPEAKS IN OTHER LANGUAGE
457
00:28:05,660 --> 00:28:07,900
NARRATION: There were
3,000 to 4,000 passengers
458
00:28:07,900 --> 00:28:09,540
on the Nile Valley Express.
459
00:28:09,540 --> 00:28:11,820
It's like a small town on the move.
460
00:28:11,820 --> 00:28:14,900
The rate of progress
is governed less by timetables
461
00:28:14,900 --> 00:28:16,820
than by the needs of the townsfolk.
462
00:28:16,820 --> 00:28:18,100
TRAIN HORN HONKS
463
00:28:20,940 --> 00:28:25,220
Every now and then, the train would
have to halt because it was a desert
464
00:28:25,220 --> 00:28:28,260
line and the wind would
blow sand over the track.
465
00:28:28,260 --> 00:28:31,100
So people would have to get out
and dig it out.
466
00:28:31,100 --> 00:28:34,860
No complaints - people get off and a
lot of people would do their prayers
467
00:28:34,860 --> 00:28:36,380
to Mecca and all that sort of thing.
468
00:28:36,380 --> 00:28:40,820
People would have food -
everyone was prepared for delay...
469
00:28:40,820 --> 00:28:44,060
..and would then get back
on again and off we'd go.
470
00:28:49,980 --> 00:28:51,940
MAN SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE
471
00:28:51,940 --> 00:28:53,300
Have you got tea?
472
00:28:53,300 --> 00:28:54,860
Tea?
473
00:28:54,860 --> 00:28:56,180
Chai?
474
00:28:56,180 --> 00:28:57,300
Thank you.
475
00:28:58,500 --> 00:29:00,340
A cucumber sandwich.
476
00:29:05,540 --> 00:29:08,060
Roof Class have their own catering.
477
00:29:11,340 --> 00:29:14,780
Everyone up here travels free,
and there are plenty of punters
478
00:29:14,780 --> 00:29:18,620
willing to risk sun, sand, and
sliding off into the desert.
479
00:29:21,460 --> 00:29:24,900
They were students going to
university in Khartoum and all that.
480
00:29:24,900 --> 00:29:27,740
Bright, intelligent,
sort of interested
481
00:29:27,740 --> 00:29:30,980
at the fact that we didn't travel
on the roof in the UK.
482
00:29:30,980 --> 00:29:34,060
So I had to sort of tell them
about bridges and things like that.
483
00:29:34,060 --> 00:29:36,700
Do you always travel like this on
top of the train?
484
00:29:36,700 --> 00:29:39,140
Yes, sometimes.
485
00:29:39,140 --> 00:29:40,980
It's better than first class.
486
00:29:40,980 --> 00:29:43,300
You know, you've got a better view.
487
00:29:43,300 --> 00:29:46,140
And I thought, "This is all new."
488
00:29:46,140 --> 00:29:49,700
This is what's so wonderful about
that kind of travelling.
489
00:29:49,700 --> 00:29:51,820
You are learning things
all the time.
490
00:29:51,820 --> 00:29:52,940
Bye!
491
00:29:52,940 --> 00:29:54,260
See ya!
492
00:29:54,260 --> 00:29:57,420
You're being taken out of your own
set of preconceptions
493
00:29:57,420 --> 00:30:01,300
about how things worked,
have it all turned upside down.
494
00:30:01,300 --> 00:30:04,100
And yet, it still seems
to be working.
495
00:30:10,380 --> 00:30:14,980
I think our job is all the time
to be bringing you the things
496
00:30:14,980 --> 00:30:18,340
that quite a section of the audience
has never seen before.
497
00:30:18,340 --> 00:30:21,700
Michael brings in and takes you
to places you never heard of before
498
00:30:21,700 --> 00:30:23,620
and takes risks.
499
00:30:27,700 --> 00:30:31,540
Some of the most magical moments of
any of my travels were sitting,
500
00:30:31,540 --> 00:30:37,220
just watching the Sudanese desert go
by and just the smell of sand.
501
00:30:37,220 --> 00:30:40,500
And it was just
wonderfully soothing.
502
00:30:40,500 --> 00:30:43,540
And I felt, "I'm taken to a quite
different place here.
503
00:30:43,540 --> 00:30:46,580
"I'm experiencing something I've
really never experienced
504
00:30:46,580 --> 00:30:48,380
"anywhere else before."
505
00:30:48,380 --> 00:30:50,980
And it's on a train which is two
days late with an engine
506
00:30:50,980 --> 00:30:52,660
which keeps breaking down.
507
00:30:52,660 --> 00:30:54,900
You know, that can be a good thing!
508
00:30:57,460 --> 00:31:01,700
We'd now been travelling for
67 days.
509
00:31:01,700 --> 00:31:04,340
More than 5,000 miles.
510
00:31:04,340 --> 00:31:08,700
With roughly 14,000 miles still to
go to the South Pole.
511
00:31:09,940 --> 00:31:13,540
Africa was living up to all my
expectations.
512
00:31:13,540 --> 00:31:15,660
This is what I'd hoped for -
513
00:31:15,660 --> 00:31:19,700
a journey that would really open
my eyes to new parts of the world.
514
00:31:29,220 --> 00:31:31,660
I knew that,
like much of the continent,
515
00:31:31,660 --> 00:31:36,180
Sudan had been occupied by European
powers for centuries.
516
00:31:36,180 --> 00:31:40,420
When I arrived, the country had been
independent for 35 years
517
00:31:40,420 --> 00:31:44,660
and any colonial influence
was fading fast.
518
00:31:44,660 --> 00:31:49,700
You were aware that the British
Empire had not faced its finest hour
519
00:31:49,700 --> 00:31:51,380
in places like that.
520
00:31:52,540 --> 00:31:56,260
That didn't inform what I was doing
much except when we went
521
00:31:56,260 --> 00:32:00,300
in the squash club in Khartoum
where I meet somebody -
522
00:32:00,300 --> 00:32:03,780
an older gentleman, a doctor, a very
nice English doctor - who's talking
523
00:32:03,780 --> 00:32:08,540
about food and what you should eat,
and what you shouldn't eat there.
524
00:32:08,540 --> 00:32:11,380
Certainly a generous plate...
Oh, it's full of salad!
525
00:32:11,380 --> 00:32:14,220
You know, I never eat salad.
526
00:32:14,220 --> 00:32:18,620
Salad is one of the worst ways
of contracting dysentery.
527
00:32:20,620 --> 00:32:24,260
And also in this part of the world,
hydatid disease.
528
00:32:24,260 --> 00:32:26,860
Bring me one without salad.
529
00:32:26,860 --> 00:32:30,580
Right, maybe possibly the same -
I'm not keen to get dysentery.
530
00:32:30,580 --> 00:32:32,580
So, I'll therefore put mine on the
side here.
531
00:32:32,580 --> 00:32:35,060
And I remember feeling a little bit
uncomfortable
532
00:32:35,060 --> 00:32:37,380
because there were echoes there...
533
00:32:37,380 --> 00:32:39,940
You know, what he was saying,
perfectly right - but the way
534
00:32:39,940 --> 00:32:43,780
he treated the waiter was a little
bit sort of colonialist.
535
00:32:43,780 --> 00:32:48,660
I think that the best advice you
could have about keeping fit
536
00:32:48,660 --> 00:32:52,980
would be to eat only those things
which are served hot.
537
00:32:52,980 --> 00:32:55,140
Come from the...
538
00:32:55,140 --> 00:32:57,020
..kitchen and are served hot.
539
00:32:57,020 --> 00:33:00,820
Yes, the Scotch egg seems
very traditional.
540
00:33:00,820 --> 00:33:02,220
Is the chef English?
541
00:33:02,220 --> 00:33:04,460
No, no, Sudanese.
542
00:33:04,460 --> 00:33:05,900
A very good chap, too.
543
00:33:08,340 --> 00:33:10,580
"Day 69.
544
00:33:10,580 --> 00:33:14,660
"After a weekend of recovery from
the journey into Sudan,
545
00:33:14,660 --> 00:33:18,380
"it's now time to investigate how
we're going to get out.
546
00:33:18,380 --> 00:33:22,580
"This necessitates a visit to the
Ministry of Information.
547
00:33:22,580 --> 00:33:26,220
"The threat of violence is more real
here than in any
548
00:33:26,220 --> 00:33:29,380
"of the other countries through
which we've travelled."
549
00:33:31,940 --> 00:33:35,860
NARRATION: Here in the capital are
the first signs of trouble ahead.
550
00:33:35,860 --> 00:33:38,580
For the last eight years,
the mainly Christian South
551
00:33:38,580 --> 00:33:42,700
has been at war with the hardline
Muslim government in Khartoum.
552
00:33:42,700 --> 00:33:47,580
Unfortunately for us, the war zone
lies straight across our path.
553
00:33:47,580 --> 00:33:51,220
We've not been given permission
to travel south through Sudan,
554
00:33:51,220 --> 00:33:53,900
which is the route we need to take
if we're going to stay
555
00:33:53,900 --> 00:33:56,540
anywhere near 30 degrees.
They've said it's not safe,
556
00:33:56,540 --> 00:34:00,580
they won't guarantee our safety,
and we just can't go.
557
00:34:00,580 --> 00:34:03,780
Ayusha Travel,
a transport company run by Eritreans
558
00:34:03,780 --> 00:34:07,860
from northern Ethiopia, could solve
our problem of leaving the Sudan.
559
00:34:07,860 --> 00:34:09,940
So, which route would you take us?
560
00:34:09,940 --> 00:34:14,620
From Khartoum direct mainly through
the middle to Gedaref.
561
00:34:14,620 --> 00:34:17,620
Yeah. From Gedaref to Metema,
rough roads.
562
00:34:17,620 --> 00:34:19,620
Rocky road, or...? Yeah.
563
00:34:22,700 --> 00:34:27,580
This new route to the Ethiopian
border, over 300 miles away,
564
00:34:27,580 --> 00:34:30,620
took us around the current war zone.
565
00:34:30,620 --> 00:34:34,500
But it was still risky as the
conflict had left defeated soldiers
566
00:34:34,500 --> 00:34:38,380
wandering the countryside looking
for trouble.
567
00:34:38,380 --> 00:34:41,820
NARRATION: The war may be over,
but not everyone has surrendered.
568
00:34:41,820 --> 00:34:44,460
This lonely countryside provides
perfect cover
569
00:34:44,460 --> 00:34:47,100
for bandits and privateers.
570
00:34:47,100 --> 00:34:49,540
We're accompanied everywhere
by soldiers.
571
00:34:50,740 --> 00:34:52,300
The guns are loaded.
572
00:34:54,340 --> 00:34:58,220
A lot of travelling is...seeing
which way the wind is blowing.
573
00:34:58,220 --> 00:35:00,100
You go,
"Well, let's take that path."
574
00:35:00,100 --> 00:35:02,220
You've got to have that feeling
to it.
575
00:35:02,220 --> 00:35:05,180
And I think Michael keeps
the feeling of it like that.
576
00:35:05,180 --> 00:35:08,020
There's always some slight
element of danger.
577
00:35:08,020 --> 00:35:10,780
That he would go off the beaten
track - he doesn't seem biddable.
578
00:35:10,780 --> 00:35:13,300
He doesn't seem to toe the line.
579
00:35:15,820 --> 00:35:18,140
I can see risk,
but for some strange reason
580
00:35:18,140 --> 00:35:22,900
I've always been a complete optimist
and felt we're going to be OK.
581
00:35:22,900 --> 00:35:26,700
I'm glad I feel like that because
I've been in some very,
582
00:35:26,700 --> 00:35:28,860
very dodgy situations.
583
00:35:28,860 --> 00:35:31,940
And if I'd known
they were going to be dodgy -
584
00:35:31,940 --> 00:35:34,740
THAT dodgy -
I would have never gone.
585
00:35:36,940 --> 00:35:38,700
"Day 76.
586
00:35:38,700 --> 00:35:42,100
"At about midday, the scenery is
becoming more picturesque
587
00:35:42,100 --> 00:35:44,180
"and we stop to allow Nigel,
the cameraman,
588
00:35:44,180 --> 00:35:47,140
"to climb a low hill
and get some shots.
589
00:35:47,140 --> 00:35:51,660
"The soldiers become very agitated
and order him back.
590
00:35:51,660 --> 00:35:54,860
"Apparently, both these hills
are full of armed men who will not
591
00:35:54,860 --> 00:35:56,740
"hesitate to shoot on sight."
592
00:35:58,340 --> 00:36:01,700
NARRATION: Things are now so bad,
even the director has to push.
593
00:36:02,940 --> 00:36:07,100
It looks like chaos,
and was really chaotic.
594
00:36:15,060 --> 00:36:16,460
This is the road.
595
00:36:16,460 --> 00:36:18,460
And it's virtually impassable.
596
00:36:18,460 --> 00:36:21,620
It's so deeply grooved and pitted,
we keep having to stop
597
00:36:21,620 --> 00:36:23,740
to pull vehicles out.
598
00:36:23,740 --> 00:36:26,620
Even then, nobody seems quite sure
where the border actually is.
599
00:36:26,620 --> 00:36:29,460
So the combination of these two
things, in the last half hour
600
00:36:29,460 --> 00:36:32,380
we've probably covered about 5km
601
00:36:32,380 --> 00:36:37,180
and we've been going nine hours
or so, it's 3.45.
602
00:36:37,180 --> 00:36:41,260
4.45, we have about another
hour and a half of daylight.
603
00:36:41,260 --> 00:36:44,100
Unless things get very much better,
I think time time's run out for us.
604
00:36:44,100 --> 00:36:45,860
We'll be...
605
00:36:45,860 --> 00:36:47,540
We'll be picnicking in the bush.
606
00:36:57,700 --> 00:37:02,140
It's rather fulfilling in a way cos
you feel "I've negotiated something
607
00:37:02,140 --> 00:37:06,540
"and I've learnt to live in
a slightly different way" -
608
00:37:06,540 --> 00:37:09,180
it constantly makes you sort of
question how you live
609
00:37:09,180 --> 00:37:10,620
at home and all that.
610
00:37:12,060 --> 00:37:14,860
There are five-star hotels
in Africa,
611
00:37:14,860 --> 00:37:19,060
but to get the feel of Africa, I
suppose something like that journey
612
00:37:19,060 --> 00:37:24,700
across the border from Khartoum,
sort of really don't get more...
613
00:37:24,700 --> 00:37:28,140
..basic here, close to people.
614
00:37:28,140 --> 00:37:30,380
NARRATION: In the busy
little town of Shashamene
615
00:37:30,380 --> 00:37:34,420
a moody walk through the streets
becomes a major event.
616
00:37:34,420 --> 00:37:37,900
As far as the locals are concerned,
the circus has come to town.
617
00:37:37,900 --> 00:37:39,860
OVERLAPPING SPEECH
618
00:37:39,860 --> 00:37:42,380
Behave normally, just carry on.
619
00:37:42,380 --> 00:37:45,460
Do whatever you're doing, and
I'll try and play along, as well.
620
00:37:45,460 --> 00:37:48,500
There's really nothing else to do
but enjoy it as much as they are.
621
00:37:48,500 --> 00:37:51,100
Where did you get THAT?!
622
00:37:51,100 --> 00:37:53,180
Oh, there they are!
623
00:37:53,180 --> 00:37:55,460
Hello...
ALL SPEAKING
624
00:37:55,460 --> 00:37:57,020
Could I have one?
625
00:38:00,060 --> 00:38:02,180
25. 25.
626
00:38:04,740 --> 00:38:05,940
No, no, keep it.
627
00:38:05,940 --> 00:38:09,180
I'll continue my gentle
walk through...
628
00:38:09,180 --> 00:38:11,620
OK, now...
629
00:38:11,620 --> 00:38:13,580
Oh, hold on.
630
00:38:13,580 --> 00:38:14,780
Mm!
631
00:38:14,780 --> 00:38:16,140
What to do here?
632
00:38:16,140 --> 00:38:17,500
LAUGHTER AND CHEERS
633
00:38:22,620 --> 00:38:25,500
It's the people that you meet
on journeys
634
00:38:25,500 --> 00:38:29,540
that really make travel special.
635
00:38:31,340 --> 00:38:35,260
Hearing their all-too-human
stories and experiences.
636
00:38:35,260 --> 00:38:38,380
But just knowing they're out there
on this enormous planet
637
00:38:38,380 --> 00:38:40,860
with this ridiculous number
of people on it.
638
00:38:40,860 --> 00:38:45,180
Fundamentally, human beings are warm
and welcoming and friendly.
639
00:38:45,180 --> 00:38:48,180
I think that can never be said
too much or too often.
640
00:38:48,180 --> 00:38:52,140
It's... It's one of the key
discoveries, I think, for anybody
641
00:38:52,140 --> 00:38:55,700
who starts travelling
properly around this planet.
642
00:38:56,740 --> 00:38:58,740
But it is something you have
to learn.
643
00:38:58,740 --> 00:39:01,860
You have to get out there and try
and experience
644
00:39:01,860 --> 00:39:03,660
and you have to stumble as well.
645
00:39:03,660 --> 00:39:05,460
There will be a few
stumbles along the way,
646
00:39:05,460 --> 00:39:06,900
but you trust your instincts,
647
00:39:06,900 --> 00:39:09,540
you avoid the dodgy salad at the
hotel buffet.
648
00:39:09,540 --> 00:39:12,820
You always wear a seat belt
and basically you'll be OK.
649
00:39:12,820 --> 00:39:14,580
Thank you very much.
650
00:39:14,580 --> 00:39:17,060
That's really good. Excellent.
Thank you very, very much.
651
00:39:17,060 --> 00:39:18,460
Thank you. Look at that.
652
00:39:20,100 --> 00:39:21,300
Near perfection!
653
00:39:23,340 --> 00:39:25,980
We're drawing very close
to the centre of Africa -
654
00:39:25,980 --> 00:39:28,020
not at all how I imagined it.
655
00:39:36,500 --> 00:39:39,180
Lake Tanganyika,
a place of romance and mystery,
656
00:39:39,180 --> 00:39:42,340
can well be a Scottish loch -
give or take the odd banana tree.
657
00:39:54,620 --> 00:39:58,260
Journey's end, 27 hours
after leaving Dodoma.
658
00:39:59,900 --> 00:40:01,420
Well, this is a major milestone.
659
00:40:01,420 --> 00:40:02,740
This is Kigoma.
660
00:40:02,740 --> 00:40:07,260
So we've completed a huge
month-long arc around from Khartoum
661
00:40:07,260 --> 00:40:08,980
to get us back to 30 degrees.
662
00:40:08,980 --> 00:40:10,980
We're on 30 degrees.
663
00:40:10,980 --> 00:40:13,700
A little bit late, but not late
enough to miss the boat,
664
00:40:13,700 --> 00:40:15,940
which leaves very soon.
665
00:40:15,940 --> 00:40:19,180
That will take me down on the next
stage of the journey south at last,
666
00:40:19,180 --> 00:40:23,220
a long way south down
Lake Tanganyika to Mpulungu!
667
00:40:25,700 --> 00:40:31,460
We'd now been travelling and filming
for 103 days straight.
668
00:40:31,460 --> 00:40:35,860
And that night in the hotel,
the strain was starting to show.
669
00:40:37,060 --> 00:40:39,660
Oh, no!
MICHAEL LAUGHS
670
00:40:44,820 --> 00:40:46,020
Oh, dear!
671
00:40:46,020 --> 00:40:48,340
My wedding day!
672
00:40:48,340 --> 00:40:50,260
There we are, right.
673
00:40:51,300 --> 00:40:53,140
Now, let's try this.
674
00:40:53,140 --> 00:40:54,220
MOSQUITOS BUZZING
675
00:40:57,060 --> 00:41:00,020
I actually quite enjoy getting
bitten while I'm doing this.
676
00:41:04,900 --> 00:41:06,740
Hey!
677
00:41:06,740 --> 00:41:08,260
I did it!
678
00:41:09,500 --> 00:41:11,180
LAUGHING
679
00:41:12,540 --> 00:41:14,740
LAUGHING: I've gone, I've cracked!
680
00:41:17,500 --> 00:41:18,900
LAUGHTER CONTINUES
681
00:41:22,180 --> 00:41:24,580
NARRATION: Next morning, I learned
a few realities of life
682
00:41:24,580 --> 00:41:26,220
from our taxi driver.
683
00:41:26,220 --> 00:41:29,060
He also turns out
to be the local doctor.
684
00:41:29,060 --> 00:41:33,260
The chances of you are getting
serious malaria when you come
685
00:41:33,260 --> 00:41:37,220
to this area are higher because you
don't have any immunity
686
00:41:37,220 --> 00:41:41,260
to malaria because you have not been
exposed to malaria.
687
00:41:41,260 --> 00:41:46,060
So the exposure will prevent me,
who is indigenous to this place,
688
00:41:46,060 --> 00:41:47,700
from getting malaria.
689
00:41:47,700 --> 00:41:51,420
But you will be at great risk
of getting malaria.
690
00:41:51,420 --> 00:41:55,100
And if we both get malaria anyway,
you will suffer...
691
00:41:55,100 --> 00:41:58,540
You stand a chance of suffering
a more severe malaria
692
00:41:58,540 --> 00:42:01,780
than I would to stand to suffer
for the same number
693
00:42:01,780 --> 00:42:04,220
of parasites in the blood.
694
00:42:04,220 --> 00:42:08,060
This sobering thought couldn't
dampen the excitement I felt
695
00:42:08,060 --> 00:42:12,620
at being here - a place
that only 150 years ago
696
00:42:12,620 --> 00:42:16,220
had never even seen a European.
697
00:42:16,220 --> 00:42:19,180
That day I did find myself
walking in the footsteps
698
00:42:19,180 --> 00:42:23,300
of two of the most famous - or
infamous - British explorers.
699
00:42:29,020 --> 00:42:34,660
"Day 105, take a boat to Ujiji a few
miles down the coast.
700
00:42:34,660 --> 00:42:38,380
"Once the centre of a thriving
slave trade, it's also the place
701
00:42:38,380 --> 00:42:41,700
"where Livingstone
and Stanley met in 1871."
702
00:42:51,140 --> 00:42:55,140
"A grey monument stands
beneath two mango trees.
703
00:42:55,140 --> 00:43:00,220
"On it is carved a map of Africa
with a cross incised into it.
704
00:43:00,220 --> 00:43:02,700
"It's a brutal and arrogant image."
705
00:43:05,820 --> 00:43:11,220
It was on this spot under a mango
tree 120 years ago that Livingstone
706
00:43:11,220 --> 00:43:13,700
and Stanley made
the historic meeting.
707
00:43:13,700 --> 00:43:17,140
They were the only two white men
within 1,000 miles of here.
708
00:43:17,140 --> 00:43:19,620
They came up to each other,
709
00:43:19,620 --> 00:43:23,140
doffed their hats, and the following
conversation took place.
710
00:43:23,140 --> 00:43:25,060
And I quote...
711
00:43:25,060 --> 00:43:29,700
Stanley -
"Dr Livingstone, I presume."
712
00:43:29,700 --> 00:43:32,580
Livingstone - "Yes."
713
00:43:32,580 --> 00:43:36,420
Stanley - "Doctor, I thank God
I have been permitted
714
00:43:36,420 --> 00:43:38,780
"to shake hands with you."
715
00:43:38,780 --> 00:43:43,820
Livingstone - "I feel thankful
that I'm here to welcome you."
716
00:43:45,660 --> 00:43:48,300
It's amazing that such a boring
conversation can be remembered
717
00:43:48,300 --> 00:43:50,620
for more than a year,
let alone 120 years.
718
00:43:50,620 --> 00:43:53,700
And Stanley was apparently quite
embarrassed that all the fine words
719
00:43:53,700 --> 00:43:56,540
he had to say failed him
at the vital moment.
720
00:43:58,900 --> 00:44:00,780
Happens to all of us.
721
00:44:05,580 --> 00:44:09,220
In the end, it was malaria
that did for Livingstone,
722
00:44:09,220 --> 00:44:12,940
while Stanley went to work for
King Leopold II of Belgium,
723
00:44:12,940 --> 00:44:16,660
as he embarked on his murderous
pillaging of the Congo.
724
00:44:21,740 --> 00:44:25,820
As we travelled, there was no
ignoring the legacy of colonialism.
725
00:44:25,820 --> 00:44:29,460
But as we continue our journey
south, through countries
726
00:44:29,460 --> 00:44:33,340
that had been part of the
British Empire, we were welcomed,
727
00:44:33,340 --> 00:44:36,500
time and again,
with warmth and generosity.
728
00:44:38,220 --> 00:44:42,020
Being immersed in this great
continent was an experience
729
00:44:42,020 --> 00:44:43,540
I would never forget.
730
00:44:45,100 --> 00:44:48,740
"If all goes well, we should
be in Lusaka by tonight.
731
00:44:49,980 --> 00:44:53,660
"Then Victoria Falls, then Zimbabwe
and South Africa."
732
00:44:58,420 --> 00:45:01,940
"I feel a pain of sadness
at the prospect of leaving
733
00:45:01,940 --> 00:45:05,180
behind all I've been through
these past months."
734
00:45:18,500 --> 00:45:21,260
And then we went into South Africa.
735
00:45:21,260 --> 00:45:24,300
And although Apartheid had just
been sort of voted out,
736
00:45:24,300 --> 00:45:27,940
there were still... The attitudes
that sustained Apartheid
737
00:45:27,940 --> 00:45:29,300
were still there.
738
00:45:29,300 --> 00:45:32,620
And I can remember the swagger
of the police at the border
739
00:45:32,620 --> 00:45:34,660
and the sort of sticks they had,
740
00:45:34,660 --> 00:45:40,140
and the confidence of the sort
of pale, red-headed young men,
741
00:45:40,140 --> 00:45:43,780
in a country of black people,
you know, just made me feel,
742
00:45:43,780 --> 00:45:45,420
"God, this is not good."
743
00:45:54,340 --> 00:45:58,260
South Africa seemed to be... Well,
it was the most like the West -
744
00:45:58,260 --> 00:46:02,020
was the most organised,
the most orderly, the richest.
745
00:46:02,020 --> 00:46:04,700
You just felt that as you were
going into the country.
746
00:46:06,740 --> 00:46:10,020
And then we found out, you know,
that's a very superficial thing.
747
00:46:10,020 --> 00:46:14,260
And in fact underneath it all there
there's great levels of poverty
748
00:46:14,260 --> 00:46:15,700
in South Africa.
749
00:46:15,700 --> 00:46:19,740
NARRATION: Soweto was set up in 1933
to house a cheap labour force.
750
00:46:19,740 --> 00:46:22,940
Shanty settlements like this one,
known as Mandela Village,
751
00:46:22,940 --> 00:46:25,460
are the legacy of that decision.
752
00:46:25,460 --> 00:46:27,860
These are the families of people
who are not wanted,
753
00:46:27,860 --> 00:46:29,500
and probably never will be.
754
00:46:30,740 --> 00:46:33,140
You could try your luck
in one of the hostels.
755
00:46:33,140 --> 00:46:35,180
Jimmy doesn't recommend it.
756
00:46:35,180 --> 00:46:38,620
How can you have, I mean,
16 men in one room?
757
00:46:38,620 --> 00:46:42,940
There are 16 smells of food,
just when cooking there...
758
00:46:42,940 --> 00:46:46,140
Yeah. ..this one doing this, and
then sometimes people want to rest -
759
00:46:46,140 --> 00:46:48,780
you've been working at night-time
and the other one has been
760
00:46:48,780 --> 00:46:50,420
working during the day. Yeah.
761
00:46:50,420 --> 00:46:53,060
Men in general put together. Yeah.
762
00:46:53,060 --> 00:46:56,500
Yeah, these are the haircut -
the barbers, street barbers,
763
00:46:56,500 --> 00:46:58,420
moneymaking, of course. Yeah.
764
00:46:58,420 --> 00:47:02,620
As you can see, it's connected
electrically, from the battery.
765
00:47:02,620 --> 00:47:05,780
Oh, sure. And that's how they get
the electricity to do all this.
766
00:47:05,780 --> 00:47:08,100
So that's just someone who's
come in off the street to get
767
00:47:08,100 --> 00:47:09,100
a bit of work here?
768
00:47:09,100 --> 00:47:11,220
Oh, yeah, just a bit
of work, cutting.
769
00:47:13,740 --> 00:47:18,460
That Apartheid was officially
over was to be celebrated,
770
00:47:18,460 --> 00:47:22,700
but it was clear that South Africa's
road to true racial equality
771
00:47:22,700 --> 00:47:24,980
will be a long one.
772
00:47:24,980 --> 00:47:29,420
As for me, my epic journey
across the continent was over.
773
00:47:29,420 --> 00:47:31,660
I'd finally reached Cape Town.
774
00:47:32,900 --> 00:47:35,500
NARRATION: From the top of Table
Mountain, you can see the point
775
00:47:35,500 --> 00:47:38,340
where the Indian and Atlantic
oceans meet.
776
00:47:38,340 --> 00:47:43,340
Beyond that, 2,500 miles
over the horizon is Antarctica.
777
00:47:43,340 --> 00:47:46,380
But the most poignant sight of all
is down in the harbour -
778
00:47:46,380 --> 00:47:49,900
a red hull supply ship we've
chased through Africa to reach.
779
00:48:02,260 --> 00:48:05,580
In the end, we made it,
but our appeal for space on board
780
00:48:05,580 --> 00:48:07,620
the Agulhas has failed.
781
00:48:07,620 --> 00:48:10,900
And when she sails tomorrow, on the
only voyage of the year between
782
00:48:10,900 --> 00:48:14,940
Cape Town and the Antarctic,
we'll still be here.
783
00:48:14,940 --> 00:48:17,540
The journey, it seems, is over.
784
00:48:20,900 --> 00:48:22,420
Except it wasn't.
785
00:48:23,620 --> 00:48:27,820
I was determined not to fall
at the final hurdle.
786
00:48:27,820 --> 00:48:31,420
So, after making some calls,
we found another route to the
787
00:48:31,420 --> 00:48:35,620
South Pole - not via South Africa,
but South America.
788
00:48:38,900 --> 00:48:41,060
We have crossed continents.
789
00:48:41,060 --> 00:48:42,940
We're now at the tip of
South America,
790
00:48:42,940 --> 00:48:46,700
and we're here on the appointed day
for our departure from Punta Arenas.
791
00:48:46,700 --> 00:48:48,860
The plane's behind us,
792
00:48:48,860 --> 00:48:51,700
but the weather conditions
round here are apparently
793
00:48:51,700 --> 00:48:53,660
unlike anywhere else on Earth,
794
00:48:53,660 --> 00:48:56,860
and the final decision as to whether
we go or not rests with the pilot
795
00:48:56,860 --> 00:49:00,100
and the weather station here at
Punta Arenas Airport.
796
00:49:00,100 --> 00:49:04,260
So there seem to be a lot of
low-pressure areas on this map.
797
00:49:04,260 --> 00:49:06,100
What do you estimate the chances
at the moment?
798
00:49:06,100 --> 00:49:08,660
50-50, at this time.
799
00:49:08,660 --> 00:49:11,180
If you're a gambler I'll give you
a little better odds.
800
00:49:15,540 --> 00:49:17,900
I was apprehensive,
to say the least,
801
00:49:17,900 --> 00:49:20,340
about flying into Antarctica.
802
00:49:20,340 --> 00:49:26,020
Day by day, we were made aware
that the weather conditions change
803
00:49:26,020 --> 00:49:30,260
very, very fast around there, and
we could not get from Punta Arenas
804
00:49:30,260 --> 00:49:35,380
on our plane into Antarctica
unless all the weather conditions
805
00:49:35,380 --> 00:49:38,820
were right for about 48 hours,
because the plane had to go
806
00:49:38,820 --> 00:49:41,260
into there and be able to come back.
807
00:49:51,940 --> 00:49:58,580
So when we took off, I suppose
that was one of the zones of fear,
808
00:49:58,580 --> 00:50:00,780
in all the journeys.
809
00:50:00,780 --> 00:50:03,620
I began to feel,
"Why are we doing this bit?
810
00:50:03,620 --> 00:50:07,460
"Why can't we just end here
where we're safe, and go back now?"
811
00:50:20,260 --> 00:50:22,540
What else is around this area here?
812
00:50:22,540 --> 00:50:24,140
Any other settlement?
813
00:50:24,140 --> 00:50:27,580
The next closest people would be
at one of a scientific bases,
814
00:50:27,580 --> 00:50:31,020
either out on the coast,
or South Pole Station.
815
00:50:31,020 --> 00:50:33,860
At least 600 miles to
the next closest humans
816
00:50:33,860 --> 00:50:35,500
from Patriot Hills, yeah.
817
00:50:38,780 --> 00:50:41,380
The trip was in two stages.
818
00:50:41,380 --> 00:50:45,900
First, this plane would take me
and a few other intrepid travellers
819
00:50:45,900 --> 00:50:50,660
to a base called Patriot Hills,
600 miles from the pole.
820
00:50:50,660 --> 00:50:54,980
There, we were to be picked up by
a smaller plane to take us
821
00:50:54,980 --> 00:50:56,820
to the South Pole itself.
822
00:51:02,100 --> 00:51:05,260
There's no airfield as such on
Antarctica where we were going.
823
00:51:05,260 --> 00:51:06,820
It's just blue ice.
824
00:51:06,820 --> 00:51:10,740
And the pilot will have to land
on this ice without skidding off,
825
00:51:10,740 --> 00:51:12,380
tipping over or anything like that.
826
00:51:12,380 --> 00:51:14,060
So everything was hairy.
827
00:51:16,100 --> 00:51:19,140
CHEERING
828
00:51:27,940 --> 00:51:30,340
And the next thing I remember is
just getting out of the plane
829
00:51:30,340 --> 00:51:32,580
and finding that...
830
00:51:32,580 --> 00:51:35,220
..Antarctica was really slippery.
831
00:51:41,220 --> 00:51:43,580
It's the bit we've all been
warned about!
832
00:51:43,580 --> 00:51:45,380
And I know why. Jesus.
833
00:51:46,460 --> 00:51:50,060
It's absolutely like glass.
834
00:51:50,060 --> 00:51:52,940
Ah, dear. Too late to go back.
835
00:51:52,940 --> 00:51:56,740
There's something about
the immensity of it,
836
00:51:56,740 --> 00:52:01,620
of the ice and the cold.
And just...
837
00:52:01,620 --> 00:52:05,620
You feel so sort of small
and insignificant in many places
838
00:52:05,620 --> 00:52:07,460
in the Antarctic.
839
00:52:07,460 --> 00:52:10,140
It is so spectacularly beautiful.
840
00:52:11,420 --> 00:52:14,860
But there's also just a sense
of the greatness of it and also
841
00:52:14,860 --> 00:52:18,140
the possibility of danger
at pretty much every step.
842
00:52:18,140 --> 00:52:22,300
So, for me, I find that
incredibly irresistible.
843
00:52:22,300 --> 00:52:26,780
For Michael, he didn't look like
he was particularly at his most
844
00:52:26,780 --> 00:52:28,860
comfortable in that environment.
845
00:52:28,860 --> 00:52:31,260
But I think that's also
because he's...
846
00:52:31,260 --> 00:52:33,100
He loves being around people.
847
00:52:33,100 --> 00:52:38,020
And the Antarctic is a very wide
open space, and it is a very,
848
00:52:38,020 --> 00:52:39,780
very challenging place to be.
849
00:52:43,060 --> 00:52:46,180
The first thing I learn is that,
here in this ice desert,
850
00:52:46,180 --> 00:52:50,100
even the most mundane human tasks
take on an epic quality.
851
00:52:50,100 --> 00:52:52,260
HE SIGHS
852
00:52:54,420 --> 00:52:58,100
That is the most extraordinary view
from any lavatory,
853
00:52:58,100 --> 00:53:00,140
anywhere in the world.
854
00:53:00,140 --> 00:53:01,540
I mean, it's just amazing.
855
00:53:01,540 --> 00:53:04,580
I'm probably the only person
sitting on the toilet
856
00:53:04,580 --> 00:53:07,460
for the next thousand miles.
857
00:53:07,460 --> 00:53:10,820
An interesting fact is that
all human waste has to be removed
858
00:53:10,820 --> 00:53:13,340
from Antarctica - you're not
allowed to leave anything here.
859
00:53:13,340 --> 00:53:18,020
So anything I may pass today will be
air-freighted out to Chile...
860
00:53:20,020 --> 00:53:22,940
..where it's made
into models and sold!
861
00:53:28,020 --> 00:53:31,500
This is interesting, because
this is Notebook Eight,
862
00:53:31,500 --> 00:53:33,660
Johannesburg to the South Pole.
863
00:53:33,660 --> 00:53:38,700
"25 minutes into a flight
to the pole,
864
00:53:38,700 --> 00:53:40,900
"I discover I've left my notebook
865
00:53:40,900 --> 00:53:42,460
"back at Patriot Hills.
866
00:53:42,460 --> 00:53:45,740
"So this will have
to be my polar journal."
867
00:53:57,180 --> 00:53:59,100
South Pole, South Pole, South Pole.
868
00:53:59,100 --> 00:54:01,260
Five Eight Juliet Hotel,
do you copy? Over.
869
00:54:01,260 --> 00:54:03,620
Five Eight Juliet Hotel, South Pole.
870
00:54:03,620 --> 00:54:06,940
Ah, Roger. We're about 15 minutes
out...
871
00:54:20,980 --> 00:54:22,980
Roger. We've got that.
872
00:54:24,020 --> 00:54:25,660
OK, have a good landing.
873
00:54:25,660 --> 00:54:28,020
So we're brought down to Earth.
874
00:54:28,020 --> 00:54:30,060
The goal of our
five-and-a-half-month journey
875
00:54:30,060 --> 00:54:31,740
is within our grasp.
876
00:54:31,740 --> 00:54:34,580
But the radio conversation with
the base is a reminder
877
00:54:34,580 --> 00:54:35,980
of an awkward truth -
878
00:54:35,980 --> 00:54:38,020
no-one really wants us here.
879
00:54:58,740 --> 00:55:02,980
"Day 141, 1.10am.
880
00:55:02,980 --> 00:55:04,820
"We can see the South Pole ahead.
881
00:55:06,260 --> 00:55:09,700
"It's somewhere in the middle
of a complex of buildings dominated
882
00:55:09,700 --> 00:55:13,580
"by a 150-foot-wide geodesic dome.
883
00:55:13,580 --> 00:55:18,420
"Vehicles and building materials
are scattered about the site.
884
00:55:18,420 --> 00:55:21,380
"It's the busiest place
we've seen in Antarctica.
885
00:55:23,300 --> 00:55:25,820
"No pretence of neutrality here.
886
00:55:25,820 --> 00:55:31,220
"After travelling 23,000 miles,
we have found the end of the Earth.
887
00:55:31,220 --> 00:55:33,500
"And it is America."
888
00:55:37,260 --> 00:55:42,820
The disappointing thing about it was
it was very sort of...functional.
889
00:55:44,260 --> 00:55:48,420
Underneath the South Pole itself
there's this great base.
890
00:55:51,180 --> 00:55:55,220
And you open a door and there are
people having blackberry muffins,
891
00:55:55,220 --> 00:55:58,260
and listening to Chicago
on the sound system.
892
00:55:59,460 --> 00:56:01,420
And this is at the South Pole.
893
00:56:01,420 --> 00:56:03,660
And it's awful - it's just awful.
894
00:56:03,660 --> 00:56:07,260
You know, my ideas of heroism
and the great Greek travellers
895
00:56:07,260 --> 00:56:09,100
and all that.
896
00:56:09,100 --> 00:56:13,260
The Argonauts have come to this -
you know, sort of ordering
897
00:56:13,260 --> 00:56:16,140
cheeseburgers underneath
the South Pole.
898
00:56:29,020 --> 00:56:32,580
"Some 50 yards from the main pole
is the ceremonial pole.
899
00:56:35,700 --> 00:56:41,340
"The pole itself - a small brass
tube, which looks like something
900
00:56:41,340 --> 00:56:44,700
"should be about to be
plumbed into it.
901
00:56:44,700 --> 00:56:47,420
"Poor old South Pole.
902
00:56:47,420 --> 00:56:51,140
"But I stand on it at 3.05 on the
morning of December the 4th
903
00:56:51,140 --> 00:56:53,700
"and thought of Mum
and Angela and Dad,
904
00:56:53,700 --> 00:56:56,860
"and what they would think of me."
905
00:56:58,380 --> 00:57:00,340
Yeah.
906
00:57:00,340 --> 00:57:04,540
At this point, all the world's
lines of longitude converge
907
00:57:04,540 --> 00:57:06,100
on my toe caps.
908
00:57:12,420 --> 00:57:14,220
It is the end of the world.
909
00:57:14,220 --> 00:57:17,020
It's also the end of our
hare-brained migration
910
00:57:17,020 --> 00:57:18,460
from north to south.
911
00:57:18,460 --> 00:57:20,540
I think the omens
are telling us to stop.
912
00:57:20,540 --> 00:57:23,780
Just a while ago, the camera
packed up because of the cold.
913
00:57:23,780 --> 00:57:25,380
RASPS: And, as you can tell,
914
00:57:25,380 --> 00:57:27,660
I'm beginning to pack up
because the cold, too.
915
00:57:27,660 --> 00:57:31,060
I think it's just that after five
and a half months on the road,
916
00:57:31,060 --> 00:57:33,940
the body is finally saying,
"Pack it in."
917
00:57:36,380 --> 00:57:38,620
It's much less settled,
much less comfortable,
918
00:57:38,620 --> 00:57:42,220
and much less predictable
than Around The World in 80 Days.
919
00:57:42,220 --> 00:57:45,460
And I think that, to me, I felt
a real... Sort of much more of
920
00:57:45,460 --> 00:57:49,820
a sense of adventure, that
we'd actually gone into places that
921
00:57:49,820 --> 00:57:53,580
I probably would've never, ever
gone in my life otherwise,
922
00:57:53,580 --> 00:57:55,660
and come out the other side.
923
00:58:00,340 --> 00:58:01,980
Full Circle...
924
00:58:01,980 --> 00:58:05,220
..had to be as stunning,
if not more so, than the others.
925
00:58:09,700 --> 00:58:12,940
This was a very, very long
journey. Much, much longer.
926
00:58:12,940 --> 00:58:15,580
In fact, I think it was, like,
in the end, 50,000 miles,
927
00:58:15,580 --> 00:58:19,020
something like that, which was
longer than Pole To Pole and
928
00:58:19,020 --> 00:58:20,420
80 Days put together.
77568
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get subtitles in any language from opensubtitles.com, and translate them here.