All language subtitles for Around the World by Train Series 2 5of6 Ch5 1080p_ENG_Subtitles01

I'm re-joining the rails for another
epic adventure.

Are you excited? Who wouldn't be?

I'm riding around the globe again
riding some

of the most legendary trains in the
world.

To experience more spectacular
railways.

Look at this place!

From the Arctic Circle...

Ooh!

..to the glorious Andes.

And the heart of Europe...

Isn't it fantastic?
It's just a ticket hall.

..to the edge of America.

Oh, this is amazing!

And I'll venture off the tracks to
discover-awe inspiring places...

ENGLAND!

..extraordinary people...

Hey, hello! Turn here!

..and unforgettable experiences.

Staggering, isn't it?

Ah!

This is Vladivostok in Russia's
Far East.

In fact it's so far east, it's
seven time zones east of Moscow.

But more importantly for me

it's the terminus of the longest
railway in the world,

the Trans-Siberian Express,
which runs 9,228km

round the globe.

Starting here in Vladivostok, I'll
be heading up the Chinese border

to Khabarovsk where I'll turn west

and travel the length of Russia,
visit its capital, Moscow,

then cross over into Finland and end
my journey in Helsinki.

When I think of Russia,
I think of gloomy grey videos

from the communist era.

As I travel across it, I want to get
to grips with this massive country.

Get to know the different regions
and communities,

and see how it's changed since
Soviet times.

But before getting on the longest
railway in the world,

I'm stepping onboard another that
might just be one of the shortest.

In 1959, President Khrushchev
of Russia

came back from a visit to America

where he'd been blown away
by San Francisco.

And when he came back he said,

"I want to create a Russian
San Francisco."

And shortly after that the "Big
Vladivostok" project was started.

And three years later in 1962,
this Funicular was put in.

It may be a short
journey to the top,

but the view doesn't disappoint.

This is stunning, isn't it?

And it is like San Francisco.

Well, halfway between
San Francisco and Glasgow.

And look how busy it is.

People come here from China and
Korea and Japan...

They're only a
few hours' flight away,

whereas Moscow is half a world away.

But it wasn't always like this.

Between 1958 and 1992,
it was completely closed

to foreigners because of its
strategic importance.

And you can see here, can't you,
this beautiful natural harbour -

but it's still bristling with
warships.

These days, Vladivostok has thrown
its arms open

to the rest of the world.

In 2015, the president of Russia
declared it a free trade zone

and businesses and tourists are
flooding in

to this fantastic natural harbour.

HE SPEAKS RUSSIAN

I do think that when you're in a
foreign country,

you'll at least have a crack at
using the local language,

just to get a feel of the place more
than anything else.

This seems like a good place to give
it a go.

Black, green?

Oh, you speak a bit of English?
I speak English.

You're a long way from home!

Yes, this tea shop is run by Barry
from Bolton and his wife Anya.

How long you been out here?
Here? 22 years.

Can I have a cuppa?

This is nice, isn't it?
Home from home.

How did you end up here?

Well, I was working in Moscow and my
company... Doing what?

I was managing casinos.

Oh, were you?

The same company had casinos around
the country,

so they sent me here for six months
in 1997.

And that's when you married your
beautiful wife? Yeah.

I wouldn't have stayed if I hadn't
have met Anya, for sure.

So, you had this idea?

It's all Anya's idea.

She decided that this was a perfect
venture for Vladivostok

cos there was nothing like it.

What was Vladivostok like
when you came here in the '90s?

It was much different, it was quite
a violent town, it was pretty...

Quite lawless in many respects,
a lot of corruption. Why was that?

I think it's cos it's
so far from Moscow,

it's just difficult to govern you
know, from so far away.

How come it changed?

Well, huge investment, basically.

The president decided that he wanted
to use Vladivostok

as a hub for the Far East.

Barry's got time to give me a quick
tour of the local area.

This crossroad is like the borders
of what used to be Millionka.

What does Millionka mean?

Millionka is a Russian
word for "Million",

so they used to say,
"There's a million Chinese here."

There may not be a million now,

but I do really feel like I'm in the
Far East.

Vladivostok is a melting pot of
different nationalities.

Koreans, Japanese, this place is
called the Chinese market...

Too small.

..and it's the perfect place to pick
up some gear

for the frozen temperatures
I'm going to encounter

on this epic voyage.

Well, that's not so bad, is it?

Oh, wow, what are these?

Are they...

It's not a hat?
THEY SPEAK RUSSIAN

Panties?!

These are panties.

I've got to get a pair of these.

These will be good for the snowy
west, won't they?

They're made of goat!

Result, I've got something.

TRAIN HORN BLOWS

I've been so busy charging
around Vladivostok

I almost missed the ruddy train.

21 to 24? OK, thank you.

That would have been a good start,

the train only leaves
every two days.

I thought that I would have...

..something that I could pull over
here and have privacy.

Instead, I seem to have quite a lot
of bunks.

I really enjoyed Vladivostok, I can
see why Barry left Bolton for here.

It's not what I expected at all,
it was so much lighter and airier.

And really nicely developed, too.

This is quite ridiculous,
I'm setting off on a journey

that will span about a quarter of
the globe.

Getting on for 9000km.

In 1891, construction of the railway
started simultaneously

in both Moscow and Vladivostok
and it all linked up in 1916.

It's gonna be a pretty epic journey,

but I can't wait to see what the
rest of the country has to offer.

Hi!

Excuse me.

Do I get one of these?

SHE SPEAKS RUSSIAN

Oh.

OK, I'll come down and get it later.
SHE LAUGHS

Thank you. You're so happy,
I have no idea what you're saying

but it's nice to see you so happy
in your work.

First thing I love to do when I get
on a train is explore.

Can I get through here?

I don't know
if I'm allowed to do this.

Oh, here's the toilet.

What word would you use to
describe that?

Sturdy, I think,
is the word I'd use.

Certainly, the loo paper is
quite sturdy!

That's not going to take any
prisoners.

Oh, look down there.

It always freaks me out walking
across here,

I know it's probably perfectly safe
but you just know that

if something went wrong, you'd just
be plummeting straight down.

Next stop is a place called
Khabarovsk,

we get there at 7.00 in the morning,
it's...

..just gone 6.00 in the evening
now, so that's 13 hours.

I'm never quite sure

how much I enjoy third class travel!

It's kind of fun in a way,
but round about 3:00 in the morning,

you can get a bit depressed.

Time to hit the hay.

She just walked through my bedroom!

And another one,
she was carrying a pizza!

Maybe I should order one to eat in
bed.

Coming up, I experience how cold
this country truly gets.

Isn't this river fantastic?

It's sort of frozen mid-wave.

I drink hardcore home brew
with the locals.

It looks like a space machine.

I'm not going up in that!

THEY LAUGH

And lose myself at a very Russian
folklore theme park.

I didn't get very far, did I?
HE LAUGHS

SHAVER WHIRRING

I've travelled almost 800km from
Vladivostok

and I'm pulling into my first stop
on the Trans-Siberian Express.

I really enjoyed
that in a strange sort of way.

It feels like an adventure.

It was a bit like when you're a kid
and you're camping

and it's dark and stormy and in the
night,

you peep out of the little flap to
see what's there -

that's how it felt.

The great thing about this adventure
is that I can jump off the train

at any point along its route

and explore places
I've never even heard of.

This place, apparently, is called
Khabarovsk...

..about which I know
absolutely nothing!

Hopefully in a few hours we'll know
a little bit more.

After a quick dusting off in the
hotel and with the help of daylight,

I get my first look at the city.

And the beautiful River Amur.

Isn't this river fantastic?

It's the tenth longest river in the
world.

Completely frozen over.

In some places, it's sort of frozen
mid-wave.

And it's really important to the
history of this place cos

this whole area, from Vladivostok
all the way up here to Khabarovsk,

up until the mid-19th century wasn't
Russian at all. It was Chinese.

But then in 1858, the Russians saw
the opportunity of a China

that was incredibly weakened by
fighting the British

in the Opium Wars.

So they attacked this, and they took
over the whole place.

And from then on, the border here
for 800km was - and still is -

this river, the Amur.

The railway line arrived here in
Khabarovsk back in 1897

which transformed the place from a
small town to a full-blown city

with a population of over half a
million people.

The average temperature this time of
year is -18 degrees.

So, I head
indoors to meet some locals

and hear a bit more about the town.

Hello. Hello?

Hi...

VOICEOVER: I'm not sure what
one brings to a Russian gathering.

So, I brought a lovely little cake.

..this is for you.

Marat and Anja have invited a bunch
of friends round

for grub and a gossip.

Does anybody want some potatoes?

Surrounded by conversations
I don't understand,

I go to an Englishman's safe place.

Tell me about the weather here.

How many months of the year
is it cold?

Seven.

Seven months, that's a long winter.

Can I just say thank you very,
very much for inviting me?

It's a pleasure to meet you.

LAUGHTER

Hmm, what is this?

Self-made vodka. Self-made vodka?

You're allowed to have home-made
vodka?

They don't arrest you for it?

No, we are not allowed to sell
but we are allowed to produce.

For ourselves. It's very good.

During the communist times of
the Soviet Union,

it was strictly forbidden
to brew your own

moonshine, but now it's
a fairly normal pastime

to have a still in your home.

ANIMATED CHATTER

I'm not going up in that!
LAUGHTER

Apparently, there are
five shops in town who sell

all shapes and sizes of stills,

for those starting out to the

master distillers.

Do you call it vodka?

We call it samogon.
Samogon. That means that

when you produce
something by yourself.

This lot are such
samogon aficionados,

they've even made up a song for it.

THEY SING

THEY LAUGH

Great fun, lovely company,
and warm people.

It's been a pleasure and insightful

to spend time with these Russians,

even though it left me
with a bit of a headache!

From Khabarovsk,
the train heads west,

through the heart of Siberia,

to a city called Yekaterinburg,

which lies at the foot of
the Ural Mountains.

In all, it's estimated that

90,000 people were employed

during the construction of

this massive railway project

and, boy, did they have
a lot of ground to cover!

Russian Siberia stretches over

an area of over two-and-a-half
million square miles,

which I can't really
get my head round!

There's plenty of time to kill
in the dining carriage.

Luckily, the menu is in English.

I'd like some borscht.
Borscht? You know that

you have to drink
vodka before borscht?

No, not more vodka!

While I'm waiting,
fellow traveller Daria

tells me more about how
the Russians used the railways.

It's amazing how popular this
railway is with local people.

I'd thought that we might see
quite a few tourists,

and we've not seen any.

Well, this is the
cheapest way to travel.

People are very poor

in Russia, so they will

spend a day -

or, sometimes, two days -

on the train just to save money.

From Moscow to St Petersburg,

you can see the difference.

They're well dressed,
they work on their laptops.

But as people say here, Moscow and

St Petersburg, they are not Russia.

Whereas...for people like me,
from abroad,

we think of Moscow and Russia
in the same breath. No.

How has Russia changed
since the days of communism?

At first, there was a difficult time

of reforms and new rules

and uncertainty in the future,
but still hope.

Then after Putin came to power,

all those freedoms
started to be taken away.

Old people were giving away
those freedoms.

For security, for quiet life.

So, now we are very close
to communism, I think.

So, the wheel has gone full circle.
Yeah. I think so, yes.

Yeah. Unfortunately, yes.

Oh, that's mine, isn't it?
SHE SPEAKS RUSSIAN

JOLTING
Oops! Ah!

Ha-ha!

Almost got a lapful of borscht.
That would have warmed things up!

Doesn't look like borscht, actually.

It's not borscht, I would say,
because borscht definitely

has to have beetroot.
Beetroot in it, yeah.

Smells of chicken.

Whatever it is, it's warm and tasty.

To be honest, I thought we were
going to get a really rotten meal,

but this is great,
and the wine's fine.

Here's to Russian railways.

Yekaterinburg is Russia's fourth

largest city, and the main reason

I wanted to get off the train here

was to explore this

impressive building. It's called

The Church on the Blood.

It plays a crucial role in Russia's

communist history.
You see, communism

is an ideology where
all things are shared equally,

and this here is
a reminder of how far

the communist movement would go

to make it a reality.

This whole place is a memorial

to an event that took place in 1918.

The entire Russian royal family

was massacred
in a little house on this spot.

And the reason that the
Bolshevik revolutionaries

wanted to destroy not just Nicholas,

but his whole family as well,

was that they wanted to get rid of

the entire dynasty, so that Russia

would always be a republic and could
never return to being a monarchy.

And they reckon that

the assassination itself took place

right there,
and that's why that little chapel

is the colour of blood.

As you go upstairs, it all gets

a lot lighter and a bit cartoony.

So, now that the Communist Party

has collapsed and the
Russian Orthodox Church

has been reinvigorated,
this whole family,

which once were reviled as being

the epitome of
a horrible royal family,

squashing down the poor
and having to be removed

and massacred,
they're now transformed

into martyrs - in this beautiful,

light, airy, religious Disneyland.

Real-life Russian stories

can be a bit morbid,

so it's important
to be able to escape into

the world of fantasy
from time to time.

I've always loved kids' stories
and fairy tales,

and one of the reasons that
I wanted to come to this region

is because the Urals contains
some of Europe's best

folk stories,
and in this park tonight,

they're celebrating the arrival of

a very important character,
Father Frost.

We've got to meet him, haven't we?

This place has got plenty
to keep you entertained...

I think this is the
ancient dancing of the Urals.

..and you just have to get stuck in.

Ha! I didn't get very far, did I?!

HE LAUGHS

Before trying to find Father Frost,

I need to make a whistle-stop tour

and get my folklore fix.

Hey! She's come, she's come!

I meet the Mistress of Copper
Mountain, who is said to be

the protector of underground
riches in this mining region.

I love it, yeah, it twinkles.

Then to the house of Baba Yaga...

Oh, careful, your
nose will fall off!

..a witch-like being, who lives in

a hut that stands on chicken legs.

It's magic! Da!
SHE LAUGHS

Then it's on to the big man himself.

I'll see if I can engage
him in conversation.

Hi, er, and you are...?

We have come from
the United Kingdom.

Lots of people have
come to see Father Frost,

so we can't keep him long.

It's very nice to meet you, I'm very
honoured. And nice to meet you too.

Oh, he speaks English!

I wonder what fascinating
facts he's got.

London is the capital of
Great Britain.

Before I came to Russia, I thought
it was going to be a faded,

harsh land,
without a smile in sight..

Yay!

..but, so far,
I've experienced nothing but colour

and a people that are just like us.

Still to come...

Here we go.

..My Trans-Siberian Express

crosses the Ural Mountains...

To Asian Russia! Salud.

..I dine on some

Soviet-style fast food...

This tastes good, actually.

..I plan for my onward journey.

If you rub that cockerel,

you get good luck,

but if you rub

this one,

you get bad luck.

ANNOUNCER: The boarding
of Express train

to Moscow is now on Track Seven.

I'm hopping back on the
Trans-Siberian Express

and heading west.

This leg of the journey,
we're coming out of Asia,

into Europe, and I'm
heading for Moscow.

Here we go.

Ooh...

HORN BLARES

The route's 1,700km long

and is going to take over 24 hours.

It's like a sauna.
One moment, it's really warm,

then you get out to this bit
and it's minus zero.

Minus zero is a temperature
I've made up for this trip.

It just means really cold.

Luckily for me, I've stumbled
across the party carriage

and a chance to warm up.
DISCO MUSIC

Wasn't expecting this.

Vodka? Vodka.

All right, I'll have a vodka.

Must be mad!

This disco inferno,

in lime green and pink,

is the perfect place
for me to conduct

a little tradition.

I pour out some vodka...

and I have a tot of it
on one side of the Urals,

because that's where
we're in Asian Russia,

and then I have another tot
when we get to the other side,

where we're in European Russia.

To Asian Russia! Salud.

The Ural Mountain range

stretches 2,500 kilometres,

and marks the continental border

between Europe and Asia.

I'll drink to that!

Very nice vodka, this one.

It's only about half past four.

Loads of people are asleep.

I love these long train journeys.

It's almost like you're playing
a team sport, all in it together,

all relying on each other
to keep occupied and entertained.

All these people,
some of them were here

two, three days...

..desperately thinking
of things to do.

This couple here...

Can I show them your fish?

Look at this fish.

Beautiful.

High-five!

Three... Three. One, two, three.

By the time you finish this journey,

he'll be able to count up to 500!

Of course, you don't always need
other people to fill the time!

Russia is so vast,

with an incredible mix of people

and places. I've seen the remoteness

and how important
the railways are here

to connect the country,
but it's not just vital for

the movement of the population,
it's a critical component

to Russia's economy. An estimated
30% of Russian exports move

along these tracks.

So far, I've travelled over

9,000km - from the far east

of Russia, across Siberia,

through the Ural Mountains,

and I'm finally in Moscow.

I've got 24 hours to explore

this amazing city, and my adventure

starts underground.

Nine million people use
this metro every day.

It's the busiest in
the whole of Europe.

It was built in the 1930s,
during the communist period.

And at that time,
it was seen as the height of

modernisation.

I thought there was a big difference

between the London
Underground and this,

and I've just realised what it is.

No adverts.

Oh, but instead,

these are pretty
wonderful, aren't they?

Oh, I love these!

Look at this one here.
I think it's...

It's not cut-out stained glass,

this is actually painted.

And look! The worker at the top,

what a hero he is!

This one's great.

More flowers and lovely patterns.

And at the top, another worker,

except this worker is an artist.

It's a beautiful mosaic.

You've got the young mum

and the little child, reaching up

to a pair of doves,
except originally,

it wasn't a pair of doves

that was there, it was the head of

the dictator Joseph Stalin.

But after 1956 -
when Stalin had died

and Nikita Khrushchev took over -

people began to realise
quite how ghastly

Stalin had been,
so they removed his head

and put the little birds
there instead.

This is how the Communist Party

saw the new world that
they wanted to make.

Cheap, easy transport
for the working man and woman.

Beautiful art all over
the place, no adverts.

This was the jewel in the crown
of communist Moscow.

New York Subway may have the most
stops, Tokyo's the cleanest,

but the Moscow Metro has got to be

the most beautiful in the world.

It may be beautiful,
but it's a bit of

a rabbit warren for the likes of me.

ANNOUNCEMENT IN RUSSIAN

Oh, right.

Platform Two?

Uh-huh. Yeah?

This is what I really came to see,

these extraordinary statues. Look,

there are so many of them!

Did you see what the
lady did just then?

She rubbed the nose of the dog.

If you do that, you're
supposed to get good luck.

Can you see how it's so
clean and smooth there,

compared to everywhere
else, because of the

continual rubbing by
all the passengers?

Here's another one
that gets rubbed too.

See this? If you rub that cockerel,

you get good luck,

but if you rub this one -

and I'm not going to do it -

you get bad luck.

Only a few people have.

I wonder if they're still alive.

Cock-a-doodle don't rub this one!

Back above ground, and it's time

to take in some of

the better-known sights
of this metropolis.

If you're anything like me,

you'll think of Red Square

as a big military parade,

with fat missiles on low-loaders,

and the Politburo
up there somewhere,

with grey faces, and grey coats,
and big black hats.

But nowadays, it's full of tourists

from all over the world,

and home to non-military aircraft.

It shouldn't really
be called Red Square,

because it's a rectangle,

and the word red is

the old Russian word for beautiful.

So, it should really be called
the Beautiful Rectangle.

This is one of the grandest hotels
in the whole of the city,

but if you look really closely

at it, it's asymmetrical.

The story goes that the architects

who designed it wanted to offer
the great dictator Stalin

two alternatives. So,
they put the alternatives

on a piece of paper
and they sent it to him,

and it came back with
a tick and his signature.

The problem was that they didn't
know which one he'd approved.

So, they incorporated both drawings

into the building so, that way,

they wouldn't get shot
for disobeying him.

Let's go in, shall we?

They've let us in to have
a quick sneak around their most

expensive suite.

And you can get it - for one night -

for £14,500.

There's a lot of money in this town.

For me, this is the big
selling point of this suite -

a view right over Red Square

and the Kremlin.

And if you're staying over there,

you'll probably be
shopping over here.

This place is called GUM.

It's the sort of
Harrods-type department store

of Moscow. In the communist era,

it all looked pretty glum
and the shelves were bare,

but now that capitalism has
come back, for all its faults,

at least it's made the shops
look pretty again.

And all the big names are here,
Gucci and whatnot.

It was built in 1893,

with about a thousand shops.

It became Stalin's office
through the 1920s.

Maybe he worked in there!

Walking through the isles here,

filled with luxurious goods,

I really do feel like
I'm where the money is.

It's very good.

Always time for an ice cream!

But that showy opulence

is a world away from

the average life of most Muscovites.

This is a Cheburechnaya,

a kind of Soviet, no-frills

fast-food bar, standing room only.

Tarek has been in Moscow
for over 40 years.

This tastes good, actually.

It's made from lamb, but

I don't know what they use here.

These days,
there's not a deficit of meat

and Soviet times
was all... Whatever.

Whatever you can imagine. Yeah.

So, this is very much a Soviet

kind of construction? Yes.
It's a Soviet version of fast food.

My childhood was like

a big bowl somebody, er,
brought home. Ha! Stuff like this.

How has Moscow changed since

the Communist Party was in power?

There is a lot of, er,
advertisement everywhere

and there is new development in
architecture. And would you say

it's a better city now?

It's better brand by the authorities

than it was before. They start
thinking about the people.

Where they're going to eat. Where
they're going to sit down for a...

glass of wine. Where're they going
to sit down for a view of the city.

It's become more friendly
to the people.

Moscow really does feel worlds away
from the rest of Russia,

with its opulence and its sparkle,

but it's also nice to see that
if you look hard enough,

life can be pretty normal as well.

I started off this journey expecting

Russia to be a gloomy, grey,

cold expanse.

What I've learnt is that everywhere

my train stopped
has its own identity.

Yes, there's still undertones of

its Soviet history,
but modern Russia

is trying to leave that as it is,

history.

So, now...

Ah, Helsinki. Platform Three.

..I'm boarding
a sleeper train to Finland.

Think we're going any sec...

Oh, we are, great.

What do you do to kill the time

when you're on the sleeper
from Moscow to Helsinki?

Link your phone to your tablet...

and then you can watch the footy.

No, I'm not, I'm buffering.

Still to come...

I pull into my final station
of this epic saga...

Look at those four guys there,

with their big balls.

..I learn the intricacies
of being Finnish.

You can ask anything,
and you will get an honest reply.

..and I hob-nob with
the country's elite.

And there is the President. Hello!

I'm on the final leg of
this frozen odyssey.

Salmon caviar sandwich.

I started on the
far-eastern coast of Russia,

travelled the length of
the country to Moscow,

and I'm crossing the
border, into Finland.

Morning! Good morning.

Passport control.

Please ignore the mess,

it's been a long trip!

Did you like Russia?

Yeah. Yeah, OK.

Well, it was a bit cold!

Thank you.
Have a nice journey. Cheers.

Over 100 years ago,

this part of the journey

would actually still be in

the Russian Empire. You see,

between 1809 and 1917,

Finland was under Russian rule.

You can even see
hints of its Russianness

here in the capital, Helsinki.

It's a stunning piece
of architecture,

this station, isn't it?
Look at those

four guys there,
with their big balls.

Today is Independence Day,

and that's a very big
notion for the Finnish.

Russian money built

a lot of the city centre,

and there are still hints of that

dotted around.

I head straight to meet up with

Helsinkian Vappu.

Hello! Hello. Hey.

She's going to fill me in on
how the country celebrates.

Today's Independence Day.

Yes. So, what happens there?

Mmm, for Finland, er,
the independence is a huge thing.

It's all about
us Finns watching telly.

Why do you watch the telly,
particularly, on Independence Day?

Because there's
a huge presidential gala.

The President shakes hands
with nearly 2,000 people

in his castle,
which is here in Helsinki.

I'm going to go and see
a man shaking hands with

2,000 other people?
That's what we do. I can't wait!

Before being surrounded by Finns
on this, their most Finnish of days,

I thought it best that Vappu
gave me a little starter class,

so I don't make any faux pas.

We don't have a big small-talk
culture here in Finland.

You can ask anything,
and you will get

an honest reply. It's all very
sweet and nice, isn't it?

There's not much room for irony,
or taking the mickey.

Ha! Yeah, we don't do banter here.

I, personally, I never get if

there's an irony-based joke.

You just don't get it? Yeah.
THEY LAUGH

You're so polite,
I want to make you cross!

THEY LAUGH

Well, um, that would be hard to do

because Finns don't usually
show their emotions.

OK, be honest, no irony-based jokes,

and don't show my emotions.

Ooh, I reckon I could be Finnish!

Is it a cultural thing?
Yes. And there is

a Finnish saying that
we are not Swedish,

we are not Russian,

so let's be Finns.

So that you're independent,
culturally, from

all those other influences? Yes.

I don't know where we're going,
we're just following

the rest of the parade.
But before long, we find ourselves

in front of the main palace entrance

and, just like that,
I'm face-to-face with

Finland's First Family.
And here is the President.

Up there on the balcony? Yes.

Oh, my goodness! Yeah, he's waving.
I'm really impressed

that we are just here!
That we're just here,

and there's the head of state.
Exactly. How extraordinary!

It's a huge honour for anything to
get invited to the castle ball.

RINGING

But instead of going to the ball,
I get to experience it another way.

It's an Independence Day

tradition to watch
the whole thing unfold

on TV. Hundreds of thousands
of people across the country

tune in for it.
The most interesting part

comes when they start hand shaking.

The most interesting part...

Yes. ..comes when they start
hand shaking? Yes. Ha-ha!

It is a big, big event in Finland.

Why do you think it's
a big event in Finland?

It has been for such
a long time... Yeah.

..that it's embedded
in our culture now.

Yeah. This is culturally
so different from us.

We would be sitting here
looking at that

really rather cynically.

Three hours' live coverage
of shaking hands,

and the Finns seem to take it a lot
more seriously than we would.

Now we are going through
the floral arrangements.

For one horrible moment,
I thought we'd miss that!

THEY LAUGH

Ooh, I don't like that dress.

The red one? The red one, yeah.

Are you getting into
the vibe? Absolutely.

THEY LAUGH
I'm hooked!

It's like a Royal Wedding
meets Eurovision.

Graham Norton would have
a field day with this!

Can we do one picture of us...
Of course.

..with that in the background?
Because I think it's funny.

What was that?!

Well, I have to say,
I wrestled with that experience.

But also, I can see that
from Vappu's point of view -

and, indeed, from the point of view
of the whole country -

there was something

to make you feel proud about it.

It was very respectful,

very respectable.

And my cynicism and Vappu's pleasure

are just poles apart because
we come from different cultures.

But I kind of enjoyed
moaning about it!

As the sun sets on
this beautiful city,

I've got time to enjoy

just one more Finnish tradition.

HOWLING

Wood-smoked salmon for dinner,

in a little wooden hut.

LAUGHTER AND CHATTER

It's the perfect setting to think
back over the last couple of weeks.

When you set off on a train journey

spanning over 10,000km,

you just don't know what you're
going to come across. Every place

can be so different and, yet,

so similar, at the same time.

You just need to travel with

an open mind...

and the correct clothing.

I can't wait to get
back on the tracks!

Next time, I'm starting

in northern Scandinavia,

where I'll come face-to-face

with the local wildlife.

Ooh!

The wolf spit's all right, is it?

Yeah, yeah, I think so.

I'll heat up in Sweden...

You've had two saunas already today.

..then cool down again
in the Icehotel...

Oh, this is amazing!

..before riding a train onto a ferry

and ending my journey across

the world in a much more

manageable location.

It would be so much easier if

the world was this big!