Holly Morris retraces two epic journeys by legendary explorer Dr. David Livingstone to his most celebrated discoveries: Lake Malawi and the Victoria Falls. She encounters stunning wildlife and the ancient baobab tree along the Shire River in Malawi's Liwonde National Park, dives into Lake Malawi and meets a witch doctor on remote Likoma Island. Holly then heads north to Zambia, where she explores the bustling capital city of Lusaka and strolls through its vibrant market and visits the Wanga Manga Environmental Park and Chimfunshi Wildlife Orphanage, a safe haven for rescued chimpanzees. She tours the Livingstone Museum and concludes her trek at Victoria Falls, one of the Seven Wonders of the World.
Megan McCormick is star-struck as she begins her trip to Tinseltown. She first seeks out the homes of the rich and famous, then decides to see if they're hard at work at Paramount Studios, the only operating studio still located in Hollywood. Megan experiences the quirky Venice Beach, gets her culture fix at the Getty Center and window-shops along fabulous Rodeo Drive. Los Angeles is home to countless iconic buildings, and Megan visits just a few, including the Capitol Records Building and Graumann's Chinese Theatre. She then heads south to tour the Queen Mary, drives through the winding curves of Mulholland Drive and gets ready for her close-up at the famous Hollywood sign.
Neil Gibson begins his trip in Karachi, Pakistan's most bustling metropolis. He takes a horse and cart to the Saddar Bazaar, the city's main shopping area, and pays a visit to one of Karachi's leprosy hospitals. Neil journeys by train to Multan, the ancient valley civilization of the Multan, where he has his fortune told by a bird, stuffs his turban with onions and rides by camelback to the spectacular Derawar Fort in the Cholistan desert. He visits the Khyber Pass, the exotic valley of Chitral (birthplace of polo) and stays with the Kalash people, believed to have descended from Alexander the Great. Neil then takes a three-day trek through the Hunza Valley, crossing two incredible glaciers and ending with a view from the magnificent Rush Peak.
Ian Wright explores Tehran, the busy capital city, and visits the last resting-place of Ayatollah Khomeini, considered Iran's holiest site of worship. After taking part in the "House of Strength," an ancient Iranian sport, Ian checks out the local nightlife and treats himself to a dish of sheep's brains. He goes skiing in Dizin and then travels to Bandare-E Torkaman on the Caspian coast, where he goes sturgeon fishing and visits a caviar processing plant. Ian wrestles a descendant of Genghis Khan before journeying to Esfahan, site of a magnificent blue-domed mosque. He flies to Shiraz to see the Islamic festival of Ashura, spends a day with the Qashqai Nomads and then visits Persepolis, a city built at the height of the Persian Empire.
Justine Shapiro takes in the city's landmarks nestled along the Grand Canal — the Doge's Palace, the Bridge of Sighs and St. Mark's Square and Basilica. She cheers on the racers at the Regata Storica, an historic gondola competition full of pomp and circumstance. She walks the red carpet at Venice's Film Festival, views the art at the city's Biennale Festival and enjoys medieval festivals on the mainland in Monselice and Asolo.
Megan starts her visit to Kenya traveling by camel with the nomadic Samburu people. Next she travels to Lewa Wildlife Conservancy to track the endangered rhino, then it's off to climb Mount Kenya, one of Africa's most majestic mountains. Holly then takes us to Niger, beginning in Agadez to celebrate at the Wodabe Gerewhol Festival. She continues on to the Air Mountain range then treks to the oasis of Timia, where she encounters the Tuareg tribe. Holly takes part in their cavalcade, or camel race — the first woman ever! She heads back across the desert in search of Africa's most spectacular migration, the salt caravans, which are comprised of hundreds of camel trains journeying to trade salt and dates.
Megan journeys to Glasgow, where she visits the Macintosh Museum and takes a bagpipe lesson. Next she travels to Stirling, site of a major victory by William "Braveheart" Wallace, Scotland's national hero. Megan samples the whiskey on the island of Islay, explores the mountainous region of Oben, goes fishing off the Isle of Skye, tours the battlefield of Culloden and pursues the myth of the Loch Ness Monster. She then travels to Strathdon for the Clanloddoch Highland games, witnesses an Orkadian wedding in Skara Brae, hits the links at St. Andrews and revels in the performances at the Edinburgh Festival.
Brianna Barnes explores Honduras and El Salvador, two of Central America's most rewarding destinations. In Honduras, she swims with dolphins, tours a banana plantation, visits the Mayan ruins of Copan and learns how to roll cigars in Santa Rosa de Copan. Next she heads to El Salvador, where she climbs the Izalco volcano, treks through waterfalls in El Imposible National Park, visits with a former guerrilla commander at the Guazapa volcano, enjoys a rodeo fiesta in San Luis del Carmen and ascends the still-active Santa Ana volcano, the highest in the country.
Ian begins his trek in Tunis, where he explores the lively markets. He visits El Djem, an enormous coliseum, heads to an oasis in Tamerza and tours Nefta, the center of Sufi mysticism. Ian searches for the "Star Wars" set in Tozeur, hunts with desert greyhounds in Douz, visits a cave dwelling in Matmata and explores the island of Djerba before stopping off at the site of General Rommel's last stand. Next it's off to Libya and a trip to the souks of Tripoli. Ian tours the magnificent Roman ruins at Leptis Magna, then heads south through the desert to Sabha, where he skis down the sand dunes. His final trek takes him to the rugged Akakus Mountains.
Ian travels to England and Wales, small countries with big histories. He visits historic Canterbury Cathedral, Windsor Castle and Eton College, the poshest private school in the country. Ian takes in the beauty of Cornwall, famous for its surfing beaches and the village of Chipping Campden in the Cotswolds, where he tries his hand at the bizarre sport of shin kicking. He enjoys a spectacular re-enactment of the Battle of Trafalgar in Portsmouth and the Glastonbury Music Festival. In Wales, Ian hops aboard the picturesque Ffestiniog steam railway and meets some traditional Welsh singers before heading for the stunning panoramas of Snowdonia.
Justine begins her travels in Berlin where she admires the colorful paintings on the East Side Gallery, one of the last remaining sections of the infamous Wall. She hitches a ride to Niebull and then continues on to the island of Sylt, a vast sandbar known for its beaches and spas. Justine tours the fertile farmland of Hamburg, visits the site of the trials in Nuremberg, explores the Gothic setting of "Frankenstein" in the medieval town of Ingolstadt, celebrates Oktoberfest in Munich, gets a history lesson at Hitler's mountain retreat in Berchtesgaden, meets "Jesus" on his lunch break in Oberammergau and tackles the heights of Mount Yenna in the Bavarian Alps.
In Norwegian Lapland, Holly travels by dogsled south from Alta toward the Sami people's most important celebration — the Easter Festival, where she enters the annual reindeer racing competition. She then departs for the Finnmarksvidda Plateau to round up more than 800 reindeer and to glimpse the famous Northern Lights. She heads to the Alps, where she treks through the Italian Dolomites to the Via Ferratae. Holly's next climb takes her to Zermatt in Switzerland, where she scales the awe-inspiring Matterhorn.
Bradley Cooper travels the path of the Incas, heading from Cuzco to Ollyantaytambo, site of their last great battle. Next he treks to glacial Ausangate Mountain where he takes part in the exuberant celebration of the Qollyur'riti Festival. Now we're off to the Amazon, where Eils Nevitt travels from Manaus by boat to Anavilhanas Island. Along the way she fishes for the deadly black piranha, hunts for spiders and tastes a coconut maggot. Back in Manaus, Eils attends an initiation ritual with the Satare Maue tribe. She sails the Amazon to test her jungle survival skills and glimpses a new species of dwarf monkey.
Megan celebrates Greek independence on Hydra, walks in St. John's footsteps on Patmos, samples the nightlife on Mykonos, visits Apollo's birthplace on Delos, explores the Minoan city of Akrotiri on Santorini, hikes the Samaria Gorge on Crete and discovers the tiny island of Gavdos, where legend has it that Odysseus fell under Calypso's spell for seven years.
Padma Lakshmi's journey begins in Seville with a breakfast of hot chocolate and Spanish doughnuts. She then tours the city's tapas bars and tries flamenco dancing in between sips of Sangria. Next it's off to Jerez de la Frontera to cook with sherry, then she fishes in Sanlucar de Barrameda and samples the exclusive Manzanilla. Padma prepares paella on the Costa del Sol, cooks an Andalucian stew in the Alpujaras Valley, samples bull's balls and explores the olive groves in Granada, whips up gazpacho in Buñol and dines at the world's oldest restaurant in Madrid.
Megan explores Shanghai, where she tries her hand at contortionism with the famous acrobats. She learns about the silk trade in Suzhou, travels by train through the Yellow Mountains, fishes the Yangtze River, visits the caves at Dazu and marvels at the Terracotta Army in X'ian.
Megan tours the famous Forbidden City, a Tibetan lama monastery and Tiananmen Square, home to Mao's mausoleum and the Great Hall of the People (as well as the site of the famous student uprising). She visits the underground city of restaurants and clubs and goes shopping in the famous antique market. Megan's day trips will be to the Great Wall and to Marco Polo's Bridge and the site where Peking Man bones were found.
The Chinese migration of the 19th and 20th centuries has had quite a cultural impact around the world. Our Globe Trekker hosts trace the steps of this Diaspora from the motherland to its great population centers of San Francisco, London, New York, Mauritius and Penang in Malaysia. They discover the motivations and histories of the people who left China and the impact they've had on their new homes. We also witness some of their fantastic New Year celebrations in Chinatowns across the world.
Ian Wright and Zay Harding visit New Zealand, a land of unspoiled landscapes and immense natural beauty. They meet Maori warriors and watch canoe races, see firsthand the stunning locations for "The Lord of the Rings" films, dabble in extreme sports in Queenstown, hike in the glacial Mount Cook National Park, relax in the hot springs of the Great Barrier Island and participate in a sheep shearing contest at Masterton.
Megan begins her trip in Copenhagen, Denmark's capital and the home of Hans Christian Andersen. She experiences a Viking festival in Aarhus and explores the free state of Christiania. In Stockholm, Megan picnics on moose sausage and reindeer pâté, meets tennis legend Bjorn Borg, tours the Nobel Museum, dances to an ABBA tribute act, and parties at the famous Ice Bar. She also treks on horseback along the Baltic Coast and experiences a relaxing Swedish sauna.
Padma starts off in Mumbai, where she discovers the delightful street food and helps the Dabbawallahs deliver lunches to the city's businessmen. Next it's off to Hyderabad where she explores the exotic bazaars and makes Royal Biryani for 200 children. Padma enjoys the traditional breakfast of Masala Dosa and makes sun-dried pappadams in Bangalore, tours the spice warehouses in Cochin, cooks up a fragrant coconut fish stew in Kerala and ends her journey in the Western Ghat mountains by feasting with 10,000 pilgrims at a Krishna temple.
Ian travels to Mauritius, the Seychelles and Reunion, picture-perfect holiday destinations known as the playground of the wealthy. As Ian discovers, there's so much more to these islands than fabulous beaches and crystal blue waters. In the Seychelles, Ian snorkels with whale sharks, meets a modern day Robinson Crusoe and takes part in a big game fishing competition. He tours Port Louis in Mauritius, where he's invited to attend a Hindu wedding. Reunion Island delivers up an adrenaline thrill from start to finish as Ian catches the world paragliding championships and treks to the top of Piton de la Fournaise, the island's active volcano.
Ian starts his journey at the unique Day of the Dead festival in Pazcuaro. After reveling late into the night, he goes to the old colonial town of Guanajuato, where he spends time with some Mexican cowboys and enjoys delicious Mexican food. From there Ian goes to Acapulco, where he takes in the glitzy nightlife before watching the famous cliff divers. Continuing his search for the perfect beach, he heads to Puerto Escondido for the annual surfing festival. He then travels to the Mayan ruins of Palenque, before visiting the Zapatista stronghold of San Cristobal and ending his journey with an amazing trek through the Lancondon jungle.
Ian paraglides into the Andean city of Meridas, rounds up cattle and searches for anaconda in Hato Pinero, takes part in a fire-dancing ceremony in Chivacoa and visits a beauty pageant school with the reigning Miss Venezuela in Caracas. He explores the archipelago of Los Roques, treks through the rainforest region of Gran Sabana, rides the rapids of Devil's Canyon and scales Angel Falls, the world's tallest waterfall.
Estelle Bingham races in Goolwa's boat festival, enjoys the food and wine festival in Adelaide, makes wine in the Barossa Valley, tries her hand at opal mining and mustering camels in Coober Pedy, cuddles koalas and wombats in Perth, abseils in the Karjini Gorges and encounters a whale shark in Exmouth.
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NYCTV Primetime
