:00:00. > :00:39.Now on BBC News, it's time for The Travel Show.
:00:40. > :00:45.Hello and welcome to The Travel Show, coming to you this week from
:00:46. > :00:50.southern India. Later in the programme, I will try my hand, or
:00:51. > :00:56.should I say, my face, at this traditional dance form. That is
:00:57. > :01:00.still to come. This is what is also coming up. We are in New York,
:01:01. > :01:06.finding out whether tourist dollars could save some of the city's iconic
:01:07. > :01:15.churches. The latest global gadgets. This week, Dancing On Ice,
:01:16. > :01:20.literally. (SINGING). New York is home to some of the world's
:01:21. > :01:22.best-known gospel churches but as gentrification takes hold of
:01:23. > :01:27.neighbourhoods like the Harlem, some locals feel they are being pushed
:01:28. > :01:37.out. Our correspondent went to take a look. Harlem is America's most
:01:38. > :01:49.famous African-American community and the cultural capital of black
:01:50. > :01:59.America. Until recently, Harlem was off the tourist map. Once on by
:02:00. > :02:02.gangs and drug pushers, today property prices have skyrocketed and
:02:03. > :02:05.rents have almost doubled in the last ten years. Even the former
:02:06. > :02:11.president of the United dates, Bill Clinton, has his office in Harlem.
:02:12. > :02:16.This neighbourhood became known as sugar Hill, should remaining money.
:02:17. > :02:20.If you had money, this was the neighbour that you moved into.
:02:21. > :02:32.Harlem, I would say, is the most legendary neighbourhood in the
:02:33. > :02:39.United States of America. (SINGING). Many visitors come here
:02:40. > :02:43.just to hear the unique sounds of the gospel church choirs. In Harlem
:02:44. > :02:49.alone, there are more than 400 houses of worship, which consist of
:02:50. > :02:53.Baptist, Roman Catholic, Methodist and various other denominations.
:02:54. > :02:58.This one goes all the way back to 1805... Gospel tours are listed as
:02:59. > :03:03.one of the ten top visitor attractions in New York City and
:03:04. > :03:09.tourists here are welcome as it. This is one of the last churches
:03:10. > :03:13.Martin Luther King Jnr visited before he was assassinated and he
:03:14. > :03:18.gave a speech here. Churches are struggling not only here in Harlem
:03:19. > :03:25.but worldwide to maintain their congregation and we welcome visitors
:03:26. > :03:31.to Harlem on gospel tours because it helps them to keep the lights on. It
:03:32. > :03:41.helps them to maintain the property. And at the same time, they
:03:42. > :03:45.are expanding their message. But it is not just the financial needs of
:03:46. > :03:50.many places of worship. Gentrification is starting to make a
:03:51. > :03:54.huge impact on congregation numbers, causing less wealthy
:03:55. > :04:00.African-Americans to leave Harlem because of rising rents and property
:04:01. > :04:06.prices. In the last five years, more than 20 Baptist churches and local
:04:07. > :04:10.church groups have closed. This year, another three buildings are
:04:11. > :04:16.earmarked for closure to make way for high-end apartments. By and
:04:17. > :04:21.large, gentrification is a bad thing because what it means is that harm
:04:22. > :04:25.is being remade not for the people who live there, who are part of this
:04:26. > :04:31.demographic warehouse of the people who live in harmony less than $34
:04:32. > :04:36.million -- 30 $4000 per year, but when they create those
:04:37. > :04:40.3,000,000-dollar penthouses, that is not for that demographic, so it is
:04:41. > :04:44.not a good thing because no matter how bad things were in the past, at
:04:45. > :04:50.least you have a place to live which you can afford. At least you had a
:04:51. > :04:53.church. Now, the church that was so valuable to the African-American
:04:54. > :04:56.experience because it was utilised as a tool to liberate black people
:04:57. > :05:01.from slavery and then to gain civil rights is being undermined by this
:05:02. > :05:09.gentrification, which is happening so fast that it is in danger of
:05:10. > :05:15.displacing an entire community. I want to point out to you folks the
:05:16. > :05:19.world-famous theatre. It is a similar story in the Bronx, which is
:05:20. > :05:27.my next stop on the gospel tour of the city. We are now crossing out of
:05:28. > :05:34.Manhattan into the outer boroughs of the Bronx. The Bronx is a less
:05:35. > :05:39.travelled tourist road, the birthplace of hip-hop culture. The
:05:40. > :05:43.Bronx as we see today is nothing like the gangster movies of the
:05:44. > :05:50.1970s and 1980s. There is a Renaissance happening here. We
:05:51. > :05:54.arrive at the greater universal Baptist Church. It is one of the
:05:55. > :06:05.oldest in the neighbourhood. This is the taller. We are about to go
:06:06. > :06:21.inside and experience it first hand. The service lasts for an hour and
:06:22. > :06:26.you are encouraged to join in. And we are soon hearing what gospel
:06:27. > :06:58.church choirs are famous for. (SINGING). The sounds are uplifting
:06:59. > :07:01.and feel part of something special. What an amazing experience. I must
:07:02. > :07:05.admit that when I first got here this morning, was sure what to
:07:06. > :07:18.expect, but the congregation made us all feel so welcome. It was an
:07:19. > :07:22.amazing experience, amazing. You just felt really good and happy with
:07:23. > :07:31.the service. We wanted to join in. It was fantastic. I have seen this
:07:32. > :07:39.on television many, many times, but we were made to feel very welcome.
:07:40. > :07:46.Churches here in the Bronx are facing the same problems as the man
:07:47. > :07:50.Harlem neighbours. Gentrification. We are decreasing because there are
:07:51. > :07:55.a lot of people moving out. A lot of people are dying. But they are
:07:56. > :07:58.building. If you can just look out here, you can see that they are
:07:59. > :08:06.continuing to build around here, so we have different people coming in.
:08:07. > :08:10.Tourist dollars alone won't be able to save this truly amazing churches
:08:11. > :08:15.but with additional support from governments and campaigns being set
:08:16. > :08:18.up to save the local heritage, it is hoped you will still be able to hear
:08:19. > :08:30.this unique sounds for at least some years yet. And if you are thinking
:08:31. > :08:37.of heading over to New York any time soon, here are some of our top tips.
:08:38. > :08:44.New York is often thought of as just the island of Manhattan. There are
:08:45. > :08:48.four other borrowers that make up the city. The borough of Queens is
:08:49. > :08:53.famous for its sporting venues but it is also home to cutting-edge art
:08:54. > :08:58.galleries and museums. If you are a jazz fan, try the Louis Armstrong
:08:59. > :09:07.house museum, still preserved as it was when he and his wife Lucille
:09:08. > :09:12.lived there. And usually for a city, New York is 40 miles of coastline.
:09:13. > :09:17.The boroughs of Staten Island and Brooklyn have the most number of
:09:18. > :09:21.beaches. Summing up the city's beaches is prohibitive during winter
:09:22. > :09:35.but you can still visit for a walk along the sand. And heads of the
:09:36. > :09:38.Bronx if you fancy a green escape. Its botanical Gardens fancy 250
:09:39. > :09:42.acres and contain more than 1 million plants. This year marks the
:09:43. > :09:47.125th anniversary of the founding of the gardens and there is a series of
:09:48. > :09:52.special events scheduled to celebrate. Entrance to the gardens
:09:53. > :10:03.is free on Wednesday. Sundays and seasonal exhibitions as well.
:10:04. > :10:09.Tickets can be purchased online. Time for your travel update. First
:10:10. > :10:13.to London, where the city's biggest ever liked festival was so popular
:10:14. > :10:18.that some of the lights had to be switched off. Concerns that some
:10:19. > :10:22.areas were becoming dangerously overcrowded meant that organisers
:10:23. > :10:27.had to temporarily shut part of the festival down. The four-day free
:10:28. > :10:31.event featured installations from 30 artists, illuminating iconic
:10:32. > :10:39.landmarks across the city. Millions of Catholics gathered in Venezuela
:10:40. > :10:45.to pay tribute to the divine shepherdess in a religious ceremony
:10:46. > :10:47.dating back to 1856. Today, around 2.5 million people joined the
:10:48. > :10:55.procession, which takes place once per year.
:10:56. > :11:00.Excellent wind and wave conditions resulted in a spectacular show at
:11:01. > :11:09.North America's largest kite surfing event. Skills were put to the test
:11:10. > :11:14.at the Lord of the winged kite surfing competition, which saw
:11:15. > :11:20.contestants jumping as high as 11 one half metres into the air. Some
:11:21. > :11:25.tourists and residents in Moscow were pleased to see snow returned to
:11:26. > :11:31.the capital city after an unseasonably warm December. We came
:11:32. > :11:36.for snow, we liked very much snow. It is different from our country.
:11:37. > :11:42.Today is not so cold, so it is quite nice. 14,000 snowploughs and trucks
:11:43. > :11:48.were put to work cleaning the city's roads and streets. In the UK,
:11:49. > :11:53.8000 square miles of coastline have been given extra protection. It is
:11:54. > :11:57.hoped that the new designation of marine conservation zones will help
:11:58. > :12:04.protect habitats and species that are considered under threat. They
:12:05. > :12:14.mean that 20% of English waters are now protected. Coming up later in
:12:15. > :12:38.the show... I will be trying to keep up with the nimble footed dunces of
:12:39. > :12:42.Kerala -- dancers. Hello and welcome to the famous
:12:43. > :12:46.mountain range just outside North London. With the ski season well
:12:47. > :12:50.under way all around the world, I have a set of gadgets for you that
:12:51. > :12:54.will make you supercool on the slopes. Before we even get onto the
:12:55. > :12:59.snow, let's be honest. A massive part of the fun of a trip like this
:13:00. > :13:03.lies in the apres ski activities. You can bring some of those
:13:04. > :13:10.extracurricular activities right onto the slopes with you, with shock
:13:11. > :13:15.polls. These are for the skier who has everything. The unique thing
:13:16. > :13:20.about these is the user can fill them with up to 75 millilitres of
:13:21. > :13:27.their favourite drink. Overall, it is a ski pole with a unique feature,
:13:28. > :13:32.sure to entertain as well as serve a purpose. These are a good set of
:13:33. > :13:36.polls because of the straps that clip on and clip off. But in terms
:13:37. > :13:39.of having a drink inside the poll, it is a novelty thing. I think most
:13:40. > :13:46.able will wait till they get back to the Lodge before they have a drink,
:13:47. > :13:53.write? Most sensible people, and you are sensible, aren't you? Aren't
:13:54. > :13:59.you? One thing every snowboarder and skier needs to do is capture their
:14:00. > :14:01.finest moment. You don't want to miss out on reliving something
:14:02. > :14:06.completely awesome that happens on the slopes. The best way to do that
:14:07. > :14:09.is with a little mobile camera. There are lots to choose from in the
:14:10. > :14:16.market, including this brand-new edition. This tiny HD camera comes
:14:17. > :14:19.with a built-in microphone. It works much like the camera is a high-end
:14:20. > :14:25.smartphone, which begs the question, why would I want one of these as
:14:26. > :14:27.well? It is quirky, but not really designed for adventure sports,
:14:28. > :14:31.because you can't clip it onto your helmet or skis. You also need to
:14:32. > :14:35.download an application to get the full features, like real-time
:14:36. > :14:40.sharing and viewing what you are actually seeing. Me and skiing are
:14:41. > :14:46.like that! I'm going to put this to the test. Are you sure no one will
:14:47. > :15:11.realise? Great... That was exhausting, I love it, such
:15:12. > :15:14.a rush! If you are like me, you will want to take your music wherever you
:15:15. > :15:19.go, and the slopes should be no different. But safety is also
:15:20. > :15:24.important, so here is a way of combining the two. This is a
:15:25. > :15:32.communication helmet fitted with beats by Dr Dre headphones, allowing
:15:33. > :15:35.the user to listen to their music virus smart phone or MP3 player. The
:15:36. > :15:38.helmet is lightweight and well ventilated. It comes with a cable
:15:39. > :15:43.that plugs into the helmet and your phone, allowing you to control track
:15:44. > :15:47.selection and volume. The sound quality on this is really good, and
:15:48. > :15:50.as a helmet it is snug and comfortable, but if you are a
:15:51. > :15:53.beginner snipped skier or snowboarder, it is not recommended
:15:54. > :15:56.that you have music playing while you are on the slopes, because you
:15:57. > :16:03.will need to keep your wits about you.
:16:04. > :16:07.To end this week we are off to India, heading south to Kerala, the
:16:08. > :16:12.land of lush green forest, canals and coconuts. It is also the home of
:16:13. > :16:17.Pappa Kali, an intricate form of classical dance that has been
:16:18. > :16:28.performed here the centuries, and is high on the list of things people
:16:29. > :16:34.come here to see. -- Kathakali. To learn more about Kathakali I have
:16:35. > :16:43.come here to meet a man whose family have
:16:44. > :16:49.theatre? Amazing! Central to Kathakali is the complex ritual
:16:50. > :16:50.make-up, which turns the performers into supernatural beings, gods and
:16:51. > :16:51.demon is. the make-up can take many hours, and
:16:52. > :17:42.here it is applied directly in eyebrows, eyes, lips, fingers,
:17:43. > :17:48.footwork. And all of these stories come from Hindu stories. Originally
:17:49. > :17:52.developed as a way of teaching religious scripture to rival
:17:53. > :18:00.audiences, Kathakali is now also a big draw for tourists coming here to
:18:01. > :18:05.Kerala. I am very curious to know, how do you tell a story with your
:18:06. > :18:16.eyebrows, your cheeks, your lips and your fingers? Can you teach me?
:18:17. > :18:21.Kathakali has an alphabet accuses the positions of the hand. Show me a
:18:22. > :18:36.segment of how you would use the alphabet to tell the story. Come...
:18:37. > :18:52.What kind of eye movements do you have? This is getting excited... And
:18:53. > :18:57.then? Sideways. I think it is me being an amateur, but when I try to
:18:58. > :19:06.do with my vision blurs, but your vision doesn't blur? You focus in
:19:07. > :19:13.the distance. Long-distance. That is the secret. Once you combine the
:19:14. > :19:20.facial expressions with hand gestures, then you have a classic
:19:21. > :19:49.Kathakali sentence. Something tells me I have somewhere to go before
:19:50. > :19:53.could be understood. Bees... Team those moves with some fancy footwork
:19:54. > :20:14.and you have a performance, in theory, at least. That is very good,
:20:15. > :20:18.very impressive. I am not very good at all, am I? Imagine that all the
:20:19. > :20:24.make-up on, the full regalia, probably about a 100 people looking
:20:25. > :20:29.at you, and the Indian head to challenge is. About 47 degrees, I
:20:30. > :20:33.think. The scrutiny of every single step and your eyeball movement, I
:20:34. > :20:40.think I would crack under the pressure. Traditionally, a classic
:20:41. > :20:44.Kathakali performance can go on for many hours, sometimes the whole
:20:45. > :20:52.night. Some modern audiences have shorter attention spans, so the
:20:53. > :20:56.artform has had to adapt. The original ones would go throughout
:20:57. > :21:04.the night, everything is in detail, everything is intricate, and
:21:05. > :21:11.nowadays we are condensing it for a 1.5 or two-hour programme. So we do
:21:12. > :21:19.lose every regionality, what is done for hours and throughout the night,
:21:20. > :21:25.that is not being shown now. But whether the performance is marathon
:21:26. > :21:29.length all night for something more contained, the highlight of the show
:21:30. > :21:33.is always the appearance on stage of this character, these steps were
:21:34. > :21:35.originally choreographed thousands of years ago to captivate audiences
:21:36. > :21:53.of today. That is all the time we have for
:21:54. > :22:00.this week, but do join us next week, when Carmen is in Hawaii,
:22:01. > :22:04.getting up close to one of the world's most active volcanoes. If
:22:05. > :22:07.you listen very carefully, you can hear what sounds like thunder in the
:22:08. > :22:15.distance. Apparently, this is the heat from inside the greater causing
:22:16. > :22:19.the rocks from the outside to fall into the molten lava. You can keep
:22:20. > :22:23.in touch with us by signing onto our social media feeds. All the details
:22:24. > :22:25.on your screens right now. But from me and the rest of the Travel Show
:22:26. > :22:27.team, it is