Providencia The Travel Show

In all, around 41 million people have been affected,

many have been displaced or left homeless.

It is just after 5:30am. Now on BBC News, it's time for the Travel Show.

This week on the show, we're on Colombia's unspoilt

Henry heads to Turkey to try his hand at painting

Plus - we're in a medieval city in Belgium for our whacky race,

One that looks like a shed on a bathtub.

And I'm having a cracking time in northern Japan.

We start off this week on the remote Caribbean island of Providencia,

with its breathtaking scenery and golden sand beaches.

It's a slice of paradise you won't have to share

with the package holiday crowd, because up until now, there's no

But all that could be about to change, as James Clayton discovered.

Basking in the south of the Caribbean Sea

lies Providencia, known throughout its history as an island

that's harboured pirates like Captain Morgan.

People still speak English creole here, even though it's been part

The island is a paradise, but there's something missing.

On one of the most idyllic beaches on one of the most idyllic

islands in the Caribbean, why are there no tourists here?

The lack of holidaymakers seems almost bizarre,

Getting to Providencia is actually really hard.

For example, if you're coming from the UK, you have to get

a flight from London to Bogata, then get a flight to a little

Then either get a rickety flight or a catamaran to Providencia.

And it's not surprising as a result that there really

Providencia's isolation is nothing new.

It was established by English Puritans,

in part, seeking isolation to practise their religion.

Elkin Robinson is one of Providencia's biggest pop stars.

He proudly traces his ancestry back to his English relatives.

In the history, this island had been English always.

The Spanish always try to take over the island.

He says there's a danger of Providencia losing its identity

Colombia is a country with a lot of different culture.

Different climate, different food, different music, different people.

But Providencia's isolation from the mainland has

Food and drink are, for example, much more expensive

And so Colombia has committed to extending

Providencia's airport so it can take international flights.

Sophia Huffington is leading protests against the expansion.

She fears what happened in San Andres sets the precedent.

They opened the airport there in 1953 and started pulling

We have an example for them not to come and make

60 years after San Andres got its international airports,

there are now high-rise hotels, casinos and 40 times more

Crime is now a problem and the locals are in a minority.

However, other people in Providencia are more realistic

Manuela rents out a spare room to tourists.

As soon as the government tried to open more to the tourists,

people right away it's like a strike.

They all get together and they say no, this is not what's

It's not like the big tourist companies haven't tried

This spa hotel was built by a prospector.

Locals never allowed it to be opened, claiming it breached

They will lose all those roots, all that culture.

In San Andres the island has changed completely.

The children are not even speaking the language any more.

Providencia is afraid that the same thing will happen.

Although work has begun on the airport, locals have,

But Providencia's conundrum is a microcosm of the challenges

that communities face from globalisation across the world.

Opening the island up would undoubtedly boost its economy.

But the overdevelopment of the island of San Andres means

many Providencians simply don't believe it's a price worth paying.

But I don't feel it will live from tourism.

I feel like the tourism will live from us.

James Clayton reporting there from the untouched

Now we head to Istanbul for a spot of Ebru painting -

a Turkish art form that involves marbling or painting on water.

Enru has been around for centuries, growing in popularity under

the Ottomans and then spreading to Europe.

We sent Henry Golding to give it a go.

Daisies are usually white with yellow.

How do you do it, what's the technique?

The reason why the paint sticks on the top here

is because the canvas we're using is made of water and starch.

We are using them to make these shapes.

First we're going to start with the leaves.

This takes a little more control that the flicking.

We're going to do this to the leaves.

That looks like an egg rather than a daisy.

This is where we print it out on paper.

You think it's pretty good for a first time?

Do you think I'll be able to keep the Turkish

We're in Belgium for the annual International Bathtub Boat Race,

trying to keep The Travel Show's reputation afloat.

And my mission begins in the first part of a new series

as I travel through Japan, taking on some of its

The Travel Show - your essential guide,

The town's an hour's drive south of the capital, Brussels,

and is known as the birthplace of the saxophone.

But in more recent years it's become famous for its very

We sent Joe along to take part in one of the world's wackiest races.

The River Meuse flows for nearly 1000km through France,

Belgium and the Netherlands and has been an important trading route

But in more recent decades, a stretch of the river

here in Dinant in southern Belgium has become better known for its epic

water fights that happen each year as part of La Regate de Baignoires -

Alberto came up with the idea for the regatta 35 years ago.

He shows me the one kilometre route where the boats will race.

The race was intended to be a one-off.

But 35 years later, it's still going.

Originally, each competitor had their own bathtub.

But now people create huge, elaborate floats.

The only rule is that somewhere the design must

People spend months secretly constructing their boats.

I'm heading to meet one crew who are putting the finishing

touches to the raft I'll be racing on.

The theme this year is famous people in Dinant.

Emmeline has chosen to represent the town's doctors.

Emmeline and her family have been taking part in the regatta

It's all hands on deck to finish their fleet of three boats.

Fully kitted out in my doctor's scrubs, all that's left to do now

In what I think is the wrong direction.

Further down the river, we join the rest of the tubs

There's a lot of shouting, a lot of chanting.

But I get the impression it's more about showcasing the bathtub designs

than how quickly you can complete the race.

There is some seriously impressive contraptions on this river.

One guy over there is barbequing on his bathtub.

Further down the river, there's something that looks like a shed.

Soon, it becomes clear that splashing the opposition

You aren't allowed to try and sink other boats.

But it seems that anything else goes.

And the thousands of people who've come to watch aren't safe either.

The town's bridge marks the end of the race.

But no-one seems to be too bothered about hurrying towards it.

For us, the regatta ends in the same chaotic way it started

as we haphazardly paddle past the finish line.

I'm not sure there were any winners or losers there.

They've told me this is the only way to finish the race.

After I've dried off from my dunking,

there's an anxious wait to see if we've won a prize.

An award for the team's creative bathtub design.

It might seem silly, but I'm actually really excited about this,

because it was an intense race and I think I've earned it.

To end this week, Japan's food can be just jaw dropping and most people

new to the country make a bee line for the Yakatori joints or sushiers

I've lived here in Tokyo for over three years now

But there's still some I find quite intimidating.

With a little help from my translator, Yoko, I'm

taking my tastebuds on a trip through this country

to try and understand what I'm missing out on.

In the winter, it's a snowy wonderland.

After the thaw, the islanders are left with Alpine meadows

I'm told this is one of the best places in all of Japan

Uni is Japanese sea urchin, or to be more exact,

which you normally eat with soy sauce on top of a bed of rice.

That's just less than $45, around 30 quid.

Because the fishermen can only fish for it at certain times.

So this is the best uni in Japan, is that correct?

The sea has to be perfectly still for the fishermen

Luckily, I'm here at exactly the right time of year.

You don't have to cook it or anything?

This man has been fishing here for years.

If anyone's ever earned the title Mr Uni, it's him.

Japan is such a hi-tech country and the way he's finding the uni

is by using some massive goggle and a net.

Eurgh, it looks like a soggy dish sponge.

A bit like an oyster, really salty, but the consitency of eurgh!

Hokkaido is also famous for its dairy.

They say about half of all Japan's dairy cow population

Another thing people eat when they come here

This is a seven-tower rainbow ice-cream.

My goodness, it's grape, strawberry, green tea, melon,

Right, let me guess, this is uni ice-cream, right?

So maybe this is one way I might actually enjoy uni.

It does taste a little salty and a little bit seafoody.

But I think this is the best way to enjoy uni, really.

but it's a genuine passion for some of the people who live here.

And if you're looking for a proper, authentic taste of northern Japan,

You're sure I can't have that one back?

That's all we have time for this week.

Ade travels through Sweden to find out about Stockholm's plans

to become the most futuristic city in the world.

This microchip implant sits right here under my skin.

He also heads to the far north of the country to experience

Don't forget, you can join in our adventures on the road

In the meantime, from me and this melting ice-cream

on the Japanese island of Hokkaido, it's goodbye.