:00:00. > :00:00.That's it from me, the Breakfast Team is here at six.
:00:07. > :00:22.This week we are in Carew. And we are off in search of Enlightenment
:00:23. > :00:27.in one of the craziest cities Asia. And we are trying to find the answer
:00:28. > :00:29.to this let this how much better do I have to be to go to ukelele
:00:30. > :01:00.Wednesday? We start this week in Carew. It is a
:01:01. > :01:08.country best known for the famous ruins of Machu Picchu. But we have
:01:09. > :01:14.come to the foothills of the foothills for another hairier icon.
:01:15. > :01:20.The inspiration for Paddington Bear. The Andean bear is the only native
:01:21. > :01:25.bear species of South America. It is on the endangered list because of
:01:26. > :01:34.hunting and habitat loss. But here they are doing something about it.
:01:35. > :01:37.This is Carew's first private conservation area sent sent up
:01:38. > :01:42.jointly with the local community in 2000. It tries to rehabilitate
:01:43. > :01:48.rescued bears that have been captured a legally and mistreated as
:01:49. > :01:57.exotic pets or circus attractions. -- we have them here in these
:01:58. > :02:01.enclosures so they get used to the food and the dangers.
:02:02. > :02:04.Most animals kept in captivity are unlikely to survive in the wild,
:02:05. > :02:07.and here they are doing all they can to change that.
:02:08. > :02:10.When bears are born here, they learn the things
:02:11. > :02:19.These bears are good candidates to be released.
:02:20. > :02:23.There are eight bears here now and so far they have only
:02:24. > :02:36.I grew up here and since I remember I was sure that I wanted to stay
:02:37. > :03:02.We throw sweet potatoes all around the place so we keep them busy
:03:03. > :03:08.The bears are encouraged to forage just like they would in the wild.
:03:09. > :03:14.So, this one goes on the index finger.
:03:15. > :03:24.Swing it and at some point when you think it is the right
:03:25. > :03:44.Naturally shy, these are amongst the smallest and least aggressive
:03:45. > :03:51.Some say this is the best place in the world to see the Andean bear.
:03:52. > :03:54.I have been to other bear conservation projects and never been
:03:55. > :04:07.The thing I find most fascinating is how their mannerisms
:04:08. > :04:12.They are an obvious draw for tourists and entry fees are used
:04:13. > :04:15.for community projects and for research.
:04:16. > :04:20.It is estimated that the bear population numbers have declined
:04:21. > :04:33.So this is what conservation is all about here.
:04:34. > :04:37.Releasing a bear back into the wild and I am lucky enough to be
:04:38. > :04:40.Four-year-old Elisa was born in this reserve.
:04:41. > :04:42.So this is Elisa's mother next door.
:04:43. > :04:47.Her mother was rescued from captivity where she had been
:04:48. > :04:55.Sadly, she would never survive in the outside world.
:04:56. > :04:58.We are going to sedate Elisa and we are going to set up
:04:59. > :05:05.The GPS collar will now allow Juan to track Elisa when she is released.
:05:06. > :05:11.Juan prepares a tranquiliser that he will shoot
:05:12. > :05:18.How dangerous is this, Juan?
:05:19. > :05:26.Yes, each time that you use a tranquilliser on an animal it
:05:27. > :05:29.could be dangerous, but this is a safe drug and we know
:05:30. > :05:32.that she has not eaten anything in the last hours,
:05:33. > :05:38.His shot hits the spot and Elisa seems
:05:39. > :06:21.It's a race against the clock before the bear wakes up.
:06:22. > :06:45.Wait until tomorrow and tomorrow we are going to release her.
:06:46. > :07:00.So, it is a beautiful morning and today is the day
:07:01. > :07:03.we are going to release Elisa into the wild.
:07:04. > :07:09.She is fine, she is getting used to the collar now,
:07:10. > :07:13.she is scratching a bit, but now that we are going to release
:07:14. > :07:17.her she will have a lot of things to think about and she
:07:18. > :07:21.Do you think she knows what is going on?
:07:22. > :07:25.No, I think she has no idea, but in a few minutes
:07:26. > :07:30.This is a first for Elisa and for me as well.
:07:31. > :07:36.I have been given the privilege of opening the gate for Elisa.
:07:37. > :07:43.I pull the string here like this and then push the gate.
:07:44. > :07:46.So, we are now all in the same open space.
:07:47. > :07:57.But Elisa is hesitant, she does not want to leave her mother.
:07:58. > :08:01.She is looking very cautious at the moment.
:08:02. > :08:04.So they have put an egg just outside the gate there.
:08:05. > :08:08.Finally Juan and his team entice Elisa out of the cage with some food
:08:09. > :08:17.and she takes her first steps towards freedom.
:08:18. > :08:21.It is incredible to be so close to a bear.
:08:22. > :08:25.There is no gate, there is no fence separating us.
:08:26. > :08:29.She is just there, a few metres away.
:08:30. > :08:33.It looks like she is enjoying her first wild fruit
:08:34. > :08:38.I think she just realised that she is in the wild.
:08:39. > :08:42.From here on Elisa faces an uncertain future, but the GPS
:08:43. > :08:45.collar will track her whereabouts so Juan and his team can see how
:08:46. > :08:55.For Juan it is the culmination of years of work.
:08:56. > :08:59.Since she was born we were waiting for this moment.
:09:00. > :09:08.Imagine to be able to tell people that I was so close to a bear
:09:09. > :09:12.and we helped to release a bear into the wild.
:09:13. > :09:31.If that has inspired you to see some other conservation projects
:09:32. > :09:34.on your next trip, here are some of our top tips.
:09:35. > :09:38.If you are heading to Sri Lanka, you will find some of the world's
:09:39. > :09:46.Five out of the seven breeds on the globe are found on the island
:09:47. > :09:49.and you can go to the hatcheries to see them in all stages
:09:50. > :09:53.Turtle tourism has reduced the number of egg poaching instances
:09:54. > :09:55.and there are even volunteering options available for those
:09:56. > :10:01.At this rescue centre in Cambodia injured animals of all shapes
:10:02. > :10:05.and sizes are taken to be rehabilitated.
:10:06. > :10:08.Illegal logging, poaching and animal trafficking have
:10:09. > :10:14.all contributed to these animals being hurt or displaced.
:10:15. > :10:18.A tour of the Centre will allow you to interact with the wildlife
:10:19. > :10:21.and see how these rescued creatures are being cared for up close.
:10:22. > :10:24.If you are looking for a conservation experience in Kenya,
:10:25. > :10:29.We recommend heading to this national park to encounter its large
:10:30. > :10:35.The park has 52 elephant families which have been protected since 1972
:10:36. > :10:38.by a trust set up to prevent poaching.
:10:39. > :10:40.The local people also play a part in conservation efforts
:10:41. > :10:45.and if you are lucky, you may even spot some baby elephants.
:10:46. > :10:48.And finally, Taronga Zoo in Sydney houses several different species
:10:49. > :10:51.that have been rescued from around the world.
:10:52. > :10:56.The zoo even has a free app that you can download to your smartphone
:10:57. > :10:59.which encourages you to be active with conservation by reporting
:11:00. > :11:10.suspected illegal animal activity around the world.
:11:11. > :11:14.Still to come on the programme: We will be finding out why this
:11:15. > :11:17.instrument from the past is making a comeback.
:11:18. > :11:23.It feels like a community almost, as corny as that might sound.
:11:24. > :11:28.And from monks to monsoons, we took your advice on the best
:11:29. > :11:40.The Travel Show, your essential guide wherever you are heading.
:11:41. > :11:44.We have been all over Twitter, Facebook and Instagram asking
:11:45. > :11:47.you for your favourite things to do in six different
:11:48. > :11:52.We've had a great response, so in the first of this
:11:53. > :11:55.series our trip star Ben has been following your suggestions
:11:56. > :12:01.all the way to one of South East Asia's maddest cities.
:12:02. > :12:05.Stop number one for many backpackers is the Thai capital Bangkok.
:12:06. > :12:13.It's a crazy city full of adventure and that's all part of its appeal.
:12:14. > :12:19.As you can probably tell Bangkok is the definition of pure chaos.
:12:20. > :12:25.I will see if you can get me away from the madness and make my trip
:12:26. > :12:44.An early start and the first tweet gets me straight out
:12:45. > :13:01.This is the grandest entrance I've ever made.
:13:02. > :13:05.I am here for a special weekly ritual involving Buddhist monks.
:13:06. > :13:08.But I know it will be an etiquette minefield so I have
:13:09. > :13:11.You want to walk behind me? OK.
:13:12. > :13:13.The custom is you walk like half a step behind.
:13:14. > :13:15.OK. Tell me exactly what happens here.
:13:16. > :13:19.The monks come along in small boats and people line up here on both
:13:20. > :13:22.sides of the bank and you put food and other things
:13:23. > :13:26.It is a connection between what you give
:13:27. > :13:31.So when they come by you just put this into the bowl
:13:32. > :13:39.Better make sure I get it in this bowl.
:13:40. > :13:40.Maybe now. Oh, sorry.
:13:41. > :13:48.I gave him two. OK, sorry.
:13:49. > :14:10.It's a beautiful way to start the day I think.
:14:11. > :14:15.This is nicer than I thought to be honest.
:14:16. > :14:22.She looks like she is in the middle of...
:14:23. > :14:30.Pho, as they call her here, set up this little school as a way
:14:31. > :14:33.to escape the long relentless hours she was working, selling
:14:34. > :14:42.Tell me what it was like when you first started out?
:14:43. > :15:09.I made it all myself, kind of.
:15:10. > :15:13.It is looking good, looking good.
:15:14. > :15:42.My final stop in Bangkok, a vast complex in which surely I can
:15:43. > :15:55.However, this is monsoon season, so half of it is shut.
:15:56. > :15:58.When the weather is like this, you don't see many tourists
:15:59. > :16:01.here which is great, but it does mean communication
:16:02. > :16:25.Here we go, here we go, it's going to happen.
:16:26. > :16:37.I want to buy a present for my mother.
:16:38. > :16:41.I don't know, a nice present that says Thailand,
:16:42. > :16:58.This looks as not as enjoyable as it actually is.
:16:59. > :17:01.And just as my task looked completely impossible,
:17:02. > :17:07.I think I have found a gift for my mum.
:17:08. > :17:19.It can help you find the perfect gift for your mum,
:17:20. > :17:34.it can help you cook, but it cannot stop the rain.
:17:35. > :17:37.And finally this week a London challenge, finding an affordable
:17:38. > :17:41.night out in one of the world's most expensive cities.
:17:42. > :17:45.Not easy, but we sent Lindsay Wood out to give it a go and this
:17:46. > :17:52.A Wednesday evening in central London and what I've been told
:17:53. > :17:58.People down in the basement of a pub playing what I thought
:17:59. > :18:19.It has the power to bring people of all backgrounds together.
:18:20. > :18:23.When I first came I knew how to drink beer and so the first few
:18:24. > :18:27.weeks all I did was play C whenever I saw it and that is it.
:18:28. > :18:37.Lorraine organises the weekly ukelele get together.
:18:38. > :18:47.I don't have to be that good for Ukelele Wednesday, do I?
:18:48. > :18:52.We are going to start with the A minor chord.
:18:53. > :18:57.Put your middle finger at the top there and we will do eight down ups
:18:58. > :19:03.And then we are going to do eight Cs.
:19:04. > :19:08.You have got really good rhythm.
:19:09. > :19:19.Picking up the basics of ukelele is actually pretty easy.
:19:20. > :19:20.Four strings, four fingers and strum.
:19:21. > :19:26.It costs about the same as going out for a couple of pizzas
:19:27. > :19:32.After an hour I am beginning to get the hang of it.
:19:33. > :19:40.I gave up smoking and replaced one habit with another.
:19:41. > :19:44.So how much better do I have to be to go to Ukelele Wednesday?
:19:45. > :19:47.You can come next week if you practice all the chords
:19:48. > :19:58.One great thing about learning the ukelele is that it is so small
:19:59. > :20:04.you can practice just about anywhere.
:20:05. > :20:08.So after a few days strumming it is time to put it to the test.
:20:09. > :20:17.I will admit it is way more fun than I expected.
:20:18. > :20:21.There is a real joy to playing music with others and nobody minds
:20:22. > :20:26.if you do not quite know all the chords.
:20:27. > :20:34.It feels like a community almost, as corny as that might sound.
:20:35. > :20:38.You come in and people are not judging you for how good you are.
:20:39. > :20:46.Everyone is really lovely and it is a really good bunch
:20:47. > :20:49.and I feel like maybe it invites a certain type of person.
:20:50. > :21:06.There are three Ukelele Wednesday's around London and plenty
:21:07. > :21:20.And when I return home to California I am tempted
:21:21. > :21:27.to look out for something like this back in LA.
:21:28. > :21:53.Sadly, that is all we have got time for in this week's show.
:21:54. > :21:57.I hope you can join us next week when we are in Botswana exploring
:21:58. > :22:01.the ancient and modern on the eve of the Southern African nation's
:22:02. > :22:08.Hopefully they know what is going to happen next.
:22:09. > :22:15.Do join us for that if you can and do not forget, if you want
:22:16. > :22:18.to follow the rest of the team on their journeys in real-time,
:22:19. > :22:21.you can sign up to our social media feeds.
:22:22. > :22:23.All the details are on your screen now.
:22:24. > :22:26.But, until next time from me, Carmine Roberts, and the rest
:22:27. > :22:30.of the travel show team here in Chaparri in northern