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Now it's time for The Travel Show.

This week, the American guidebook that may have helped save lives.

It took a lot of courage for a black family to get in their car

and hit the open road.

Lighting up Jordan's most treasured monument.

And dressing up in a Polish castle.

If you have misplaced your ties, I'm sure Mr Derbyshire

can be of assistance.

We are starting this week in the United States of America.

Nowadays, a largely safe place to visit, no matter

who you are all what you look like.

80 years ago, travelling around some parts of the country could be

a dangerous prospect if you were African-American.

But, help was on hand, from one very special guidebook.

Travelling on the road if you were black during this time,

you were taking your life in your hands.

We estimate that there were over 10,000 Sundown towns.

Sundown towns were all white towns, they could have a sign at the border

saying they would run out all the black people.

It took a lot of courage for a black family to get in their car and just

hit the open road, which is something that in America

we take for granted.

They called and Jim Crow laws, and those laws make it illegal

for people of colour to stay, to eat in restaurants,

to stay in hotels, to use bathrooms, they have separate bathrooms.

Some places, you couldn't walk on the sidewalk with a white person,

you had to get off the sidewalk and walk in the street.

The green book was an historic travel guide published for black

people during the Jim Crow era.

It was more than just gas-food-lodging, there

there was everything for anything you might need on the road,

whether it was a doctor, or churches or department stores.

Haberdashers, tailors, drugstores.

There were golf courses.

Disneyland was listed in the green book.

It was a pretty major guide by the 1960s we estimated it had

been sold to over 2 million people.

My mother is from Kansas, my father is from North Carolina,

so we travelled mainly back and fourth to those places.

My parent would use the green book to plan places where we might stop,

without it, it would have been far more difficult,

if not practically impossible.

Because people used to pack food, for us to get to Kansas,

we had to pack food that is going to last us for two or three days!

Where are you going to stay?

My grandmother owned the only hotel in Charlottesville,

Virginia that black people could stay in in the 1940s,

1950s and 1960s.

The Green Book listing was very important to the business

because people travelling through the south, and even places

in the North, really relied on that book to figure out

where they were going to stop.

The Inn was just this fantastic vibrant place filled with relatives

and people that I've never met.

Because the University of Virginia is located in Charlottesville,

many entertainers, famous entertainers and figures would come

to the University.

If they were African-American, they had to stay at my grandmother's

place.

One of the things that I am very proud of is this picture

of Louis Armstrong, that he autographed former grandmother.

It's an artefact in my family that I hope will be passed down

from generation to generation.

It was a great moment but in the early 1960s,

when desegregation began, the business started to fail.

My grandmother was getting older.

Was not as well.

Had some health problems.

Most people, when they had a choice of staying in the Holiday Inn down

the street or the Motel 6, or whatever, they decided

they would rather stay there.

It was modern.

It was different.

For many black people, it was a point of pride to be able

to go where they had been denied access before.

It closed in 1967 or so when my grandmother got ill.

It doesn't exist any more.

It's sad.

I don't think it would have been able to have been sustained.

We've made progress but we lose something when we make progress.

I stumbled on the green book by accident, I was writing a book

on Route 66 and found that it was in Beirut 66 exhibit,

and there was a Green Book, under glass, tucked away

in the corner.

When I first put my hands on a Green Book, it was magical.

It's this feeling of you too can enjoy America.

It was a very hopeful, positive guide.

I'm in New York because I am a scholar in residence

at the Schoenberg Centre for black research.

And it's amazing because they have the largest collection

of Green Books in the world.

I have scouted about 1600 Green Book sites so far,

and of those, less than a quarter are still standing.

But I'm also working with city planners to have them recognise

these sites as culturally significant.

And historic sites.

The Green Book was an innovative and resourceful solution

to an horrific problem.

For me it is a source of pride.

That African-Americans, that black people were resilient,

they were resourceful.

I think our ancestors would be proud of the green book,

that we survived and came up with these tools.

They had a lot of courage, a lot of drive.

And were not going to be denied.

I think those lesson should be a comfort to people facing today's

America.

Next up, we are in Petra, in Jordan, meeting a man who guides tourists

in the ancient city after dark.

Petra by night...

I love it.

Petra by night, we started to do this programme 17 years ago.

In order to give a chance for our visitors to see Petra

during the night.

To enjoy the atmosphere.

And we start from the main gate here.

About two kilometres through the city.

And we light more than 1500 candles.

Soon, we arrive here.

We start the show.

We have two Jordanian instruments, ancient instruments,

the first one we call it shababa.

Shababa the flute.

The other one we call it rebaba.

We sing about the Bedouin.

The Bedouin live in the tents.

The caves.

They breed horses.

Goats.

Raise camels.

In the desert.

APPLAUSE

Before the Arab Spring, before the problems,

many tourists, I remember, 1000 in a Christmas time.

But after, for five years, six years, slowed down.

Sometimes 30, 70, not many tourists.

The best thing for me, when the tourists sit together,

friendly, I tell them to keep their camera ready to take

a photo together.

It means we are one heart, one eye.

When I can, every night, it is like a dream.

When I can, every night, it is like a dream.

I like it.

It is an honour for me to ride through all the countries.

To make them happy, to see Petra.

Still to come:

I'm role-playing in Poland, trying to get some

answers out of this.

Where were you last night?

I've had reports that they saw you quite late in the evening,

with a mysterious young lady.

Mysterious?

The Travel Show, your essential guide wherever you are headed.

Next this week, my travels take me to a part of Poland that is well off

the beaten track.

This is Lower Silesia, about an hour and a half's drive

from the regional capital Wroc?aw, not far from the Czech border.

What a beautiful place.

It's been here for a long time.

Absolutely stunning.

Really sets the scene for what I'm going to be in full for the next

couple of days.

I've come to this Gothic palace to take part in a live action

role-play, or larp.

next three for the next three days this is not much in a castle,

but Fairweather Manor, an English country house,

and the year is 1917.

Right in the middle of the First World War.

This is the costume room.

This man is the brains behind it all.

What is larp?

Have you ever played house, as a kid, Henry?

Yes.

You played a father who is angry and scolding of his children

because they did not do their homework, or maybe

you played one of the kids, not wanting to do homework

and wanting to play soccer instead.

This is that, just with more complex stories, better costumes

and hopefully a little bit more interesting locations.

It's pretend play for adults.

Larping grew out of the Dungeons Dragons scene in the 1980s.

As some of his players got older, their ambition grew,

and these days, some events can attract huge crowds.

In Germany, for instance, 7500 people play this,

the most recent game of conquest.

Its organisers claim it is the world biggest larp.

Klaus creates elaborate games mainly in Poland and Denmark,

people have travelled from as far afield as the US and Canada

for this.

Tickets start at ?330, or $420, including

food and accommodation.

So, I need some tips, because I am obviously going to be

diving headfirst into this.

I'd say some of it is character portrayal, you want to be believable

as what you are, first off, but secondly, you also want it

to be interesting.

It is pretty easy to be a believable old grumpy man sitting

in the corner not talking to anybody but it is also boring,

it is boring for you and boring for everybody else.

The night before the action begins, we are all given the laws

of the house...

A few ballroom dancing lessons...

Europe is burning.

And then, the sombre opening speech is delivered,

in character, "in game," as the larpers put it.

All over Europe, brother fight brother.

The stage is set.

Welcome to Fairweather Manor.

APPLAUSE.

So, this is the morning of the larp, and I have my outfit

for my character, I have my character details,

my name is Robert Adam, I am a former war correspondent,

a journalist, and I have seen all the atrocities that have been

happening on the front line.

"You are short tempered.

"You won't always this way but war has changed you and not entirely

for the better."

"Your sense of being lost in a world that no longer makes sense and a job

"Your sense of being lost in a world that no longer makes sense and a job

which seems insufficient to the task given to you,

and leads you to easily become

frustrated and lash out at the people around you."

"You have met too many people who simply do not want to see

the truth that is in front of them.

And their wilful ignorance infuriates you."

The first challenge is to actually find the other guests.

I think we're a bit late for breakfast...

Am I the only person in the castle?!

Huh!

Nobody.

I don't think I've kind of got into it yet.

How is the easing into it?

Do you just jump in?

That's a good question.

Is it safe to say that it is all in game right now?

You must believe that everything is in game.

If it is not, then you would know in some way.

People would do something.

I hope so!

Because these ladies here...

The one on the right is crying.

I want to ask her if she is OK...

But I shouldn't?

Nope.

Unless you are in character, if you want to do something

about it, in game, of course it is all right.

But it is a trial.

I do want to feel that.

But I'm quite conscious, because I've got these

guys following me...

All of a sudden I am handed a lifeline, a mission in the form

of a little scandal.

So it seems like one of the young maids was spotted alone

in the forest with one of the German nobles.

Ruffled hair and everything.

And in a state of undress?

I wouldn't quite say so...

But...

LAUGHTER.

I'm sure it was not far away!

Not all the characters are welcoming me with open arms.

Robert, from the Sunday Times.

Nice to have you with us.

Thank you very much.

If you have misplaced your ties, I'm sure that Mr Derbyshire can be

of assistance, so that you can look proper,

at least for the rest of the day.

From my impressions, this could be perceived as very

geeky and a little weird.

Somebody that sits there and knows every single football stat of every

single player ever, yeah, would also be considered

a little bit geeky.

It is no different.

For this particular type of larp, a lot of research has gone

into the time period, the costumes, everything.

If you've a hobby where there is a passion involved,

doesn't matter whether it is a sport, something more indoors,

something more intellectual, or something like this.

the people involved have an aspect of geekiness to them.

Because that passion drives them to be very focused.

Excuse me, ladies.

Could I have a moment of your time?

I feel like it's down to me to expose the shady baron

for what he is, and slowly but surely, actually begin

to have fun.

I don't know which maid...

Probably for the best.

Do you know which baron...?

Everyone seems to be getting a different name.

A German baron.

Where were you last night...?

I've had reports that they saw you quite late in the evening...

You were there with a mysterious young lady...

Mysterious?

That is what they said.

It's nothing mysterious, it's the lady and me talking

about family relations.

We talk about the war.

I can't get anything out of the baron himself,

so my only other route is to head down to the servants quarters

to find his mistress.

But I find my way barred.

For us it's just getting down to the bottom...

Larps are still usually high fantasy events with wizards and elves

and the like,

but Fairweather Manor is billed as an emotional larp.

Players here want to be moved.

I think, to me, when I design larps, I want to give people

an emotional journey.

I hate when you are like, you see talking heads,

"some more tea for you."

I want them to feel something.

So that's what I try to decipher.

And then of course having a war, death!

That is like, love may have been sucked out of things

but there is a big passion that you can make people feel.

Love and war.

And changes in society.

Still pondering my next move, I get dressed for dinner.

The actor was heard shouting, "No, Alexander, I am not your man."

The nuggets of gossip I have been given delight my dinner mates.

I would not lie!

But little do I know, there is a plan in store for me.

OK, so what we have here is a telegram which will be sent

in the game to be delivered to Robert Abbott, at 7:30pm.

What this telegram says is:

"To Robert Abbott,

Robert, your correspondence accreditation has been revoked

by the War office.

We did everything we could but they wouldn't budge."

"I'm sorry, you won't be going back to the front,

come back to London, we will sort out what comes next."

This is preposterous!

I came here with integrity of journalism and you throw it

in my face!

All of you!

It's not my fault that the baron can't keep his hands of women,

a servant, nonetheless.

So away with your press pass, away with your nobility!

And I still don't know if the baron was telling me

the truth, but anyway...

Next time, there's a chance to catch up with some of our best trips

from the past year.

We went to more than 70 countries in 2016, did everything from ninja

training in Japan to penguin spotting in Australia,

to attempting one of India's most traditional dances.

Don't forget, you can join us on all of our travels wherever

we are in the world by signing on to the social media feeds.

If you want to see what it was like behind-the-scenes at this week's

larping adventure, you can look at the website.

But from me, Henry Golding, and the rest of The Travel Show team

here in Lower Silesia, in Poland, it is goodbye.

Good morning.

It is very quiet weather at the moment.

Even our Weather Watchers found it difficult to find any sunshine.