Episode 23 The Travel Show

violence. Now on BBC News. The Travel Show.

The factory fad that has tourists talking in Japan. Is seeing

smokestacks, industrial landscapes, the idea of a good night out?

Coming off: I climbed aboard a voyage of discovery to find out why

trendy travellers in Japan are taking a trip most tourists would

try to avoid. We go to Estonia for a trip to the optic backwards on the

outlook for brown bears. We will not be leaving until we see some bears.

We meet the people who make London's hidden waterway work. When

you tell someone about something that you love and are passionate

about, what is not to like? Some of the best places to visit from around

the world, including jousting and sword fighting at a medieval

festival in Denmark. At news of an upcoming serving extravaganza in

Australia. `` surfing. Welcome to the programme, coming to you this

week from Japan. Most visitors here will take in the usual sites and

toys. The traditional sign, a visit to the shopping district of Tokyo

and the obligatory ride on a bullet train. But in the home of quirky

fads and strange twins, `` strange trends, a brother of the Tories

gaining popularity. Industrial tourism. `` a rather strange Toro is

gaining in popularity. Industrial tourism. It refers to the growing

popularity of bleak, industrial areas as tourism attractions. These

tours are different to the traditional factory tours that take

you inside a plant. Instead, these trips take people around industrial

compounds and areas to admire their eerie, science fiction like quality,

especially at night. Keen to experience the atmosphere myself, I

decided to book on a factory night view tour just south of Tokyo. This

is not how I would normally spend my Saturday night, going on a factory

tour. I thought I would be the only other person on this tour but there

are at least 40 others. Here it goes. There are various bus tours

but we have booked on a boat tour of the industrial zone that spreads

along the Tokyo Bay. Our tour guide tells us that this is not as the

land, so don't expect bright neon lights. Many people will bring their

dinner or some snacks and make an evening of it, enjoying the

reflections of factory lights on the dark waters. Obviously this is not

your average boat tour. I can smell the Salt Sierra but it is also mixed

in with oil and gasoline and smoke. I'm told it's great for taking

photographs. I have bought my camera but I do not seem to be doing it

justice. But for many enthusiasts, photography is the main draw. From

these pictures, it is easy to see why. TRANSLATION: It is difficult to

shoot still photos but I feel that the orange flares, the beautiful

orange lights, are nice and just by looking at them, we are away from

our daily lives and routines. I'm sure most people like ordinary night

views but some people feel that things other people generally do not

like can be really interesting. For many of the people here, bleakness

is a big draw but the movement does have its detractors. The tourism

officials are making the most of this factory fascination and taking

it to the mainstream. I think many corporations want their consumers or

the general public to understand what they are actually doing, so it

is a kind of corporate image strategy because if consumers like

the image of the factory or the product, they may buy their stock or

they may buy the product. On the other end of the spectrum of

factory tourism is this celebration of instant noodles. The cup noodle

museum in Yokohama. Here, you can make your own cup noodles with more

than 5000 flavour combinations. Let's give a try. This is really

slimy! Look how long it is! While this is not everybody's idea of a

holiday, the popularity of factories sightseeing Tours has caught the

attention of the national government. It is claimed

campaigners are even proposing a change in the law so that working

factories can qualify for World Heritage status. Either way, these

tours are certainly off the beaten track and are capturing another

facet of Japanese culture. If noodle making factories are not your thing,

there are plenty of other tours to be had in Japan. You could find out

where the snow blowers in Santa Claus's village in Norway are made.

`` snow globes. But of course, Japan is not the only country promoting

industrial tourism. Here is our round`up of some of the more

interesting factory tours around the world. In the American city of

Detroit, there are hopes that tourism could help refuel the

economy after the city was plunged into bankruptcy last year. Factory

tours and museums showcased the motor city's famous Otto Heritage

and if after a tour or two, you are ready to switch gear, there is

plenty of historic venues and buildings. Vintage cars lined the

streets of the Cuban capital Havana, where you can also visit cigar

factories and visit a rum distillery. A trip to a disused shop

in milk and give you a real insight into this country's prerevolution

commercial Heritage. And Estonia has plenty to offer if you are

interested in industrial history. Remnants of the city's industrial

past are being converted into cutting`edge art spaces. This

neighbourhood in Tallin hosts a unique mixture of Soviet factories

alongside wooden workers' houses right next to the seaside. You will

find industrial buildings right alongside modern architecture.

Perfect if you are looking for a contrast between old and new.

Next, they are sticking with the industrial theme and heading for

London's Regents Canal. While the Thames will give you a trip through

the city's history, the Regents Canal is a more low`key waterway,

dotted with houseboats and cafes. We booked ourselves an early`morning

ticket on one of the boats that cruise along the canal all week long

from Little Venice to Camden. OK, I will start putting people on board.

Probably 95% of the people who get on this boat has not got a clue what

this is about. Next, please! I have 45 minutes to give them as much

history and information on what the canals are for before we get to

Camden. If I can manage to do that, I'm happy. Good morning, everybody.

Welcome aboard. Since I have been doing it, I have noticed an influx

of foreign tourists and from absolutely everywhere in the world.

Sometimes people ask if I can do the commentary in German or Russian or

something. We have about 20 different nationalities on this

boat. I will do it in English, please. LAUGHTER. More than 4000

miles or 6000 kilometres, of canals were rebuilt by hand in a very short

time. It was an amazing feat of engineering. I live in central

London and when you live alone in a big city, it is a community that you

can really lose very easily and that is one thing that we have in bucket.

`` that we have in spades. We are looking at wildlife in the heart of

London. When you are telling people about something that you love

yourself and that you are passionate about, what is not unlike? `` what

is not to like? Thank you. Time for your travel updates. Sporting

attention has shifted to Glasgow for the Commonwealth Games but that was

not the only thing opening in the Scottish city this week. Glasgow

tower reopened to the public after extensive refurbishments. Standing

127 metres high on the banks of the River Clyde, it holds the record for

the tallest fully rotating freestanding structure in the world.

From the viewing cavern, visitors can enjoy views of 20 miles across

the city. More than 60 celebrities join the campaign to stop cruise

ships from Venice's lagoon area. Stars on the world of ours and

fashion have sent a letter to the Italian government, warning of the

risks posed by ships to Venice's historic centre. Included are

Michael Caine, Calvin Klein and Cate Blanchett. And finally, imagine

this. Two kayakers off the coast of Argentina got the surprise of their

lives last week when a whale lifted their boat out of the water.

Argentine officials emphasise the dangers of kayaking so close to the

animals. Still to come. Your global guide,

with some of the best places to visit from around the world. That is

biting. And cameras in hand, we go to the eastern Estonia on a special

kind of Safari. Hello. Your global guide, with top

tips on the world's best events in the coming months. But first, in the

UK, totally Thames is taking place to the month of September. It is a

30 day programme with beachcombing and acrobatics along the Riverside.

There will be the festival and that the family with `` fireworks at

Hampton Court Palace. In Japan from August 22`24th, the

earth celebration. This is one of the renowned drumming events. Three

concerts will be performed with signature pieces and 1`off

collaborations. This year with guns and gymnastics. `` bands.

Until August 19, the Australian surfing festival will draw the

country's very best amateurs, who will be fighting it out in several

titles. The tournament will attract hundreds of competitors.

From September four, the Croatian town will be hosting the outlook

festival, celebrating bass music and sound system culture. The setting is

an abandoned fort, with venues underground in its tunnels. The

parties will continue on the beaches and off the coast. For the first

time, Georgia will play host to an electronic dance music collector.

Organisers say this is not a festival, but a republic. A meeting

of creatives who come here to party. You decide. Note that most people

wear orange and carry a yellow suitcase. Apparently the next event

will be held on Mars. Back in Australia, the hello koalas

sculpture Trail will open in September. 51 metre tall fibreglass

koalas, each designed by a artist, will be posted around the river.

Meandering between wineries, beaches, forests and cultural

centres. The 20th European mediaeval festival

takes place in Denmark. Set in a former State prison, they will be

mingling among buskers, Knights, archers and gestures. Gestures. They

will also be battles. And finally, back in the UK, the

Imperial Ball Museum in London is transforming the mark 100 years

since World War I. There will be several calories as well as an

exhibition of British World War I art. `` galleries.

That is my global guide this month. Let me know what is happening in the

place where you live or where you live. `` love. Until next time, keep

travelling. Finally this week, we go to the

Swans and forests of Estonia, which is still full of the wildlife that

has vanished in much of western Europe. But now, travellers are

starting to visit the country in the hope of seeing a another, much

larger type of animal. Almost 50% of Estonia is covered by

dense woodland forest. It is a place where the great outdoors comes

alive. And I am in search of a creature once feared by locals. This

region is where my mate of brown bear watching begins. These

predators are the main attraction. Just like in Finland and Sweden, the

main attraction. Just like in Finland and Sweden, tourism is big

business. It is not that easy to find bears on your own in the forest

in the middle of Estonia. I have a list of the help of a nature guide

and an expert. How do we find bears in the forest? In this area, it is

quite easy. You just need to find a soft road and most probably the

tracks are just over an hour. Let us have a look.

That is biting? That is a big bear. Bears on the lookout for honey are

often attracted to polls like this. Mistaking the buzz of electricity

for a beehive. Whether by the highest is the toughest? Now that we

have seen the marks left behind, we would quite like to see the animals

themselves. We join a group of nature lovers who are going to spend

the night in the forest in the hope of seeing some bears. Tracking

animals in the wild with your guide and a night in this higher costs

around ?80 per person. We have reached the bear hide. Some meat is

going to be placed. That will attract the bears. I have got to go

in. We will be in here all night until eight o'clock in the morning.

We have got to be quiet. We do not want the bear to know that we are

here. We will not leave until we have seen some bears.

Now we are in the hide itself. We have windows through which we can

hopefully see some bears. We have got some bunkbeds, where hopefully

we can get some rest later on. There is an 80% chance of seeing bears. So

it can take half the night before you see one. Sometimes you do not

see any at all. So we settle ourselves in, ready for a long wait.

Suddenly, after less than the now, we see our first bad. `` and our.

What an experience. A night spent out in the forest as wild animals.

What is interesting about it, is if you want to see wild animals in

their natural habitats, you have no control over what you are going to

see, when you are going to see it. It made it even more exciting, the

fact we got to see it Europe's largest creditor. `` predator.

That is all we have got time for in this edition of the programme.

Coming up next week... Hard work. And I am off to the

beautiful Catskill Mountains north of New York City to discover if you

plans can return the region to its former glory. This area in its

heyday was the place where they would be car is ten miles long. We

want people to come back here and put jobs back. I hope you can join

us for that if you can. Do not forget, we are all over social

media. However site is worth checking out. All of the details are

on your screen. In the meantime, it is goodbye.

It has been an interesting week of weather. Too hot for some, I know.

Many of us have been dry, others have stayed cloudy and misty and

there have been violent thunderstorms scattered around. It