Episode list

Some famous places: Rangoon, Mandalay, Bagan, the Gokteik viaduct, the Imle Lake , the Golden Rock and also small places Kyaukme (where Philippe begins his travel), the suburbs of Rangoon, Kalaw and little villages. Very nice encounters: the palm reader in Kyaukme, the lady praying when the train was crossing the Gokteik viaduct, the family who prepares gold leaves, the medium in a small village, the flowers women who spoke for the first time with a foreigner, the women in the train explaining why they use thanaka powder on their faces, the women on the railway tracks selling corn or watermelon, the family living on stilt house at the Imle lake, the young women who went to the Golden Rock explaining their faith. Very nice landscapes: Bagan with its pagoda, the countryside from a very slow train or the fishing on the Imle lake.

Beginning of the journey near CapetowN. in a suburban train a preacher is telling the Good Word: some passengers are listening to him and smiling.Then Philippe goes to the Cape of Good Hope and tells about the story of Capetown as stopover for the boats going from Europe to Asia.Then Philippe takes the ROVOS, a luxury train which goes from Capetown to Tanzania (14 days): wooden wagons, dining car (the men must wear ties for the supper), beautiful landscapes.Philippe leaves the train at Kimberley.He goes now to a sacred place: a system of caves where people communicate with their ancestors: he meets Patricia who will become a sangoma (healer). At Johannesburg in the railway station a lesbian soccer team; the girls are singing and dancing as a way of training and they go to a match.Then Philippe takes the Shosholoza train to Klersdorp: young passengers are speaking about the new freedom in their country (in the time of the apartheid they could not travel with white persons in the same wagon)..Near Klersdorp Philippe meets Johnny and Claudia who have a rhinoceros farm where they protect these animals (danger of poaching) and breed them for repopulate other protected areas.At Colesberg Philippe visits a special sanitary train : 18 wagons, 19 doctors and 35 students of medicine give health cares for disadvantaged people:a retired railwayman has come and will receive his first glasses.

This travel in the northern part of Brasil begins in Salvador : in a suburban train Philippe meets a group of musicians who is playing samba.Then Philippe explains that Salvador, a very rich many years ago is note a quiet town: about 365 churches in all the town: but one of these churches is dedicated to the Lord of Bonfim: he meets a catholic priest who is blessing cars.Then the people have come to the church to ask for a help and Philippe can see the room of the miracles where people hang a plastic hand or a plastic leg to thank for their recovery.Then Philippe appears in the north of Brazil near the border with the French Guyane in the town of Pedra Branca do Amapari.He will take a train to Santana.In the train he meets a young man who collects the fruits of the açai palm tree:Philippe goes with him into the forest and sees how is climbing 20 meters tall palm trees.Then the train arrives at Santana , on the Amazon River.To go further Philippe takes a great boat.Instead of chairs every passenger has his hammock.The people on board are very friendly.Philippe stops in the island of Marajó, which area (40.100 square kilometers) is similar to that one of Switzerland.He meets policemen riding on buffaloes and Philippe is invited to ring a buffalo with them.The buffalo can walk in the swamps and marshes.Then Philippe visit shortly Belem, a famous town in the time of rubber plantations.Philippe has learn that there is a great train in Carajas: the biggest iron ores mine in the world; the train carries iron minerals to the Atlantic Ocean.But the rails cross the territory of Parcateges.Philippe meets then a chief of the tribe who explain him the life in the Amazonian forest.

Beginning of the travel in Manilla, a very huge town of 11 millions of inhabitants.Philippe goes to the railway station, buys a ticket: then in the hall the people are queuing and waiting: then in groups of 2 persons there are entering into the suburban train,Philippe enters also and stays among a lot of women.He asked why there are so many women in the wagon and they explain him that this wagon is reserved for the women, but no problems because he is foreigner: these wagon for women have introduced because the women complained about the unpleasant physical contact.So Philippe goes later to the wagon for men where some men understand why the women want to travel between themselves, he sees a woman in this wagon, she explains him that she is with some friends of her and enjoy talking with them, but when the friends will go she will travel in the wagon for women.Then Phlippe stops in a place and takes a jeepney: the passengers explain him that people used old jeep of the US Army and transformed them into small buses with brilliant colors.Then Philippe go to the region of mountains y rice fields by jeepney.Then Philippe has to walk for 2 or 3 hours in the mountains.There in a rice field he meets women who are transplanting rice: the 90 year old woman explains that the women must transplant the rice because the the children go to school and the men have gone to work to the town .Philippe helps them transplanting some rice and they go to the village.Then she tells that she make natural tattoos with soot and water;so the women look nicer (this is a tradition of the Kalinga minority).Philippe notices that the old lady has a tattoo with the name of Francis: she explains that she loved a man called Francis from another tribe, but she could not marry him for the rivalry between tribes (a Romeo and Julia history) and she came back o her village and remained single.Then Philippe takes the train towards Alabang: Philippe speak with the train driver who must honk every time because children and adults are always crossing the line.On the rail Philippe sees "trolleys" ,platforms with seats which moves on the rails from a village to another village : this platform is pushed by a young man (when a train comes, they takes off the "trolley " and then put it again on the tracks.: the women explain that they used this transport instead of walking with heavy weights.Later Philippe visits the Manila North Cemetery: a young man is living in his family vault.Many families live there because they are impoverished and he is hair dresser in this place: they see a burial and Philippe notices that people are moving children above the coffin: the hairdresser explains that the soul of the dead will protect these children.There Philippe travels by train southwards to Legazpi.A passenger explains Philippe that the Mayon Volcano is the symbol of the Philippines,it's like a great lady and besides it's perfectly conical.Philippe goes near the Mayon Volcano which has been active 15 times since 1900 !. There are another 51 active volcanoes in the Philippines. Finally a travel by boat to the island of Coron (3 three days) : then Philippe goes to the mangrove : there a young Filipino shows him how he gets worms from the roots of a mangrove tree: after cleaning the worms (because there are full of mud and sawdust) Philippe and the young man eat the worms.

Philippe begins his journey in Chicago, the city of the winds: in this town are the first sky scrapers of the United States.Philippe will take the Loop, the train circulating above the streets of Chicago.Then Philippe takes the Amtrak train to Omaha.There Philippe is invited to a pork meat auction: the auctioneer is really brilliant, look at the people offering a price and speaks very fast.This auctioneer invites Philippe to his ranch: there the auctioneer feels himself in harmony with the nature.In Omaha Philippe meets Dave, a man who buys old wagon and restore them, then Dave and his associate are traveling through the States in their own wagons.Philippe enjoys for a day the travel in these restored wagons.Then Philippe arrives at the Monument Valley, the place where many western were filmed: The valley is famous for its sandstone buttes and is situated on the border line Utah-Arizona near the Four Corners area.In this place Philippe meets scientists of the NASA who are walking with astronaut suits simulating a walk on the planet Mars.And last stop en Colorado: the Durango and Silverton narrow gauge railroad.A train used for the transport of mineral and now a touristic train.

Beginning of the journey at Ambila, a small train station at the Indian Ocean.Philippe buys a cup of coffee and the woman explains him how she prepares the coffee.In the train to Moramanga Philippe speaks with a woman who makes her own hats (Madagascar is the country of resourcefulness).Then Philippe taxes a "taxi-brousse" to a village feast: there the men try to catch zebus.Return to Moramanga and now by train to Amboasary: there is a special first class wagon of this "TransLemurie Train".At a station a woman sells him a papaw (anona fruit): this train circulates twice a week.In the train a man speaks with Philippe about the "fihavanana" the social tie of all Malagasy people.At the station Philippe meets Jona and they go on a boat to see lemurs in a beautiful landscape of mountains and rivers.Fianarantsoa: Philippe discovers a micheline , a rail car on tires (the engine arrived at Madagascar in 1952) and has a ride in this historical engine.Then Philippe goes to Morondava: the region of the baobabs and participate in a great funerary feast ( the famadihana) in which the families honor their ancestors (every 5, 7, 9 or eleven years): procession, opening of the family vault and change of the shrouds.Finally Philippe takes the train from Fianarantsoa to Manakara : a line which goes through the mountains and forests (about 67 bridges and 50 tunnels): a young woman explains him her respect for their ancestors who have worked in the construction of this railway line.