Arriving in Italy at the empire's southern port of Trieste, Michael savours the imported coffee which fuelled the cafe culture of its elegant capital, Vienna. Was that a compliment, I wonder. Michael begins in the port of Batumi on the dazzling Caucasian Riviera. [1] In the early series, Portillo explores the railway networks of continental Europe, but in later series he also ventured further afield. Great Continental Railway Journeys Staffel 6 (alle Folgen) 3600. To capture his own view of the mighty Mount Kazbek Michael boards a helicopter to soar above the 5,000 metre peak first climbed in 1868. At the Skoda factory in Pilsen he investigates how the machine products of peacetime gave way to the manufacture of armaments for war and test drives a state of the art passenger train locomotive made there today. At the winter sports resort of Semmering, rails of a slippier kind prove hard to navigate when Michael takes to a toboggan. In Palermo, Michael takes in the art and architecture of the futurists. Boarding one of the narrowest gauge railways in the world, the Little Train of Pelion, Michael travels to the village of Milies, where he learns about the place of the Orthodox Church in Greek national life. From there, he travels to Salzburg, before heading to the magnificent scenery of the Salzkammergut region to visit the emperor's Austrian summer house at Bad Ischl, where in 1914 European history changed course forever. Arriving in Tbilisi Michael is struck by the warm welcome of Georgians and is invited to a wedding, where he experiences the legendary feast, known as a supra. The beauty of the Carpathian mountains with their snow-clad granite peaks, gorges and lakes appears to him unchanged from their description in his 100-year-old guidebook and he is privileged to catch sight of some of the wild brown bears and wolves who continue to live in the region's last stretches of unbroken forest. Great Continental Railway Journeys by Michael Portillo - Goodreads To cap off his journey, Michael travels to the Austrian border and the famous Brenner Pass, mastered by the railways in the 19th century and the scene today of a groundbreaking engineering project to build one of the world's longest rail tunnels. But 1936 was a turbulent time in Spain, with political upheaval descending into a brutal civil war. Great Continental Railway Journeys - Season 7 - IMDb Heading to Bilbao, he explores the industrial ties between France and Spain and learns to cook a traditional Basque dish. He finds out about the first railway to be built in the country, from Naples to Portici, around the base of Vesuvius and then plucks up his courage to venture into the mighty volcano's crater. A century ago, Michael's journey would have been interrupted by hostilities - the Balkan Wars - on account of which, train services were suspended. Braving the traffic, Michael begins his Roman holiday by weaving among the capital city's magnificent landmarks on the back of a 1950s Vespa. In Lund, he samples a Smorgasbord before having a Highland fling in Gothenburg, where he test drives a vintage Volvo. At the time of his guidebook it was a magnificent terminus, but today it stands ruined and derelict. Bradshaw's 1913 Continental Railway Guide in hand, Michael Portillo makes a grand tour of a favourite Edwardian destination - Italy - where he experiences first-hand the nation's need for speed in a state-of-the-art Maserati sports car. He learns from the buffet car cooks how to prepare a supper of meat-filled dumplings - Dagestani specialities called pylmeni. The highlight of the trip for me was to be given a private recital by the great Romanian violinist Alexandru Tomescu, playing music by George Enescu, a composer who was coming of age as Romania gained its freedom from the Habsburg empire, and who celebrated his country's folk tradition. He discovers a nation fractured at the time by social tensions and regional loyalties, which today offers a rich diversity of cultures to delight the tourist. In the vast port, Michael joins a pilot boat as it leads a supertanker to its berth. Having spent between five weeks to a month on the train, Watson used field recordings of the journey for his 2011 album El Tren Fantasma.[1][2][3]. Among the spectacular Renaissance palaces and fortresses of the River Loire, Michael is intrigued to discover a castle much modernized during the 1930s, which became a refuge for a British royal couple embroiled in scandal. In Madrid, he visits the scene of an assaination attempt at the royal wedding of a British princess and a Spanish king. Great Canadian Railway Journeys - Wikipedia Michael Portillo sets out to sample the delights of the Atlantic coasts of Spain and France, beginning in Bordeaux, where he uncovers a historic British connection to the region's wines. Great Continental Railway Journeys: With Michael Portillo, Andrew Martin, Mitch Waite, Clive Lamming. In Haarlem, Michael goes behind the scenes to see how 21 million stems and 2 million potted plants are auctioned every day from a vast complex roughly the size of Monaco. Arriving in Lodz, he discovers how the former industrial heartland - the Manchester of Poland - supplied the vast Russian Empire of the early 20th century and marvels at how the region today has been transformed into a breathtaking version of 'Hollywoodzh'. In high spirits, with the help of the local liquor, Michael says 'Nosdraviya' to Slovenia and heads south. Similar series were broadcast in 1983, Great Little Railways, and 2010, Great British Railway Journeys. After sipping sherry in Jerez, he traces Winston Churchill's tense diplomatic mission to Algeciras on Spain's Costa del Sol and finishes with tales of British espionage on the Rock of Gibraltar. -Great Continental Railway Journeys - Forsaking the saddle, Michael takes to the skies and pilots a light aircraft as he learns of one of France's pioneering aviators. I was reminded that the deference that propped up the empires was crumbling long before the first trench was dug. Beginning in historic Orleans, Michael follows his Bradshaws guide to the magnificent stained-glass windows of the Cathedral of Sainte-Croix, which tell the story of Joan of Arc. In January 2010 BBC Two broadcast Great British Railway Journeys, a documentary with similar basic idea to Great Railway Journeys but with a different format. On track: Michael Portillo's Continental culture hot spots - BBC The scenery was unrelentingly, heart-swellingly beautiful the golden sandstone of Salamanca; the best of Roman, Christian and Islamic art and architecture poured into Zaragoza; the enclosed medieval citadel of vila seemingly glowing with centuries of stored sunlight. A visit to a sardine cannery has Michael scrubbing octopus tentacles, and a taste for the cephalopod sees Michael set sail with local fishermen to see if he can trap one. Armed with his 1913 Continental Railway Guide, Michael Portillo embarks on a Greek odyssey from Athens's port of Piraeus north to the city of Thessaloniki, captured the year before from the Ottoman Turks, who had ruled much of Greece for 400 years. And I like your trousers. No, she didnt say the last bit. In Delft, Michael learns how the city came to specialise in pottery and finds out the secrets of its success. Learn how and when to remove this template message, "El Tren Fantasma: ambient recording of a ghostly train journey", http://www.indiaprofile.com/transportation/railways/greatrailwayjourneys.htm, "Michael Portillo films Great Railway Journeys", "BBC Two - Great Asian Railway Journeys, Series 1, Yogyakarta to Ambarawa", Great Little Railways - "The Good and The Quick", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Great_Railway_Journeys&oldid=1106612062, 1980s British documentary television series, 1990s British documentary television series, Documentary television series about railway transport, Articles needing cleanup from August 2022, Articles with bare URLs for citations from August 2022, All articles with bare URLs for citations, Articles covered by WikiProject Wikify from August 2022, All articles covered by WikiProject Wikify, Articles needing additional references from February 2008, All articles needing additional references, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Introduction (extracts from forthcoming episodes in the series), "Journey to the Land Beyond the Mountains", This page was last edited on 25 August 2022, at 13:55. After arriving in the German capital, Berlin, Portillo is reminded of its turbulent past. Along the way, Michael discovers the parlous state of Greek finances at the time of his guidebook. This is one of the world's most-covered songs, meaning both artists and audiences love it. The new series starts in Romania. He learns how an aristocratic English poet became a Greek national hero and relives Greek athletic victory at the first modern Olympic games. Steered by his 1913 railway guide, on this journey Michael Portillo explores the once-great empire of Austria-Hungary, domain of the famous Habsburg monarchs. On the shores of the Black Sea at Constanta, once the scene of intense pre-First World War diplomacy between Romanian and Russian royalty, Michael explores what is now emerging as Europe's largest grain port. Michael is in his element in The Hague as he discovers the beautiful government buildings known as the Binnenhof and begins to understand the origins of the Netherlands' famous reputation for tolerance. Arriving in Munich, he finds a blue horse created at the time of his guidebook and discovers an early 20th century pioneer who laid the foundations for the city's pre-eminence in science and technology today. At the Museo Reina Sofia, Michael hears how the bombing of a small town in the Basque region in 1937 inspired one of the 20th centurys most shocking works of art. , tracks: Heading north to Gargnano, Michael discovers the romantic hideaway of one of Britain's most famous writers, DH Lawrence, whose affair with his professor's wife scandalised his home country. One of the most spectacular events I have witnessed was a Thracian classical dance in the Roman Theatre in the Bulgarian city of Plovdiv. At Belorussky Station in Moscow, Michael hears how thousands of Russians journeyed to the capital in 1913 to mark the Romanov royal family's tercentenary year. He then travels the Habsburg imperial line across the Semmering Pass, a line blasted through the Alps. Steered by his 1913 Bradshaw's Guide, Michael Portillo returns to Spain to trace the early 20th-century roots of the Spanish Civil War, which divided his Spanish family and sent his father into exile. Steered by his Bradshaw's 1913 Continental Railway Guide, Michael Portillo heads for the Netherlands, where he operates a crane in Europe's largest container port in Rotterdam, and experiences the power of Kinderdijk's picturesque windmills. Heading further into Andalusia, Michael arrives in Seville, the city he has made his Spanish home and where, in the city's tobacco factory, he learns about a gypsy girl named Carmen. The title Great Continental Railway Journeys has led some to believe that the series is designed solely for train spotters. In Kiel, Michael learns about the intense rivalry between Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany and his uncle, British King Edward VII, at the Kiel Week yacht races. An excursion to a nearby bathing resort popular at the time of his guide and during Soviet times leads Michael to a hydropathic establishment where he braves an intimate massage in warm mud. Along the way, he recreates the famous Italian Job on an historic Fiat test track and follows fashion in Milan before investigating the early 20th century British love affair with Lake Como in a seaplane. Steered by his 1913 railway guide, Michael Portillo takes the train from the former political capital of Italy, Turin, to Casanova's capital of romance, Venice. What is the background music of great continental railway journeys Steered by his 1913 railway guide, Michael journeys through a prosperous pre-war Europe of emperors, kings, pomp and elegance. Released in 2013. Starting in 2020, a new series featuring railways and locations in South East Asia is being broadcast on BBC2.[9]. After a picnic of chewy dried fish and beer on board a Soviet-era train, Michael arrives in Estonia where, in the magical setting of a ruined 13th-century cathedral, he hears a choir sing the nation's most important song and learns how, more recently, the Baltic countries demonstrated their desire for independence from the Soviet Union with a Singing Revolution. The image of the teenage warrior endures as a symbol of resistance, and her life is celebrated in an annual parade. On the winding roads at Rovereto, he discovers how one of the world's best known carmakers sealed its international reputation by winning the 1913 Alpine Trial in a Rolls Royce Silver Ghost. At Biel or Bienne, Michael tries his hand at watchmaking and learns how a timekeeping innovation by Omega became indispensable in the trenches of the First World War. In Zermatt, Michael learns how intrepid early 20th century British mountaineers turned Alpinism into a fashionable sport for the rich and famous and how one group of British climbers came to grief on the Matterhorn. BBC Two Great Continental Railway Journeys Home Episodes Clips Michael Portillo travels on the great train routes of Europe, as he retraces the journeys featured in George Bradshaw's 1913. Striking south to historic Cordoba, Michael dances with an unusual partner and enjoys all the fun of the feria. Following in the footsteps of Edwardian railway travellers, Michael discovers a nation already famous for its neutrality when the rest of the continent was on the brink of war. After braving one of the world's oldest rollercoasters in Copenhagen's famous Tivoli Gardens, Michael takes the train across the Oresund Bridge linking Denmark to Sweden, where he retraces the tracks of a train which carried a revolutionary Russian passenger on an epic voyage. From Tallinn, Michael crosses the Baltic Sea by ferry to Helsinki, where he discovers the music of the great Finnish composer Jean Sibelius and learns how his masterpiece Finlandia spurred Finns towards independence. His first stop is Paris where he absorbs the atmosphere of La Belle poque, before travelling south to the Cote d'Azur. Michael visits the University to hear of opposition to the fascist takeover of Spain by General Francisco Franco and gains access to the generals archive of enemies of the state. SchauenKostenlos Great Continental Railway Journeys Staffel 6. Scuba Certification; Private Scuba Lessons; Scuba Refresher for Certified Divers; Try Scuba Diving; Enriched Air Diver (Nitrox) Great British And Continental Railway Journeys dvd | eBay Both series are fronted by ex-politician Michael Portillo and in this European odyssey he travels around continental Europe, using George Bradshaw's1913 . Armed with his 1913 railway guide, Michael Portillo explores Scandinavia and discovers the royal roots of early 20th century British travellers' close dynastic ties with the kingdoms of Denmark and Norway. Armed with his 1913 railway guide, Michael Portillo travels the Habsburg imperial line from Vienna across the awe-inspiring Semmering Pass, a handmade railway line blasted through the Alps. Michael Portillo travels from the chateaux of the Loire Valley to the heart of the Champagne region at Reims.