tv The Travel Show BBC News August 11, 2024 1:30pm-2:01pm BST
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it comes as russia carries out overnight missile and drone attacks in six regions of ukraine, killing at least two people in kyiv. the first of three funerals for the young girls killed at a taylor swift dance class in southport last month will take place this afternoon. alice dasilva aguiar will be laid to rest at st patrick's catholic church in the town. the killings sparked disorder across the uk. now on bbc news, the travel show, the bahamas: natural wonders of the caribbean. i'm reece parkinson and i'm on a journey across the caribbean. in this programme, i'm heading to the bahamas. it's considered one of the most beautiful places in the world with dazzling marine life, breathtaking coral reefs and stunning white sands.
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renowned as a magnet for billionaires, bankers and beach lovers, it attracted nearly ten million tourists to its shores last year. but it's also an island nation on the front line of climate change. whoa! it was the beacon of hope that we needed when the lighthouse came on because everybody knew at that point that there is hope. rising sea levels and increasingly unpredictable weather patterns are affecting everyday life here, so i'm leaving the sunbeds behind to find out first—hand how the people who live here are trying to save this stunning paradise. god, i neverthought
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i would be doing that! i'm starting myjourney in sweetings cay, a small, sun—washed slice of the bahamas where the ocean is as much a place of work as it is for enjoyment. shervin tate has been a fisherman here all his life. how are you doing, man? how are you, sir? good to meet you. welcome to the bahamas! thank you very much! so, we've got to be getting over here in this boat and i will take you out today. here, localfishermen dive, notjust for a day's catch, but to preserve a way of life passed down through generations. they collect lobster, fish but most of all, conch. conch, man, i want to tell you, any time you taste it, you got to try it again. it's really one of those local dishes that the bahamian people really love.
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it's like our national dish. the queen conch is a sea snail. it grows on the bottom of the ocean in its shell, eating plants and algae. it's been caught here for at least 1,000 years. so, shervin, talk to me about the history of this area and the fishing industry. oh, so sweetings cay really is a fishing village where my forefathers fished all their lives. mmm. we've been conching, lobstering, fishing, upward until my time. all your generation comes from this village? that's right. when you hear a name called the tates... tates. .. ..that�*s sweetings cay. most of the tates in grand bahama comes from sweetings cay. this is almost like tate town! i'm sorry to say that, but it's almost like tate town! so how far away are we from where the conchs are? i think we're about 30 minutes away. 0k. are you ready for it? i'm ready. let's go.
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let's do it. you're picking up some speed! yeah. passing on the family trade, shervin catches conch with his nephew, rob. divers like him can collect hundreds of conch on a single trip. so, robert, are you getting ready to go in? yeah, brother, in i go. got one. yes, robert! hey! 0k. we can actually see the conch inside. kind of like a slug. yeah! laughs. when it's clean, it's beautiful. you need to see it when everything is off and it's clean. i saw a big one. i want that. laughs. you want to go in? i want to catch one of these. come on! i have diving gear. i brought enough
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if you want to go. you want some diving gear? yes, i do. sure! i need to catch my first conch. there you go. i've got to get me a big one. yes, you got to get a big one. a big conch! i want you to get a big one, so we can have some ceviche! huh, huh... i got two big conchs! dinner is served! whoa! these ones look juicy. they are legal conch, guy. can you get some more? go get me some more! get me some more! woo! shervin, how many hours do you usually do this? hey, man, i would say about six hours a day. that was actually a lot more challenging than i thought it was going to be just because the conchs blend in so well with the sea, basically, and the sand. but if shervin is looking for another recruit,
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i'm ready. so, shervin, i'm ready to start. oh, man! you are hired! yes! but the reality is there actually might not be a job for me to take in the next few years. scientists warn that conch numbers are in decline as warmer seas, increased water acidification and declining food sources caused by climate change are making them die out. in the bahamas, there's a ban on catching small conch because, added to this, overfishing and illegal trade have brought the numbers to critical levels. yeah, we want the small ones to be there to produce, you know? makes sense, yeah. yeah. you don't want to have persons taking the small ones out of the water. got to preserve and protect the environment. if you don't, we won't have no future for our children. it's a worldwide problem, and some countries have gone further, banning conch
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fishing altogether. but the hope is that the government's approach here can stabilise the numbers without destroying a piece of bahamian cultural heritage. to make the most out of our haul, i'm headed to the king of conch salad, mr tony macaroni. tony! hi! how you doing? i got a present. presents? two conchs for you. thank you. and i would love — as i hear you're the man when it comes to making a conch salad. i'll be glad to help you. first, repeat after me — "we crack it, stick it and pull it". say it. both: we crack it, stick it and pull it. say it again. we crack it, stick it and pull it. got ya. what we're doing is breaking the shell to break the vacuum. now we're going to...? stick it. yes. over the bucket. gently. oh, wow, this is huge!
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bahamian band plays. tony then skins the raw conch and turns it into a salad. everything i use in my business is home—grown. i'm going to add limejuice to this. this is the key. but there's one secret ingredient... try it. cani? yes! that's like an explosion of flavours. yes. you can taste the lime, the sweetness from the peppers. yes. the conch. i think i got the good part of the conch that you were talking about. yes. yeah. wow. it's like the perfect lunch. but it's notjust conch fishing that goes back generations. the bahamas is made up of 700 islands, of which 30 are inhabited. seafaring has been a way of life here for centuries and if you have boats,
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you need a lighthouse. i'm heading out to abaco, about a 35—minute flight from grand bahama. hey! hey, are you reece? yes. great. so, we've come to get you, take you to the lighthouse. i'm being taken by heather and ken to meetjeffrey forbeer, the lighthouse keeper, who is as much a part of the history as the lighthouse itself. this lighthouse is unusual as it is one of the last in the world run on kerosene and manned by a keeper. oh, that's tight! ah! smooth! jeffrey. hey, how you doing? really good. how are you? all right. you're not the first in your family to do this, right? no — third generation. you're third generation?
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yes. so, your dad's dad's dad? mm. and his name was? jeffrey forbes sr. laughter. jeffrey... i'm keeping it going, so my son isjeffrey iii. is he really? yeah. i grew up around lighthouses. we've got eight in the bahamas and my dad travelled to all of them. so, eversince i'm knee—high, i've been around lighthouses, so it's in my blood. but nowadays, it's like, i'm the last keeper left. if you use a light bulb, like how you automated the rest, if you put a light bulb in there, it's not the same. when you put the mantel on, like the real light, it's like a calm, smooth, you know, sensation. you know, it's mesmerising. to me, it's a big difference. you can see it for about 18—20 miles. people say, a lighthouse would be a lighthouse, but if it's not, it don't have the human part of it, it's just a brick wall. you know, to the community, this is a living being. but this lighthouse would take
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on an even greater role in the hearts of the locals. in 2019, the lives of bahamians would be changed forever. file: hurricane dorian has made landfall in the northwest - bahamas with winds of up to 180 mph. file: now, the us hurricane i center says storm dorian poses an immediate threat to the . bahamas, as well as millions of people along america's southeast coast. - on september 1st, hurricane dorian hit the bahamas. it was one of the worst storms ever recorded in the region. and did you know that it was coming? it started out as a category 2, anticipated to be a category 3 on wednesday. so, two and three, you're just like, "all right, "i'm going to put everything in the house"? well, that was common. it's not great but it wasn't anything that you weren't prepared for. by friday morning at 10 o'clock, she'd changed
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to a category 5. your car is upside down? dorian landed on a full—moon tide, so the sea levels were already higher than normal and so, that is why, combined with the tornadic activity, we had so much devastation. it was a monster. and just being in that and having your ears... it sounds like you're standing next to a train. it's just constant, is that roar. you're just hearing porches ripping off, roofs coming off, trees snapping, and then... i didn't even hear my roof come off. as the storm departed two days later, over 75% of the island's homes were destroyed. hurricanes aren't uncommon in this part of the world but according to the world meteorological organization, extreme weather and climate shocks are becoming more acute
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in the caribbean with the acceleration of long—term warming trends and a rise in sea levels. 0fficially, 7a people were killed and 2115 were missing, but some claim the numbers may have even reached the thousands. those who survived then had no water, food or electricity. so, it was pitch—black at night to see — couldn't even see your face, your hand in front of your face. and on the 11th day, a generator came and they got our light working. and everyone who still remembers that night, when that light came on, still almost bursts into tears. yeah. yeah, it was the beacon of hope that we needed when the lighthouse came on because everybody knew at that point that there is hope. we can get through this.
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and forjeffrey, he had the agony of watching it all unfold from afar. i wasn't here for dorian. coming back after dorian, i actually cried, you know, just to see the devastation. getting the light on, and that brought a lot of hope to the people, you know, to see the light. it wasn't rotating anything butjust to see the light of hope, you know, with the darkness. so, reece, you want to see it light? i'm going to light it right now. yes. please. 0k. let's go. the part that we call the vaporiser, it's got to be hot enough. and then, i'll give you the honour of lighting it. whoa! really?
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yeah. whoa! chuckles. you can feel that getting hot as well. it's like a sauna. it's really hot. crazy to think that the whole town can see us. they can see the light. if you're late, they'll call you and let you know. do they really? "what's going on with the light?" feels like such history. yes, there's a lot of history in it, you know? to be able to do this job, you got to love this job. mmm. and you love it? i love it. it's in my blood, and that's it. hurricane dorian clearly has had a huge impact on the people here. i truly can't imagine living
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through something so painful and traumatic that maybe if you yourself wasn't affected, you definitely knew someone — family or friends, co—worker — that had their life turned upside down. how do you get over that? but the people here refused to give up. it wasn'tjust about rebuilding their homes, businesses and shattered lives, but also about restoring the environment. i've come to meet rashema ingraham at a conservation on grand bahama, which is regrowing the island's mangrove forests. grand bahama really got hit hard. we lost about 70% during that initial dorian impact. and so, these seeds that we have in the nursery now, they're almost ready to be planted into those devastated areas. mangroves grow on the shoreline
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of many of the islands here. they are a fertile area for wildlife and provide important coastal protection from the wind and waves. so, if you think about the fact that the ocean is one of the biggest catchers, or carbon sequesters, right? the mangroves are actually another huge part of that element, where it takes in all of that carbon dioxide and it seals it into the soil. so, we're going to be planting some of these? you're going to be planting at dover sound, so this is what you're going to be carrying. 0k, amazing! these are our little babies for today. right, right. already ahead of us is unclejoe, one of the mangrove volunteers. unclejoe! yes, yes. right here. i have some presents for you. oh, i love these presents. i give them a kiss all the time. laughter. this plant right here is unclejoe's. that's uncle joe's mangrove there, yeah. but that'll grow, and probably, you'll see fish swimming among them. we're doing it for future generations — that's what gives us the joy.
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put a little pressure on it with your... yeah, uh—huh. to keep her steady, when the — when the tide comes up, the water flows around it, so you want it to be sturdy. excellent. beautiful. look at that. you did it. but mangrove conservation isn't the only place where humans are having a positive impact on the environment here. i'm heading to meet dive specialist andre musgrove to conquer one of my greatest fears. you ready to go see some sharks? a little bit of hesitancy? with you, i'm ready. 0k. with you, i'm ready. i like that answer. yeah. let's go, then. let's do it. oh, man, this is going to be... first time, right? yes, first time. 0k. not your last time, though — i will make it not your last. around the world, over 25% of shark species are endangered, hunted to near extinction or starved by lack of food due to overfishing.
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but in 2011, the bahamas turned all of its coastal waters into a massive shark conservation area, and it's had a monumental impact. the bahamas is the shark capital of the world. we have many different species of sharks. on one dive, you can see up to seven different species — hammerhead, tiger shark, reef shark, nurse shark, lemon shark, bull shark — all within the same frame in some spots. that's why a lot of people come here to dive with sharks. the key with diving with sharks is stay calm, stay relaxed. so, you always want to be looking around to see where the sharks are in the water. andre has told me to get in slowly and start off by floating near the surface. what a thing to do!
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what a thing to do. to be honest, for my first time swimming with sharks, i was pretty happy to watch them from a distance. i have six to ten sharks underneath me right now. but after a while, i couldn't resist taking a slightly closer look. there are so many feelings right now. that was arguably one of the best moments that i've ever had or ever experienced. god, i neverthought i'd be doing that. when you're in there, you get this weird, like, blissful feeling. mm—hm. that's the humbling part for me, where it's like, you're humble that they allow you to be there. had a good time?
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genuinely, i can't thank you enough. that was... no problem, man. yeah, it was a real experience. swimming with sharks in the bahamas. another tuesday, bro. another tuesday! as i come to the end of myjourney, i'm more aware of how beautiful, yet vulnerable, these incredible islands are. everyone i've met has shown me how hurricane dorian has catapulted them into being more sensitive to their environment. but reflecting on it all, for me, the true spirit of the bahamas and the caribbean is in people like shirvan. recovering from the storm, how was that for the community and how was it for you as well? it was really devastating, especially for the people of sweetings cay.
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myself, after losing everything — like your home, your boat and everything else — it was devastating. people were sad, people were crying. my mom lose family members who died in the storm. and for me, being one of those "console" person, i was just going around and encouraging people and letting them know we're going through a tough time but believe in god that one day, a change will come. # hold on. # and don't do no wrong. # god will supply. # your every need. # yeah, yeah, yeah. # be strong, yeah. # and have no fear. # no, no, no. # jesus will dry. # your weeping tears. # but now is the time.
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# for you to change your mind. # i only come to tell you, yeah. # that the storm won't last forever. # oh, no, no, no, no. # the storm won't last forever! # the storm won't last forever, no, no. # just keep the faith. # and never let it break. # and he will see it through. # the storm won't last. # forever.#
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the weather is going to spike because _ the weather is going to spike because of a change in the jet stream — because of a change in the jet stream position. it has been quite straight _ stream position. it has been quite straight but it is now a buckling and we — straight but it is now a buckling and we will be on the one side of the jet _ thunderstorms further north and west. all of this to come in the forecast tonight and tomorrow. but for the rest of the day today across the uk it looks dry. there will be a lot of sunshine around, it will be feeling warm. but it's been a bit of a slow start towards the south coast of england here, still the risk of some sea mist and fog lapping onshore at times, but even towards southern areas of devon, i think that should tend to break up as the south easterly wind picks up. with the onshore breeze it's a bit cooler towards north sea facing coast than yesterday, but temperatures widely
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in the low to the mid 20s, maybe 29 or 30 celsius for london and parts of berkshire. and then overnight tonight, well, we'll keep the clear skies the heat continues to build humidity ahead of this weather front which brings thunderstorms to flatus on sunday night and it will be a really uncomfortable in it for sleeping. these are the minimum temperatures for sleeping, you have the high humidity for eastern areas of england and could be a few storms overnight and we are looking at wetter weather and funded lightning on monday. it looks as if it is mainly affecting the non—half of the uk. there will be some showers but what the south—west still dry and sunny and the heat and humidity will be at its worst across the midlands and lincolnshire and east anglia and the south—east stop 3a degrees likely, the hottest day of the year. that heat may get pushed away overnight and there are more weather fronts coming into the picture on tuesday which will bring some cloud and rain away from northern ireland and rain away from northern ireland and pushing into scotland and heading into western parts of england and wales but what are south—east and the midlands and east anglia it will be dry and there will be sunshine and still very warm, just not as hot or humid as monday will be. but we start to see weather fronts come in from the atlantic and the first one grinds to a halt on
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tuesday and into wednesday. a little way on it so it is not moving very far in the is where we have the sun of cloud and rain for a while but ahead of that the risk of thunderstorms clipping east anglia and south—east england overnight and first thing on wednesday but it does become drier here. it is still quite warm with temperatures in the mid 20s at another band of rain comes into scotland and northern ireland dropping the temperatures and hear very much wetter to watch the north—west. that weather front weekends as it pushes across and another weather system arise from the atlantic on thursday. some early sunshine particularly from the east but it tends to cloud over with rain coming into northern ireland and western scotland pushing into england and wales as well. if anything the weather on thursday going downhill and those temperatures going downhill, maybe a little below average show quite a change from what we're seeing the next day or two and that is because the jet stream is straightening a little and running over the uk keeping things a little more
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unsettled and keeping the warmer air well to the south of us and cooler air more across northern areas have stronger winds and a bit of rain from time from time to time. can't relate rain and the outlook across the southern half of the uk but pressure here will be a bit higher and temperatures not quite as low as in the north.
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live from london, this is bbc news. russia says its army will deliver a "tough response" to ukraine's cross—border incursion — as moscow appears to acknowledge that ukrainian units have advanced deep into russian territory. the funeral is being held for nine—year—old alice da silva aguiar — one of three young girls killed in the knife attack in southport. iran's new president announces his cabinet amidst fears of escalation in the middle east
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in the final day of the paris 0lympics — li wuhn wuhn of china takes home gold in the women's weightlifting with team gb�*s emily campbell securing the bronze. and banksy strikes again — the elusive street artist confirms he's created his seventh animal—themed piece in london in as many days. hello, i'm azadeh moshiri. welcome to the programme. we begin this hour with the ukraine and the country's cross—border offensive. russia says its army will deliver a "tough response" and appears to have acknowledged ukrainian units have advanced deep into the western region of kursk, saying it's hit troops and equipment around 30 kilometres from the border. it's the most serious attack by a foreign army on russian territory since the second world war. overnight at least two people were killed in kyiv, as russia carried out missile and drone attacks in six
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