the taliban have announced a caretaker government in afghanistan, more than three weeks after taking control of the country. there are no women — nor minority figures — in the administration. mohammad hasan akhundhe who is on a un terrorism sanctions list has been named as the head of the interim cabinet. a number of protests were held in the country and three people were shot dead during a demonstration in herat. many protestors have aimed their anger at neighbouring pakistan which is accused of being involved in setting up the government. president biden has visited some of the sites in newjersey and new york, which were hit by tropical storm ida. he's said that every part of the us is being hit by extreme weather events and climate change now poses an existential threat.

now on bbc news: the travel show. this week on the show, could ships like this be the future of more sustainable cruise holidays? it can be saving, on the energy, up to eight tonnes per day. we get a new view of an iconic skyscraper that celebrates its 90th birthday this year... welcome to new york city. ..why they can't wait to get the party started again in the bahamas... you are caught up in the rapture. - ..and we share the secret to making the perfect paella in spain. mm! magnifica!

the golden age of sail, where tall ships ruled the seas and followed the prevailing trade winds around the world. it ended with the advent of steam and diesel power in the mid 19th and early 20th century. but now, could we be about to enter another age of sail? this is the golden horizon, the largest tall ship in the world and the biggest of its kind ever made, today is its maiden voyage. you can see them loading on the equipment and the provisions as i talk. now, it's a journey that begins here in dover, and sees it sail on the high seas around the world for the next few years.

in that distant pre—covid world of 2019, a record 30 million passengers worldwide took a cruise. and that figure was projected to grow — and with it, a fear of a negative impact on the environment. well, we all know what happened next. and with cruises starting to resume, we're here to see if things can be done a little differently. horn bellows. so, this is the moment. the sails are coming up. well, of course, there's a grand unveiling of what is 42 sails on a five—mast boat. it's pretty incredible, actually. and the music, which they've composed specially, is the background to this. and i've got to be honest, it's a lovely, lovely scenario.

you've got all this going on around you in the most amazing vessel. the golden horizon weighs a whopping 8,770 tonnes and took five years to be built in croatia. it's taking me on a 160—mile journey to the isle of wight, off the south coast of england, before heading to the mediterranean and croatian coast. captain, permission to come on the bridge? yes, permission granted, please. now, look at this. this is really high—tech. and yet, you're the captain of a sailing ship which has got five masts and 42 sails — it's like a combination of the old and new, right? yes, it is. it's not only the sails, what we need. we need the steering, we need that engine

for the operation in the port. we need all this equipment to make the safe navigation of the seas. by using the sails, how much fuel are you saving? if we utilise the sails in their full power, then we are only using the generators to produce the energy we need for the, let's say, cooking, erm, lights, and so on. so, it can be even up to eight tonnes per day, saving on the energy. there are 136 cabins and suites over the ship's four decks. this won't be a cheap holiday, but what's on offer here is very different from one of your regular mass—market traditional cruises. it's obvious that this is a very complex ship to operate, and making things run smoothly takes a lot of skill and teamwork. it's all hands on deck, just to set the sails without any problems.

right. i know it's really skilful, but is there any way that i can learn the ropes? i mean, can i have a go at doing this? well, i think it's not a problem. i think the guys are still setting the sails, so let's go! great, brilliant. ok, so that's for you. yeah. you're holding this rope. yeah. right now, are you ready? so, this guy over there is on the left side of the same sail. yes. he's pulling the left corner of the sail. and we've got to co—ordinate between the two of them? yes. you'll have to keep the same tension on both sides. 0k, we're ready. slowly, slowly — you see how slowly the sails is coming out of the yard. that's the speed that we have to give, like, very slowly. very careful. is this good? yes. god, you feel the responsibility! yes. this is the most critical bit now, is it? yes. you have to be really careful that this corner is not going to get into and out of lock.

0k, stop. secure! now you can be a part of the sail station. they laugh. thank you. brilliant! the wonderful thing on the small ship, and especially on a sailing ship, is that when we have a lot of wind, when we have a storm, we all need to work together and rely on each other. because sometimes, we also have to go up in the rig on these yards up there, and furl in the sail, if the semi—automatic system doesn't work. so, that creates a lot of bonding. but the only thing that counts here is your skill. so, do you think this is the future? this is true sustainability. and it's also time—proven sustainability, because sailing ships have been around for hundreds of years, and now we are coming back to something that we know already and develop it a little bit further. now, i've got one more thing to try before i head back to land... just come here. yeah.

so, here we... 0ne leg. yeah. the other leg... ..and that is to check out the view from the top. so you're going to climb? ok, i'm going to keep this tensioned. 0k. step... step on this, all the way up. ..and then...step... ..and then... ..step. look ahead. they laugh and then, step... 0h... it's actually a lot higher than i thought. all right. i'll be honest with you... it's scary — and also gets narrower. 0k. and this is the worst bit, for sure. hold on to where, this? this one, and this one. this is also good to hold, because it's not slippery. and this... you might have to pull me. 0k, 0k, 0k, 0k. oh, yes! all right.

victory! you got it. that... i've got to be honest with you. that was a little bit frightening. phew! well, the view was well worth it. this has been such a different experience to being on board a much bigger, more conventional modern cruise ship. and it's really hard to compare the two experiences. clearly, nobody is suggesting that sail power will take the place of engines throughout the entire cruise industry. but the golden horizon and ships like her will open up more sustainable options — and that could encourage more traditional cruise lines to up their game when it comes to things like emissions and waste, which, hopefully, could be a win for everyone. next up, we're off to spain to meet a global gourmet who claims that he has the secret to preparing the perfect paella.

mm! well, stay with us, because still to come on the travel show... ..the caribbean island that's determined that the party will go on... we've had dorian, and now we have covid. and, as we have done with every other crisis before this, we will survive. ..and the empire strikes back in time to celebrate a landmark birthday in new york. the steel is a big part

of the history of the building, the fact that it was erected at a rate of four—and—a—half storeys per week. for two days every winter in nassau, the capital of the bahamas, the city's main street is traditionally transformed into a river of sound and colour. this is the festival ofjunkanoo. it has been documented in the bahamas for over 200 years. but, of course, we believe it started long before that in secret places in dark of night. the story ofjunkanoo dates back to the island's links with the transatlantic slave trade. junkanoo takes place on boxing day and the 1st ofjanuary, traditionally the only days that enslaved

africans were given off during the year. i think of our ancestors who were in the crisis of slavery. and you are no longer owned by you. you are owned by somebody. you are classified as an animal. and in the midst of the horror and the degradation of slavery, you say to yourself, "i cannot be an animal. "because when we were back home in the mother country, "we had rituals and ceremonies. "animals don't have those things." arlene was just four years old when she first danced in the parades, and has even transformed her childhood home into a museum devoted tojunkanoo. these are all my costumes in here from different parades. i have the hard part, because i get to dance in them and look pretty and have people admire me all morning. she chuckles ah, the good old days! j 0ur costumes have really

evolved over the years. in the old days, the costumes were made from indigenous materials — sponge, leaves, feathers, palm branches, whatever we could find. i tell the children this is sponge—bahama—bob. sponge made its way to bay street, indigenous materials on the parade. and eventually, paper came to be the main medium of costuming, which, for me, is very significant, because africans were not permitted to learn to read and write. the parade begins at the corner of george street and bay street. whenjunkanoos say, "let's go to bay!", it's a rallying cry to go to the parade. when those drums start, and they start to penetrate right into your chest, you are caught up in the rapture of the moment. so, you are going to hear

the pounding of those drums, the shaking of the bells, and you are going to hear a variety of horns. it is the richest experience of the people of the bahamas. and i think our visitors become immersed in that same feeling of expression when they witness it. it is the richest experience of the people of the bahamas. and i think our visitors become immersed in that same feeling of expression when they witness it. in 2019, the bahamas was struck by hurricane dorian. and the country's tourist industry has also been dealt another massive blow by the covid pandemic, forcing manyjunkanoo festivities online for the time being. junkanoo itself is the story of resilience. it really is a symbol of how

strong and determined we are as a people. we have had dorian, and now we have covid. and, as we have done with every other crisis before this, we will survive. as we say in the bahamas, "we will bounce back." and that is just a part of "who we is", to put it in bahamian english. to end this week, we're off across the atlantic to one of america's — if not the world's — most famous skyscrapers. the empire state building in new york is celebrating its 90th birthday this year.

and although it stopped being the world's tallest building back in the early 1970s, there's still something iconic and powerful about this wonder of art deco design and engineering. well, travel to the united states is still restricted for us here in the uk, so we asked the bbc�*s laura jones, who's based in the big apple, to head to manhattan to wish the empire state a very happy birthday. of the top five tallest buildings in new york, the empire state building is by far the oldest. construction began in 1930 and was finished in just a10 days. the building really captured the imagination of hollywood and ended up playing a pretty big part in the movies itself, like in king kong... ..the rom—com sleepless in seattle, and one of my absolute favourites, the musical on the town.

even today, it's still one of the most visited attractions in new york city, usually welcoming about 4 million people every year who get to come up here and take in those beautiful views. it is amazing to witness their reaction when they step out into any of our observatories, whether it be the 86th floor or the 102nd floor. you can hear them gasp. he oversaw renovations for the brand—new observation deck on the 102nd floor, which opened a few months before the pandemic. we went into the design phase and started thinking about, "how do we get out of the way of the views?" we're able to reveal the beams. you know, the steel is a big part of the history of the building, the fact that it was erected at a rate of four—and—a—half storeys per week.

and even though the empire state is one of the world's most recognisable buildings, it still has its fair share of secrets. this is exciting! just one floor up from the 102nd public observation deck, there's another floor that only vip guests and celebrities get to visit. wow! this is absolutely incredible. welcome to new york city! a tiny viewing balcony on the 103rd floor forms a ring around the building spire. hi there. is it good to go? yes. thank you so much. back down on the ground, there are a few other closely—guarded secrets. siobhan macshane runs an exclusive access—all—areas tour. something you may not know that we have here in the empire state building is an old, abandoned bank vault. i most enjoy bringing guests down here and seeing the expression of surprise. you would never imagine there being a bank vault

in the empire state building. but if you can't afford the $1160 price tag that comes with that tour, here's a little teaser of what you would learn. the vault is made of pure, solid steel and weighs so much that it would be almost impossible to remove it, at this point, from the basement. this actually belonged to one of our original tenants from 1931 that was on the second floor. and the bank knew that they had a lot of leverage with the building, being it the great depression, so they demanded that the building put in a bank vault for them. it looks like i'm planning how to break into it! she laughs. thousands of workers, who were known as sky boys at the time, raced to finish the construction of the building injust over a year. but today, there's a much smaller team on the ground keeping things running. tim dailey has worked

at the building for six years. he's an engineer who keeps everything safe and running smoothly, even in its underground wind tunnel. my dad grew up in the depression, 1922. i have relatives that actually worked on this building during the construction. the wind tunnel itself is the lowest level of the empire state building, and this represents technology and workmanship in 1930. the air conditioning was just fresh air and fans. this iconic feature of the new york skyline has been thrilling tourists for 90 years. it's reopened thanks to the hard work of its staff behind the scenes during the pandemic, and it's still just as captivating as when it was first built. happy birthday to the empire state building — still looking good after 90 years. well, that's all we've

got time for today. but catch us next week, if you can, when... ..mike's in kenya to meet the young performers who are limbering up to get back on stage again... cheering. ..and we're discovering some of the dark history behind one of america's biggest psychiatric hospitals, which has become a tourist attraction in its own right. so, hopefully, you can join us for that. in the meantime, don't forget, if you want to check us out online, just search for bbc travel. but for now, from me, rajan datar, and the rest of the travel show team here on the south coast of england, it's goodbye.

very quiet on the weather front out there right now and quite warm, too, after a hot tuesday for some of us. here's a reminder of the temperatures we had on tuesday in a selection of places. these are the hotspots — up to 31 celsius in 1—2 spots in wales, close to 30 in many other areas, for example, across the midlands. and wednesday is going to be another hot one, with tonnes of sunshine on the way. but we are starting to see a breakdown of this sunny weather in the far southwest of the uk. there's just the possibility of some showers early in the morning in cornwall, maybe even the odd crack of thunder. but for many of us, it's sunshine right from the word go and warm — 17 celsius in the morning. now, the reason the weather's going to be changing over the next 2a hours or so is this

low pressure which is approaching us. in fact, you can see itjust on the bottom of the screen there. showers and thunderstorms are expected to creep, gently creep into southwestern parts of england and wales. they won't make much progress during the course of wednesday. in fact, by the afternoon, they're just into southern wales, just across the west country, maybe a shower possible in northern ireland. but look at the weather across the rest of the uk — hot and sunny. i wouldn't be surprised if temperatures hit 30 celsius once again on wednesday. now, even through the evening on wednesday, you can see these showers just about moving a bit further north into the midlands, into central, southern england, many of us remaining dry. but a risk of downpours certainly possible, and that risk will continue into thursday because this low pressure will come closer. it's going to park itself over us.

the winds will be light in the centre of this low pressure, and that means that these showers circling the low will be slow—moving, so the possibility of long—lasting downpours and even some flash flooding across parts of wales and england. some eastern areas may escape the worst of the showers. and here, still a little bit of warmth left, maybe 2a in hull, 25 in norwich, but out towards the west, we're talking about temperatures maybe not even making 20 celsius on thursday. so the hot spell will come to an end on thursday for all of us. and you can see in the outlook the temperatures come the weekend will be barely making 20 celsius across many parts of the uk. that's it from me. bye— bye.

welcome to bbc news. i'm lewis vaughanjones. our top stories... in afghanistan, the taliban announce their new government. none of the cabinet officials are women and their new prime minister is on a un terrorism sanctions list. earlier, the group fired warning shots on the streets of kabul, as hundreds took part in anti—taliban protests — and three people demonstrating in herat were shot dead. this is the biggest challenge to the taliban's authority that we've seen so far, and it's not coming from a militia force. it's coming from peaceful protesters, from both women and men. mexico's supreme court rules that making abortion a crime is unconstitutional, setting a landmark legal precedent for the conservative catholic country.