- 7 months ago
In this episode of Mystery Places, we go after the world’s loneliest man, travel to the incredible Masdar City, and visit a house in the middle of a street. We also check out the incredible Wieliczka Salt Mine in Poland.
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TVTranscript
00:00Our journey begins in Argentina.
00:22We are looking for the loneliest man in the world,
00:25and already the way to him is very lonely.
00:28In order to find him, we have to organise an ancient road map.
00:33On newer maps, or in the sat-nav, his town doesn't even exist.
00:42As soon as we've crossed the hill, the landscape changes drastically.
00:46Where tarmacked roads were a second ago, muddy trails form the path to a big lake.
00:52And there is supposed to be a city here?
00:58The closer we get to the town, the odder the landscape becomes.
01:08Thousands of dead trees are stood alongside the road.
01:12What happened here?
01:13What dark secret is behind the town with only one inhabitant?
01:18And who lives here, in the middle of nowhere, in Argentina, out of their own free will?
01:24The drive takes over 20 minutes through this barren landscape, without us meeting a single person.
01:33Until suddenly, out of nowhere, a modern gate appears.
01:36Villa Epoquen, the mysterious town 600 kilometres south of the capital Buenos Aires.
01:53A town where only a single person is living.
02:06But it quickly becomes clear, the modern gate is deceptive.
02:09Not much of Epoquen is left.
02:11Many thousands of people must have once lived in Villa Epoquen.
02:23Today, few buildings still have all four walls.
02:26Most of the city is destroyed.
02:28As if a gigantic explosion has torn everything apart within a fraction of a second.
02:34It seems more like a war zone than a town.
02:47On our search for the loneliest man in the world,
02:50we are venturing deeper and deeper into the naked ruins of this place.
02:57And then we hear him from afar.
02:59It is an odd feeling to see someone approaching you after hours of being alone here.
03:20May we introduce the probably most lonely man in the world,
03:24driving the possibly coolest car on the planet.
03:29Hello.
03:30Hello.
03:31Hello.
03:32Are you Pablo?
03:33I'm Noak.
03:34I'm Pablo.
03:35I'm Rafael.
03:36Do you live here?
03:37Yes, there are two corners of the entrance.
03:40But why do you live here?
03:42I was born, I grew up and stayed.
03:46I'm not sure if I'm normal, but...
03:49As I can walk, my family doesn't take me away.
03:52What an entrance what a guy
03:55Thousands of questions that we want to ask the 85 year old shoot through our brains, but mainly one specific one. What happened here?
04:22The middle part of the middle, we cut everything and we didn't remove anything. We closed it and it took 6 days to sink and we took time to remove everything.
04:37Where Pablo lives now the water was 10 meters high just a few years ago
04:41And where we are driving along here in the buggy used to be the bottom of a lake
04:52Pablo takes us on a sightseeing tour through the town and tells us about its history a story that is
04:59inseparably connected with the lake the Lago Epecuen has a similar salt content to the Dead Sea and had been attracting
05:07Tourists from all over the world since the 1920s
05:10The water was sweet, it was not sour, it was very sour, it was very sour and for the young people here, there were millions of liters, it was very modern, so for those who were healthy people, because the water was curative, and very sour,
05:38The ruins of the pool are silent witnesses to Epecuen's better days.
05:45Week-long, exceptionally heavy rain made the water levels rise dramatically in 1985.
05:52The dam breaks and the water floods the city in only a few hours.
05:56For 25 years to come Epecuen would vanish in the lake, until in 2009 due to a long drought, the water begins to retreat and the remains of the town are exposed again.
06:08It looks like this city has passed the war. Aren't you sad when you see it right now?
06:14While driving through the ruins with Pablo,
06:21we feel as if they are still alive for the 85-year-old.
06:25On the left, a café.
06:28On the right, an ice cream.
06:31And the right, an ice cream.
06:34And the right, an ice cream.
06:36And the right, an ice cream.
06:39And the right, an ice cream.
06:42On the right, an ice cream parlour.
06:44A journey into the past for us.
06:46And never-faded memories for Pablo.
07:12We notice how much the loneliest man in the world is enjoying telling someone about his city.
07:27And suddenly, we are stood in front of Pablo's favourite place.
07:31For him, it is the same place as back then.
07:34A pile of rubble consisting of washed stones and dead poplar trees.
07:38This is the hotel.
07:39The residence hall of San Martín.
07:41And there are the cars.
07:43And then there are all pieces.
07:45The hotel in San Martín.
07:46San Martín.
07:47Yes.
07:48Yes.
07:49Yes.
07:50Yes.
07:51Yes.
07:52Yes.
07:53Yes.
07:54Yes.
07:55Yes.
07:56Yes.
07:57Yes.
07:58Yes.
07:59Yes.
08:00Yes.
08:01Yes.
08:02Yes.
08:03Yes.
08:04Yes.
08:05Yes.
08:06Yes.
08:08Yes.
08:09Yes.
08:10Yes.
08:11Yes.
08:12Yes.
08:13Yes.
08:14Yes.
08:15Okay.
08:16Bye.
08:17!
08:18건
08:36.
09:06.
09:08.
09:10.
09:12.
09:14.
09:16.
09:18.
09:20.
09:22.
09:24.
09:26.
09:28.
09:30.
09:32.
09:34.
09:36.
09:38.
09:40Pablo doesn't need anything anymore.
09:42And if something should be required, like a new bottle of gas, his children and 14 grandchildren help him.
09:48One of them even only lives half an hour away by car and comes by every week.
09:54All the rest is done by Pablo himself.
09:56And that is exactly how he wants it.
09:59He is especially proud of something that he built himself in the garden.
10:03.
10:05.
10:07.
10:09.
10:11.
10:13.
10:15.
10:17.
10:19.
10:21.
10:23.
10:25.
10:27.
10:29.
10:30.
10:31.
10:33.
10:35.
10:37.
10:39.
10:40.
10:41.
10:43I bought a house in the village when it was inundated for the family and I stayed with a house.
10:49You also have a family and you also have a woman.
10:54Yes.
10:55But where are they?
10:58With the lady and with the children we were 50 years together, maybe.
11:07If it rains, I don't have me inside.
11:14Pablo receives a small state pension that he can survive on easily.
11:18One of his grandsons brings him fresh fruit and vegetables from the supermarket every week.
11:22And just as you would expect from a real Argentinian, also lots of wine and meat.
11:28So Pablo rarely leaves his town.
11:37And we too realize that for this evening, we don't need anything else.
11:42This is all very well, but only one question is still on our minds.
11:49Don't you feel sometimes alone out here?
11:52No, no, no.
11:54The birds, the grits, the birds, everything.
11:58No.
11:59It's too difficult.
12:01When we're raising our children, we're all here.
12:04We're all here.
12:05My lady is calm.
12:06She's alone.
12:07I'm alone.
12:08I'm alone.
12:09We're all here.
12:10We're all here.
12:14When we set out on our search for the loneliest man in the world,
12:18we had expected to meet a bitter human being.
12:21But here in the Argentinian Atlantis, we found quite the opposite.
12:25An 85-year-old who is hospitable and full of joie de vivre.
12:29And who also, just on the side, makes an incredible asado.
12:42In the end, we are sure Pablo isn't lonely at all.
12:45He is happy.
12:48What do you wish for the future of Villa Epecuen?
13:07At the moment, there are no plans of rebuilding the ruins of Villa Epecuen.
13:12But as long as Pablo is living here, he will keep his city alive.
13:29And so we leave Pablo and this mysterious place and travel to Mazda City.
13:35Pomp and splendor wherever you look.
13:41Indoor skiing facilities at 45 degrees outside temperature.
13:45The United Arab Emirates are not really known for saving energy.
13:50Therefore, even more surprising, 25 kilometers away from the center of Abu Dhabi,
13:55the sheikhs are building a city of the future.
13:5940,000 people are supposed to live here one day.
14:02At the moment, the complex has 500 inhabitants.
14:05Ten years ago, the Emirates' prime minister's brother commissioned the eco-city to be built.
14:12But by car, we can only reach the edge of Mazda City,
14:15as inside this place there are no roads accessible to cars.
14:19We're sent to catch a very special train at the PRT station.
14:25PRT stands for Personal Rapid Transport,
14:29a transportation system with autonomously driven cabins big enough for four people.
14:35The future of mobility could look like this for us, too.
14:39The cabins move on magnetic tracks that are in the ground.
14:42Originally, there were supposed to be 100 stops.
14:45But currently, the further development is stalling.
14:49The ride to the city of the future isn't very far.
14:51Already after three minutes, we have arrived at our destination,
14:55the center of Mazda City.
14:58Because we had to get filming permission first, we are already being expected.
15:03Our custodian doesn't want to be filmed, but will accompany us.
15:07After all, Mazda City is a very prestigious project for the sheikh.
15:10Being in contact with many other cultures is normal in Mazda City.
15:15People from 70 nations work here.
15:18But we don't see many locals.
15:21So what makes this place different to other cities?
15:24Our first impression?
15:25It may be hot, but the 43 degrees outside temperature feels quite airy.
15:30And the houses seem to be different to other cities.
15:33There are hardly any windows.
15:35Everything is oddly screened off.
15:37Some buildings have a sort of shell around them.
15:40Others are on stilts.
15:45And right in the center there is a tower that is open at the bottom.
15:49Clearly a kind of chimney.
15:51But what is it for?
15:56The man who can explain this best to us is the man who co-designed everything here.
15:59The architect Chris Wan.
16:02He too isn't a local.
16:04The Londoner was given the task of designing some of the buildings in the city of the future.
16:09He shows us how everything here is geared towards cooling.
16:13As one of the main energy consumers in this region are air conditioning machines.
16:17All the faces of the buildings are designed in a way that no sunlight can directly enter.
16:26This is helped by special windows with circular coatings.
16:30They keep the light off from outside, but you can look through them from the inside.
16:35The stilts of the houses are also a means of cooling.
16:38On the windy side of the building they are far apart.
16:42This way lots of air streams inside that then travels to the courtyard through a much smaller opening.
16:49This creates a kind of jet stream effect.
16:52And what about the strange tower?
16:54Its purpose is not to make something go upwards.
16:57What is up there is supposed to come down.
16:59As at the top of the tower nozzles spray little droplets of water into it.
17:02You can see here it is catching the wind and there is a misting device at the top that cools the air which makes it heavier and comes down and across.
17:12This means the cooled air at the top uses the chimney's effect and while travelling downwards creates cooling wind that in turn lowers the temperature in the surrounding squares.
17:25The architect gets us to feel the temperature of the floor near the tower.
17:30And really it is cooler here than in the surroundings.
17:34And friendly Mr. Wan also helps us gain access to the student accommodation in the city.
17:39Most of the pupils have scholarships and may live here free of charge.
17:44People who want to be accepted at this elite university need to have good grades, many letters of recommendation and need to pass language tests.
17:52Tomasz from Poland has managed to achieve all of the above and has been studying biochemistry in Mazda City for three years.
18:01To date the 300 students make up most of the population of the city.
18:05So this is the living room.
18:06Yes.
18:08This is the living room.
18:10We have the kitchen over there and the bedroom and the bathroom.
18:14So all in one.
18:16We can't find any real luxury here but normally the students aren't used to having it anyway.
18:21However, due to the lack of sunlight the flat feels a little gloomy.
18:25But there is no window. Do you sometimes miss the sunlight?
18:28Actually I have to say I do.
18:29We learn what Tomasz likes most about this place is the sense of momentum that exists everywhere here.
18:39It's not like any other university where you just go study and live.
18:44Here you come, you study and you live at the same time.
18:47You live the concept, you are surrounded by these ideas and about this wonderful creativity that is everywhere around.
18:53In the beginning there was still a person employed to tell the students when they were using too much energy.
19:01Now there is a monitor in each flat that also displays emails and calendars.
19:06But unfortunately it isn't completely working yet.
19:13Instead he proudly shows us what his university already has to offer.
19:17A well stocked library and huge laboratories.
19:19The school is supposed to become an elite facility for scientists working on the topic of sustainability.
19:26At the moment ten different subjects are taught here.
19:29Tomasz and his colleagues are for example trying to find out what could best be done with plants and biomass here in the desert.
19:36So basically in all these six tubes we can see a growth of algae species in different conditions.
19:51It may sound unspectacular and theoretical but Tomasz sends us where this is already practically used.
19:58One kilometer outside of Mazda city in the middle of the desert.
20:02There has been a fish farm here for a while which is really quite special.
20:08Normal aquacultures often have environmental issues regarding the waste water from the fish tanks.
20:14Scientist Hendrik Wisser shows us how these problems can cleverly be solved using biochemistry.
20:21And this is how it works.
20:23In the first basin the fish are bred.
20:25Their excrement is very rich in nutrients and is therefore moved onto a second tank through the water exchange.
20:33There the waste provides the best nutrients for salt water loving plants whose seeds can be turned into biofuel.
20:41Then everything continues in basin number three where there are mangroves.
20:45They completely clean the water and all of it can be pumped back into the basin with the fish.
20:52This altogether is a completely clean circle.
20:55The idea is that if we can prove that this concept works in the UAE where it's very hot, very salty water, we can export that idea to anywhere else around the world.
21:03On our way back from the fish farm we discover a strange construction that looks more like something out of a science fiction movie.
21:12We want to find out what this giant made of steel and mirrors exactly is and therefore meet the Frenchman Nicolas Claver and his team of scientists from Mazda City.
21:22They are working on new methods of using solar energy more efficiently and more cheaply.
21:27We want to store energy during day when we have lots of sun to reuse it at night and continue to produce electricity even when we don't have sun.
21:38Their idea is the following.
21:41Around the UFO there are parabolic mirrors on stilts.
21:45They concentrate the sunlight and then reflect it up towards other mirrors.
21:50These concentrate the light again and send it downwards to a container filled with salt crystals.
21:55Due to the bundling up of the light great heat is produced here at over 500 degrees centigrade.
22:02The crystals melt and thusly contain the energy now.
22:06This way they save up the energy and it can be used once required to produce electricity.
22:12The new thing about this idea similar solar thermic energy plants have to pump the salty liquid up a high tower using a lot of energy themselves.
22:19This is not necessary in this construction. Solar energy can now be produced more cheaply.
22:27At the moment this project is still in its test phase.
22:31But we find out already today solar energy is cheaper in the UAE than other electricity.
22:37And why would it be any different? The sun shines here on 365 days a year.
22:42Slowly it is becoming clear. Mazda City isn't a PR stunt.
22:48With green technologies it is possible to make serious money here.
22:52Simply because of this the next buildings of Mazda City are already being built at a rapid pace.
22:59Already within the next five years the Sheikh's city of the future is supposed to double its size compared to today.
23:06We are leaving this incredible town and are making our way to Wenling in China.
23:14Here there is supposed to be a strange house. We ask for directions.
23:19Where are you?
23:20I know.
23:21Where are you?
23:22I know.
23:23I know.
23:24Where are you?
23:25I know.
23:26I know.
23:27Where are you?
23:28Where are you?
23:29Where are you?
23:30Where are you?
23:31I know.
23:32Where are you?
23:33Where are you?
23:34We are driving into said direction.
23:38The area looks like a war zone.
23:41Everywhere there are half-destroyed houses. Something is going on here.
23:46Nobody seems to live here anymore.
23:49We stop by the side of the road and ask the workers who are in the middle of tearing down a building what the strange house is all about.
23:55Hello.
24:12Why have you not cut these houses?
24:14The houses, these houses, the houses, they have to a fixed house.
24:18We have to fix the houses.
24:19and the workers are still busy tearing everything down more and more houses are vanishing
24:28but what happened to the residents
24:32we continue our drive and after the next bend there is really a house right in the middle of
24:39the road is this the house that we are looking for there is not much traffic here yet so we park up
24:48right next to the building are we in the correct place from the balcony of a neighboring house we
24:54see that it is it looks pretty run down on the sides you can see where the other buildings around
25:07it were torn down and the higher levels look as if they are uninhabitable does somebody really live
25:16there in a ruin in the middle of a road
25:21let's see if someone will open up
25:39Luo Baogen is 67 years old and has been living right in the center of the road for over a year
25:45with his wife the road is completely new and was constructed around his house the tarmac leads to
25:52the also newly erected train station of Wenling a short while ago the city of over one million
25:58inhabitants was connected to the high-speed train network the residents had to move away and the
26:04municipal government compensated them with about 27 000 dollars so they could buy a new property
26:10somewhere else 400 families had to move because of the mammoth project but one person refused
26:18Luo Baogen he feels that the compensation is not enough he wants more money from the government
26:24so together with his wife he is holding his ground the government have increased their offer to 32 000
26:52dollars but the couple are still refusing
27:06over time Luo Baogen's face keeps getting more and more well known
27:10at first blogs and social media report about him
27:18then national television
27:24by now Luo Baogen is famous all over the world
27:28rehousing of people due to building projects often occurs in china as well as property owners that refuse to
27:34leave the Chinese call these people and their houses nails and nail houses
27:42but no one has ever held out as long as Luo Baogen therefore the internet community calls him
27:49the hardest nail of all time 20 years ago he already lived here
27:55Luo Baogen is a duck farmer he raises his ducks at a little pond just across the road
28:01but unfortunately he doesn't make a lot of money from this
28:09so he grows his vegetables and rice himself
28:14in order to buy his house he had to borrow the money
28:18he is also fighting so fiercely for a better offer because of the debt
28:22it is not really living in the house anymore the upper floors are empty
28:29formerly Luo Baogen's daughter used to stay here with his grandchildren but they moved out a long time ago
28:36the house attracts many curious onlookers every couple of minutes somebody stops to take a picture
28:41and many encouraged Luo Babaogen
28:50i want for my friends talk to us
28:58foreign
29:01plain
29:04or
29:05I don't care about you, right?
29:10Right?
29:11It's a problem with the road.
29:13It's not a good place.
29:15Good place.
29:16We will go to the city, right?
29:18Okay.
29:19If I go to the city, I don't want to go.
29:23Right?
29:24I want to make a new house again.
29:25Right?
29:26It's not a long time ago.
29:28It's not a long time ago.
29:32Many are surprised as to how long the protest has been tolerated.
29:53In order to chase nail house inhabitants away, the government have been known to turn off the electricity and the water.
30:13At Luau Baogen's house, everything is still working.
30:16Have you ever thought that the authorities are slowly getting fed up with us being here and the subsequent attention?
30:33This black pickup truck keeps driving past the house.
30:37Luau Baogen is very nervous now.
30:39Are you on the phone?
30:40Huh?
30:41Are you on the phone?
30:42Ha?
30:43Are you on the phone?
30:44Huh?
30:45Are you on the phone?
30:46Huh?
30:47After a longer phone conversation, he doesn't want to speak to us any more, not even inside the house.
30:52Again and again, he suddenly stops the interviews.
30:56He takes us to the door.
31:11Luau Ba Gen is hoping for the issue to be settled soon, and he doesn't want to ruin
31:15the chance of this happening through the interviews.
31:17Of course, we respect this.
31:19He is afraid that in our radio microphone, there is a hidden government transmitter
31:23and gives it back to us.
31:26We don't want to agitate Luau Ba Gen even more and drive back to our hotel.
31:45The next morning, we want to speak to him again.
31:49But a police car is on patrol outside the house and prevents us from parking in front
31:54of it.
31:55The police tell us that we may not film here anymore.
31:59Apparently, everyone, including passers-by and onlookers, are being sent away.
32:06From now on, we are under surveillance.
32:08We have to go back to the hotel.
32:11There, a government official is already waiting for us.
32:15But she doesn't want to say anything on camera.
32:18She informs us that the police is supposed to keep the peace at the house so the negotiations
32:23with Luau Ba Gen can continue.
32:25Meanwhile, we want to know how do the people that already moved away live now?
32:34Gen-Jiu-Chan and his wife Ying Feng Ling were re-housed two years ago.
32:40With the compensation money, they built a house on this new property.
32:46On the bottom floor, they have opened a supermarket.
32:50The lady from the government follows each of our steps.
32:53Of course, now the couple's answers are anything but critical.
33:05That Luau Baogen could get more money than them in the end
33:08due to his protest doesn't bother them.
33:20If it's higher, it's higher.
33:22It's important to take it off.
33:23It's not good to look at the place.
33:26It's not going to hurt the roof.
33:31And really, shortly after we had to leave the area,
33:35the house is torn down.
33:37A Chinese colleague was able to film with a small camera.
33:41What happened?
33:41Did Luau Baogen give up?
33:43He is nowhere to be seen.
33:45We try to reach him via telephone.
33:47His wife picks up.
33:50They're pretty good now, right?
33:53Yeah, pretty good.
33:54They're pretty good, pretty good, pretty good.
33:58The couple have accepted the government's offer of $32,000.
34:02Also, they're going to be given a plot of land in another area.
34:05It seems as if they didn't get into trouble.
34:09We have to pay for the money.
34:14Right?
34:15No, no, no, no.
34:17Why exactly they gave up now, we will never find out.
34:27It also remains unclear why we weren't allowed to film the all-in-all positive outcome of
34:32the story.
34:35And finally, now Chinese television is extensively reporting the tearing down of the hardest nail
34:40nail house in history.
34:42We are leaving China and are moving on to Wieliczka in Poland.
34:48The cathedral of Wieliczka, underground and made entirely out of salt.
34:56Through an unassuming door we enter.
34:59For over 900 years salt has been dug up here.
35:02Commercial mining was only stopped 20 years ago.
35:07First we have to walk down some steps.
35:09To be more specific, 380 of them.
35:12We are now 64 meters underground and begin our tour in a chapel that is normally closed
35:26to visitors of the mine.
35:27It is the oldest chapel, dedicated to St. Anthony and was built in the 17th century.
35:38But sadly it is in very bad condition.
35:42We almost can't recognize any of the old statues.
35:45For a long time warmth and damp air entered the chapel and due to the high amounts of condensation
35:51the statues were destroyed.
35:54Over time the rocks oxidized and patinated like silver covered with dust.
35:59But everything is pure salt here.
36:05Here in Wieliczka the salt isn't in the ground in layers but in big lumps.
36:10Therefore unique halls and chambers come to exist when it is extracted.
36:25For the caves not to collapse they had to be supported by elaborate wooden constructions.
36:30The bigger the block of salt the bigger the halls whose wooden frames are pieces of art in themselves.
36:41Like this 35 meter high cave from the 17th century.
36:47The pillars were built in 1905.
36:50200 years ago this chamber was practically empty.
36:53The stairs were somewhere on the side and everything was dark in here.
37:02The salt was chiseled from the rock by hand and shaped into cylinders so that it could be rolled more easily.
37:08Salt is heavy.
37:09It weighs twice as much as water.
37:12A cylinder like this weighs 1.5 tons.
37:15In order to take it up to the surface there were different aids such as pulleys or horse mills.
37:30The horses too were lowered down into the mine in special slings this way.
37:35In 2002 the last horse was hoisted up to the surface and retired.
37:41We carry on deeper into the mountain to the second tier in over 90 meters depth.
37:46Here the chapel of St. Cunga is located.
37:50This is the real attraction of the former mine.
37:57The miners used to extract two different kinds of salt here.
38:03Apart from only digging up salt the miners also utilized their artistic skills
38:08and used the created cavities in order to produce amazing places for the generations to come.
38:30Everything here is made out of salt.
38:38Only three miners created this incredible cathedral within about 70 years of building time.
38:51From the floor to the statues to the chandelier everything is made of salt.
38:56Every week mass is held here.
38:58The grotto is a consecrated church 100 meters below the ground.
39:03For over 700 years tourists have been led through the piece of art made from salt.
39:09Copernicus, Goethe and Jim Carrey have already been here.
39:14For the miners the chapels had a great significance.
39:17The work was dangerous and every day they prayed that they would come back to see daylight again.
39:26Equipped like real miners we go down into a shaft from the 15th century.
39:31Without any lighting and decorations the salt chambers are less inviting.
39:42What isn't looked after regularly falls victim to decay.
39:50Small chapels and prayer alcoves can also be found everywhere here.
39:54The oldest is from the 17th century.
39:57An amazing labyrinth of corridors and chambers.
40:00For us novices completely unfathomable.
40:05Totally as a surprise 100 meters below the ground.
40:08Suddenly a cave with a huge obelisk dedicated to the emperor of Austria.
40:13As a memoir to his visit sometime during the 19th century.
40:17And we carry on even deeper down.
40:20Our destination is the hall of Maria Teresa.
40:23Also from the time of the Kaiser.
40:27The salt mine of Violicka is absolutely unique.
40:30Huge halls, a gigantic cathedral, frescoes and statues.
40:35Everything made of salt and deep below the ground.
40:38We leave this fascinating place and travel on to Hong Kong.
40:54A ship in the middle of the city.
40:56From above it's an incredible sight.
40:59Surrounded by skyscrapers and rush hour traffic.
41:02A stranded passenger liner?
41:04How in the world did it get here?
41:14We head for the district of Hong Kong.
41:16That's where it's supposed to be.
41:18The city ship.
41:19Huge high-rise buildings all around.
41:22And right in the middle we find it.
41:24A real ship.
41:25Completely seaworthy.
41:27110 meters long.
41:3120 meters high.
41:32And 14 meters wide.
41:34Right in the middle of the street.
41:36The only water in sight is a little puddle.
41:39So we'd like to know what the ship is doing here.
41:46It's not, but it's pretty special.
41:48It's not a place in Hong Kong.
41:48It's not a place in Hong Kong.
41:50It's not a place in Hong Kong.
41:52So nobody here is surprised by a huge passenger ship in the middle of the city.
42:10We want to know a bit more about all this, so we take a look inside the vessel.
42:15In an area over 130,000 square meters in size, there are 300 shops, cinemas, game halls and
42:27even a bowling alley.
42:28We are in the shopping mall.
42:30And there's even a gourmet restaurant.
42:33Inside you don't notice you're in an unusual structure.
42:40We still don't really know the story behind the stranded ship.
42:43So we've come to see Agnes, PR spokeswoman for the mall.
42:47Apparently the building has cult status.
43:04The shopping mall was only constructed in the ship quite recently.
43:08Before that, it was empty for a few years.
43:11Agnes shows us the deck.
43:13From the railing to the radio mast, everything is in perfect working order.
43:18This ship really could sail away.
43:20And there she lies in a sea of skyscrapers.
43:26We leave this impressive place and travel to a place just off the coast of Taiwan.
43:43We are looking for hearts that are supposed to be in the sea.
43:49The island, with its 60,000 inhabitants, uses two hearts for its advertising wherever it can.
43:56And not even ten minutes after we've set off, we already find them.
43:59The twin hearts, a stone formation right in the middle of the ocean.
44:04It almost looks as if someone had simply placed a huge necklace in the sea.
44:13We even find a viewing platform.
44:16But wherever we look, no tourists.
44:18On the information board it says that the twin hearts were especially built by the islanders.
44:24But why? The only information board in the area does not answer this question.
44:36Somebody has to be able to tell us what they are all about.
44:40Are they art or some kind of superstition?
44:42So we drive to the next village.
44:46Maybe somebody here can tell us more.
44:48I do not know what they are called.
44:50We go over there, we should go to the river.
44:55We start to make a river and grow.
44:56I do not know the river.
44:57We can't believe that the river is a wave.
44:58That is what we are doing.
45:00We use a boat to the river,
45:02we am doing a boat to the river.
45:03We use a boat to the river,
45:05and we will follow the boat,
45:06and we'll gather theado of this country like that.
45:07We will actually get the boat.
45:10And now the boat around the river,
45:12and we can get the boat to the river,
45:13and they will be getting the boat to the river.
45:15And they see how they are on the boat and they bring it in.
45:18Our friendly gentleman also has another tip for us.
45:21He says that it only gets really exciting near the hearts in the afternoon.
45:29And really, on our second visit, the platform is heaving with tourists
45:33with their selfie sticks and happy couples.
45:36As we look more closely, we discover why.
45:39The tide is low and the hearts made of stone are clearly visible now.
45:43Then something starts to happen at the shore.
45:48Xin Hao and Chong Hua appear.
45:53Everyone has been waiting for these two men.
46:03So they are not artists, just two fishermen that have come to see to their fish trap.
46:08Their grandfathers carefully piled the structure up by hand.
46:12And this is how it works.
46:14The tide drives the fish in the direction of the heart.
46:18Through the small opening, they swim into the basins.
46:20And due to the currents, they can't get back out again.
46:23When the tide is low, the water level sinks and the animals are caught inside the heart.
46:35Probably the easiest way of catching fish ever.
46:37On Magong Island, the people have been fishing like this for centuries.
46:44Xin Hao and Chong Hua only have to drag their nets through the water for a couple of minutes.
46:49A job that doesn't take any longer than 20 minutes.
46:52But, somehow, there aren't really that many fish in the net in the end.
47:01To be precise, not a single edible one.
47:04Coincidence?
47:06I've seen a lot of fish in the Michigan area.
47:17When it comes to the fishing area, if they have a fish for a long time, this may seem too
47:21more tight and less than a week.
47:22So the islanders really used to fish like this.
47:28used to fish like this. Today, it is only show. The fishermen may not make any money
47:33from the spectacle, but are happy that visitors come to their island. We leave the hearts
47:40in the sea and travel to our last mysterious place, to Ha Long in Vietnam. From here, we
47:47set out on our journey, three hours across the open sea. At the bottom of some sheltering
47:54rocks in the middle of the ocean, the floating village of Kwa Hwan is located. 700 inhabitants
48:01live here. There are neither any streets nor cars, and the people are mainly fishermen.
48:07One of them is Hung. Hung and the villagers are so-called water nomads. They only
48:24settled here ten years ago in Kwa Hwan. Previously, nobody lived here. The houses are attached to
48:30the rocks with ropes. Polystyrene and airfield spheres keep them afloat. They make the houses
48:37swim. Seventy children live in Kwa Hwan and none of them have ever set foot on land. Early
48:47on they learn how to row with their hands and feet. This keeps the villagers fit. Lin is seven
48:53years old, and for a year now, she's been rowing to school every morning.
48:58The school is probably the only floating school in the world. The pier in front of the school,
49:15at a length of six meters, is the longest walkway in the village. Once a week, wholesalers from
49:24the mainland, which is three hours away, sell their wares to the traders in the village.
49:29Kwa Hwan is the oldest vendor in here. She would like to leave this place like almost all the
49:34adults here.
49:41Electricity, a car, and a television are Kwa Hwan's dream. Meat and vegetables are very sought after
50:00in the village, as normally there is only fish. Fisherman Hung still doesn't want to leave.
50:23With his income from the fishing, Hung mainly buys rice in order to feed his wife and child.
50:28For six months, Hien from Hanoi has been teaching the three-year groups in the village. Very quickly,
50:33she realized that teaching here is very different.
50:35Very quickly, she realized that teaching here is very different.
50:37Very quickly, she realized that teaching here is very different.
50:41The legends say that a dragon plowed through the land with its tail, and this way created almost
50:482,000 limestone rocks in the middle of the sea. Thanks to these rocks, the water village even survived the tsunami.
50:54Cora Ngoi Guam What??
50:55Cora Ngoi Hwan, she also found that the water yield
50:56of the hills. In it's a river, it looked like a river, but it has more than just a river.
51:00Cora Ngoi Hwan, she was so in the wild and were not just to see the river.
51:01The legends say that a dragon plowed through the land with its tail, and this way created almost
51:032,000 limestone rocks in the middle of the sea. Thanks to these rocks, the water village even
51:06survived the tsunami.
51:07of the tsunami.
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