01x01 - Venice Albania and Turkey

[bunniefuu]

This is the start of my most
adventurous and exotic journey yet.

But I'm beginning somewhere
that will be familiar to most of us.

Today, millions of people visit Venice

for her glorious art and
her flamboyant architecture.

But everything here comes from the wealth

which was gained by the Venetians

when they turned their eyes to the East

and started trading along a route

that stretched from here, right across to China.

This 7,000-mile journey follows the route

of the legendary Silk Road,

whose ancient travellers and
traders shaped so much of how we live.

These little darlings have made
people richer than a king's ransom.

From the unique and surprising
traditions of Azerbaijan...

..to the stunning desert citadels of Central Asia...

Oh, my Lord!

..and the lost civilisations of Iran...

GASPS I mean, the scale of it!

..the impact of the Silk Road is huge.

Holy smoke.

It's so hot!

How lovely is this?

The air's like silk.

It's like being in a jewel box.

It's quite extraordinary to come to this place.

It is so remote.

But I'm here.

This first leg takes us from majestic Venice,

through Albania, to wealthy Istanbul...

They are gold? Gold-plated.

Wow.

..and on to the mysterious caves of Cappadocia.

This is very small.

I meet the wild shepherds of
the remote highlands of Turkey.

No, thank you. LAUGHS

So won't you come with me on my Silk Road adventure,

on a journey along a road that
literally changed all our lives?

Avanti batello! But not too fast.

This extraordinary city, built in the sea

by people fleeing their enemies,

with sailing and trading in their blood,

grew to have one of the richest
and most powerful empires in history.

I can remember coming to Venice for the first time

when I was maybe in my late 20s or early 30s,

and I couldn't think why I'd never
been here before. It seems to me

one of the most important places in the world to visit.

Because you can't get your
head round it. It's in the sea.

This is saltwater we're driving
on. It's absolutely astonishing.

Venice became one of the richest
and most influential cities in Europe,

all because of the trade that came along the Silk Road.

And it's the perfect place to start my adventure.

All over the city, you see evidence
of other influences coming in.

It feels quite different from other Italian cities.

And that's simply because it
was one of the end destinations

of the Silk Road. Everything came to Venice.

It was revelling in everything
new, it grabbed all the new ideas.

A luxurious, shimmering fabric,

made thousands of miles away in China,

was one of the most valuable imports to Venice,

And was the moneymaking catalyst
that gave the Silk Road its name.

Once, there were 30,000 silk workers in Venice.

But these days, it's a very exclusive business.

Oh, look, Bevilacqua.

That's where we are going.

The Bevilacqua family has been
involved with silk for 500 years

and today has a client list that includes the Kremlin,

the White House, and a
plethora of high-fashion labels.

Buongiorno. Buongiorno.

Please come in. Thank you.

A treasure trove. GASPS

Here, they specialise in

some of the finest, most intricate
silk brocades in the world...

Look at this.

..and the family owns a priceless
archive of over 3,500 patterns

that date back to Byzantine times.

Alberto, tell me everything about silk.

Probably was discovered in China. Yeah.

And imported in Europe in the 13th century.

They say by Marco Polo. Marco Polo.

Yes, yes. When did they make velvet?

Who invented that? When did they make it?

A genius. A genius.

Velvet was produced in Venice from 14th century.

Venice was very famous in the Renaissance period

for the velvet production and
also for all fabrics production,

so all merchants came here in
Venice to buy the most beautiful fabrics.

I read that there were 6,000 looms in Venice alone.

And we are the only one left now. No! Yeah.

Look at all these different
colours moving into there.

Bevilacqua's silk brocades are all still made by hand

on looms that are hundreds of years old.

Incredibly skilful, the way she
cuts with this little cutting machine,

and then she whips one of these metal blades out,

feeds it in the other side, and
then about four shuttles of this.

Maddalena, is it quite easy to do? Shall I have a go?

No. No?

You need years and years to learn this.

Do you? Yeah.

I mean, the whole thing, it's got a mystery.

And you think that the world, in the old days,

every bit of fabric made was made on looms like this.

Gee whiz. Respect.

From its first appearance in
Europe, silk was highly prized.

Workshops across Venice laboured day and night

to satisfy the fever for silk.

In those days, it must have
seemed like a gift from heaven. Yeah.

But hand looms like these

can only produce around


It's so fine, it's almost unbelievable.

How much? How much does it cost?

A lot. Yes. Around 5,000 euros per metre.

This may be an ancient craft...

Look at this.

..but you still have to exit via
the very contemporary gift shop.

So this is handmade. What are we talking about,

what kind of money are you going to set me back

for this gorgeous thing, Maddalena? About 1,500.

I'll take five.

Hoo-hoo-hoo!

Silk, cotton, glass, spices, flowers,

medicines, horses, philosophy, architecture.

All these things travelled along the Silk Road.

But not everything it brought was welcome.

Three times, the bubonic plague
came to Venice via the Silk Road.

In the last attack, in 1629, it k*lled 50,000 people,

a third of the city's population.

The Santa Maria della Salute,
which means St Mary of Good Health,

was built to give thanks to God

for those who managed to survive the awful ordeal.

Little, narrow alleyway, look
at that. Only as wide as this.

A bit of a whiff here.

They always say a bit of a smell, you want that,

you don't want a non-smelling Venice.

It's fitting that this great seafaring nation

has a boat as its best-known icon.

Gondolas have been around for over 1,000 years,

and the wealthy Venetians used them as private limos.

Such was the excess of gaudy
decoration in the 16th century

that the government decreed they must all be black.

Which is your gondola, is it over there?

It's over there today. The one on its own.

I'm not working, the gondola's covered for the night.

How many gondoliers are there in Venice?

We are 433. You know that exactly?

It is a fixed number. The government
fixes the number of licences.

That's all? Yeah.

Is this your uniform? Yes.
Does everybody wear the same?

All the drivers have to wear the shirt like this,

blue and white or red and white. Do you have a hat?

I have the hat, it's in the
boat. We usually leave it there.

Is that part of the uniform?

Yes, even if most of the
gondoliers don't like it too much,

because it's really uncomfortable. LAUGHS

But we wear it.

Gondoliers have a reputation of being lady-K*llers,

everybody adores a gondolier.
Is that true, are you a lady-k*ller?

Me, not. For sure, while we are driving the boat,

it's easier to meet people,
and sometimes, it's easy to...

Be charming. Yeah.

And be very fit. Yeah, most of us, yes.

And we sit there going, "How lovely."

One man whose name is synonymous
with the Silk Road is Marco Polo.

When he was just a teenager, his father and uncle,

already established traders, took him on a gap year

that would turn into an odyssey
through countless countries

from Italy to China.

Marco's account would become

one of the most important
travel documents ever written.

When Marco Polo returned to Venice, 1295,

he'd been away for 17 years. He'd left when he was 17.

He'd changed so much that
his family couldn't recognise him

by his appearance and his language.

He'd forgotten his native Venetian

and he just looked and behaved quite differently.

After all, he'd been staying
with Kubla Khan in Xanadu,

these legendary names.

And he had, of course, amassed a cache of treasures.

He was the first Merchant of Venice.

Marco, his father, and uncle
Matteo, were made trusted envoys

of the mighty 13th century
Mongolian Emperor Kubla Khan.

They were issued with a special type of passport,

a foot-long solid gold bar,

which - aside from weighing them down a tad -

guaranteed them safe passage
through Khan's vast empire,

that stretched all across Asia.

During their travels, they would see paper money,

gunpowder and porcelain for the very first time.

Alessandra. Joanna. Welcome.

Ciao. Grazie.

Dr Alessandra Schiavon has unearthed,

from deep within the Venetian archives,

some rarely-seen 14th century documents

with a remarkable link to the Polo family.

Alessandra, what are these documents here?

Alessandra has also uncovered evidence

of some surprising artefacts that
were passed down within the family.

Wow. Wow.

Wow.

It may seem odd to see spices listed in a will,

but back then, pepper was known
as black gold, and was worth a fortune.

These ancient documents
have brought the past to life,

and they paint a vivid picture of
the Silk Road's huge influence.

Alessandra, I am beginning this long journey

to follow some of the routes that the Silk Road took.

It is so thrilling to start our story with Marco Polo,

because he's a name of such legendary fame.

So you've given me good luck for my journey

and I want to thank you very much indeed.

BOTH GIGGLE You are a honey.

It's always sad to leave a city of such beauty.

But it's time to get moving.

Ciao, Venezia, ciao Serenissima!

Venice's trading empire was
connected by fortified ports.

I'm hopping 600 miles down the Adriatic

to one of them, the city of
Durres on the coast of Albania.

For 40 years, Albania was a communist dictatorship.

But since breaking free in 1989,

its rugged mountains and Mediterranean climate

have been attracting people from all over the world.

This is Durres, which was a Venetian stronghold.

But I tell you the truth, it
doesn't look remotely Venetian,

or even Roman or Italian, in any way.

These days, it seems to have been colonised

by middle-aged sun worshippers.

But in the past, it was the Greeks, Romans,

Ottomans and Germans who tried to take over.

This is good, bit Roman, bit gladiatorial.

I've come here on the hunt for an ancient Roman highway

that became a vital part of the Silk Road.

And this is the Venetian tower.

This was built to mark the
beginning of the Via Egnatia,

the Roman road which ran all the way to Istanbul.

All I've got to do now is find it.

GASPS Rruga Egnatia!

That way to the sea, this, inland.

Most of the ancient 600-mile-long
Via Egnatia is long gone.

But archaeologist Dr Ols Laffer has a hunch

he knows where part of the original road still exists,

just to the east of the town of Elbasan.

So it started off originally,
Roman legions marching along

and their eagles on banners and things like this.

Saints came along, Crusaders.

Roman roads were like modern highways.

Ols has brought us to this narrow gorge,

apparently with good reason.

After Roman soldiers were persistently attacked

in such places, it became
policy to build roads around them.

So he and I are heading for the hills.

GASPS My God, are we on the way?

Is it here? Well, we will look for it.

Have you been here before?
No. I haven't been on this section

of the Roman road. Gosh, so we are hunting together.

I think this is real archaeology
happening right now, the two of us.

You lead the way, Ols. All right.

Ols, can I have your hand? Thank you.

Shale-y, slippery. Yeah.

Don't fall down the gorge and leave me.

Ha! I will not.

What do you think? We should be very close.

This looks quite good, doesn't it? A bit Roman road-y.

You can feel it. You are on a path here. You see?

Is this it? Is this the Roman road?
Yes, this is a section of the road.

Wow. It's not that I'm, you
know, a pessimist or anything,

but I'm not sure this is centurion rock.

It might be. But it doesn't tell me it is.

Well, if you can hold on for another


Ols, I can see it now. Now I get it.

Sturdy. Yeah.

Lots of layers. Yep, pretty flat.

Pretty good for walking on.
Look, on these very stones!

You just have to imagine the carts and the horses

and the people travelling on the roads.

Look, a centurion's thigh bone. LAUGHS

They were much smaller in those days.

This was the highway

linking the eastern part of
the Adriatic to Constantinople,

to modern-day Istanbul.

It was THE road. It has been
here for over 2,000 years. Gee.

This is the Via Egnatia, this is part of the Silk Road.

Apart from being the Roman
road, this is part of the road

that went not only to Constantinople - far beyond.

So coming along here were silks from China

and gunpowder and paper. Connecting the dots.

East and West coming together on a big road.

Wow.

The Romans were obsessed with silk,

so much so that the Senate tried to ban it.

Too much Roman gold was going to China

and the fabric was thought to be far too revealing.

Centuries after the Romans were here,

this whole area was part of the Ottoman Empire.

And some stunning physical legacies remain.

This is the classical Ottoman Bridge.

I love it here. Albania is so beautiful.

Thank you. It's so full of richness.

Culture, people, the food, the wine. Good wine?

Mm-hm. We should try it. LAUGHS

Don't tell me in your backpack... There is a bottle.

Did you bring a corkscrew? I brought everything.

How do I say cheers? Gezuar.

Gezuar. Gezuar.

Mmm.

Leaving Elyria, as Albania was known,

the road stretches on through
Greece, Macedonia and Turkey,

ending in one of the most
important cities in the world...

Straddling both Europe and Asia,

Istanbul, formerly Constantinople,

is where trade routes, cultures
and religions have long collided.

Christianity, Judaism, Islam,
and the mystical Sufism -

still practised by the Whirling Dervishes.

The city is a fabulous mix of people and beliefs.

For 2,000 years, this city
has been throbbing with life,

with traders, with merchants,
with missionaries, with soldiers,

with everybody rushing through here to buy and sell.

It's now got 19 million people,
but even in the old days,

everybody in the world came here.

From China, bringing their goods for Egypt,

Venetians bringing their stuff

to come through up to Russia and to India.

It was always the centre.

Istanbul's Galata district
was an ancient trading hub.

In the 13th century, this was
the non-Muslim part of the city,

where Venetian and Genoese
trading colonies were established.

This is the hardware district.

Everywhere you look, there are saws and grips and taps

and washers and nuts and bolts.

And of course, things made of lead and tin and iron,

which were transported up and
down the Silk Road in the old days.

This is part of the harbour on those
sort of docklands of the harbour.

So it's just absolutely thriving,

how it would have been in the old days.

Could I have some tea?

The mighty Bosphorus,

that connects the Black Sea with the Mediterranean,

is one of the busiest shipping channels in the world,

and is still the lifeblood of the city.

Can you see that beautiful
cream house with the red roof?

That's where I'm going. It's pretty fabulous,

I've been invited to have a look
round this very rich woman's house.

Successful traders have
always built their lavish houses

on the waterfront.

I'm going to meet Demet Sabanci Cetindogan,

whose family is one of Turkey's grandest...

What's my hair like?

..with assets believed to be worth
between £15 billion and £25 billion.

Merhaba.

Owning one of these houses is a
bit like having a Mayfair mansion,

and could set you back well over £100 million.

What a gorgeous place to bring somebody

to have them just sit and wait.

I don't feel like sitting down.
There are so many things.

GASPS How divine is this?

Hello. Demet!

You are a darling girl. Welcome to Istanbul.

Thank you so much. You are welcome.

This is a palace, this is a paradise, isn't it?

How long have you lived here? 18 years.



Your family has been
substantially wealthy for a long time?

The Sebanci family, we have a private bank,

one of the biggest private
banks at the moment in Turkey.

Cement factory, oil factory, a clothing factory,

so many different lines, we are in business. Yes.

Will you show me your beautiful house?

I am so thrilled to be here. I'm
not looking completely brilliant

because I came on the ferry. No, no, no, no.

Goodbye, beautiful room.

Demet has also introduced
some luxury brands to Turkey,

such as Alexander McQueen,
Gucci, and dear old Harvey Nicks.

GASPS This is the Turkish bath area.

This is very original type of toilet.

Yes, how adorable, how beautiful. Yes.

This is the original Turkish bath.

Do you still use this? Yes. My husband likes very much.

Could not be lovelier.

These are Ottoman silver mirrors.
They believe that it's an evil eye.

When you turn, you see the mirrors. Isn't that lovely?

After they see themselves, they turn it back.

Sometimes, at my age, I would like to keep it like this.

LAUGHS No.

I think we would quite like to
keep the mirrors turned to the wall,

just have a little glimpse in
very good lighting. Marvellous.

When it comes to her dining
room, Demet does nothing by halves.

My gosh. These look gold. Yes, they are gold.

They are gold? Gold-plated. Wow.

And look at those caricatures. Can you imagine?

She's got a bit of a look of Patsy about her, this one.

I've got a little bit of a
glass, going, "Hello, darling."

And I adore the subterranean swimming pool.

You could get, during dinner parties,

you could hire somebody to
swim, looking absolutely beautiful,

just down there. Yes!

If you want to understand the wealth

that trade between nations brings, come to Istanbul.

Thank you. Thank you so much. To your good health.

Thank you for coming. It's brilliant.

Asia is where the Silk Road splits and fragments.

In the centre of Turkey lies the
fairy-tale region of Cappadocia.

This area is famed for its astonishing landscapes,

peppered with thousands of intriguing caves.

And my hotel just happens to be inside one.

Come and look at this, it's fantastic.

This beautiful, beautiful place. Rough-cut stone.

These old walls. This gorgeous bathroom.

Alcoves for putting bags and bits and pieces.

How about that?

Look how well it converts into modern living.

It's not only modern living, but
extremely classy modern living.

And then through here, look, this dressing room.

This is a real little cave here.

My gosh, I wonder what went on
in these rooms all those years ago.

What would they have used this one for?

And out onto this fantastic
terrace, look at this view.

What a landscape.


ash rained down on Cappadocia.

Over millennia, nature has formed
these extraordinary rock formations.

A short drive south-east of my hotel

lies the little-known Keslik Monastery,

which looks like some kind of termite mound.

Little place, look at this.

Oh, it's so sad and shabby.

The interior of this tiny monastery

is, at first sight, defaced and vandalised.

Graffiti all over the place.

But, looking more carefully,

there seem to be faint
Christian figures staring back.

I can see pictures, I can see paintings.

Turkey is now a predominantly Muslim country,

but 2,000 years ago, St Paul travelled through here,

and Cappadocia converted to Christianity.

There are stories up there, I
can't quite see what they are.

And then a mass of people here.

Is it the Last Supper? What's going on?

That must have been Christ, with his face chipped off.

Oh, I wish these hadn't been destroyed.

Hello, welcome to monastery. You speak English.

My name is Jabir. Jabir, I'm Joanna.

Jabir Coskun grew up playing
amongst the ruins of the monastery,

and for generations,

his family have been the
unofficial guardians of the site.

What are the... Explaining? Yes, explaining. Yes.

Can you tell me, the black is from smoke?

Yes, long time ago, wintertime very cold,

people come in here, fires, all black.

Of course they do. Jabir, will you show me in here?

Is this the Last Supper? Last Supper here.

Sorry. Last Supper. That's the Last Supper.

How did you learn all this?

Where did you learn it, at school? No.

So you took it all in and you remembered it all.

Tell me, why are the faces... Who? What happened?

I was assuming that the defacing of these images

was done by non-Christians,

destroying something that
was against their beliefs.

But Jabir has learned of
another fascinating explanation.

Gosh. Well.

Just ten minutes down the
road, hidden in a high valley,

I'm told there is one of the
greatest jewels of Cappadocia,

in what used to be a pigeon loft.

Oh, look at these paintings!

This is majestic.

Absolutely every inch of it painted.

Bright and fresh, and all the details

which I couldn't see in the other little church.

This is the Dark Church, and it
took a decade of painstaking cleaning

to restore it to its present-day splendour.

Look at this. We've got a lovely angel here,

holding out his hands onto more angels,

touching them on the head, going, "There we are."

Nativity.

So, as ever, I make all this up as I go along

with the faintest grasp of my Christian upbringing

at a wonderful convent where they told us all this.

And I was sharpening my pencil at the back of the class

and drawing pictures of Elvis Presley.

But it did go in a bit.

Cappadocia's fairy-tale landscape
looks like nothing on earth,

no matter which way you look at it.

But below ground, archaeologists
are still uncovering its secrets.

Beneath the city of Nevsehir,
they recently discovered

an intricate, subterranean network of chambers,

where it's believed Silk
Road traders once took shelter.

It's being hailed as one of Turkey's
most important archaeological finds

in decades - and I've been granted exclusive access.

Hi, I'm Joanna. Sami.

Head archaeologist Sami is going to show me around.

This is extraordinary.

Hoo-hoo-hoo! Look at this,
Sami, it goes back and back.

This is where the horses
would have been tethered, is it,

and they would have eaten from here? Yeah.

Can see that's worn slightly from a rope,

somebody tying a horse or a camel or a mule, I guess.

My gosh.

They'd have been so cool in here, such a restful place.

Can you imagine, all the horses, as you're going past?

Sami believes this multi-layered underground city

could date back as far as the third century.

And the archaeologists are still working out

what many of the rooms were used for.

Gosh.

Subterranean living was not uncommon in Cappadocia.

Look in here!

Up to 20,000 people could live below ground,

like a human ant colony.

Partly to keep cool, but crucially
for protection from their enemies.

Yeah.

You just roll the stone across? Yeah.

And it would just go da-dum! Yeah.

Hoo-hoo-hoo!

So this was absolutely secure.

It would actually be like the Bank of England here.

No way in.

Once safely behind their solid-rock security door,

inhabitants could flee
through the network of tunnels.

So not down that lovely,
brightly-lit, rather huge tunnel,

but this slightly... Slightly smaller tunnel.

Ooh, it's getting cooler now. Yeah.

Golly, you couldn't take much,
if you're making your escape,

you could just take literally
your toothbrush, I think,

as you rushed away down this little corridor.

And your dog, who could follow patiently behind you.

Possibly children, you know, that sort of thing.

It's got even smaller here,
quite small around the foot.

Look, this is very small.

Oh, sunlight!

I never thought I'd be so pleased to see the sunlight.

LAUGHS This has been so wonderful.

Tesekkur ederim. You've been so kind.

I'm really thrilled.

Cappadocia is fascinating, but
it's time to get back on the road.

The dogs bark, the caravan moves on.

I've got a train to catch tonight,

a luxury that ancient Silk
Road travellers didn't have.

Back then, they were on foot,

with pack animals carrying the heavy loads.

In order to stay safe and secure overnight,

medieval-style motels sprung
up all along the route to Persia.

These were known as caravanserai.

Look at this entrance.
Gorgeous Islamic architecture.

This huge great doorway.

GASPS And a vast courtyard.

Look at this place!

The scale of this is just extraordinary.

And to think that they built
these about every 30 miles,

so that you were completely safe,
you just had to do a 30-mile journey

and then collapse again, relax, eat, drink,

get your animals fed and taken care of.

Maybe do a bit of trading here, who knows? Move on to it.

Look how graceful this door is.

Well.

The merchants could all hunker down here,

and the animals would all be tethered,

and there'd be straw and grass around

and a great deal of munching and grunting.

These were so important.

Big steps.

You wonder why they made them so big.

I think it's because they said,
"We've got some blocks left.

"Shall we just make the stairs
of these?" They said, "Bit high."

And they said, "Yeah, but people can manage it."

There.

GASPS A sweet little tiny mosque.

Look how tiny it is.

Beautiful work around there.

It's tiny, so I think you probably
nipped in here and said your prayers

and pretty much nipped out again.

If you listen, you can hear cars,
because this is on the main road.

And it was the main road then.
This was one of the principal routes

of the Silk Road, going through Anatolia.

This is the very road that
travels east to the city of Kayseri,

where we're due to catch the midnight train.

The 14-hour journey ahead
will transport us over 500 miles,

through the night, all the
way to the very east of Turkey,

so I'm keen to find my bed.

This one? Christ, I'll never get on.

GRUNTS Can you help me?

Tesekkur ederim. Thank you so much.

It's heavy, isn't it?

Thank you. Wonderful.

That's wonderful, thank you so much.

People coming to look at me through the window.

Hi. Two nice men. Very nice. LAUGHS

Ooh, we're off.

Look at that. Isn't it divine?

There's something so exciting
about travelling by train at night time.

Whenever I get given little free things

like this, or foldaway toothbrushes,

I keep them for occasions just such as this.

That's the end of that.

Slippers off, facing outwards,
bad dreams don't walk in.

Goodnight, sleep tight.

After a few hours sleep on the train,

I awake to a heart-stopping Elysian morning.

And with a ravenous hunger.

I am so longing for the breakfast.

I don't know when it will come.

When you've ordered something,

you begin to just look forward
to it, your mind focuses on it.

And it's not coming.

Those people have been feasting.

I love a long train journey. This is
a long one, about 14 hours, I think.

Might as well relax.

Well. Tesekkur ederim.

Look at this little feast.

We've got beautiful tomatoes, walnuts, apricots.

Last night, we boarded the
train in the city of Kayseri,

and it's taking us east, passing
alongside the great Euphrates river,

all the way to the city of Kars,

near the border with Armenia and Georgia.

They're just keeping up
with the train, isn't it lovely?

But instead of going straight to the border,

the beauty of the mountains to the north of Kars,

with their acres of unspoiled Alpine meadows,

causes us to side-track.



a visiting Swiss cheesemaker,

who recognised the potential
in these high summer pastures

and started the locals making a Gruyere

to rival anything found in Switzerland.

The village of Bogatepe's
reputation for quality fromage

has grown ever since.

Czardas.

Czardas is a fifth-generation master cheesemaker.

He's going to show me how to
make this unique Turkish cheese.

And, I'm afraid, challenge my look for today.

I spent ages in the morning trying
to look nice. And then, honestly!

Oh, this is actually quite chic.

Pretty much loving that. Is that OK?

Yeah!

As an avid cheese fancier, this
has got me champing at the bit.

Look at this! Look at this. Is this milk, cheese?

Milk. Milk. OK.

If you sit really close, you can
feel it spattering onto your face.

This is fresh, fresh milk.

Cheesemaking is common across this area,

but Turkish Gruyere requires a specific technique.

After rennet has been added to
the milk, it's heated and then cut.

Oh, superior craftsmanship.

Ooh!

Can I do this side? Can I try?

Then it's mixed up with... dustpans?

Oh, look, look, look. Casual behaviour.

Then thrashed with these funny-looking things.

If I came and worked in a cheese factory,

cos I love cheese, I could get a really fit torso.

And I'd have very good arms. Can I see your arm?

Phwoar. LAUGHS

Very, very good. I'll show you mine later.

The way they handle it is like
handling a really fat toddler,

trying to put it in its pushchair or something.

The curds are all gathered up
and squashed into a giant press.

Lovely.

And then taken below, where over five months,

the magic begins to form.

Ooh-hoo-hoo!

The smell in here, isn't that beautiful?

GASPS Look, we're gonna spear in. Yay!

That's about as good as anything
I've ever eaten in my life, ever.

These magnificent rounds
of cheese will roll their way

back down the Silk Road, and sell
for £500 each in Istanbul or beyond.

I just adore cheese.

If I didn't love cheese so much, I'd be so thin.

People would go, "Who is that
unbelievably thin old woman?"

But because I eat cheese,

they go, "Oh, there's Joanna, moving about again."

And that's because I eat cheese. Would I give it up? No.

Towards the end of my first leg of the journey,

we travel up over the mountains
towards the Georgian border.

We are at about 7,000, 7,500 feet.

So the air is thin and clear and beautiful.

And the snow comes early here, maybe October,

and it stays for as long as five months.

But really, looking out at
this incredible landscape,

which is dappled with clouds, it's magic.

Every year, families of herders bring their flocks up

from the Black Sea coast, to summer on high pastures.

From the sea to the mountains
is a journey of just over 100 miles.

But it still takes nearly a month.

CHILDREN YELL Is this us?

How lovely. FAMILY CHATTER

Hello, little darling.

How lovely to see you.

Look, hello, little one.

I don't think I was expecting
quite so many gorgeous children.

Masses of them.

Everyone here is ethnically Hemshin,

a people originally from neighbouring Armenia

who converted from Christianity
to Islam centuries ago.

It's a typical Silk Road story of
migration and religious conversion.

Hello, sugars, I'm coming to sit down here.

Beautiful! Is that a jumper? I love it.

Is this going to be for you? It's for you?

If I stay long enough, if you knit fast enough,

I shall have that off you, treasure. It's beautiful.

Harken is the head of the family,

and in charge of 600 sheep, 200 goats

and just a few of these little ones.

What month of the year do you come up here, Harken,

and when do you leave?

So they are milking two at a time, which is rather good.

Both of them are being milked.

LAUGHS I think it looks brilliant.

I think it's so difficult.

Ooh.

No, thank you. ALL LAUGH

"Do I want to try milking?" Suddenly, no.

Harken, how is this lifestyle for your family?

The children seem so happy. Is it good up here?

Harken and his family have made me feel so welcome.

But sadly, I must go.

It's so difficult, leaving a place
that you've fallen in love with,

and I've fallen in love with
this, the wild hillsides of Turkey.

But then I fell in love with Venice,

I fell in love with Albania as we travelled through.

But on this road, there are
still so many more places to see.

Contemplating my journey so far

and dreaming about the miles that lie ahead,

I recall a line from Colin Thubron's book,

In The Shadow Of The Silk Road.

"Yet to follow the Silk Road is to follow a ghost.

"It flows through the heart of
Asia, but it has officially vanished,

"leaving behind it the pattern of its restlessness,

"counterfeit borders, unmapped peoples.

"The road forks and wanders wherever you are.

"It is not a single way, but many, a web of choices."

Next week, the road will take me over the border

into stunning Georgia...

Luckily, I'm not driving us back through the river.

..a country steeped in Silk Road history.

Just extraordinary.

I'll cross the majestic Caucasus mountains...

This is so beautiful.

..and experience the fusion of ancient and modern

in booming Azerbaijan.

Look at this!