Race Across the World (2019–…): Season 1, Episode 3 - Tashkent - Uzbekistan - full transcript
They depart Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, on the third leg of the race - taking them across the vast deserts, mountains and Silk Road cities of Central Asia to the ancient capital of Uzbekistan, Tashkent.
Singapore... the furthest
point from the u.K. By road and rail.
Normally a 12-hour
plane journey,
but could you get there for
just the price of the airfare
without taking a single flight?
- What am I doing?
- Holy moley,
that's going to be tough.
Every second counts!
Four pairs
of ordinary brits...
Beep-beep!
Are attempting just that...
Most people would
go from "a" to "b" on a plane,
but then they'd miss all this.
Oh, man!
In an
extraordinary race.
Come on, come
on. At ground level,
they'll cover over 12,000 miles.
- Look at that!
- Amazing.
Everybody wants
to get to Azerbaijan
Who
will finish first...
We do not have
time to mess about!
As they leave
behind the trappings
of modern-day life?
It's 34 hours on one bus.
Without their bank cards...
We're going to run out
of money at some point.
And their smartphones.
I don't want to argue
about it. Time's ticking on.
You can't finish the
race if you're dead.
It's almost like
I'm questioning my purpose.
What is it that I want?
It's
just a bit much.
The reward is great...
This is where you get
to find out about yourself.
As the first
team to Singapore
will claim the
prize of £20,000...
Aah!
In a race across the world.
Shift your butt. Come on.
50 days. Blood, sweat, tears.
captions paid for by
discovery communications
the teams raced from delphi
to the second checkpoint...
Baku! Okay.
With each pair fighting
for its place in
the competition.
The sword of doom
hanging over our heads now
with the elimination.
A slow train across Turkey...
Not so much express. I'd
call it the eastern trundle.
Cost Josh and Felix their lead.
No euro. Pound.
Oh, it's problem.
While a new friend helped
Natalie and shameema...
Do you have any Euros?
Out of a tight spot.
We've got tickets
to thessaloniki
Tony and Elaine...
Alexandroupoli?
Platform 18!
I'm gonna start playing
- Are you?
Rocketed to Baku...
This is it! Come on! Come on!
Leapfrogging from
last to first place.
Alex, Alex! Come with me!
Bloody hell. Why me?
A wake-up call...
Are you mad? Yes, yes.
For father and son
darron and Alex.
So close to being lost.
But lifelong buddies
sue and Claire...
Somebody has to go out.
It's just a shame it's us.
Were eliminated from the race.
It's been brilliant. It's
brought us closer together.
Yeah. Yeah.
The four remaining teams
are at the second checkpoint
of the race to Singapore...
I never in a million years
thought I would ever be in Baku,
in Azerbaijan.
I didn't even know where
Azerbaijan was, if I'm honest.
No.
Making the most of some downtime
before the next leg begins.
On this
trip, Alex and I,
we haven't quite
found our dynamic yet.
We're getting better.
I think we've still
got a long way to go.
But I believe we will
have the time to try
and get that balance right and
stop and enjoy things together.
Come on, lazy boy!
Shut up.
It's 8:24 P.M.
The teams can
leave the checkpoint
in the order they arrived,
carrying forward their
relative time differences.
Hello. Checking out?
Checking out.
First into Baku,
with a three-hour lead
over their closest rivals,
retired schoolteachers
Tony and Elaine
are the first to depart.
Yes, sir, would you like us to
assist you with your luggage?
No, we're good.
We've got to stay strong
for the rest of our journey.
In the three, four years
we've been retired,
it has just absolutely flown by,
and we are both desperate
to prove to ourselves
that there's a lot
more to come in life.
And be together,
just the two of us.
Which is, you know,
when you got a family,
that's not easy,
is it? Yeah, yeah.
Hopefully not our swan song.
I have here a letter for you.
They're about to discover
where they're heading next.
Come on, then. Tashkent.
I know where Kent
is. Where is Tashkent?
The third checkpoint in the
race across the world... Tashkent.
The ancient capital of
Uzbekistan preserves
a mixture of islamic,
czarist, and Soviet influences.
Locked in the heart
of Central Asia,
it's 1,575 miles from Baku.
To reach it, the teams
will need to negotiate
hundreds of miles of
uninhabited arid landscape
in a region still unknown
to most western travelers.
How do we get
across to Kazakhstan?
But first, there is one
immediate obstacle in their way.
I would recommend you
to cross the caspian sea.
- Yes.
- Yes.
It's very simple, the ferry
port, it is south from Baku.
Do you know what
time the ferries go?
There is no fixed
timetable for this ferry.
The best thing is to
be there on the spot
and wait for the next ferry.
Yeah.
Come on.
To the ferry port. To the boat.
The sea? Yeah.
50 manat.
- No, he said inside the hotel...
- Yes.
He said 40 manat.
- 40 manat?
- Yes.
Yeah. No problem.
- Okay.
- Thank you.
Thank you.
We just need to get a move on.
Quite keen to keep that lead.
While it's possible to
get from Baku to Tashkent by land,
since shaking off Soviet rule,
Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan
have flung open their doors
to foreign visitors, and today,
heading across the caspian sea
could shave as much as
24 hours off the journey.
South of Baku
lies the port of alat,
from where the teams
can cross to Kazakhstan.
When we get there,
we need to see
if there is a boat there,
if we can get on it,
and then if not, we need to find
somewhere to stay for the night.
It will certainly
be a good leveler...
if there's no ferry.
The freight ferries
that operate this route
only leave when fully loaded
and can be delayed by
the unpredictable weather.
If one of the teams
misses a ferry,
they could wait
days for the next one.
Totally, 238.
238 manat? Yes.
Is there a boat leaving?
Yeah, leaving tomorrow morning.
Oh!
So, we've got until
tomorrow morning to wait.
So, do we stay here?
Right here, the waiting.
Okay. and we can sleep?
Yes. Yeah.
A bed for the night.
Which bench are you having?
It's not the hotel, is it?
And we have to
sit here all night.
I bet we all finish
up on the same boat.
Tony and
Elaine can only wait it out
as the other teams
depart Baku...
And eat into their lead.
What is the quickest
way to get there?
Of course by the airplane.
That is not an option.
We can't take a
flight, unfortunately.
Second to set off, friends
since childhood, Natalie and shameema.
I never thought I
would be in this part of the world.
The further away
you are from the u.K.,
you think about all the
different types of culture
and the massive differences
that you would have.
I'm a black girl.
Shameema's a tiny Asian girl.
We look different, so
I'm excited one minute
and then really
scared the next minute.
But we'll be there for
each other regardless.
Tashkent.
Six hours
behind the current leaders
and already planning to
head off the beaten track,
business partners
Josh and Felix.
I feel incredibly excited
about the next leg
because it promises adventure.
It's just stepping into the
unknown, isn't it, really?
It really is, Josh.
I think the richest
experience for us, that's winning,
and although the
race, obviously,
is a primary motivation,
it's got to also be balanced
with soaking up an
incredible journey.
That's not to say we're
going to turn down £20,000.
We are much more relaxed
now there is no elimination.
Yeah.
It's time to really dive into it
and have some of the experiences
that will really define this
as a once-in-a-lifetime trip.
Jesus, something's
crawling on me.
There is!
Oh, my god!
There was a beast on me.
Swear to god.
Did you see it? Yeah.
It's about as big as me hand.
It's there, look.
It's just gone under
the silver thing.
- Hi!
- I wondered where you were.
I don't think I'm
ready for Tony's pants.
Right, let's work out
where we are off to.
5:00 A.M.
Three teams have
reached the port.
Okay. Thank you!
Sorry your lead has
been evaporated.
Due to depart at any time,
the aging ex-Soviet cargo ship,
the merkuri-1, transports
Ukrainian truckers
and their cargo between
Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan.
Oh, wow!
It's definitely
seen better days.
It's the sort of
thing that sinks.
All cargo has been loaded, and
the ferry is preparing to leave.
But one team is
nowhere to be seen.
So, you don't know
how often the ferries are?
You don't know if there's
one today for definite?
Still in Baku, father
and son, darron and Alex.
Let's go.
We rushed the
first leg and finished second,
we took our time for the
second leg and finished fourth.
Was it worth it? No.
Everything has a consequence.
We messed up.
We've got no sign of
Alex and his dad yet.
And the engine's kicked up.
I do fear that they
may not make it.
The ferries
can be very hit and miss.
It could be a case of a
couple have already gone,
or everybody's still waiting.
I feel like they are not
getting the bloody boat.
Still got time.
They still have time.
Is that them?
Hey! Yeah!
Whoo-hoo-hoo!
- Hello!
- Alex!
Everyone is here!
Oh, my god!
Skin of your teeth!
We caught up.
And we had a lie-in, as well.
Day 1 again.
Struggling and finishing
fourth means nothing.
We're all starting
again. Clean slate.
Everybody gets off this
ferry exactly the same time.
The caspian sea,
the largest inland
body of water on earth.
Covering an area
the size of Japan,
it is a remnant of
a much larger sea,
left stranded after
ancient continents collided.
Next stop, the port of
kuryk in Kazakhstan.
With fair weather, 30
hours of plain sailing away.
It's stepping
into the unknown.
This next stage, the
wild is approaching.
Four, three, two, one.
I'm going for a run
with a truck driver
on a ferry crossing
the caspian sea.
That's a sentence I
never thought I'd say.
Coming to join us, Alex?
No.
But just hours
into their 300-mile voyage...
The storm is coming!
A Gale that could spell trouble.
17 years ago, the merkuri's
sister ship capsized after
being caught in winds that
reached 65 miles per hour.
Vessels are now advised
to sit out bad weather,
so the anchor is forced to drop.
I'm glad the lifeboat is close.
The teams hunker
down to see out the storm.
The food on here, I think
you'd be polite to call it edible.
Oh, god.
And it comes in this soup,
but it's more
like flavored lard.
It's not that great at all.
Here, we have people's
urine. The smell, the smell.
I stink of urine.
You need a six. Yeah!
I miss my Xbox so much.
Don't say that, Alex.
Come on, you don't
miss your Xbox.
What's an Xbox?
The weather's just been pants.
I think it's just a matter of
batten down the hatches
and try to keep an
even keel on things.
"Day three on the caspian sea.
Still on the boat.
The boat has not moved."
I've started my diary for today.
Actually, no,
this is yesterday's
is it Friday today?
That tap's running. I know.
Eh? I know.
The wind's really
kicking in. It is cold.
I think everybody is getting
a little bit of cabin fever.
Ha!
It's not even boring. It's
just absolutely nothing.
It's complete nothingness.
There's only so many times
you can wash your pants.
My teeth are getting
loose. I think it's
the onset of scurvy.
Is this what
claustrophobia feels like?
I'm just sick of the boat,
being stuck on here for so long,
I feel like I'm having a
bit of a mental breakdown.
I want to go home, kind of.
Missing home a lot.
Feeling very homesick.
It's just a bit much.
I remember I were
in Norway caught in a storm.
It were minus-15. My
tent Poles had snapped.
I had no fuel, I had no water.
I just sat down at the
side of the road and cried.
And then I realized that I
just had to pull myself together,
get on with it.
If you can survive this,
you can survive anything.
Do you think sometimes
when I've told you to suck it up
and get on with it, do you
understand what I mean now?
A bit, but you also
frustrate me, as well.
Stiff upper lip approach,
you know, tough love.
It's not because I'm being mean,
it's because sometimes you sink
and wallow in
your own self-pity.
Alex is my son and I
would do anything for him.
But he needs to grow up.
I may come across as a
grumpy, strict, miserable father.
I'm sure some'll even
think I'm a bit of an arsehole.
But my job as a
parent is to make him
the best person he can be.
And I know he can
be a fantastic individual
who can achieve
anything he wants.
So I don't care what
people think of me.
As long as he becomes
the man I know he can be.
Four days and
two hours stuck at sea.
Look at the smoke, Tony.
That's promising.
Lots of activity down
at the other end.
Clearly preparing
for the big set-off.
With the boat back on its way...
We need to get racing,
we need to be on the move.
Attentions turn
to hitting dry land.
We'd need to get to Tashkent.
Train, choo-choo!
To get to Tashkent,
the teams could choose to
follow the ancient silk road
through the historical
cities of Uzbekistan...
Khiva, Bukhara, and samarkand.
Bukhara, samarkand, Tashkent.
We've got a potential
route. I knew of samarkand
from "the golden
journey to samarkand."
It's a poem I liked as a
kid, so definitely go there.
Alternatively, the
more intrepid among them
can venture into the wild open
desert plains of Kazakhstan.
The Kazakhstan route
seems to be the one
which offers the most
adventure and freedom.
Do some walking and some hiking,
and then we dash down on a train
to make up some time. Yeah.
This is where you get to step
outside of your comfort zone
and discover,
"I can do this," or
"whoa, that's too much."
So, bring it on.
A deck below,
Natalie and shameema
tap up their own source
of local knowledge.
- This is dao.
- Hello.
And dao is a stuntman.
Really?
Wow.
Our next checkpoint
is here.Tashkent.
Where do you live?
Are you going that way?
So, I was wondering, if you
didn't have anybody in your car,
that maybe you could drop us
when you get to the
first place you stop?
Yeah. Yeah!
A stuntman from
Kazakhstan on my boat!
What are the fricking
chances of that?
He was just in Azerbaijan
doing a bollywood movie.
It's possible
their new-found friend
could take them all the way
to the checkpoint in Tashkent,
a journey of over 1,200 miles,
on the way to his
home in almaty,
saving them time and money.
I was really
apprehensive and scared,
but now we're going to be with
somebody who's a native speaker.
That's
a massive asset.
Yeah.
That's taken a lot of
that apprehension away.
Look at that.
Dry land! Dry land!
It's been a long journey,
it's been a long journey.
Well done, mate.
You made it.
The teams
have arrived in Kazakhstan,
a country of outstanding
natural beauty,
with big skies, vast deserts
and very, very few tourists.
I didn't think Kazakhstan
was going to be like this.
What, desert?
I'm waiting for the
tough part of the journey,
and I expect this
may well be it.
The teams
land at the port of kuryk.
Off into Kazakhstan!
The nearest town,
aktau, is 40 miles away
and surrounded by desert...
Come on.
See you in checkpoint!
So public transport
links are non-existent.
Yes. How much?
3,000 for one?
Yeah. yeah, good.
Let's get in. Let's go.
Excellent.
Here we are,
we're in Kazakhstan now.
There's a big camel.
Oh, that's great.
I do like camels.
I know they might be
smelly, dirty, and grumpy...
It
reminds me of you.
Back at the port...
All the other teams have left
and are on their onward journey.
We're still waiting for dao.
Okay.
Okay.
Okay.
You think it's not
bad news, right?
No, it's not bad news!
Yay!
Banking on a
free lift being worth the wait,
the girls settle down in aktau.
See you later.
At the moment, I feel like
my journey is dependent
on one person's actions,
and it feels like we're in
no-man's-land, which is weird,
because we've been stuck
in the middle of the sea
and it hadn't felt like we
were in no-man's-land.
While
the girls sit tight...
Express train.
I don't think it
were a lot of money.
We are getting good distance
and we're seeing
some amazing things.
Most people would
go from "a" to "b" on a plane,
but then they'd miss all this.
Darron and Alex have
crossed the border into Uzbekistan
on a 22-hour train
heading to nukus.
The first time on
Uzbekistan soil for me.
Ever.
That's pretty cool.
Uzbekistan's blue-domed
mosques and incredible mosaics
hark back to the 7th century
when trade along the silk road,
the ancient network of
roads connecting east to west,
made this one of the busiest
and most wealthy places on earth.
Today, merchants
still move their goods
through the major
uzbeki cities of khiva,
Bukhara, and samarkand,
the same route that darron and
Alex plan to take to Tashkent.
When I were your age...
Maybe even slightly younger...
I always wanted to
come to samarkand.
I remember reading a poem.
Something like,
"we travel not for
trafficking alone:
By hotter winds our
fiery hearts are fanned:
For lust of knowing
what should not be known
we make the golden
journey to samarkand."
My dad, just,
he knows everything.
Seeing new things,
seeing new cultures,
seeing new people,
expectations are that
I'm a lot wiser, I'll learn
a lot more on my trip
compared to what I know now.
As they make their
way further into Uzbekistan,
the train begins to fill up.
It's a bloody
long train journey.
There's no
personal space at all.
The train, it's just a
moving nomadic community.
But I'm sort of getting used
to interacting with strangers
and not running away
and hiding from them.
Yum, yum, yum,
yum, yum, yum, yum!
Yum! Yum! Yum! Yum!
If you rage against it,
you're going to have a
really miserable journey,
so you might as well
embrace it and have fun.
Storm.
Normally my dad's
quite a shy sort of person,
he don't like speaking
to random people.
But this trip's changed him.
Tony and Elaine
are also aiming for Uzbekistan...
4,000 good?
4,000? Yeah.
Yeah? Thank you. Thank you.
But have
opted to avoid the crowds.
Because we're Yorkshire
people, we would never, ever,
ever dream of getting a taxi.
That's always the
most expensive way,
and we just wouldn't
do it, we're just tight.
But we're desperate
to get to checkpoint.
Apart from taxis,
transport systems are not in place
to get you around easily.
You know, the
gas is for nothing.
I mean, the desert is
just full of gas and oil.
I feel as though i'm,
like, being dragged on a...
Sledge across it.
I can see why they all
have clapped-out cars.
As Tony and
Elaine head to the border...
200 miles to the north,
Josh and Felix have chosen
to take a different route.
It's so stark and bleak,
and you keep thinking
we're going to see ewoks
coming over the horizon.
Love it.
For us, this is the
flavor of adventure.
After an overnight
train journey,
their thirst for a Kazakh
adventure sees them reach aralsk
at the northern
tip of the aral sea.
Their chosen route
to Tashkent heads
deep into the unexplored
wilds of Kazakhstan.
But it could take
them 400 miles longer
than going through Uzbekistan.
We're mainly just
having some time to ourselves
after a long three
weeks of transport,
just being able to be in
nature and breathe in fresh air.
It's really bitterly cold
today, which is lovely
because my thermals
come in useful.
Once the fourth
largest lake in the world,
the aral sea has now
shrunk to a 10th of its size
after being exploited
ruthlessly in the Soviet era
to provide irrigation.
It's stunning, in its own
kind of bizarre and lunar way.
Oh, it's
nice to be outside!
Even if it is a lake that's
been destroyed by mankind.
This is what we
were searching for.
We were searching
for something elemental,
something which would
bring us back to nothingness
and the elements.
I think this really delivers.
We're happy to slow down
if it means a more rich experience.
We're happy to spend money
if it means that it's something
which is just
once in a lifetime.
Hopefully this will renew us
for the dash to Tashkent ahead.
As three
teams clock up the miles,
still by the caspian sea...
I feel
a bit worried now.
What am I doing?
We're in a race.
We don't look like
we're in a race right now.
Natalie and shameema
have not moved for 36
hours, waiting for their free ride.
Not really sure
what has happened to dao,
but we need to
think of our next plan.
We need to think of ourselves.
Mm-hmm.
Hey, morning.
It was a mixture of
tiredness and joy and relief.
It was like, "oh, my
god, he's finally here!"
And maybe how many
women may have felt,
"why didn't you just text me?!"
Then realized I
didn't have a phone.
We are finally getting out of...
Arrrrgh... Arrrrgh...
Ktau. Ktau.
On the road at last...
Get me back in the race.
They're also heading
for Uzbekistan.
The journey to Tashkent
may be 1,200 miles...
The equivalent of driving
from Birmingham to Rome...
But without the need
to trust an unreliable
and budget-eating
public transport,
they can make up
time on the other teams.
Guys, I just want to let you
know I need the bathroom.
Shameema, this is why I tell you
to go to the toilet
before we left.
I'm giving the heads-up
before I really, really need to go.
Oh, my god!
What? There's no bin!
Go.
Some things you
just can't talk about.
As Natalie, shameema, and
dao cross into Uzbekistan...
Josh and Felix probably
have come across a poor horse
that died somehow,
so they cut it open and get
inside to keep themselves warm.
- To shymkent?
- Yeah.
Looking to head deeper
into the wilds of Kazakhstan...
I'm just finding out
what time it gets in.
This woman's just gazumped
me in the queue, though.
Josh and Felix get to grips
with the Kazakh
approach to queuing.
Huh?
I'm just trying
to get my ticket.
I feel like me eyes
have just gone...
Yeah.
300 miles to the south,
darron has taken integrating
with the locals
a little too far.
The person we're
travelling with,
he offered me some
really dark-green powder...
by ingesting naswar,
a powdered tobacco snuff.
He looked slightly in
shock, slightly in horror,
as I just downed it all.
My dad's on drugs!
That's so funny.
You're not meant to swallow it!
It's like the tables
have turned.
I'm the 40-year-old, he's
the 20-year-old right now.
I don't like waiting
for buses and trains now.
You just go, "taxi!"
I think we'll do the rest
of this journey on taxis.
Taxi Tony.
Tony and Elaine
have regained their lead,
having traveled the 900 miles
from Kazakhstan
exclusively in taxis.
We've done 600
kilometers today for 40 Euros.
Yeah, but we could've
done the train for half that.
We spent a lot of money.
Spent a lot of money.
So we're going to have to work.
To help finance their new habit,
Elaine has spotted an
ad in the jobs directory.
Why do you want to brush camels?
Are you saying
you don't want to?
They'll be the highlight
of this entire trip.
Why?
Because we've never
done anything like it.
The starry sky, for a start...
In the desert with the camels.
Tony and Elaine have
reached the red sands
of the kyzylkum desert,
115,000 square miles
that are home to wild
boar, golden eagles,
and the ships of the
desert... Bactrian camels.
Never groomed a camel before.
Didn't realize how scraggy
on the neck they get.
I can't tell you how many sticks
and bits of food
are trapped here.
It's like a baby with a bib on.
At one of the nomadic
camps in the area,
working as farm hands
for their bed and board,
Tony and Elaine muck in.
How many times does the
camel go to the toilet in a day?
One hour, yeah?
A bit like my missus.
Sheep... one, two, three...
- Like this.
- We've got to count them.
Oh, heck.
Two, four, five.
You look like a
goat herder, Tony.
Yeah, I know.
Tony
spent his early years
on the family farm in Yorkshire.
As kids, we had a bit of a
tough upbringing, you know?
Being on the farm and...
Going round and feeding animals
and things before
school and after school
and working all your
holidays and weekends.
Oh, naughty boys.
Sometimes my dad would
lift me out of bed on a morning,
put clothes on on
top of me 'jamas,
then I'd be working till
9:00, 10:00 on a night.
167. 27.
It's good! Yeah!
Did you get it right?
Are you sure?
We're earning our... Keep.
Yurt tonight.
- How cool is this?
- This is lovely.
This is off the beaten track.
Lagging 300 miles
behind their nearest rivals,
life on the road for Natalie,
shameema, and dao
is beginning to take its toll.
You all right, dao?
But we've been,
like, locked up for a few days.
It feels like a week.
And we need...
Need, need, need...
To get out and have
some adventure.
Let's go.
After
days in the desert,
the girls reach
the oasis of khiva,
the first of Uzbekistan's
silk road cities.
Wow! Oh, my god!
At its heart, a
10th-century juma mosque
and its 30-meter high minaret.
Wow! It's really steep.
Oh, my goodness me.
- Oh, wow. It's amazing.
- Oh, my god.
When there's a country
that you've never thought of
coming to and you see
amazing sights like this...
It's just really
intriguing.Yeah.
I was expecting to see
ancient ruins, but this is actually
how so intact it is. It'd
be good to know more.
Yeah. So well preserved.Yeah.
118 steps.
Definitely worth it
once you get to the top.
And then you think, "shit, I
have to get back down again."
Before they
can get back on the road
there is a problem with the
third member of the team.
Dao? Yes?
Has your friend told you if
you need to go to Tashkent
or not yet?
Okay. Because if you're
not going to Tashkent,
we need to see a time
that we can get the train,
'cause then we'd
just get the train,
because we have to
buy our ticket in advance.
Okay. Yes?
Yeah? Yeah.
Yeah. Okay, cool. Let's do that.
Whether he stays tonight or not,
I think we should
just get on with it.
Okay.
We're basically going
to see when the next train is
because we are independent women
and we are
independent travellers
and we are still in the race.
While Natalie and shameema
begin to plan for life without dao...
Important notes from the
Kazakh train a culture...
Shoes on the bed are a no-no,
absolute no-no.
After days in the badlands
of Kazakhstan, Josh and Felix
are approaching civilization...
The city of shymkent.
- Menya zovut Felix.
- Menya zovut Josh.
- Samat.
- Samat.
Luckily we're fluent
in Kazakh now.
I think that was Russian.
And having travelled
1,000 miles across Uzbekistan,
darron and Alex are
arriving in samarkand.
I always dreamed of
riding into samarkand on a camel.
Lawrence of Arabia-esque... who?
Just riding across...
Who's that? Who's what?
"Lawrence of Arabia-ess."
Lawrence of Arabia.
Yeah, who's that? You
don't know who he is?
No, never heard of him.
What?!
What is it? Alcohol.
Settling in for a night
in the kyzylkum desert,
Tony and Elaine enjoy
the fruits of their labor.
Oh, my god!
We haven't spent this much
time together since we were...
Just before we got married.
Just before...
Before we had children.
Skal. Bottoms up.
I think what
this trip has afforded us
is that freedom of
the big world again,
and you feel quite giddy on
the lack of responsibility of that.
Beautiful.
You must have a lot more
responsibility than me at home.
I think I actually do,
because you're part of
my responsibility.
You're like another grandchild.
A pretty
magical evening,
sitting by the fire
under a really starry sky.
Rekindled the embers, so to
speak, with the relationship.
It's just right up our street.
We could stay forever
and not a care in the world.
Bravo! Bravo!
Thank you for
being like a big brother.
After 728
miles together...
Natalie and shameema say
goodbye to their good samaritan.
We met an amazing
guy who did so much for us,
someone who could
speak the local language
and drive us around,
and it's almost like we're
back to reality again.
We want to go to
Bukhara.Bukhara.
7:20, leaving from there.
How much is the train?
Train? 97,000 so'Ms.
97,000.
We don't
have enough so'm.
We can't pay with dollars?
No?
They're closing in 20
minutes. We have to buy the ticket.
So we need...
75. The race is on.
With
ground to make up...
Do you know money change?
The girls need to find the cash
to hightail it out of khiva
as soon as they can.
Let's go.
It's just back to
Natalie and I getting back in the race.
Did he say the cafe here?
Walking around, trying
to figure things out.
Do you know anywhere
where I can change money?
Dollars to so'ms?
I'm losing this challenge.
Quick, quick, quick,
quick. Run, run, run.
It's a bit daunting, but
previous experience tells us
that we can get through it.
- Rahmat.
- Rahmat.
Thank you.
This is what we do.
Did you do it?
Did you do it?
Right, where's the next place?
Let's go. Let's go.
Tickets secured,
Natalie and shameema
begin a six-hour hop to Bukhara.
400 miles closer to Tashkent,
samarkand, the
silk road city darron
has wanted to visit
since he was a schoolboy.
Wow. Now,
that looks amazing.
That's pretty
impressive, isn't it?
The architecture is amazing.
Nothing like this in Europe.
Why don't I take a photo of you?
You know how
to work it, don't you?
I'm not stupid.
At its center, the
ulugh beg observatory...
In the 15th century,
at the cutting edge of
astronomy and mathematics.
This was an early version
of how to understand the sun.
Looks like a fun little slide.
Its 70 astronomers
could predict eclipses,
calculate the hour
of the rising sun,
and measure the
length of a stellar year
to within one minute
of modern calculations.
I feel at one with
the universe now.
What they achieved
here, all the stars aligned
to advance our knowledge
of the place we live.
You're not an
emotional person, so...
It's just there's not many
things that prick my emotions,
and something as
beautiful as this does.
It's just a privilege to
spend this time with you,
and the fact that you've
ticked this off the bucket list,
and I'm here with you doing
it, which you will never forget.
And I'm glad I'm
doing it with you.
Oh, god, it's freezing.
In the kyzylkum desert,
270 miles from Tashkent,
Tony and Elaine
plan their next move.
We need to be in a
big city for transport.
We can't be in some
random little place.
What's the point of
travelling all the way to samarkand?
We get the taxi and we
get really close to Tashkent.
Tony favors taking a direct
route through the desert
and along small
backroads, all by taxi.
But Elaine is keen on the more
reliable main road to samarkand,
and from there to jump
on cheaper public
transport to Tashkent.
Don't you think there
will be buses from here?
Absolutely no way!
Of course there will. No!
We know what it's
like, even from big cities.
We can hitch from here. No.
Okay, then, we'll do that,
we'll go to samarkand.
You call this one, then.
Samarkand. Yes, yes, yes.
Yeah. She's the boss.
Yeah.
Bye-bye.
We've got a race
to win, haven't we?
We forgot about
that momentarily,
while we were knocking
back the vodka last night,
but we're back in it to win it.
Oh, fantastic.
Josh and Felix
have arrived in shymkent.
Determined to continue
their Kazakh adventure,
the boys have word
that just outside of town,
a sporting spectacular
is about to begin
that they can't afford to miss.
I'm getting more
and more excited.
It feels like the big
match is impending.
Brought to the region by
genghis Khan's mounted raiders,
the sport of kokpar has
been played by Kazakh men
since the 13th century.
I said I wanted to go into
the wild, and this is wild.
This is a different way.
This is the wild west.
He's got a horse in a headlock.
It involves two teams
fighting over the decapitated carcass
of a recently slaughtered goat.
It's visually impressive but...
borderline barbaric.
At least the goat's not alive.
Yeah.yeah.
Thank god for small mercies.
The more I've
watched it, actually,
the more I've
appreciated and enjoyed it.
It's like rugby
played on horseback,
fighting over a goat by...
60 of the hardest
men you've ever met.
Thank you, thank you.
You guys, you are all amazing.
Seeing you out
there, made us think...
- Oh, wow.
- This is fantastic.
It smells delicious.
I think today and I think
this whole Kazakhstan leg
of the journey for me
has been the most true
to what I've wanted
this experience to be.
Risking your life and limb
and then coming back to this
and everyone being
together and being like,
"do you remember that bit
where Jim got knocked out?"
You know? This is
for the story sharing,
and this bit is probably more
important than the kokpar,
to be honest.
There's nothing, there's
nothing that compares to this.
This is one of those
once-in-a-lifetime experiences
that I'll never see again.
The next generation.
Thank you so much.
I wonder if you know when
the earliest train to Tashkent
is tomorrow.
Samarkand.
180 miles from the checkpoint.
Tomorrow morning, yes.
Early as possible.
There's one at 5:18.
Thank you for your help.
Thank you again.
Greatly appreciated.
Thank you.
Just arriving,
Tony and Elaine.
My rear end feels like it's
been pummeled for a good hour.
Why are you smiling so much?
We're looking to get
a train to Tashkent.
Today, yeah.
8:00 A.M.
Tomorrow. Tomorrow.
Look.
I can only know one person
who wears that hat other than you.
Hello. You're kidding me!
How are you?
Oh, all right.
Where have you been?
Where have you been?
We've been in samarkand.
With Tony and
Elaine's tickets booked...
Yes.
8:00 A.M.
Thank you.
Alex spots an opportunity
to steal a march on his rivals.
Hello.
We are wanting to get to
Tashkent as early as possible.
Today? Tomorrow, 5:00 A.M.
I seen something I
maybe should not have.
Ooh! Tell me.
8:00 A.M.
Their earliest
train was 8:00 A.M.
So they didn't know about the...
They didn't know about this one.
Tomorrow. Perfect.
On this journey, I hope
Alex learns he's far stronger,
smarter, and more adaptable
than he believes he is.
He doesn't lack ability,
he just lacks the
confidence of his ability.
It will change him forever,
without a shadow of a doubt.
How and in what way,
it'll be interesting to see.
73 years
old. That's my gran.
So obviously I would
find the raving grandma.
200 miles to the west,
Natalie and shameema
adapt to life without dao.
Are you going to
take me to dinner?
Yeah. oh, my god, guys!
Yes!
I will take you
up on that offer.
In the process of
separating from her husband...
- Me?
- Yeah.
- 25.
- 25?
39-year-old
shameema finds herself
single for the first
time in 19 years.
- You are not 18!
- 18.
Okay, I can't have
dinner with you.
He's 18, guys.
Oh, my god.
Uh, tea?
Tea? Yes.
Black.
I did say I'm
going to live in the moment
so I'll get to know
this nice young man
and never see him
again.
I'm not really thinking about
love and romance at the moment.
It's more about just
working on myself.
Mmm.
This is chicken soup?
Yeah. Thank you very much.
I feel bad for eating
without Natalie.
What is your name?
My name is guara.
Where do you live?
In... I live in...
I live in khiva.
Shameema went on a
hot date, so I've been just, like,
with my new train
family next door.
What is your name?
My name is...
Obviously I'm very different,
very different from them,
sharing and
exchanging knowledge,
but feeling very comfortable
and not feeling awkward
at all during this journey.
So how has your date been?
I had a really nice
dinner, actually.
Did you have a nice date?
- Yeah.
- Yeah?
Oh, good.
Have you been a
perfect gentleman?
12 days
since leaving Baku,
all four teams are within
striking distance of Tashkent.
Time for bed, then?
Yeah, I think so. I'm tired.
If I eat any more
meat I'm going to burst.
I feel
frustrated with myself.
We've made a bad
decision coming this way
and Elaine railroaded
me this way.
She just wasn't
listening earlier today
and I should have
stood me ground.
The simplest, easiest
way isn't always the best.
You're never going to
let go of that, are you?
You're going to poke the bear.
Whenever he's feeling
fed up or his body's hurting him,
he always sort of attacks me,
which is exactly what
he's done tonight.
And after 40 years of
marriage, it won't really affect me.
I'll just ignore him.
Anyway, end of story.
New day tomorrow.
We'll get on
darron and Alex's...
It'll be funny if they're
on the same train.
- This week is...
- it's been a good week.
Yeah, I don't think we've
screwed up too often.
I think we've got on a lot
more than what we would normally.
Yeah.
I even recall a
couple of moments
where I didn't mind you at all.
We went through a bit
of a hard time on the boat,
and the fact that I
was ready to quit
and you kept me controlled
and it's good again.
It's helped
we've stuck together
going through this
journey together.
It's making our bond stronger
'cause we're going
through the highs and lows.
8:00 A.M.
Tony and Elaine catch the train
from samarkand to Tashkent.
We hope to arrive in Tashkent
for about half past 1:00.
Bottoms up.
What do you say in Russia?
Nostrovia. be healthy.
- Nostrovia.
- Nostrovia.
Nostrovia.
Slightly surprised not to
see daz and Alex on the train today.
So I've got a feeling that we
may well be ahead of them.
But after
catching the earlier train...
- Well, we're in Tashkent.
- Yeah.
Darron and Alex are
closing in on the third checkpoint.
They are notified of its exact
location by their GPS tracker.
"Head to the Amir Timur square.
If you stand next
to the monument,
you will see our hotel."
Four miles away,
Amir Timur square,
a monument to the turko-mongol
emperor who founded a dynasty
that ruled from central
Turkey to the edge of China.
Beyond that, the
hotel Uzbekistan...
A brutalist relic
of the Soviet era.
Go!
Sorry.
Bloody hell, dad,
what you doing?
We do not have
time to mess about.
Bloody stressful.
Ah!
Navoi. Navoi.
Navoi and up? Down.
Down.
Next stop, navoi.
We're in Uzbekistan.
We've crossed the border.
Closing
in, Josh and Felix.
I've really enjoyed soaking
up some Kazakh culture,
but maybe I'm feeling
a little bit nervous
now that we're racing
towards the checkpoint.
While in Bukhara, 350
miles from Tashkent...
Thank you. What did she say?
Basically, we're fucked.
There's a fast
train fully booked.
The next fast train
is fully booked,
but the cost of a taxi is
the same, but we lose time.
It would have only taken
four hours on the train
and it's going to take us
seven hours sat in a car.
Okay, let's make a move.
This is navoi.
Got to be fast, dad.
Oh, wow. Now,
that is impressive.
Timur square?
Up? Thank you.
Monument.
Hotel.
Please be there.
Hello. Good morning.
Hello. Welcome
to Uzbekistan hotel.
- Thank you very much.
- Thank you.
Each team must sign in
to find out its position in the race.
Oh, wow.
Touch. Give me touch.
That's exactly what I wanted.
I am buzzing.
After leaving
Baku in last place,
darron and Alex are the first
to reach the third checkpoint.
Oh, wow, what a feeling.
Yes!
This leg, it's been
extra special for me,
and I think Alex has
picked up on my happiness
and embraced that.
So, we're getting on better.
We're getting there.
The fact that I took
my dad's advice
and sucked it up and
carried on, and it were good.
Like, we're here, we're
first, we're at Tashkent.
It's perfect situation.
We'd better go,
Elaine. Have you got the bag?
Yeah, I've got it.
Have you got my glasses?
After taking totally different
routes through Central Asia...
It's 10,000 each.
Pleasure to meet you.
All right, let's go.
Two teams arrive in
Tashkent just minutes apart.
Do you want me to
take yours, as well?
My what? Rucksack.
It's not my
rucksack, it's my legs.
They're not as long as yours.
- I'm itching to get there now.
- Yeah.
- I need a shower.
- I need a wee.
First there has a bath first.
Into the light!
Come on, Elaine.
I'm coming
as fast as I can.
This bag is getting
really heavy.
That's probably it there,
the hotel Uzbekistan.
Come on.
I'm sweating a bollock.
If darron and Alex
are here, I'll eat my hat.
Alex and darron?
How did they manage that?
They were at the
train station after us.
How did they get a blooming
ticket for a train before us?
I don't get that.
- Oi, oi!
- Hey, guys.
Look at this! Oh,
nice to see you guys.
It makes you
realize that, actually,
there isn't much in this.
It can just turn.
We messed up. We would
have been here early this morning
if we'd taken some risk.
We don't know that.
But we've
over-spent on this leg.
That doesn't bode well.
Hello. Nice to see you.
We arrived two minutes
after the second-placed team.
It feels like this is the way
we've got to carry on doing it.
We're making the
most of the experiences
and we're not
losing in the race.
We're competitive
but also having fun,
which has got to
be what it's about.
There's one last
team to reach the checkpoint.
Hello!
Oh, no!
Oh, it's all right.
It's cool.
We knew that we
lost a couple of days in aktau.
I didn't want to
be a day behind.
As long as we were
within hours of everyone
because I don't want
that to impact the next leg.
And the fact that we've
only come in a few hours after
is actually not that bad.Yeah.
After the third
leg in the race to Singapore,
darron and Alex have
moved from last to first place.
And the teams are
separated by just 6.5 hours.
We are going to get our
lead back by whatever means.
We're only halfway
through a marathon.
I don't think anything's
won or lost yet.
Next time...
- God, it's snowing!
- Oh!
The race hots up.
- Oh, wow!
- This shit just got real.
As the teams
head to the people's republic.
It's a crazy, wacky,
whoopy place.
Oh, my god.
Emotions run high...
Shut up!
Thank you.
We don't have
enough money, so...
and budgets...
We're in dire straits.
Dangerously low.
That is the most we've
spent in the whole trip.
It's a massive culture shock.
I've never been
anywhere like this.
point from the u.K. By road and rail.
Normally a 12-hour
plane journey,
but could you get there for
just the price of the airfare
without taking a single flight?
- What am I doing?
- Holy moley,
that's going to be tough.
Every second counts!
Four pairs
of ordinary brits...
Beep-beep!
Are attempting just that...
Most people would
go from "a" to "b" on a plane,
but then they'd miss all this.
Oh, man!
In an
extraordinary race.
Come on, come
on. At ground level,
they'll cover over 12,000 miles.
- Look at that!
- Amazing.
Everybody wants
to get to Azerbaijan
Who
will finish first...
We do not have
time to mess about!
As they leave
behind the trappings
of modern-day life?
It's 34 hours on one bus.
Without their bank cards...
We're going to run out
of money at some point.
And their smartphones.
I don't want to argue
about it. Time's ticking on.
You can't finish the
race if you're dead.
It's almost like
I'm questioning my purpose.
What is it that I want?
It's
just a bit much.
The reward is great...
This is where you get
to find out about yourself.
As the first
team to Singapore
will claim the
prize of £20,000...
Aah!
In a race across the world.
Shift your butt. Come on.
50 days. Blood, sweat, tears.
captions paid for by
discovery communications
the teams raced from delphi
to the second checkpoint...
Baku! Okay.
With each pair fighting
for its place in
the competition.
The sword of doom
hanging over our heads now
with the elimination.
A slow train across Turkey...
Not so much express. I'd
call it the eastern trundle.
Cost Josh and Felix their lead.
No euro. Pound.
Oh, it's problem.
While a new friend helped
Natalie and shameema...
Do you have any Euros?
Out of a tight spot.
We've got tickets
to thessaloniki
Tony and Elaine...
Alexandroupoli?
Platform 18!
I'm gonna start playing
- Are you?
Rocketed to Baku...
This is it! Come on! Come on!
Leapfrogging from
last to first place.
Alex, Alex! Come with me!
Bloody hell. Why me?
A wake-up call...
Are you mad? Yes, yes.
For father and son
darron and Alex.
So close to being lost.
But lifelong buddies
sue and Claire...
Somebody has to go out.
It's just a shame it's us.
Were eliminated from the race.
It's been brilliant. It's
brought us closer together.
Yeah. Yeah.
The four remaining teams
are at the second checkpoint
of the race to Singapore...
I never in a million years
thought I would ever be in Baku,
in Azerbaijan.
I didn't even know where
Azerbaijan was, if I'm honest.
No.
Making the most of some downtime
before the next leg begins.
On this
trip, Alex and I,
we haven't quite
found our dynamic yet.
We're getting better.
I think we've still
got a long way to go.
But I believe we will
have the time to try
and get that balance right and
stop and enjoy things together.
Come on, lazy boy!
Shut up.
It's 8:24 P.M.
The teams can
leave the checkpoint
in the order they arrived,
carrying forward their
relative time differences.
Hello. Checking out?
Checking out.
First into Baku,
with a three-hour lead
over their closest rivals,
retired schoolteachers
Tony and Elaine
are the first to depart.
Yes, sir, would you like us to
assist you with your luggage?
No, we're good.
We've got to stay strong
for the rest of our journey.
In the three, four years
we've been retired,
it has just absolutely flown by,
and we are both desperate
to prove to ourselves
that there's a lot
more to come in life.
And be together,
just the two of us.
Which is, you know,
when you got a family,
that's not easy,
is it? Yeah, yeah.
Hopefully not our swan song.
I have here a letter for you.
They're about to discover
where they're heading next.
Come on, then. Tashkent.
I know where Kent
is. Where is Tashkent?
The third checkpoint in the
race across the world... Tashkent.
The ancient capital of
Uzbekistan preserves
a mixture of islamic,
czarist, and Soviet influences.
Locked in the heart
of Central Asia,
it's 1,575 miles from Baku.
To reach it, the teams
will need to negotiate
hundreds of miles of
uninhabited arid landscape
in a region still unknown
to most western travelers.
How do we get
across to Kazakhstan?
But first, there is one
immediate obstacle in their way.
I would recommend you
to cross the caspian sea.
- Yes.
- Yes.
It's very simple, the ferry
port, it is south from Baku.
Do you know what
time the ferries go?
There is no fixed
timetable for this ferry.
The best thing is to
be there on the spot
and wait for the next ferry.
Yeah.
Come on.
To the ferry port. To the boat.
The sea? Yeah.
50 manat.
- No, he said inside the hotel...
- Yes.
He said 40 manat.
- 40 manat?
- Yes.
Yeah. No problem.
- Okay.
- Thank you.
Thank you.
We just need to get a move on.
Quite keen to keep that lead.
While it's possible to
get from Baku to Tashkent by land,
since shaking off Soviet rule,
Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan
have flung open their doors
to foreign visitors, and today,
heading across the caspian sea
could shave as much as
24 hours off the journey.
South of Baku
lies the port of alat,
from where the teams
can cross to Kazakhstan.
When we get there,
we need to see
if there is a boat there,
if we can get on it,
and then if not, we need to find
somewhere to stay for the night.
It will certainly
be a good leveler...
if there's no ferry.
The freight ferries
that operate this route
only leave when fully loaded
and can be delayed by
the unpredictable weather.
If one of the teams
misses a ferry,
they could wait
days for the next one.
Totally, 238.
238 manat? Yes.
Is there a boat leaving?
Yeah, leaving tomorrow morning.
Oh!
So, we've got until
tomorrow morning to wait.
So, do we stay here?
Right here, the waiting.
Okay. and we can sleep?
Yes. Yeah.
A bed for the night.
Which bench are you having?
It's not the hotel, is it?
And we have to
sit here all night.
I bet we all finish
up on the same boat.
Tony and
Elaine can only wait it out
as the other teams
depart Baku...
And eat into their lead.
What is the quickest
way to get there?
Of course by the airplane.
That is not an option.
We can't take a
flight, unfortunately.
Second to set off, friends
since childhood, Natalie and shameema.
I never thought I
would be in this part of the world.
The further away
you are from the u.K.,
you think about all the
different types of culture
and the massive differences
that you would have.
I'm a black girl.
Shameema's a tiny Asian girl.
We look different, so
I'm excited one minute
and then really
scared the next minute.
But we'll be there for
each other regardless.
Tashkent.
Six hours
behind the current leaders
and already planning to
head off the beaten track,
business partners
Josh and Felix.
I feel incredibly excited
about the next leg
because it promises adventure.
It's just stepping into the
unknown, isn't it, really?
It really is, Josh.
I think the richest
experience for us, that's winning,
and although the
race, obviously,
is a primary motivation,
it's got to also be balanced
with soaking up an
incredible journey.
That's not to say we're
going to turn down £20,000.
We are much more relaxed
now there is no elimination.
Yeah.
It's time to really dive into it
and have some of the experiences
that will really define this
as a once-in-a-lifetime trip.
Jesus, something's
crawling on me.
There is!
Oh, my god!
There was a beast on me.
Swear to god.
Did you see it? Yeah.
It's about as big as me hand.
It's there, look.
It's just gone under
the silver thing.
- Hi!
- I wondered where you were.
I don't think I'm
ready for Tony's pants.
Right, let's work out
where we are off to.
5:00 A.M.
Three teams have
reached the port.
Okay. Thank you!
Sorry your lead has
been evaporated.
Due to depart at any time,
the aging ex-Soviet cargo ship,
the merkuri-1, transports
Ukrainian truckers
and their cargo between
Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan.
Oh, wow!
It's definitely
seen better days.
It's the sort of
thing that sinks.
All cargo has been loaded, and
the ferry is preparing to leave.
But one team is
nowhere to be seen.
So, you don't know
how often the ferries are?
You don't know if there's
one today for definite?
Still in Baku, father
and son, darron and Alex.
Let's go.
We rushed the
first leg and finished second,
we took our time for the
second leg and finished fourth.
Was it worth it? No.
Everything has a consequence.
We messed up.
We've got no sign of
Alex and his dad yet.
And the engine's kicked up.
I do fear that they
may not make it.
The ferries
can be very hit and miss.
It could be a case of a
couple have already gone,
or everybody's still waiting.
I feel like they are not
getting the bloody boat.
Still got time.
They still have time.
Is that them?
Hey! Yeah!
Whoo-hoo-hoo!
- Hello!
- Alex!
Everyone is here!
Oh, my god!
Skin of your teeth!
We caught up.
And we had a lie-in, as well.
Day 1 again.
Struggling and finishing
fourth means nothing.
We're all starting
again. Clean slate.
Everybody gets off this
ferry exactly the same time.
The caspian sea,
the largest inland
body of water on earth.
Covering an area
the size of Japan,
it is a remnant of
a much larger sea,
left stranded after
ancient continents collided.
Next stop, the port of
kuryk in Kazakhstan.
With fair weather, 30
hours of plain sailing away.
It's stepping
into the unknown.
This next stage, the
wild is approaching.
Four, three, two, one.
I'm going for a run
with a truck driver
on a ferry crossing
the caspian sea.
That's a sentence I
never thought I'd say.
Coming to join us, Alex?
No.
But just hours
into their 300-mile voyage...
The storm is coming!
A Gale that could spell trouble.
17 years ago, the merkuri's
sister ship capsized after
being caught in winds that
reached 65 miles per hour.
Vessels are now advised
to sit out bad weather,
so the anchor is forced to drop.
I'm glad the lifeboat is close.
The teams hunker
down to see out the storm.
The food on here, I think
you'd be polite to call it edible.
Oh, god.
And it comes in this soup,
but it's more
like flavored lard.
It's not that great at all.
Here, we have people's
urine. The smell, the smell.
I stink of urine.
You need a six. Yeah!
I miss my Xbox so much.
Don't say that, Alex.
Come on, you don't
miss your Xbox.
What's an Xbox?
The weather's just been pants.
I think it's just a matter of
batten down the hatches
and try to keep an
even keel on things.
"Day three on the caspian sea.
Still on the boat.
The boat has not moved."
I've started my diary for today.
Actually, no,
this is yesterday's
is it Friday today?
That tap's running. I know.
Eh? I know.
The wind's really
kicking in. It is cold.
I think everybody is getting
a little bit of cabin fever.
Ha!
It's not even boring. It's
just absolutely nothing.
It's complete nothingness.
There's only so many times
you can wash your pants.
My teeth are getting
loose. I think it's
the onset of scurvy.
Is this what
claustrophobia feels like?
I'm just sick of the boat,
being stuck on here for so long,
I feel like I'm having a
bit of a mental breakdown.
I want to go home, kind of.
Missing home a lot.
Feeling very homesick.
It's just a bit much.
I remember I were
in Norway caught in a storm.
It were minus-15. My
tent Poles had snapped.
I had no fuel, I had no water.
I just sat down at the
side of the road and cried.
And then I realized that I
just had to pull myself together,
get on with it.
If you can survive this,
you can survive anything.
Do you think sometimes
when I've told you to suck it up
and get on with it, do you
understand what I mean now?
A bit, but you also
frustrate me, as well.
Stiff upper lip approach,
you know, tough love.
It's not because I'm being mean,
it's because sometimes you sink
and wallow in
your own self-pity.
Alex is my son and I
would do anything for him.
But he needs to grow up.
I may come across as a
grumpy, strict, miserable father.
I'm sure some'll even
think I'm a bit of an arsehole.
But my job as a
parent is to make him
the best person he can be.
And I know he can
be a fantastic individual
who can achieve
anything he wants.
So I don't care what
people think of me.
As long as he becomes
the man I know he can be.
Four days and
two hours stuck at sea.
Look at the smoke, Tony.
That's promising.
Lots of activity down
at the other end.
Clearly preparing
for the big set-off.
With the boat back on its way...
We need to get racing,
we need to be on the move.
Attentions turn
to hitting dry land.
We'd need to get to Tashkent.
Train, choo-choo!
To get to Tashkent,
the teams could choose to
follow the ancient silk road
through the historical
cities of Uzbekistan...
Khiva, Bukhara, and samarkand.
Bukhara, samarkand, Tashkent.
We've got a potential
route. I knew of samarkand
from "the golden
journey to samarkand."
It's a poem I liked as a
kid, so definitely go there.
Alternatively, the
more intrepid among them
can venture into the wild open
desert plains of Kazakhstan.
The Kazakhstan route
seems to be the one
which offers the most
adventure and freedom.
Do some walking and some hiking,
and then we dash down on a train
to make up some time. Yeah.
This is where you get to step
outside of your comfort zone
and discover,
"I can do this," or
"whoa, that's too much."
So, bring it on.
A deck below,
Natalie and shameema
tap up their own source
of local knowledge.
- This is dao.
- Hello.
And dao is a stuntman.
Really?
Wow.
Our next checkpoint
is here.Tashkent.
Where do you live?
Are you going that way?
So, I was wondering, if you
didn't have anybody in your car,
that maybe you could drop us
when you get to the
first place you stop?
Yeah. Yeah!
A stuntman from
Kazakhstan on my boat!
What are the fricking
chances of that?
He was just in Azerbaijan
doing a bollywood movie.
It's possible
their new-found friend
could take them all the way
to the checkpoint in Tashkent,
a journey of over 1,200 miles,
on the way to his
home in almaty,
saving them time and money.
I was really
apprehensive and scared,
but now we're going to be with
somebody who's a native speaker.
That's
a massive asset.
Yeah.
That's taken a lot of
that apprehension away.
Look at that.
Dry land! Dry land!
It's been a long journey,
it's been a long journey.
Well done, mate.
You made it.
The teams
have arrived in Kazakhstan,
a country of outstanding
natural beauty,
with big skies, vast deserts
and very, very few tourists.
I didn't think Kazakhstan
was going to be like this.
What, desert?
I'm waiting for the
tough part of the journey,
and I expect this
may well be it.
The teams
land at the port of kuryk.
Off into Kazakhstan!
The nearest town,
aktau, is 40 miles away
and surrounded by desert...
Come on.
See you in checkpoint!
So public transport
links are non-existent.
Yes. How much?
3,000 for one?
Yeah. yeah, good.
Let's get in. Let's go.
Excellent.
Here we are,
we're in Kazakhstan now.
There's a big camel.
Oh, that's great.
I do like camels.
I know they might be
smelly, dirty, and grumpy...
It
reminds me of you.
Back at the port...
All the other teams have left
and are on their onward journey.
We're still waiting for dao.
Okay.
Okay.
Okay.
You think it's not
bad news, right?
No, it's not bad news!
Yay!
Banking on a
free lift being worth the wait,
the girls settle down in aktau.
See you later.
At the moment, I feel like
my journey is dependent
on one person's actions,
and it feels like we're in
no-man's-land, which is weird,
because we've been stuck
in the middle of the sea
and it hadn't felt like we
were in no-man's-land.
While
the girls sit tight...
Express train.
I don't think it
were a lot of money.
We are getting good distance
and we're seeing
some amazing things.
Most people would
go from "a" to "b" on a plane,
but then they'd miss all this.
Darron and Alex have
crossed the border into Uzbekistan
on a 22-hour train
heading to nukus.
The first time on
Uzbekistan soil for me.
Ever.
That's pretty cool.
Uzbekistan's blue-domed
mosques and incredible mosaics
hark back to the 7th century
when trade along the silk road,
the ancient network of
roads connecting east to west,
made this one of the busiest
and most wealthy places on earth.
Today, merchants
still move their goods
through the major
uzbeki cities of khiva,
Bukhara, and samarkand,
the same route that darron and
Alex plan to take to Tashkent.
When I were your age...
Maybe even slightly younger...
I always wanted to
come to samarkand.
I remember reading a poem.
Something like,
"we travel not for
trafficking alone:
By hotter winds our
fiery hearts are fanned:
For lust of knowing
what should not be known
we make the golden
journey to samarkand."
My dad, just,
he knows everything.
Seeing new things,
seeing new cultures,
seeing new people,
expectations are that
I'm a lot wiser, I'll learn
a lot more on my trip
compared to what I know now.
As they make their
way further into Uzbekistan,
the train begins to fill up.
It's a bloody
long train journey.
There's no
personal space at all.
The train, it's just a
moving nomadic community.
But I'm sort of getting used
to interacting with strangers
and not running away
and hiding from them.
Yum, yum, yum,
yum, yum, yum, yum!
Yum! Yum! Yum! Yum!
If you rage against it,
you're going to have a
really miserable journey,
so you might as well
embrace it and have fun.
Storm.
Normally my dad's
quite a shy sort of person,
he don't like speaking
to random people.
But this trip's changed him.
Tony and Elaine
are also aiming for Uzbekistan...
4,000 good?
4,000? Yeah.
Yeah? Thank you. Thank you.
But have
opted to avoid the crowds.
Because we're Yorkshire
people, we would never, ever,
ever dream of getting a taxi.
That's always the
most expensive way,
and we just wouldn't
do it, we're just tight.
But we're desperate
to get to checkpoint.
Apart from taxis,
transport systems are not in place
to get you around easily.
You know, the
gas is for nothing.
I mean, the desert is
just full of gas and oil.
I feel as though i'm,
like, being dragged on a...
Sledge across it.
I can see why they all
have clapped-out cars.
As Tony and
Elaine head to the border...
200 miles to the north,
Josh and Felix have chosen
to take a different route.
It's so stark and bleak,
and you keep thinking
we're going to see ewoks
coming over the horizon.
Love it.
For us, this is the
flavor of adventure.
After an overnight
train journey,
their thirst for a Kazakh
adventure sees them reach aralsk
at the northern
tip of the aral sea.
Their chosen route
to Tashkent heads
deep into the unexplored
wilds of Kazakhstan.
But it could take
them 400 miles longer
than going through Uzbekistan.
We're mainly just
having some time to ourselves
after a long three
weeks of transport,
just being able to be in
nature and breathe in fresh air.
It's really bitterly cold
today, which is lovely
because my thermals
come in useful.
Once the fourth
largest lake in the world,
the aral sea has now
shrunk to a 10th of its size
after being exploited
ruthlessly in the Soviet era
to provide irrigation.
It's stunning, in its own
kind of bizarre and lunar way.
Oh, it's
nice to be outside!
Even if it is a lake that's
been destroyed by mankind.
This is what we
were searching for.
We were searching
for something elemental,
something which would
bring us back to nothingness
and the elements.
I think this really delivers.
We're happy to slow down
if it means a more rich experience.
We're happy to spend money
if it means that it's something
which is just
once in a lifetime.
Hopefully this will renew us
for the dash to Tashkent ahead.
As three
teams clock up the miles,
still by the caspian sea...
I feel
a bit worried now.
What am I doing?
We're in a race.
We don't look like
we're in a race right now.
Natalie and shameema
have not moved for 36
hours, waiting for their free ride.
Not really sure
what has happened to dao,
but we need to
think of our next plan.
We need to think of ourselves.
Mm-hmm.
Hey, morning.
It was a mixture of
tiredness and joy and relief.
It was like, "oh, my
god, he's finally here!"
And maybe how many
women may have felt,
"why didn't you just text me?!"
Then realized I
didn't have a phone.
We are finally getting out of...
Arrrrgh... Arrrrgh...
Ktau. Ktau.
On the road at last...
Get me back in the race.
They're also heading
for Uzbekistan.
The journey to Tashkent
may be 1,200 miles...
The equivalent of driving
from Birmingham to Rome...
But without the need
to trust an unreliable
and budget-eating
public transport,
they can make up
time on the other teams.
Guys, I just want to let you
know I need the bathroom.
Shameema, this is why I tell you
to go to the toilet
before we left.
I'm giving the heads-up
before I really, really need to go.
Oh, my god!
What? There's no bin!
Go.
Some things you
just can't talk about.
As Natalie, shameema, and
dao cross into Uzbekistan...
Josh and Felix probably
have come across a poor horse
that died somehow,
so they cut it open and get
inside to keep themselves warm.
- To shymkent?
- Yeah.
Looking to head deeper
into the wilds of Kazakhstan...
I'm just finding out
what time it gets in.
This woman's just gazumped
me in the queue, though.
Josh and Felix get to grips
with the Kazakh
approach to queuing.
Huh?
I'm just trying
to get my ticket.
I feel like me eyes
have just gone...
Yeah.
300 miles to the south,
darron has taken integrating
with the locals
a little too far.
The person we're
travelling with,
he offered me some
really dark-green powder...
by ingesting naswar,
a powdered tobacco snuff.
He looked slightly in
shock, slightly in horror,
as I just downed it all.
My dad's on drugs!
That's so funny.
You're not meant to swallow it!
It's like the tables
have turned.
I'm the 40-year-old, he's
the 20-year-old right now.
I don't like waiting
for buses and trains now.
You just go, "taxi!"
I think we'll do the rest
of this journey on taxis.
Taxi Tony.
Tony and Elaine
have regained their lead,
having traveled the 900 miles
from Kazakhstan
exclusively in taxis.
We've done 600
kilometers today for 40 Euros.
Yeah, but we could've
done the train for half that.
We spent a lot of money.
Spent a lot of money.
So we're going to have to work.
To help finance their new habit,
Elaine has spotted an
ad in the jobs directory.
Why do you want to brush camels?
Are you saying
you don't want to?
They'll be the highlight
of this entire trip.
Why?
Because we've never
done anything like it.
The starry sky, for a start...
In the desert with the camels.
Tony and Elaine have
reached the red sands
of the kyzylkum desert,
115,000 square miles
that are home to wild
boar, golden eagles,
and the ships of the
desert... Bactrian camels.
Never groomed a camel before.
Didn't realize how scraggy
on the neck they get.
I can't tell you how many sticks
and bits of food
are trapped here.
It's like a baby with a bib on.
At one of the nomadic
camps in the area,
working as farm hands
for their bed and board,
Tony and Elaine muck in.
How many times does the
camel go to the toilet in a day?
One hour, yeah?
A bit like my missus.
Sheep... one, two, three...
- Like this.
- We've got to count them.
Oh, heck.
Two, four, five.
You look like a
goat herder, Tony.
Yeah, I know.
Tony
spent his early years
on the family farm in Yorkshire.
As kids, we had a bit of a
tough upbringing, you know?
Being on the farm and...
Going round and feeding animals
and things before
school and after school
and working all your
holidays and weekends.
Oh, naughty boys.
Sometimes my dad would
lift me out of bed on a morning,
put clothes on on
top of me 'jamas,
then I'd be working till
9:00, 10:00 on a night.
167. 27.
It's good! Yeah!
Did you get it right?
Are you sure?
We're earning our... Keep.
Yurt tonight.
- How cool is this?
- This is lovely.
This is off the beaten track.
Lagging 300 miles
behind their nearest rivals,
life on the road for Natalie,
shameema, and dao
is beginning to take its toll.
You all right, dao?
But we've been,
like, locked up for a few days.
It feels like a week.
And we need...
Need, need, need...
To get out and have
some adventure.
Let's go.
After
days in the desert,
the girls reach
the oasis of khiva,
the first of Uzbekistan's
silk road cities.
Wow! Oh, my god!
At its heart, a
10th-century juma mosque
and its 30-meter high minaret.
Wow! It's really steep.
Oh, my goodness me.
- Oh, wow. It's amazing.
- Oh, my god.
When there's a country
that you've never thought of
coming to and you see
amazing sights like this...
It's just really
intriguing.Yeah.
I was expecting to see
ancient ruins, but this is actually
how so intact it is. It'd
be good to know more.
Yeah. So well preserved.Yeah.
118 steps.
Definitely worth it
once you get to the top.
And then you think, "shit, I
have to get back down again."
Before they
can get back on the road
there is a problem with the
third member of the team.
Dao? Yes?
Has your friend told you if
you need to go to Tashkent
or not yet?
Okay. Because if you're
not going to Tashkent,
we need to see a time
that we can get the train,
'cause then we'd
just get the train,
because we have to
buy our ticket in advance.
Okay. Yes?
Yeah? Yeah.
Yeah. Okay, cool. Let's do that.
Whether he stays tonight or not,
I think we should
just get on with it.
Okay.
We're basically going
to see when the next train is
because we are independent women
and we are
independent travellers
and we are still in the race.
While Natalie and shameema
begin to plan for life without dao...
Important notes from the
Kazakh train a culture...
Shoes on the bed are a no-no,
absolute no-no.
After days in the badlands
of Kazakhstan, Josh and Felix
are approaching civilization...
The city of shymkent.
- Menya zovut Felix.
- Menya zovut Josh.
- Samat.
- Samat.
Luckily we're fluent
in Kazakh now.
I think that was Russian.
And having travelled
1,000 miles across Uzbekistan,
darron and Alex are
arriving in samarkand.
I always dreamed of
riding into samarkand on a camel.
Lawrence of Arabia-esque... who?
Just riding across...
Who's that? Who's what?
"Lawrence of Arabia-ess."
Lawrence of Arabia.
Yeah, who's that? You
don't know who he is?
No, never heard of him.
What?!
What is it? Alcohol.
Settling in for a night
in the kyzylkum desert,
Tony and Elaine enjoy
the fruits of their labor.
Oh, my god!
We haven't spent this much
time together since we were...
Just before we got married.
Just before...
Before we had children.
Skal. Bottoms up.
I think what
this trip has afforded us
is that freedom of
the big world again,
and you feel quite giddy on
the lack of responsibility of that.
Beautiful.
You must have a lot more
responsibility than me at home.
I think I actually do,
because you're part of
my responsibility.
You're like another grandchild.
A pretty
magical evening,
sitting by the fire
under a really starry sky.
Rekindled the embers, so to
speak, with the relationship.
It's just right up our street.
We could stay forever
and not a care in the world.
Bravo! Bravo!
Thank you for
being like a big brother.
After 728
miles together...
Natalie and shameema say
goodbye to their good samaritan.
We met an amazing
guy who did so much for us,
someone who could
speak the local language
and drive us around,
and it's almost like we're
back to reality again.
We want to go to
Bukhara.Bukhara.
7:20, leaving from there.
How much is the train?
Train? 97,000 so'Ms.
97,000.
We don't
have enough so'm.
We can't pay with dollars?
No?
They're closing in 20
minutes. We have to buy the ticket.
So we need...
75. The race is on.
With
ground to make up...
Do you know money change?
The girls need to find the cash
to hightail it out of khiva
as soon as they can.
Let's go.
It's just back to
Natalie and I getting back in the race.
Did he say the cafe here?
Walking around, trying
to figure things out.
Do you know anywhere
where I can change money?
Dollars to so'ms?
I'm losing this challenge.
Quick, quick, quick,
quick. Run, run, run.
It's a bit daunting, but
previous experience tells us
that we can get through it.
- Rahmat.
- Rahmat.
Thank you.
This is what we do.
Did you do it?
Did you do it?
Right, where's the next place?
Let's go. Let's go.
Tickets secured,
Natalie and shameema
begin a six-hour hop to Bukhara.
400 miles closer to Tashkent,
samarkand, the
silk road city darron
has wanted to visit
since he was a schoolboy.
Wow. Now,
that looks amazing.
That's pretty
impressive, isn't it?
The architecture is amazing.
Nothing like this in Europe.
Why don't I take a photo of you?
You know how
to work it, don't you?
I'm not stupid.
At its center, the
ulugh beg observatory...
In the 15th century,
at the cutting edge of
astronomy and mathematics.
This was an early version
of how to understand the sun.
Looks like a fun little slide.
Its 70 astronomers
could predict eclipses,
calculate the hour
of the rising sun,
and measure the
length of a stellar year
to within one minute
of modern calculations.
I feel at one with
the universe now.
What they achieved
here, all the stars aligned
to advance our knowledge
of the place we live.
You're not an
emotional person, so...
It's just there's not many
things that prick my emotions,
and something as
beautiful as this does.
It's just a privilege to
spend this time with you,
and the fact that you've
ticked this off the bucket list,
and I'm here with you doing
it, which you will never forget.
And I'm glad I'm
doing it with you.
Oh, god, it's freezing.
In the kyzylkum desert,
270 miles from Tashkent,
Tony and Elaine
plan their next move.
We need to be in a
big city for transport.
We can't be in some
random little place.
What's the point of
travelling all the way to samarkand?
We get the taxi and we
get really close to Tashkent.
Tony favors taking a direct
route through the desert
and along small
backroads, all by taxi.
But Elaine is keen on the more
reliable main road to samarkand,
and from there to jump
on cheaper public
transport to Tashkent.
Don't you think there
will be buses from here?
Absolutely no way!
Of course there will. No!
We know what it's
like, even from big cities.
We can hitch from here. No.
Okay, then, we'll do that,
we'll go to samarkand.
You call this one, then.
Samarkand. Yes, yes, yes.
Yeah. She's the boss.
Yeah.
Bye-bye.
We've got a race
to win, haven't we?
We forgot about
that momentarily,
while we were knocking
back the vodka last night,
but we're back in it to win it.
Oh, fantastic.
Josh and Felix
have arrived in shymkent.
Determined to continue
their Kazakh adventure,
the boys have word
that just outside of town,
a sporting spectacular
is about to begin
that they can't afford to miss.
I'm getting more
and more excited.
It feels like the big
match is impending.
Brought to the region by
genghis Khan's mounted raiders,
the sport of kokpar has
been played by Kazakh men
since the 13th century.
I said I wanted to go into
the wild, and this is wild.
This is a different way.
This is the wild west.
He's got a horse in a headlock.
It involves two teams
fighting over the decapitated carcass
of a recently slaughtered goat.
It's visually impressive but...
borderline barbaric.
At least the goat's not alive.
Yeah.yeah.
Thank god for small mercies.
The more I've
watched it, actually,
the more I've
appreciated and enjoyed it.
It's like rugby
played on horseback,
fighting over a goat by...
60 of the hardest
men you've ever met.
Thank you, thank you.
You guys, you are all amazing.
Seeing you out
there, made us think...
- Oh, wow.
- This is fantastic.
It smells delicious.
I think today and I think
this whole Kazakhstan leg
of the journey for me
has been the most true
to what I've wanted
this experience to be.
Risking your life and limb
and then coming back to this
and everyone being
together and being like,
"do you remember that bit
where Jim got knocked out?"
You know? This is
for the story sharing,
and this bit is probably more
important than the kokpar,
to be honest.
There's nothing, there's
nothing that compares to this.
This is one of those
once-in-a-lifetime experiences
that I'll never see again.
The next generation.
Thank you so much.
I wonder if you know when
the earliest train to Tashkent
is tomorrow.
Samarkand.
180 miles from the checkpoint.
Tomorrow morning, yes.
Early as possible.
There's one at 5:18.
Thank you for your help.
Thank you again.
Greatly appreciated.
Thank you.
Just arriving,
Tony and Elaine.
My rear end feels like it's
been pummeled for a good hour.
Why are you smiling so much?
We're looking to get
a train to Tashkent.
Today, yeah.
8:00 A.M.
Tomorrow. Tomorrow.
Look.
I can only know one person
who wears that hat other than you.
Hello. You're kidding me!
How are you?
Oh, all right.
Where have you been?
Where have you been?
We've been in samarkand.
With Tony and
Elaine's tickets booked...
Yes.
8:00 A.M.
Thank you.
Alex spots an opportunity
to steal a march on his rivals.
Hello.
We are wanting to get to
Tashkent as early as possible.
Today? Tomorrow, 5:00 A.M.
I seen something I
maybe should not have.
Ooh! Tell me.
8:00 A.M.
Their earliest
train was 8:00 A.M.
So they didn't know about the...
They didn't know about this one.
Tomorrow. Perfect.
On this journey, I hope
Alex learns he's far stronger,
smarter, and more adaptable
than he believes he is.
He doesn't lack ability,
he just lacks the
confidence of his ability.
It will change him forever,
without a shadow of a doubt.
How and in what way,
it'll be interesting to see.
73 years
old. That's my gran.
So obviously I would
find the raving grandma.
200 miles to the west,
Natalie and shameema
adapt to life without dao.
Are you going to
take me to dinner?
Yeah. oh, my god, guys!
Yes!
I will take you
up on that offer.
In the process of
separating from her husband...
- Me?
- Yeah.
- 25.
- 25?
39-year-old
shameema finds herself
single for the first
time in 19 years.
- You are not 18!
- 18.
Okay, I can't have
dinner with you.
He's 18, guys.
Oh, my god.
Uh, tea?
Tea? Yes.
Black.
I did say I'm
going to live in the moment
so I'll get to know
this nice young man
and never see him
again.
I'm not really thinking about
love and romance at the moment.
It's more about just
working on myself.
Mmm.
This is chicken soup?
Yeah. Thank you very much.
I feel bad for eating
without Natalie.
What is your name?
My name is guara.
Where do you live?
In... I live in...
I live in khiva.
Shameema went on a
hot date, so I've been just, like,
with my new train
family next door.
What is your name?
My name is...
Obviously I'm very different,
very different from them,
sharing and
exchanging knowledge,
but feeling very comfortable
and not feeling awkward
at all during this journey.
So how has your date been?
I had a really nice
dinner, actually.
Did you have a nice date?
- Yeah.
- Yeah?
Oh, good.
Have you been a
perfect gentleman?
12 days
since leaving Baku,
all four teams are within
striking distance of Tashkent.
Time for bed, then?
Yeah, I think so. I'm tired.
If I eat any more
meat I'm going to burst.
I feel
frustrated with myself.
We've made a bad
decision coming this way
and Elaine railroaded
me this way.
She just wasn't
listening earlier today
and I should have
stood me ground.
The simplest, easiest
way isn't always the best.
You're never going to
let go of that, are you?
You're going to poke the bear.
Whenever he's feeling
fed up or his body's hurting him,
he always sort of attacks me,
which is exactly what
he's done tonight.
And after 40 years of
marriage, it won't really affect me.
I'll just ignore him.
Anyway, end of story.
New day tomorrow.
We'll get on
darron and Alex's...
It'll be funny if they're
on the same train.
- This week is...
- it's been a good week.
Yeah, I don't think we've
screwed up too often.
I think we've got on a lot
more than what we would normally.
Yeah.
I even recall a
couple of moments
where I didn't mind you at all.
We went through a bit
of a hard time on the boat,
and the fact that I
was ready to quit
and you kept me controlled
and it's good again.
It's helped
we've stuck together
going through this
journey together.
It's making our bond stronger
'cause we're going
through the highs and lows.
8:00 A.M.
Tony and Elaine catch the train
from samarkand to Tashkent.
We hope to arrive in Tashkent
for about half past 1:00.
Bottoms up.
What do you say in Russia?
Nostrovia. be healthy.
- Nostrovia.
- Nostrovia.
Nostrovia.
Slightly surprised not to
see daz and Alex on the train today.
So I've got a feeling that we
may well be ahead of them.
But after
catching the earlier train...
- Well, we're in Tashkent.
- Yeah.
Darron and Alex are
closing in on the third checkpoint.
They are notified of its exact
location by their GPS tracker.
"Head to the Amir Timur square.
If you stand next
to the monument,
you will see our hotel."
Four miles away,
Amir Timur square,
a monument to the turko-mongol
emperor who founded a dynasty
that ruled from central
Turkey to the edge of China.
Beyond that, the
hotel Uzbekistan...
A brutalist relic
of the Soviet era.
Go!
Sorry.
Bloody hell, dad,
what you doing?
We do not have
time to mess about.
Bloody stressful.
Ah!
Navoi. Navoi.
Navoi and up? Down.
Down.
Next stop, navoi.
We're in Uzbekistan.
We've crossed the border.
Closing
in, Josh and Felix.
I've really enjoyed soaking
up some Kazakh culture,
but maybe I'm feeling
a little bit nervous
now that we're racing
towards the checkpoint.
While in Bukhara, 350
miles from Tashkent...
Thank you. What did she say?
Basically, we're fucked.
There's a fast
train fully booked.
The next fast train
is fully booked,
but the cost of a taxi is
the same, but we lose time.
It would have only taken
four hours on the train
and it's going to take us
seven hours sat in a car.
Okay, let's make a move.
This is navoi.
Got to be fast, dad.
Oh, wow. Now,
that is impressive.
Timur square?
Up? Thank you.
Monument.
Hotel.
Please be there.
Hello. Good morning.
Hello. Welcome
to Uzbekistan hotel.
- Thank you very much.
- Thank you.
Each team must sign in
to find out its position in the race.
Oh, wow.
Touch. Give me touch.
That's exactly what I wanted.
I am buzzing.
After leaving
Baku in last place,
darron and Alex are the first
to reach the third checkpoint.
Oh, wow, what a feeling.
Yes!
This leg, it's been
extra special for me,
and I think Alex has
picked up on my happiness
and embraced that.
So, we're getting on better.
We're getting there.
The fact that I took
my dad's advice
and sucked it up and
carried on, and it were good.
Like, we're here, we're
first, we're at Tashkent.
It's perfect situation.
We'd better go,
Elaine. Have you got the bag?
Yeah, I've got it.
Have you got my glasses?
After taking totally different
routes through Central Asia...
It's 10,000 each.
Pleasure to meet you.
All right, let's go.
Two teams arrive in
Tashkent just minutes apart.
Do you want me to
take yours, as well?
My what? Rucksack.
It's not my
rucksack, it's my legs.
They're not as long as yours.
- I'm itching to get there now.
- Yeah.
- I need a shower.
- I need a wee.
First there has a bath first.
Into the light!
Come on, Elaine.
I'm coming
as fast as I can.
This bag is getting
really heavy.
That's probably it there,
the hotel Uzbekistan.
Come on.
I'm sweating a bollock.
If darron and Alex
are here, I'll eat my hat.
Alex and darron?
How did they manage that?
They were at the
train station after us.
How did they get a blooming
ticket for a train before us?
I don't get that.
- Oi, oi!
- Hey, guys.
Look at this! Oh,
nice to see you guys.
It makes you
realize that, actually,
there isn't much in this.
It can just turn.
We messed up. We would
have been here early this morning
if we'd taken some risk.
We don't know that.
But we've
over-spent on this leg.
That doesn't bode well.
Hello. Nice to see you.
We arrived two minutes
after the second-placed team.
It feels like this is the way
we've got to carry on doing it.
We're making the
most of the experiences
and we're not
losing in the race.
We're competitive
but also having fun,
which has got to
be what it's about.
There's one last
team to reach the checkpoint.
Hello!
Oh, no!
Oh, it's all right.
It's cool.
We knew that we
lost a couple of days in aktau.
I didn't want to
be a day behind.
As long as we were
within hours of everyone
because I don't want
that to impact the next leg.
And the fact that we've
only come in a few hours after
is actually not that bad.Yeah.
After the third
leg in the race to Singapore,
darron and Alex have
moved from last to first place.
And the teams are
separated by just 6.5 hours.
We are going to get our
lead back by whatever means.
We're only halfway
through a marathon.
I don't think anything's
won or lost yet.
Next time...
- God, it's snowing!
- Oh!
The race hots up.
- Oh, wow!
- This shit just got real.
As the teams
head to the people's republic.
It's a crazy, wacky,
whoopy place.
Oh, my god.
Emotions run high...
Shut up!
Thank you.
We don't have
enough money, so...
and budgets...
We're in dire straits.
Dangerously low.
That is the most we've
spent in the whole trip.
It's a massive culture shock.
I've never been
anywhere like this.