Full Circle with Michael Palin

I watched the full "Full Circle" TV Mini Series 1997- 8h 20m

Full circle with Michael Palin. Similar to his "Trains" documentary Michael travels around the Pacific Rim. The particular countries I bought this set for is China/ Vietnam & the Philippines. The set includes USA (Alaska), Russia (Siberia), Japan, S. Korea, China, Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Australia, New Zealand, Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, Mexico, USA (California and Washington), and Canada (British Columbia.)

Michael gets down to the personal level on his travels and shows places that were not seen for a long time and deleted scenes.

It is true; you can never go back. What once was primitive and beautiful is now a metropolis as viewed in 1979. No telling what you will find now. It is probably time for a new series. However, this will do for me.

A similar documentary but not as sophisticated is "Hitchhiking Vietnam: Letters from the Trail"

Also, Michael Palin - Pole to Pole.

Michael Palin's travel shows are so enthralling, and this, a journey around the Pacific rim, is no exception. This time Palin travels through countries as diverse as the United States, Vietnam and New Zealand along the way, and the spectacle is as good as ever.

The witty and informative commentary remains as interesting as in Palin's previous travel series, and the mix of cultures encountered en route combined with this provides unlimited replay value. A joy to watch.

Michael has a full blown case of the travel bug. He's going further and longer than ever before. He's making a big circle around the Pacific Ocean. In Russia, he's struggling to find a bathtub stopper. In Japan, he meets his number one fan. In South Korea, he goes to the border. In China, he gets a blind massage and witnesses the beginnings of an economic transformation. Vietnam is starting to change. In the Philippines, he assists a psychic surgery and goes underwater dining. He visits the orangutans and a longhouse in Borneo. He harvests tea and eats durian in Java. In Australia, he feeds a crocodile. In New Zealand, he almost loses his head in a speed boat. In Chile, he turns north onto the moon. He boards a tiny train and crashes into La Paz. In Peru, he tackles some white waters to arrive on the Amazon. In Bogota, he visits some rough streets. He eats bugs in Mexico City. After crossing the border illegally, he rides a helicopter pass the Hollywood sign. He should have sang the lumberjack song in Canada before going back to the beginning.

Michael is now the best celebrity to do a travel show. His humanity always shines through. This one is the longest road trip yet but it still has the same disadvantage of not having a ticking clock. 80 Days remains the best for that reason in addition to being his first. Nevertheless, there are great memorable moments in this series. One can never forget Bogota. I recently watched this again after over 20 years since it was first broadcast. Something occurred to me. This is not only a travel show. It's a time travel show. This is not only a journey to places but those places in a specific time. I kept thinking that China and Vietnam no longer looks like that. This is very much a time capsule.

Full Circle with Michael Palin is the best travel documentary I have seen. The BBC crew (including Palin) captures all the

cultural aspects of the places they visit, with truth and imagination. The fact that you can check it out (in multiple parts) at your library, makes the journey last that much longer and leaves you longing for the next one.

You can tell that Palin is having great fun, at his own expense rather than at the expense of the people he encounters. I am just watching the visit to China, Vietnam and the Phillipines and am so pleased to see that there are so many things about my ancestors' country that I never knew. Who would have thought that the Communists, Mao and his cronies would have allowed a Bavarian castle to continue standing in a seaside resort town in China?

I saw Palin speak at his launch of Sahara a few weeks ago. The man is such a delightful, charming man. If you cannot get out to see him show you his slides, at least borrow the tapes of his series from your library.