The Other Half of the World

New Zealand and arrival in Australia.

Pat in Sydney and Byron Bay, Syusy in Coober Pedy and Ayers Rock.

Syusy visits Kakadoo Park, Pat goes up the reef and explores the Whitsunday Islands.

Pat is in Bali and Syusy in Thailand... Adriatica takes part in the "King's Regatta".

We find Pat where we left him last summer: in Bali! Which he defines bluntly as "Paradise, the East as we Westerners dream of it". Together with the musician Andrea Centazzo he immerses himself in the exotic atmosphere of a village, in the shade of the sacred banana tree, among traditional music and child dancers (the famous "Nymphs of Paradise"). Did you know that Bali can be considered the source of the world's ethnic craftsmanship? Craftsmanship is a second job for all the inhabitants and supplies the banquets for tourists from all over Southeast Asia. We will see Pat try her hand at Balinese dances at the inauguration of a Children's House, founded by Sabrina, an Italian girl. Will she be able to get out of the impasse of the rigid social rules to be respected at the table?

Pat is still in Vietnam, discovering Ho Chi Minh City. Together with him we will visit the famous war museum, a memorial set up not to foment hatred, but to preserve the memory. Here is preserved a photo that has been around the world on television and in newspapers: the one that portrays a Vietnamese girl burned by napalm. Then we will wander through the streets of the city, where at dawn and dusk, every day, people meet to do gymnastics, considered a duty of the people... Will Pat be trained enough to face the Thai Chi lesson? Let's also follow him to the Mekong Delta, where life takes place on the water and where it is possible to achieve a continuous harvest throughout the year. However, the floods of the river are also an obstacle and will cause some inconvenience to our sailors - tourists!

Pat wanders around the atolls asking surveyor questions: "where do water and light come from?" - he asks, before attempting a failed morning fishing trip. Meanwhile, Syusy, on the typical local boat (the doni), reaches a fishermen's island, discovering that the secret to coexistence between the variegated population of tourists and the native Maldivians is... a respectful and rigorous separation! With the help of the expert diving couple Enzo and Marta, our sailors explore the enchanting coral seabeds, before moving on to a visit to the emerged lands: precisely to the city of Malé, a "mini Hong Kong" of two kilometers by one, practically the smallest capital in the world! Here the roads divide: Syusy cannot resist the call of the mystery and goes from the museum on the origins of the Maldivian people, to the archaeological site of Kashidoo (reachable only by prior navigation on a blender motorboat).

The episode opens with a scoop: in the Gulf of Aden, in the waters between the Somali and Yemeni coasts, Adriatica suffers an attempted boarding by pirates (the real ones, this time!). Gigi, a brave captain, fires three shots in the air and the danger is averted. But how scary. The crossing proceeds without too many hitches until it reaches its destination, waiting for it in Yemen is Pat, together with an old acquaintance, David Riondino, and a very special guide, Marco Livadiotti. Marco's father accompanied Pasolini on his journey through Yemen at the time of his "One Thousand and One Nights", we couldn't be in better hands! The first stop is the ancient city of San'a, apparently founded by Sam, son of Noah. The view is truly evocative, "the buildings seem to be made of cream and chocolate" and, taking advantage of the hospitality that is sacred in these parts, our heroes ask for bread to be offered to them.