Alia Twal is an enthusiastic pilot, globetrotter and adventurer. She is a first officer with the Jordanian airline Royal Jordanian and flies large passenger planes. She climbs the highest mountains in the world, dives with sharks or goes skydiving. Alia particularly enjoys travelling in her Jordanian homeland.
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Watching the graceful movement of these gelatinous animals is almost hypnotic. Although their bodies are 98% water, jellyfish are deceptively clever and dangerous. But where do these primordial creatures come from? How do they reproduce and how long do they live?
They are killers. They kill with unbelievable precision. They fight Kung Fu style and are seen in Japan as a symbol of vigilance - the mantises. Their triangular head with its unique flexibility is conspicuous. Two overdimensioned eyes fixate the distance to their prey rapidly and three-dimensionally. The chest segment of the mantis is prolonged and equipped with spiny appendages that can spear their prey as fast as a jack knife. The mysterious aura that surrounds the praying mantis has a lot to do with the fact that they are rarely seen. They have adapted to their surroundings perfectly. No matter whether leaves, blossoms, tree bark, sandy floors or even orchids - the mantis adjusts to all environments.
The knights of the deep are on the move almost no part of their bodies is without armor. Like medieval warriors, these fighters are well armed – not with sword and shield, but with scissors and forceps and defensive armor that is covered with spikes and hooks. And even though they are well protected and have an uncanny awareness of their surroundings, many of these proud knights will face a gloomy destiny. Many of them will end upon a plate. Gourmets all over the world are in love with these famous crustaceans: lobsters! For marine biologists lobsters are similarly fascinating: as research objects. We are on their trail in Cape Breton, an island in the northern Atlantic and part of the Canadian province Nova Scotia, where one of the largest populations of lobsters has its home.
The Antarctic region is undoubtedly one of the most remote and inhospitable, yet one of the most beautiful landscapes of the world. This documentary takes us on a journey to the stormy isolated islands of the Southern Ocean. Seals, penguins, seabirds and numerous other animals live and breed in this hostile environment and harsh climate. Only by an icebreaker can we reach the remote coasts of the Antarctic continent where Emperor Penguins defy the life-threatening environment of the vast ice desert at the end of the world.
The Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic, located in the middle of the Gulf Stream between Scotland and Iceland, are an archipelago of eighteen green volcanic islands where a unique culture has developed over the last thousand years. As direct descendants of the Vikings, the Faroese feel committed to their traditions and hold on to customs, without missing out on the advantages of the modern and globalised world - from archaic hunter and shepherd culture to contemporary art. With the highest birth rate in Europe and the lowest social inequality in the world, the just fifty thousand Faroese are a very special people living on one of the last natural paradises in Europe.
In accordance with the seasons and with deep respect of nature, people all over the world celebrate their long-standing traditions. Near the outermost border of Europe, in Bashkiria, generations of bee keepers have collected honey from rare wild bees, the Burzyan bees. In Japan the last of the Usho catch fish with "living fishing rods": trained cormorants. Traditionally, they provided the Emperor's family with fresh fish. In Poland carp are fished from the ponds to provide everybody with carp for Christmas dinner - this is an old Polish tradition. In Frisia winter is driven out by fires at what is known as "Biikebrennen", and in Hungary the "Busho" - frightening characters wearing wooden masks - do a similar job. "Four seasons - Many traditions" is a journey, meeting people who are passionate at keeping old traditions alive.
In accordance with the seasons and with deep respect of nature, people all over the world celebrate their long-standing traditions. In Japan the first picnics at the cherry blossom festival kick off the long-awaited outdoor season, while the Scots perform their Highland Games. In the summer the Latvians celebrate the biggest party of the year: midsummer night. The vast wildflower meadows provide them with wreathes of flowers which have magical healing powers animals are provided with an abundance of insects. This enables the rare hoopoe to breed in Latvia. In the Spree forest region, an enchanting river landscape south-east of Berlin, farmers still harvest the famous Spreeforest Cucumber. "Four seasons - Many traditions" is a visual journey around the globe meeting people who are passionate and dedicated at keeping old traditions alive.
Nepal is one of the poorest countries in the world. Young women are often disadvantaged here and quite a few are married off before the age of 18. Helicopter pilot Priya Adhikari lives and works here. The 38-year-old is an exception and the only woman in Nepal who ventures into the extremely dangerous heights of the Himalayas in her helicopter.
Alia Twal is an enthusiastic pilot, globetrotter and adventurer. She is a first officer with the Jordanian airline Royal Jordanian and flies large passenger planes. She climbs the highest mountains in the world, dives with sharks or goes skydiving. Alia particularly enjoys travelling in her Jordanian homeland.
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