Julian and Camilla's World Odyssey is a New Zealand documentary travel series produced by Katipo Productions which follows two friends as they travel the world for a year, documenting their bizarre experiences along the way.
The series premiered in South Africa on DStv's Travel Channel on Sunday 20 July 2008, at 21h00. There are 11 hour-long episodes in the series.
Repeats
Fridays: 03h00
Synopsis
Julian and Camilla's World Odyssey is a documentary travel series unraveling a full year of unpredictable travel plans and all the bizarre encounters made along the way: Masked Mexican Wrestlers, Thai Transsexuals, Indian Gurus, Jamaican Con-men and Peruvian Alien Worshipers - to name but a few.
Four friends, Julian Hanton, Camilla Andersen, along with cameraman Tom Fowlie and researcher/sound Ian Hart, left New Zealand under their own resources and finances with a plan to make a 'backpacker' TV series around the world.
One year later they returned with five hundred hours of footage having trawled through 11 countries shedding 40 kgs between them and bringing back an impressive collection of rashes and tropical diseases.
Picked up by US Distributor Cable Ready the series has been sold internationally in over 16 territories from France and Singapore to French speaking Africa.
Having total independence allowed them to plan their filmed journey like real travellers away from the souvenir stalls, making plans depending on who they met or how much money they had.
This resulted in many human rights focused investigations like visiting a Laos village that suffered tremendous bombing by the US secret war in the 1970's, the AIDS epidemic in South Africa or an audience with the masked rebel group the Zapatistas in Mexico.
They even landed an exclusive interview with Professor Noam Chomsky, who added his perspective to these events.
Just as it becomes serious each episode can switch mood instantly like their lighthearted romp through a Jamaican nudist resort full of overweight Americans.
Another aspect to the series is the unlikely pairing of cheapskate traveller Julian with laidback companion Camilla and their tumultuous friendship.
After a year of shared experiences it wasn't always smooth sailing - the screaming match over petty differences in picturesque Cuba was one of the low points and it was all captured on camera.
Together these four filmmakers joined forces to explore the more bizarre aspects of the world and illuminate its darker side.
The series also captures the feel of the traveller network interviewing other backpackers and getting to the bottom of each country's sub-culture.
Episodes
Episode 1: Indonesia & Malaysia
Excited about the epic journey ahead, Julian & Camilla soon find out it isn’t all bliss as they argue travel etiquette from bargaining techniques to how to get by without toilet paper.
Upset after attending a bloody cock-fight and discovering an awful animal market, they’re relieved to meet people that rescue abused animals.
In Malaysia Julian restrains himself at an Islamic pop concert and on the legendary island of Penang they discover that sometimes the best guides are drunk or crazy.
Episode 2: Thailand
Camilla and Julian party with thousands of debauched world travellers on a beach under the full moon. Once sober, they investigate Thailand’s sex scene – witnessing a sex change operation.
Not satisfied that they have explored the dark side, they visit a forensics museum of bottled babies and pickled serial killers in Bangkok.
Trekking north, in search of lost hill tribes, Pumpkin their drunken guide loses his way and their trust.
Episode 3: Laos
Bored with the partying, Julian and Camilla attempt to chill out and recover as they cruise down the Mekong River in a boat crammed with too many other annoying backpackers.
Heading south, they meet families living amongst rusty bomb remnants from a secret war and find out why Laos is the most bombed country in history.
Leaving Laos, Camilla panics as our travellers stare death in the face as their boat runs out of gas and they are swept down the mighty Mekong River towards the world’s widest waterfall.
Episode 4: Cambodia
After negotiating a boat ride and corrupt officials at the world’s worst border crossing, Julian and Camilla place their lives in the hands of a kamikaze river pilot.
Noticing the high number of limbless Cambodians, they meet a motorbike taxi driver who points them to the Cambodia Trust, where he was given a prosthetic leg.
The road out of Cambodia is the worst ever and our budget travellers choose to take the ride on the back of a pickup truck with 5 chickens, 10 sacks of rice and 30 other passengers.
Episode 5: South India
Landing in Chennai in the south of the sub-continent, our travellers are star-struck as they visit a Collywood film set and are lucky to meet one of the biggest actresses in Collywood.
After a haircut and face buff Julian is shaved raw by a man with a cut throat razor, while in Mumbai Camilla undergoes a modern Indian make-over in a salon with a friendly and accomplished owner, Mr. Cooper: Tour Guide, Opera Singer and Brain Eater.
Episode 6: North India
Escaping the heat of dirty Delhi, our travellers cool off at the foot of the Himalayan Mountains, where Julian is stabbed in the eye by a travelling medicine man.
Exploring the holy city of Varanasi, Julian and Camilla get a reading from Goldie Hawn’s astrologer.
In Calcutta, their final Indian stop, they realise that India’s most revered celebrity is the late Mother Theresa and they spend a day at her home for the destitute and dying.
Episode 7: South Africa
Arriving in the third most dangerous country in the world, they head for Soweto, where they meet the mother of an anti-apartheid legend, a trickster who snorts coins and the numerous wives and girlfriends of their tour guide.
Up in the Kingdom in the Sky, a punk-styled shepherd wows them with his musical ability.
In Cape Town, they discuss culture with the leader of the Afrikaner separatist movement before they are given modelling and karaoke lessons by a troop of confident 9-year-olds.
Episode 8: South Mexico
Learn how and how not to speak Spanish as Julian and Camilla try to escape the clutches of Hijo Del Santo, a masked professional wrestler.
Braving Mexico City, Julian is robbed but finds solace joining in the fun at a Pacific coast nudist beach.
Heading south they are very privileged to be granted an audience with the Zapatistas, a rebel group taking up arms to defend the inhabitants of the Chiapas Mountains from globalization.
Episode 9: Cuba
Visiting forbidden Cuba where music and mojitos are the key ingredients to life, they start in Havana with salsa lessons from Gloria Estefan’s tutor.
Not quite having mastered the art of rhythm Camilla gets put straight by a transvestite dancer. Things turn serious as one of Castro’s pocket journalists explains what Che Guevara means to himself and the Cuban people.
Finally an excursion to El Morro castle is the backdrop as Julian and Camilla fight a war of the nastiest words.
Epsidoe 10: Jamaica
Taken on a ride in this land of “no problem mon”, problem situations soon surface as an opportunist surfer aggressively attempts to swindle them in broad daylight.
After a serious look at Rastafarian politics, Julian discovers the secret to jerking and Camilla discovers the secret to ganja cultivation.
After meeting Jamaica’s cruisers they decide to get down and dirty at the world’s most famous free love resort.
Episode 11: Peru
Ending their year long journey, Julian and Camilla are taken to the mystical and spiritual centres of Peru.
After a visit to the ancient city of Machu Picchu and a queasy flight over the mysterious Nazca Lines, they visit the headquarters of Peru’s “Alpha and Omega” Alien Cult.
Hoping to sight a UFO themselves, they head along the mighty Amazon deep into the jungle where they are the guests of a Mestizo riverbank community and are cleansed for the journey home by a Shaman.