Travelscope

- Season 4

(2010)

The Season 4 opener visits Switzerland. Included: Geneva; the villages near Lake Geneva, including the Olympic city of Lausanne; the car-free village of Bettmeralp.

Victoria, Australia, is toured. Included: its capital, Melbourne; the Shipwreck Coast; Victoria's wine country; Grampians National Park. Also: kangaroos, koalas and emus; Australia's aboriginal people.

Tasmania, Australia, is toured. Included: the capital,Hobart's harbor, markets and neighborhoods; the prisons of Port Arthur; Cradle Mountain-Lake St. Clair National Park; Tasman National Park; the Tasmanian devil.

Joseph Rosendo and wife Julie visit Lucerne, Switzerland, in search of her Swiss roots. Included: Mount Pilatus; alpen horn and handöergeli (accordion) shops in the village of Schwyz. Also: the two share wine and fondue with long-lost and newly met relatives.

New Brunswick, Canada, is visited during the annual Caraquet Acadian Festival, a Mardi Gras-like celebration.

A visit to the German state of Baden-Wüerttemberg for Fasnet, a carnival that dates back some 500 years.

Bangkok is toured. Included: morning Buddhist rituals; an up-to-date wellness center; a Thai market. Also: crafting a monk's alms bowl; roasting Thai coffee at a 100-year-old Chinese market.

Thailand is explored. Included: the beaches of the Krabi Peninsula; the infamous Golden Triangle (the border of Thailand, Myanmar and Laos).

A visit to Fredericksburg, Texas, which has a deep-rooted Germanic heritage and lies midway between Austin and San Antonio. Included: a barbecue, German beer tasting, wine sampling and guitar picking.

A visit to Scotland, which has been a part of the United Kingdom for more than 300 years yet has retained its distinct customs, culture and character.

A visit to Cappadocia, home to volcanic ash formations that tower over beautifully carved valleys in rural Turkey. Included: a hot-air-balloon ride; ancient mosques and churches; the region's traditional arts and crafts, including ceramics, rug weaving and water painting.

A visit to South Africa includes a safari in the Lion Sands Private Game Reserve and encounters with lions, elephants, cape buffaloes and black rhinoceroses. Also: two cheetahs at the Hoedspruit Endangered Species Centre.

Mozambique is explored. Stops include Indigo Bay Island Resort and Spa on Bazaruto Island and the Azura Resort on Benguerra Island. Activities include snorkeling, sailing, horseback riding, sand boarding and a sunset swim with horses.