For those who are also into armchair travel, I thought I would give a run down of my favorite shows currently airing:
-BBC Travel show. A fast-paced weekly show which airs weekends on the BBC World news channel. A lot of varied topics from different corners of the world.
-Somewhere Street. A quirky yet fascinating show which airs weekends on the english language Japanese NHK World Channel available on most cable/satellite systems. It's basically a live action version of Google Streetview. A camera crew wanders the streets of a city or village somewhere in the world and simply walks around and stops to look at whatever peaks the cameraman's interest. It's all very spontaneous, talking a bit to locals they come across and often asking if they can look around their houses/apartments or shops. The locales they choose are quite varied from very touristy places like Nice or Stockholm to a small city in Albania nobody has every head of. It's all very charming and fun.
-Great British Railway Journeys/Great Continental Railway Journeys. Also from the BBC, it's probably one of the best travel shows about Europe every made! Hosted by Michael Portillo, he uses an old Victorian era George Bradshaw guidebook to show how the railways have influenced industrialization and tourism throughout the decades. A must for anyone who loves European travel. To my knowledge it hasn't been picked-up by any broadcaster in the US, but full episodes in HD are available on YouTube. Here is a sample:
http://tinyurl.com/oryevyk