NHK Documentary Season 9: Episode Guide & Ratings

Traversing some of the highest terrains in the world, the Qinghai-Tibet Railway, in service since July 2006, makes the 4,064-kilometer trip from Beijing to Lhasa in 48 hours. It climbs to an ear-popping altitude of 5,072 meters above sea level passing through several tunnels that had to be carved out of frozen soil. It carries a wide range of passengers from businessmen seeking opportunities in Lhasa to pilgrims to the Potala Palace. They travel together along the "rooftop of the world." High Clouds Railway to Tibet showcases the magical allure of this breathtaking railway, including the latest technology used to overcome the harsh conditions like the icy ground and thin air.

Every year 130,000 Parisians flock to the world's largest chocolate trade show -- Le Salon du Chocolat. The event that garners most attention there is the chocolate competition, in which the world's finest chocolatiers display their skills as they try to outdo each other. The winner is promised success and fortune. Having selected from the best cacao the world has to offer, they proceed to add flavors such as rose blossom, mushroom or syrup candy to create inimitable jewel-like confections. Chocolate Alchemy follows these expert chocolatiers from the trial-and-error experiments in their kitchens to the grand stage.

Surrounded by sub-tropical trees and coral reefs, Amami-Oshima is a southern Japanese island richly endowed with nature. The island’s flora and fauna have uniquely evolved, developing a distinctive eco-system that still thrives today. One of the island’s endemic denizens is the black Amami rabbit, known as a “living fossil.” Other island creatures include the Ryukyu long-haired rat that lives in trees (just as squirrels do); and the Ishikawa frog, one of the most beautiful of its kind in Japan. Veteran photographer Futoshi Hamada, who has been capturing the natural beauty of Amami-Oshima for 25 years, reveals the habitats and behaviors of these rare creatures in a unique tour of the island’s dense forest area.