All language subtitles for The UnBelievable with Dan Aykroyd s02e16 Extraordinary Traditions.eng

[energetic music]

- What if I told you
there's an annual tradition

where people build
towers out of themselves?

[energetic music]
[crowds screaming]

- The little kids that
are at the top have

to not only be agile, they have

to be extremely
brave, and this is

- Where the tower is the
most likely to collapse.

[crowds screaming]
[dramatic music]

- Or that there's
a good luck ritual,

requiring a whole lot of trust.

- In order to have a
healthy life for your baby,

you climb to the
top of the shrine

and throw 'em off the roof.

- It's like 30 to 50 feet high.

[tense music]
[baby screams]

- How about preparing
an elaborate buffet

in the middle of town
for a surprising guest?

[energetic music]

- Two tons of food
is descended upon

by the hungry Macaques.

- Monkeys eat
whatever they want,

whenever they want,
on whatever they want.

[dramatic music]

- These are traditions
so extraordinary,

they are truly unbelievable.

[logo whooshes]
[energetic music]

Traditions are as old

as human history from
ancient religious practices

to Super Bowl Sunday.

In the Catalonia region
of Spain, there's one

that combines strength, skill,

and most importantly,
no fear of heights.

[camera shutters]
[ambient music]

- It is 1712 in
Valls, Catalonia,

near Barcelona in Spain,

and it is the Dance
of the Valencians.

[energetic music]

It's basically a
big street party.

- So the guys at the party
are having such a good time

that when the music stops,
they don't want to leave

and they decide they want
to do something crazy.

Rather than go home

and end the party, they
decide that the crazy thing

that they're gonna do is make
a tower out of each other.

- People have done this for
time in memorial acrobats

and jugglers and
everything like that.

These guys are different though.

They wanna go for
height, they're going

for sheer verticality.

- No one really knows exactly
how high they made it,

but a tradition was born.

[energetic music]

- [Dan] They're called
Castels or human towers,

and today, they can
be as high as a five

to six-story building.
[dramatic music]

- This is a tradition that is
celebrated all over Catalonia

at various festivals Every year.

It's made up of teams

or Colles of
castellers who compete

to build the
tallest human tower.

- [Dan] And these castellers
aren't just winging it.

There's real technique involved.

- A basic strategy
develops over the years

and that knowledge gets passed
on to train each generation

and there's a very
specific process.

- So the craziest thing is
that with all this training

and all this tradition,
the bottom layer, the pina

or cone is kind of just
anybody from the crowd,

which I would absolutely
not want to be.

'Cause basically after that,

everybody starts
climbing on you.

So the strategy is
to put your biggest,

strongest people
on the lowest level

and then a lighter group
on top of their shoulders,

and from there, an even
lighter group climbs

up their shoulders,
and so on and so forth.

[energetic music]

- [Dan] Eventually, there's
only room for one more.

[tense music]

- The little kids that
are at the top are

usually between four
and eight years old.

These little kids have to
not only be agile, they have

to be extremely brave.

They have to go sometimes, 60
feet in the air or even more.

- [Dan] It's an exhilarating
feat of teamwork,

but it's the next
part of the process

that's the most dangerous.

[tense music]

- In order to
deconstruct the Castel,

you have to do it
all in reverse,

and this is where the tower is
the most likely to collapse.

- [Dan] Along with the
people holding the tower up.

- Broken arms, legs,
shoulders, concussions,

happen all the time.

- Before you get too freaked
out, know that the children

at the top are usually
wearing helmets

and also their light.

They can be caught
by the crowd below.

It's the people at the
bottom of the tower

who are most at risk

because they are
bearing the most weight

and have the risk of the most
people falling atop them.

- [Dan] Despite the
danger, the tradition

of the Castell continues
to build across Catalonia.

- Today there are around 80
official teams or Colles,

and the biggest event is held
every two years in Tarragon

where thousands of people
gather in an arena to watch

and compete for
the best Castells.

- It's a sight to see.

It's so integral to Catalonian

and Spanish society that in
2010, UNESCO adds it to the list

of intangible cultural
heritages of humanity.

[dramatic music]

- While standing atop a human
tower may sound terrifying,

there's another tradition
that has become known by some

as the most dangerous
festival on Earth.

[tense music]

- Every six years in
the beautiful area

of Lake Suwa, in Japan,
a celebration is held.

It's called the
Onbashira Festival,

and it's both frightening
and exhilarating.

[crowd cheering]
[energetic music]

- [Dan] The point of the
festival isn't just for the fun

of riding giant logs
down a mountainside.

It's actually part of
a religious ceremony

to replace the pillars of
the local Shinto temples.

- Shinto is the Indigenous
religion of Japan

and it has this very firm
belief in the natural world.

It's believed that there
are Gods within nature

and that these deities
are to be respected.

- There are two temples
to the south of Lake Suwa

and two to the north.
[electronics bleeping]

Each site is designated
by four pillars,

one to mark each corner

with each pillar being
made of an entire felled tree

- Tradition dictates
every six years,

four trees representing
the four elemental corners

of the Earth are replaced
at these four major shrines.

- The problem is these trees
are harvested nowhere near

the shrines, so people are
going to ride them there.

[dramatic music]
[crowds screaming]

- These trees immediately
just take off down this hill

that is 100 meters long and is
sitting at a 35-degree angle.

I don't know how fast
these trees are going,

but one can assume
it's pretty quick.

[dramatic music]
[crowds screaming]

- [Dan] It's also
unbelievably dangerous.

- There are dramatic injuries,
broken limbs, paralyzation,

there have even been
accounts of deaths.

And getting the log down
the slope is just one

of the first stages.
[crowds screaming]

- Once the tree makes it to the
bottom of the hill, you have

to get this tree to
these Shinto temples.

[crowds screaming]

Using ropes and
only human power,

these participants spend
the next three days dragging

these 12-ton trees, six miles

to get to the site
of the temple.

- [Dan] The treacherous
journey is made worse

by a raging river.
[crowds screaming]

- Pulling these enormous
trees across a river is

a fearsome task.

They're battling the current,

they're battling
the water weight

that gets added to the trees.

In 1992, two men drowned
in this operation.

- The entire festival from
riding the tree to carrying it,

to getting it to
the temple sites,

to hoisting these trees up,

all of this
incredibly dangerous.

- And what's even
more impressive,

they've been doing
this every six years

for the last 1,200 years.

They've never missed
an Onbashira Year.

[image whooshing]
[dramatic music]

- If cheating death by
riding a 50-foot tree

down a mountain doesn't
get your blood pumping,

there's a tradition in England

that'll definitely fire you up.

[scene change whooshing]
[tense music]

- Every November 5th in
the town of Ottery St. Mary

in the south of England,

something truly
remarkable takes place.

[crowds screaming and laughing]

It's called the Tar
Barrel Festival.

[crowds screaming]

- The festival involves
participants running

through the town's
lanes with barrels

of burning tar hoisted
onto their shoulders.

- [Dan] While the exact origins

of the tradition are unknown,

it's believed to
go back 400 years

to the infamous failed
gunpowder plot of 1605.

- Catholics are really
upset with King James,

who is a Protestant king

because they feel that
they are being persecuted

and so they decide that
they're going to try

to assassinate the king.
[dramatic music]

- [Dan] A man named Robert
Catesby takes the lead

in the assassination plot.

- So, Catesby gets these
conspirators together

with the plan of bringing all
of these barrels of gunpowder

into the basement
of Parliament House

on the 5th of November.

And so Catesby and the
conspirators are hoping

to blow up the entire
medieval building.

[dramatic music]
[scene change whooshing]

- [Dan] As they start
sneaking the gunpowder

into the basement
the day before,

something unexpected happens.

- Guy Fawkes, who must be one

of the most hapless
victims in all of history,

is guarding the gunpowder.

[tense music]

And is caught.

[tense music]

- And the entire
plan gets blown up.

[image whooshing]

And so, all of the members
of this plot are executed.

[tense music]

Since then, on November 5th,

every year in England,
Guy Fawkes Day

or Bonfire Night is celebrated
as sort of a remembrance

as to what might have
happened to Parliament.

Basically, it's just,

"Hey, let's just light
things on fire tonight."

[fireworks blasting]
[dramatic music]

- But in honorary St. Mary,

they've turned it into
this extraordinary festival

of flaming barrels.
[dramatic music]

[fire blasting]
[crowds screaming]

- Over the course of the night,

consecutively larger
barrels get lit

until midnight when the
largest barrel is set a flame

and all 70 pounds of it is
hoisted onto the shoulders

of a runner who goes charging
through the town with flames

and sparks shooting everywhere.

The crowd going wild.
[fire blasting]

[dramatic music]
[crowds screaming]

- [Dan] If you are thinking
this sounds pretty dangerous,

you're right.

- And to be clear, every
year there are dozens

of burn injuries.

There's not a
festival that goes by

where someone doesn't walk
away slightly scalded.

But there are actually
more spectators

with burn injuries than
there are participants.

In 2007, 36 spectators
had burn injuries.

- Steady, steady, steady.
[crowds screaming]

[crowd cheering]

- It's mayhem,

but people still walk
away having a great time.

[crowd cheering and conversing]

[crowd cheering and conversing]

[dramatic music]

- It seems November
5th is quite the night

to get lit in Ottery St. Mary.

- Keeping a baby healthy

and safe is every
parent's priority.

So, just how far would
you be willing to go

to ensure your child
never gets sick again?

For some small towns
in rural India,

one hair-raising tradition
holds the unbelievable answer.

[lighthearted music]

- 700 years ago in the south
of India, parents are put

through the emotional wringer.

Infant mortality is really high,

and there are a few places
for parents to turn to

if their child is sick.

- Like a lot of parents
when facing the unknown

or a grave situation,
they turn to their faith.

Although not part of
traditional Hindu Scripture,

there is a tradition that a
saint prescribed the parents

of ailing infants
to build a shrine,

and then, to show their
faith in the Almighty,

drop their infants from
the top of the shrine.

[scene change whooshing]
[dramatic music]

- It's like 30 to 50 feet high.

That's a serious trust fall.

As the legend goes, if
parents do as instructed,

a hammock-like sheet
appears out of thin air

and gently cradles the baby
to safety down to the ground.

- From then on, it
becomes a tradition.

People in this region
now believe in order

to have a healthy life for
your baby, you climb to the top

of the shrine and
throw 'em off the roof.

So every year, that's
what people do.

[tense music]

- [Dan] Today, parents don't
leave anything to chance.

Instead of waiting on a
magic hammock to appear,

they bring their own bed sheet.

[energetic music]

- From the rooftop, a
devotee to the shrine,

or a priest grabs
the baby, shakes him

or her and says a blessing,
and then releases the baby.

[energetic music]

- And once the baby
lands safely,

there's a mass celebration

and probably a little relief.

The baby is passed around
for hugs and kisses.

Around 200 families
participate in this.

[energetic music]

- According to the devotees,

the practice ensures a
healthy life for the child

and fortune and
prosperity for the family.

- [Dan] But not everyone
is a fan of baby tossing.

- In 2009, the practice of
baby tossing comes under fire

when a video surfaces
from Southern India

that shows the kid being
thrown off the roof.

This prompts the National
Commission for the Rights

of Children to intervene.

And in 2011, they declare
child tossing illegal.

[scene change whooshing]
[dramatic music]

- [Dan] Still, that doesn't
stop those who believe

the blessing bestowed
is worth the legal risk.

[tense music]

- In some isolated

and remote villages
like Mangasuli,

every year, come rain or shine,

if you have a baby, that
baby is getting tossed.

- Devotees say that this
longstanding tradition

should be respected and they
have no plans of stopping.

[dramatic music]

[baby screams]

- A baby falling 50 feet is
bound to spark a few tears.

But what about a strange
sporting tradition

where crying is not only
expected, it's required.

[tense music]

- Every year in late
spring, all across Japan,

you have Nakizumo
festivals which translates

to crying baby sumo.

Parents will enter
babies as young

as six months old into
these competitions,

and once the match begins,

these sumo wrestlers
are responsible

for trying their best

to make their baby cry.

[speaker speaking
in foreign language]

[baby cries]
[audience laughing]

- Now before people
think that this is a form

of child abuse,

actually, this cultural
practice emanates

from this long history and
tradition within Japan.

- Starting about 400
years ago, a piece

of folklore spread
throughout Japan

that a crying baby
wards off evil spirits.

[baby cries]

The louder they are,
the longer they are.

A baby's cries ensure a
healthy and long life.

[dramatic music]
[crowds conversing]

- [Dan] From here,
a tradition is born,

and as with any competition,
there are rules.

[dramatic music]

- When a child reaches
the age of six months,

he or she can be entered
in the Nakizumo Festival.

- Each child is paired with
a novice sumo wrestler,

and a priest will start
off the ceremonies

by saying a blessing for
the health of the babies.

And then following that, you
have a referee, also known

as a Gyoji, who will
start the competition

with a wave of their wooden fan.

[dramatic music]

- [Dan] Now it's time
to make their baby cry

by any means necessary.

- They can jiggle the baby,
make faces, they can make cries

of nake, nake, nake,
which means cry, cry, cry.

[tense music]

- If all else fails,

the next step would be to
break out the devil's mask.

[Gyoji screams]
[baby cries]

- The baby who cries
first is named the winner.

[dramatic music]
[baby cries]

- If there is a tie
between the two babies,

meaning they both
cry at the same time,

the winner is determined
by whose cry is louder.

[babies crying]

After a few knockout rounds,

there's one baby
remaining standing

and they are deemed the winner
of the Nakizumo Festival.

[tense music]
[baby cries]

- [Dan] So what does
the winner take home?

- There's no monetary prize.

There are no awards or
trophies to take home.

What they win is a blessing
that the baby will enjoy a happy

and healthy life.

[tense music]
[baby cries]

- Who knows, maybe some of
these crybabies will grow up

to be mighty sumos themselves.

[ominous music]
- A person's deathbed is

often seen as their last chance

to make amends for
a lifetime of sins.

But a few 100 years ago,

some folks find a
clever workaround.

Why ask for forgiveness when
you can just give your sins

to someone who's
hungry for them?

[scene change whooshing]
[energetic music]

- Making it into Heaven is

something many people
take very seriously.

And a few centuries ago,

if you thought your sins might
stop you from getting there,

here's what you would
do to prevent that.

Hire a sin eater.

[tense music]
[crowds screaming]

A sin eater is
typically a local man

who absorbs the sins
of the departed.

So their stint, making amends
in purgatory isn't prolonged.

- We all know there's a Heaven.

We all know there's a Hell,
but there's another place.

Purgatory.
[tense music]

- Purgatory is an idea
introduced in the 16th century

during the Protestant
Reformation, a place

where your soul suffers
until your sins are expunged.

It's sort of like Hell,
but it has an end date.

You just don't know
when that date will be.

[tense music]

- [Dan] This is where
the sin eaters come in

- To redeem a loved
one from sins,

the process is
actually very simple.

The family places a loaf
of bread on the chest

of the deceased.

The person's sins pass
into the loaf of bread.

- The sin eater then sits

in front of the body
facing the door.

He eats the bread from
the deceased's chest

and washes it down
with a bowl of ale.

By doing this, the sin
eater literally soaks up

the loved one's sins.

For this, they get a coin
which they put in their pocket

and then quietly
take their leave.

- Of course, the
consequence of this is

that the sin eater has
now taken on the sins

of the deceased.

[tense music]
[camera shutters]

- Who in their right mind
would want to be a sin eater?

Well, it's typically guys who
didn't have a lot of options.

Poor men, often homeless, and
they weren't paid much for it.

Only about four pence,

which is really only
a couple of bucks.

- [Dan] Unbelievably, this
strange tradition lasts

for over 200 years.

[tense music]
[scene change whooshing]

- The last known British
sin eater is a farmer,

Richard Munslow, who
experienced the nightmare

of losing three out of
four of his children

to disease in one week

- [Dan] In order to ease his
children's journey to Heaven.

Munslow eats their sins,
but he doesn't stop there.

- Here's the crazy thing.

He continues doing this for
others until he dies in 1906.

[energetic music]

- Now that's one nice neighbor.

Food is at the heart

of many remarkable
rituals across the globe,

but an annual buffet in
Thailand is extraordinary, not

for the food itself, but for
the unusual guests of honor.

[sultry music]

- On the final
Sunday in November,

a massive banquet is
prepared full of sticky rice,

fresh fruit and vegetables,

brightly-colored
jellies and sweets,

literally, two tons of food is
out on offer at this banquet.

- [Dan] Who is all this for?
[dramatic music]

3,000 wild Macaques monkeys.

[monkeys screaming]
[tense music]

- Macaques live
everywhere in Lopburi.

They roam freely and they
often steal food from tourists.

- [Dan] But on this
one special day,

no theft is necessary to eat.

- The festival begins

with dancers dressed
in colorful costumes

to look like monkeys, bands,
music, this whole sort

of festival vibe going on.

- Then platter after platter
of fruit is brought forth

and descended upon by
the hungry Macaques.

Sometimes before the
volunteers can even place them

on the table.

- Why all the monkey love?
[dramatic music]

The inspiration dates back

to a 2000-year-old Hindu tale,

featuring a truly
heroic primate.

[dramatic music]

- The impetus for
this festival comes

from a great Hindu myth
called the Ramayana.

There's this Prince Rama

and his wife Sita is
captured by the demon Ravana.

Then the monkey God
Hanuman, best friend of Rama

storms the island,
bringing his entire army

of monkeys takes
Sita back from Ramana

and casts Ramana
off into the ocean.

[tense music]

- Hanuman is actually credited
with building the city

of Lopburi, so they believe

that these Macaque monkeys
may very well be descendants

of the great Hanuman himself.

[tense music]
[monkeys screaming]

- [Dan] In 1989, a hotel
owner decides to thank Hanuman

for his prosperity

by holding the
first-ever monkey buffet,

it's an immediate hit.

- The festival is a
way for the thousands

of Hindus in Thailand to
celebrate their faith,

their histories, and the
great role of Hanuman

in the Ramayana.
[tense music]

- It's really a sight to see
monkeys eat whatever they want,

whenever they want,
on whatever they want.

- They are honored, they feast,

they gorge all
throughout the city.

It becomes an all-day,
all-you-can-eat buffet.

- And like most party guests,

the monkeys don't
help you clean up.

They leave this huge mess
of paper plates and cups.

It's kind of like
monkey Thanksgiving.

There's just a bunch of monkeys

in food comas napping
all over the town.

[dramatic music]

- Today, more than
10,000 people come

to witness the monkey
buffet annually.

- When we hear the term GOAT,

we sometimes think the greatest

of all time like Gretzky,
Jordan, or Muhammad Ali.

But there's another GOAT that
inspires a military tradition

few have ever heard of.

[tense music]

- It is the beginning of
the American Revolution.

The British are attempting
to assert control

of Greater Boston Harbor.

The colonial militia aren't
really trained soldiers.

They need all the
advantages they can get.

So they're gonna take
position on the high ground,

in this case, on Breed's
Hill next to Bunker Hill,

and try to repel the
coming British assault.

[tense music]

- Being uphill, the
Americans have the advantage.

The first wave of Brits sent
up the hill are mowed down.

[tense music]

Their superiors send
up a second wave.

They're stepping over
their dead comrades,

again, just carnage
a British bloodbath.

[tense music]

[guns firing]

- [Dan] As legend has it
just as all hope seems lost,

something rushes
onto the battlefield.

It flashes past the troops,
taking the lead up the hill

right into enemy fire.

Who is this brave hero?
[tense music]

[goat blares]

- A Billy goat.
[dramatic music]

Behind the British line is the
23rd Regiment Welsh soldiers,

and they are so
inspired when they see

this Billy goat
charging up the hill,

they get themselves inspired.

They leave their positions,
they charge into battle,

they charge up the hill.

[dramatic music]

- Supposedly the Americans
are so taken off-guard

by this sudden charge
that they are overcome.

- The British seize the
summit of Breed's Hill

and they drive the Americans

out of their fighting positions.

[dramatic music]

- Although the
Americans will go on

to gain their independence,
the goat actually achieves

a certain amount of immortality.

It becomes the official mascot
for the Welsh Fusiliers.

- [Dan] A goat has served

with the Welsh
Regiment ever since,

but it's not the last time
their hooved hero saves the day.

- During the Crimean war,

the 41st Welsh
infantry is suffering

in the extreme cold of winter.

[tense music]

- [Dan] A soldier on
watch gets resourceful

and decides to wrap
the regiment goat

inside his coat for warmth.

[wind wooshing]

- Struck by a case
of hypothermia,

the man dozes while
he's on watch,

but the goat remains
alert and begins bleating.

[dramatic music]
[goat blares]

- That alerts him to
the Russian soldiers

who are actually
sneaking up on them.

At that point, he's able
to rouse his comrades

and repel the Russian force.

A goat comes to
the rescue again.

- The goat is hailed as a hero.

They call him Hebe.

[energetic music]

- [Dan] After the war,
Hebe meets Queen Victoria

and apparently makes
quite an impression.

- She is smitten.

And when Queen Victoria learns

of Hebe's death years
later, she decrees that all

of his successors will come

from the Royal herd
of Kashmiri goats.

- [Dan] These goats
aren't just mascots

with an honorary title.

They're actually members
of the battalion.

- They get an officer's rank,
they get a regimental number,

and they're treated
like comrades in arms.

The mascot actually
gets officers pay

and that pay goes
toward his upkeep.

That upkeep is done by the
goat major, an actual member

of the battalion as well.

They get two cigarettes
a day to eat, plus a pint

of Guinness to wash it down.

- These days, the goat's main
duty is to march at the head

of the regiment at
ceremonial parades,

meeting the Royals in
his finest regalia.

- But goats will still be goats.

And in 2006,

Lance Corporal Billy Windsor
actually headbutts one

of the drummers in a
parade he's charged

with conduct unbecoming of an
officer and demoted in rank.

- The most recent recruit is
Lance Corporal Shenkin IV,

who was chosen from the Royal
herd of Kashmiri goats in 2018

and trained at the
barracks in Cardiff.

- He's already met
King Charles III,

and so far, at least, no
headbutting, no shenanigans.

[energetic music]

- It takes more
than one bad soldier

to ruin a military tradition.

Sometimes it takes an army.

[scene change whooshing]
[tense music]

- West Point is the oldest of
the American Service Academies

and it is the academy

through which cadets are
appointed as officers

in the United States Army.

Training at West
Point is grueling,

so that in addition to
the academic demands

that are placed on
the cadets, they have

to endure very intense
physical training

that includes the 12-mile march

where you carry a 50-pound pack.

- [Dan] And when
you train cadets

for the harsh realities of war,

there's only one way to know
if they're ready for battle.

[dramatic music]

[pillow thuds]

A pillow fight.
[tense music]

- Since 1897, west Point
officials have sort

of looked the other way

as cadets gather once a
year in this space called

the central area, and they
bring pillows with them

to blow off steam, have a fight,

take a swing at some comrades,
and actually build comradery.

- [Dan] It's all fun and games

until August 2015 when
some freshmen take

this tradition too far.

[tense music]

- The new cadets known as plebes

actually add more
to the game here.

They're gonna start using elbows

and they start doing a move
known as the Blue Falcon.

[pillow thuds]
[tense music]

- The Blue Falcon is
an unexpected maneuver

where one plebe
hits another plebe

from behind in a
surprise attack,

knocking them to the ground.

[pillow thuds]
[tense music]

- [Dan] Not surprisingly,

cadets start getting
seriously hurt.

[tense music]
[pillow thuds]

- There are 30 injuries.

They include broken
noses, fractured skulls,

- Broken arms, broken legs,
dozens of bloody noses.

One cadet is even
knocked unconscious.

It's just a sea of screaming
and blood and feathers.

[dramatic music]

- After this melee, the
superintendent of West Point,

Lieutenant General
Robert Caslen bans

this tradition forever.
[dramatic music]

- So, after 118
years of tradition,

the West Point pillow fight
is officially put to bed.

- We all love
holiday traditions,

especially when they
revolve around food.

From Turkey on Thanksgiving to
chocolate on Valentine's Day.

But one town in Southwest
France takes the tradition

of Easter Eggs to
a whole new level.

[dramatic music]

- Every year in
Bessieres France, an army

of volunteers show up on
the end of Easter Weekend.

They're dressed in
yellow and white,

but it's not an egg hunt
that's on their minds.

- This festival is known as
[speaks in foreign language]

The Festival of
the Giant Omelet.

- [Dan] The organizers
call themselves

the Global Brotherhood of the
Knights of the Giant Omelet,

and they take this
task very seriously.

- The town square
is cordoned off

and in the center is
assembled a bonfire.

[fire crackling]

The brotherhood arranges
giant tables on either end

of the bonfire and commences
in cracking 15,000 eggs.

[tense music]
[eggs cracking and plunging]

- Once the eggs are whisked

and all of the seasonings
are added, it's time

to make our omelet.

Now, this isn't a
13-inch little fry pan.

This is a 13-foot fry pan.

It takes a forklift to lift
the pan over the bonfire.

[pan sizzling]

- Next, you gotta add
some fat to the pan.

What do they use?

73 quarts of duck fat.

[dramatic music]

- But less you forget
it's still France,

and these chefs adhere
to the brigade system.

The main chefs are
manning spatulas

while the Ma�tre Cuisine is
overlooking the whole thing,

ensuring that each chef
does their due diligence.

- [Dan] They must work
together in perfect precision

to avoid burning the omelet

because you can't exactly
start over if you mess up.

- Typically, cooking an
omelet is a fast thing,

but here, this giant omelet
can take up to a half-hour.

Let's not forget the 300
pounds of French bread.

- Thousands of paper
plates are at the ready,

and each chef dolls out
their portion of the omelet

to the 2,000 guests, and
now it is time to eat.

- In the end, the omelet is
much more like scrambled eggs

and people do not mind.
[energetic music]

- [Guest] Mm.

- [Dan] How did this big
tradition get started?

You can thank its
tiniest emperor.

[ominous music]

- Legend has it,

Napoleon once stayed at
an inn in the village

and was so impressed with
the innkeeper's omelet

that the next day he
returned with his entire army

and ordered an encore.
[dramatic music]

- He orders all the villagers

to gather all the eggs from
all the chickens in the village

and bring 'em to the
Inn to make the omelet.

And apparently, the
omelet was a huge hit

with Napoleon's army, and
that's how the tradition begins.

[energetic music]

- Fast-forward to 1973

and Bessiere makes it
an official holiday.

Every Easter Monday,
the chefs gather

to fulfill the little
emperor's delicious wish.

[energetic music]

- While the French
may love their eggs,

this small Spanish
town prefers tomatoes,

and in their tradition,
they get to play

with their food first.
[energetic music]

- Each year in Bunol, a small
Spanish city near Valencia,

an incredible
spectacle takes place.

- The event begins at 9:00 AM

with the [speaks in
foreign language]

which is a large greased pole

with a giant ham
on the top of it.

[crowd cheering]

So for the next hour, people
try to climb that pole,

sometimes injuring
themselves pretty seriously.

[crowds screaming]

But if you do get to the top,

you get to keep that
[speaks in foreign language]

- Two hours later, a precisely
11:00 AM a horn is sounded.

That's when the
real party begins.

- At that moment, over 100
metric tons, 220,000 pounds

of overripe squishy tomatoes
are poured into the crowd

and they go nuts.

- But for the next hour,

everyone in the crowd joins

a somewhat psychotic frenzied
tomato battle royale,

throwing tomatoes, pelting
each other with tomatoes,

rolling in tomatoes, and, my
God, it's wonderful. [laughs]

[crowds screaming]

- [Dan] It's called La Tomatina

and it's the world's
largest food fight.

- You'd think that La Tomatina
has some big deep meaning

behind it, but really
it just translates

to the big tomato thing.

[tense music]

- The tradition of La
Tomatina goes back to 1945.

You have a group of
costume performers parading

through the city when a group
of unruly teenagers knocks one

of the costume
performers to the ground,

sparking a fight in the crowd.

- It descends into chaos
incredibly quickly.

The crowd goes to the
nearest vegetable cart

and starts hurling tomatoes

at what would become
the very first Tomatina.

- [Dan] From there, an
annual tradition is born,

well, except for a few years
back in the early 1950s.

[tense music]

- The Spanish fascist dictator
Francisco Franco shuts down

the festival in Bunol

because it doesn't have
religious significance.

- Franco threatens
to throw anyone

who violates the ban in jail.

In 1957, the citizens of
Bunol are so angry about it

that they actually throw
a Tomatina funeral.

They load up a casket
with tomatoes, parade it

through the town, and the
women whale at the casket

of Tomatina.
[dramatic music]

Franco is so humiliated,

he allows the festival
to be reinstated.

- [Dan] Today, more than
20,000 tomato tourists flock

the streets of Bunol every year,

more than doubling
its usual population.

According to locals, you
haven't really done La Tomatina

unless you're picking seeds

and bits of tomato outta your
hair and nostrils, [laughs]

and butt crack for the
next couple of days.

- How does everyone
get cleaned up?

Well, when the tomato-throwing
is over, fire trucks drive

through the town and spray
everybody with hoses.

Sounds like a party to me.

[dramatic music]

- Turns out, once the
town is sprayed down,

the tomato acid left behind
actually cleans the streets.

Now that's a win-win.

- We've all heard of
the polar bear plunge,

a New Year's Eve tradition
where people brave frigid waters

for charity or just
bragging rights.

But in Romania, the faithful
submerged themselves

in the frosty Danube for
a much higher reward.

[tense music]

- Every January 6th
in tiny villages

to large cities across Romania,

parishioners follow their
priest to the nearest river.

Most often it's the Danube.

Once at the water's
edge, the men

of the congregation
often stripped down

into just their underwear
because they're about to jump

into the Danube.
[eerie music]

- We're talking
January in Romania.

The average air temperature
is 21 degrees Fahrenheit.

The waters of the Danube
are just above freezing.

It is super cold.

- These intrepid souls aren't
just going in for good luck

or a simple blessing
for the new year.

No, they're on a much
more sacred mission.

A priest will offer
up a blessing.

Then the priest pulls
out a Holy Cross

and proceeds to toss it
into the air over the river.

[dramatic music]

- So now, the men
have to retrieve it.

[tense music]

Searching for the cross
can take up to a half-hour.

Sometimes it actually sinks
all the way to the bottom.

- Whoever finds the cross
in the water, they then have

to swim back to the shore
with their prize in hand.

- The belief is that the first
man to retrieve the cross

and present it to the priest
will be protected from ill will

or misfortune for
the following year.

That is if they don't
get pneumonia from being

in the Danube in 21 degrees,

- The roots of this ritual
stem from the baptism of Jesus

by John the Baptist

in the Jordan River,
which is a lot warmer.

The idea is that once you
are bathed in that water

and blessed by the priest,

it will wash away
all of your sins.

- [Dan] But this leap of
faith comes with very real

and high stakes.

[dramatic music]

- So when your body
is suddenly immersed

in this freezing water,

your ability to breathe
becomes hampered.

You start to hyperventilate,
which could lead

to hypothermia as well.

It's not uncommon to
see people blackout

during this contest
and, in some cases, have

to have an ambulance take
them to a hospital to try

to revive and resuscitate them.

- You would think that

the potential consequences
would deter people

from enacting this ritual,

particularly in modern times.

But it hasn't.

Still, hundreds of
young men gather

on the banks of rivers
and strip down

and plunge into the
water every year

to have their sins washed away.

[dramatic music]

- It probably doesn't hurt

that everyone drinks
homemade vodka

before taking the plunge.

[eerie music]

While Romanians test
their religious fervor

in the cold waters
of the Danube,

folks in Queens, New York
test their soul's stamina

in the sweltering
heat of the summer.

[energetic music]

- Queens, New York is known

for the US Open
Tennis Championship

and, of course,
hosting a portion

of the New York City Marathon.

- [Dan] But the New York City
Marathon only lasts one day.

There's another annual run

that takes 52 days to complete.

- Every summer, 10 to
15 runners participate

in the world's
longest foot race.

[feet tapping]

- [Dan] It's called the
Self-Transcendence

3,100-Mile Race.

And that's as much a
challenge of the mind

as it is the body.

- A typical marathon
is 26 miles.

These runners, for over 50 days,

run more than two full
marathons a day, every day.

[tense music]

- Unlike the New
York City Marathon,

participants in the
transcendence race are circling

around the same elongated
block in Jamaica, Queens.

- [Dan] That's because many
of the runners are here

for more than just the exercise.

- Some runners do the race

because they are followers
of the race's founder,

Bengali Guru Sri Chinmoy.

- Chinmoy is this Bengali
spiritual leader who moves

to New York in 1964 and
then opens these spiritual

and meditation
centers in Queens.

- Sri Chinmoy teaches the act

of extreme athleticism as a path

to transcendence, a way
of reaching the beyond.

[eerie music]

- He becomes a prolific poet

and long-distance runner
at an ashram in India

before coming to the States.

Once here, he runs marathons
and ultra-marathons

and starts performing feats

of superhuman strength
and endurance.

He even benches six
light aircraft

at an exhibition in 1998,

saying it's his way
of inspiring humanity

to push past their limits.

- [Dan] This leads Chinmoy

to begin hosting the 3,100-mile
race in 1997 as a way

to help his followers understand
the power of the mind.

- Even though Chinmoy
passes away in 2007,

his devotees continue to
follow this tradition and run

and meditate day in, day
out for nearly two months.

The same cement paving
stones on the sidewalk,

the same iron fence
posts over and over

and over again until
they reach 3,100 miles.

[tense music]

- In order to hit their mark
in 52 days, the runners have

to reach nearly 60
miles in a single day.

That means running
for about 18 hours

and then resting for six,

and then getting right
back on the road.

[tense music]

- Out of the 10 to 15 starters
each year for a number

of years, only three
or fewer finish.

- Thankfully, the
Self-Transcendence Race is

an official qualifier
for the Boston Marathon.

But after this 3,100-mile race,

a typical marathon
might be too easy.

[runners laughing]

[tense music]

- Whether it's running through
town with a flaming barrel

or enduring a 2,000-pound
tomato pummeling,

one thing is certain,

the greatest
traditions are the ones

that are truly unbelievable.

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