Silk Railroad

Synopsis

A new railroad network spanning tens of thousands of kilometres connects China directly to Europe and is changing how commodities are transported. Historian Sam Willis teams up with Journalist Li Qiuyuan to dig into historical legacies of the past and explore how today's rail link compares to the caravans of the past - from Yiwu, the most eastern terminus of the China-Europe Railway Express to Chengdu; the busiest train station in China's Southwestern province of Sichuan.

Episodes

Season 1

Silk Railroad 1, 1

Yiwu- the world's largest small commodities market. In 2014, as part of China's Belt and Road Initiative, the city became home to a new freight train network to Europe. Today, it takes only 16 days to reach Madrid on the longest freight train route in the world as compared to over a year on the ancient silk road 2000 years ago. Historian Sam Willis teams up with journalist Li Qiuyuan to dig into Yiwu's trading past and explore how this modern-day rail link is changing how China trades with the west.

Silk Railroad 1, 2

2000 years ago, in the time of the ancient Silk Road, the journey between China, Central Asia and Europe often took an entire year. Today, goods can be transported overland in just 14 days thanks to the world's longest rail service, a 13,000 KM route that connects China and Europe. Now, with ancient connections being revived for the 21st century, historian Sam Willis and journalist Li Qiuyuan travel to Chengdu, to explore how a new era of trade is shaping the city.