HONG KONG, MACAU & GUANGDONG: Quest for Harmony
(Pearl River Delta)

Press Release

Press Kit: fact sheet and production credits

Press Kit: photos and captions


Adventures with Purpose—Hong Kong, Macau & Guangdong is the tenth installment in this series of specials from American Public Television. This time Richard Bangs is on a quest to discover the roots of the human desire for harmony in Hong Kong, Macau and Guangdong Provence, China. According to Bangs, “Hong Kong, Macau and Guangdong are three pearls in one exquisite setting. Each is distinct yet they are bound together by a cultural veneration of harmony.”

Richard’s quest begins in Hong Kong, Asia’s world city. At its most authentic, Hong Kong projects an energetic duality—what Richard calls, “An ambition of opposites in concert, the special ingredients of harmony.” Sights include: the Victoria Peak Tram, Lamma Island, Po Lin Monastery, Hollywood Street Wet-Market, a junk cruise on Victoria Harbour, and the Hungry Ghost Festival celebration in a Kowloon neighborhood.

A mere 40 miles from Hong Kong by ferry, Macau shares the shores of the Pearl River delta but seems half-a-world away. Richard’s quest takes him to Macau’s historic Old Town, Senado Square, the ruins of St. Paul’s Church, Colane Island and the Cotai Strip to learn what role harmony plays in Macau’s success.

To complete his journey Richard travels on to Guangdong where he explores Nan Hau Buddhist Temple, ancient Zuhji Lane, the village of Bebei Yao Fastness and Guangdong’s Grand Canyon. But the highlight of his journey is Guangdong’s UNESCO World Heritage Site, a ‘great sculpture garden of scenic wonders’ clustered around Danxia Mountain.

Hong Kong, Macau & Guangdong: Quest for Harmony is supported in part by Cathay Pacific Airways.

GENEVA & THE MATTERHORN: Quest for the Water Castle

Press Release

Press Kit: fact sheet and production credits

Press Kit: photos and captions


In Geneva and the Matterhorn: Quest for the Water Castle, Richard Bangs’ voyage takes him up one of the world’s great rivers—the Rhone—a waterway that spills from the roof of the European continent, bringing health, wealth, pleasure and inspiration. A vital source of life, it’s a river that lights cities, powers the world’s best rail systems, and slakes the thirst of millions.

Richard explores the Geneva and Matterhorn Region of Switzerland to learn more about the bounty the Rhone has bestowed on the country and to the world. He seeks to learn how the river has been harnessed, explored and celebrated. His journey begins in multicultural, affluent and hardworking Geneva, takes him along the shores of the lake to the towns of Nyon, Lausanne, and Vevey. After a stop at the well-preserved, 12th century Chateau Chillon, Richard climbs through the great Rhone Valley to the wellspring of the river high in the pristine peaks of the Uri Alps. His destinations include: the Valais—French for ‘the valley’; the spa town of Leukerbad and its towering peaks; Zermatt and the Matterhorn; Fiesch and nearby mountain villages; and finally the Aletsch Glacier.

Special thanks to Switzerland Tourism for their assistance in the production of this program.

BASEL & LUCERNE: Quest for the Crossroads

Press Release

Press Kit: fact sheet and production credits

Press Kit: photos and captions


In Adventures with Purpose—Basel & Lucerne Richard is on a Quest for The Cross Roads in the Lucerne and Basel regions of Switzerland. Bangs seeks to find out how a treacherous and daunting route over the Alps, down through central Switzerland and north to Basel on the Rhine became a main trade route from Italy to Northern Europe and the world. Switzerland is the most mountainous country in Europe, an icy ring of teeth that bites off Italy from the rest of the continent. So how did this daunting and deadly barrier become the handshake to the opposite seas of Europe, the great link for goods, ideas, medicines and people? . According to Bangs, “the Swiss regions of Basel and Lucerne link to one another and to the world like hubs to the wheels of commerce, enterprise, democracy and freedom.” His adventure begins on the Devil’s Bridge over a gorge in the Gotthard Pass, follows ancient trade routes north into central Switzerland with stops at Mt. Pilatus and Lucerne then on to the port city of Basel on the Rhine River.

Special thanks to Switzerland Tourism for their assistance in the production of this program.

COSTA RICA: Quest for Pura Vida

Press Release

Press Kit: fact sheet and production credits

Press Kit: photos and captions


Adventures with Purpose—Costa Rica: Quest for Pura Vida is the ninth installment of this series of hour-long documentary specials from American Public Television. Bangs’ quest is to learn the deeper mean of “Pura Vida,” a widely used Costa Rica greeting. Richard begins his journey on the Pacific side, where the complex ecological mosaic of the Osa Peninsula encircles Corcovado National Park. Then he explores the beaches at Punta Islita, Palo Verde National Park, and the Monteverde Cloud Forest, before heading to Tortuguero National Park, a tropical rain forest on the Caribbean coast.

Produced by Small World Productions of Seattle and co-produced by KCTS/Seattle and Richard Bangs Productions of Marian del Rey. KCTS is the presenting station to APT.


Corporate support for Adventures with Purpose—Costa Rica is provided in part by: