Series 5 - Episode 3 recap

Week three is the elimination leg where the teams usually do a focused race to make sure they’re not the team to get sent home. Melvyn said he’d been worrying about this from the start, pushing him and Brian to go as direct as possible, while Tom & Caroline seemed almost surprised by the idea, somehow looking unfamiliar with the show they’re on.

It felt a little different this time though, there was fishing, casual sightseeing, teams making mistakes forgetting their money, or the location of their hotels…

I think while the pressure was on, it wasn't on fully - except for Gaz & Yin.

Arriving rushed and bedraggled, they didn’t seem totally phased by the Typhoon delay covered last week. But even Gaz’s enormous grin fell as he realised they weren’t just moments behind Elizabeth & Letitia, but the girls were checking out as they arrived, with a 44 hour lead.

With even a 20 hour distance behind 4th place, the others seemed to have enough time to feel comfortable, although it still weighed on their minds.

Highly competitive Melvyn seemed the most bothered, planning a direct route west to Nanning via overnight bus, giving him and Brian a quick early lead.

The brothers were much more on the same page this week, but seemed to continue their apparent habit of not actually sitting together, with Melvyn sitting behind looking through the seats. A weird habit for a driving instructor, but they did get closer when talking about their childhood when fishing in Puzhehei. Well closer emotionally, their big heart to heart was discussed at least 15-feet apart on seperate fishing stools!

Elizabeth & Letitia meanwhile had left first, yet soon were falling behind. They wanted to go north to see more of China on the way, but the wait for the train in Zhanjiang was long enough that Fin & Sioned caught them up much to their annoyance.

That wasn’t the worst move of their week though; keen to see the Liuzhou Jiangzhong Music Fountain, they didn't allow enough time to find and return to their hotel and make their pre-booked overnight train.

Losing those tickets, and having to fork out for replacement travel and a new overnight stay was really looking like the worst financial move of the episode. But then Tom was shown to have left his money belt back in the hotel, which would really have ruined his and Carolines chances.

In fact his mum revealed Tom has a history of losing money and his passport while traveling - which does seem a bit of a liability in a travel competition. In earlier episodes it was stated Caroline wanted to prove herself in travel, yet often it seems she's doing a better job than Tom, her more traveled son. The trip seems to be building her confidence, but not sure it’s having a positive effect on his.

Luckily this time Tom’s money was found having fallen into the bin at the hotel - in the worst words Tom could use as a child “Golly Gosh”!

Fin & Sioned however were having a much better week than last time. Emotionally at least. They wanted to go north to head out of the big cities that were stressing them out last week, and quickly caught up to Elizabeth & Letitia in Guangdong, which delighted them as much as it upset the two sisters.

They took a train to Liuzhou where they worked cleaning squatty toilets, which I think ranks as the worst job so far? Although possibly still nicer than Brian & Melvyns dingy accommodation in episode 1!

They also got some sightseeing in, watching monkeys in Guizhou although their early speed seemed to disappear as the leg progressed.

In the end there was a surprisingly close race as three teams arrived very similarly … for the three middle positions!

Brian & Melvyns ‘direct and fast’ strategy turned out to get them in nearly 24 hours in front of everyone else - while the other three teams arrived within a few hours of each other the next day.

1st	Brian & Melvyn	-
2nd	Elizabeth & Letitia	+21h 54m
3rd	Caroline & Tom	+23h 8m
4th	Fin & Sioned	+23h 34m
Eliminated	Gaz & Yin

Except one couple of course - Gaz & Yin, who’s friendly presence has been a joy to watch, but really seemed destined to be eliminated after last week’s delays. They’d also tried the route via Naning, but unlike Brian & Melvyn and Caroline & Tom, they tried trains instead of the bus, and ended up heading further away from the checkpoint in Maoming.

It has been fascinating to see their unusual relationship, and rather a shame to see them leave so early, especially under such unfortunate circumstances. 

But it does leave us with an easier challenge for week 4 as there’s now only four couples to choose from not five! Although next week is also the first leg to see our teams entering India - which might be a different type of traveling to what they’ve been getting used to in China.

Still think you can guess who’ll get in first? Make your prediction before the show airs tonight!