Five places that made me: Todd Sampson

MOSUL, IRAQ

In filming series two of Body Hack, I embedded with the Iraqi Special Forces in the battle of Mosul to experience first-hand how the human body copes in one of the most violent and stressful environments on earth. What I also discovered on that journey was the incredible beauty and heart of an ancient city. Even with all the destruction, I was overwhelmed with the incredible hospitality and warmth of the Iraqi people. Most of what I knew about Iraq had been broadly defined by the media, yet what I experienced was remarkably different.

EASTER ISLAND, CHILE

Flying home from Alaska, we stopped to refuel on Easter Island. The plane took off at midnight. I fell asleep. Suddenly we were descending quickly and dumping fuel into the ocean – they announced there was a potential explosive device on board and we needed to get off quickly. Time seemed to slow down and I remember thinking to myself: concentrate on your breath. As you can imagine, chaos broke loose, we landed hard, the doors were off quickly and we all ran down the runway into darkness. It was a false alarm and as a result I was detoured to Tahiti for two days. I'll never forget Easter Island.

MOUNT EVEREST, NEPAL

I had been climbing since I was a small boy and my childhood hero was Sir Edmund Hillary. Two weeks before my attempt to summit Everest, I was in New Zealand for business and randomly thought I would see if Ed Hillary was in the phone book. He was. I called him and he invited me to tea. We spent two hours talking about fear and how to manage it. Climbing Mount Everest taught me a lot about fear and the stories I tell myself when I'm scared. In many ways, it was like an extreme form of moving meditation.

CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA

I moved to Cape Town from Canada the year Nelson Mandela took power. I had the opportunity to live through a unique time – a cultural revolution. Cape Town is arguably the most naturally beautiful city in the world and combine that with a diverse and rapidly changing culture, I thought I would never leave. With more than 88 per cent of the population black and historically subjugated, South Africa taught me about the power of acceptance and also how inhuman we can be.

VARANASI, INDIA

Body Hack 2.0 sees me in India's most holy city, Varanasi, to explore the holy men, in particular the controversial Aghori – who have been eating the dead for centuries. I will never forget the 3000-year-old fires along the Ganges and the steady stream of bodies being carried in to be cremated. Varanasi not only challenged my view of death, it also reminded me of the power of faith and the impact it can have on lives.

Todd Sampson's Body Hack 2.0 premieres May 31 at 8.30pm on Channel TEN.