Half-way mark - Ceylon

Ceylon is famous for rubber plantations. At Colombo airport, I buy a post card and a stamp to send home. The stamp doesn’t stick to the card. So far for Ceylon rubber. In Switzerland, the famous condom brand is called Ceylon but here their stamps won’t stick to the cards.

We’re off again, 6 hours to Singapore. We’re glad to be in the air conditioned plane after the heat in Colombo .

I am talking to other passengers

Everyone in the plane is bored. We've been flying for hours and we're only just half way of the trip. 

In Singapore we are taken by bus to a shed that has a lot of Indian stalls, a little like a market place anywhere. I look around the stalls and am taken in with a red Chinese silk nightgown. He wants $50, too much so I walk away. The Indian shopkeeper keeps following me trying to persuade me to buy the coat. He offers it to me for $30. Still too much, I tell him. 'How much will you give me for this beautiful genuine Chinese silk nightgown', he asks. 'I’ll give you $10', I reply but he refuses to sell it to me for that. I walk on and still he follows.

They announce our flight to Darwin is boarding and everyone moves to the bus. My Indian who is still with me hands me the nightgown and asks for $10. I give it to him. I have a bargain, a beautiful coat for only $10. I’m pleased.

Back on board I open the plastic bag containing my newly acquired silk Chinese nightgown and discover he has given me the largest size he had. The coat touches the floor and the arms are down to my knees. Oh, well.

Next stop is Darwin, another 10 hours of the same but we’re excited, we’ll be landing in Australia. The time passes very slowly. Every time I look at my watch only a few minutes have passed. Will this boring trip ever be over?

In Darwin we buy postcards with Kangaroos, Koalas and for the first time Australian post stamps. I write one to Mum and Dad telling them I have arrived in Australia. I look out of the airport window for any kangaroos but can’t see any, only our Electra on the tarmac being re-fuelled. It’s very hot both inside and outside the airport. No air conditioning.