The drive from Bikaner to Amritsar is a long one and so there is a bush-camp scheduled on route. Aside from that the spot we picked was quite pleasant, this bush camp was much like any others: Kinda hot with a bedtime sand-storm just to keep you on your toes. As usual, we provided the local village with an evening of entertainment and in this case around a 150 people were sitting not-so-quietly by watching our every move as we went about the business of cooking and preparing for the night.

I have become used to being scrutinised whilst bush camping, and so aside from the unusually large number of people present in this case, there was little that was remarkable about this experience. After breakfast, however (which the village had turned out to watch also), we were all invited back for tea. So we went.

Here normality went on vacation again for a short time. As we were led around the village more and more people drifted into our wake until our small group of nine was being flanked by anything up to 1000 Indians all keen to get a look at us.

There is no doubt that to suddenly blunder unwittingly into the world of celebrity - for that is how it felt - was a surreal experience. It was also quite humbling, as we were all ushered into the head man's one room house and offered tea and biscuits and allowed to watch BBC news 24 on his TV, to appreciate the hospitality and lack of suspicion or malice in these people. Where in the western world would you encounter such?