Several hours after sailing from Australia, we sighted the trading city of Dubai, a likely place to find some beasts of burden. Camels!

Dubai had grown considerably since our last visit, with the camel markets replaced by supercar dealerships. The locals had grown too, mainly in girth. 'Manboub' is a common name.

We made contact with a trader who claimed to have cross-bred his camels with his supercars, creating a high-speed beast. We felt this would be the ideal transport should we encounter uncharted desert in Italy.

Two fine beasts were secured through a new form of bartering known as 'futures trading', meaning we will pay for the camels with our eldest daughter, who doesn't exist.

The lack of a vasectomy scar was a valuable bargaining tool in this new digital economy.

Thankfully we found the architecture suitably inspiring for the conception of a daughter. We'll probably name her Mary.