After spending the whole of Sunday packing and cleaning, we decided it would be a good idea to ‘stretch our legs’ before getting on the bus to Heathrow. So we found ourselves crossing Cambridge on foot at 1 am to start the adventure.

Getting to the airport was largely uneventful, but when we arrived we spotted a ‘celebrity’ quaffing champagne with her friend at 6am. We spent some time discussing whether it really was her, or just someone doing an impersonation. This was all quickly forgotten when I spotted the Mulberry shop though!

The flight passed quickly, as we watched several films and ate a large amount of surprisingly good aeroplane food (apart from the smoked trout – seriously). When we went to pick up our bags, who should we be stood next to but our celebrity friend. It turns out that she is in Dubai to get some ‘natural’ photos of her on ‘holiday’ in various bikinis for a trashy magazine. Not at all staged….

We then headed into Dubai to stay with Sam. Both he and Graham have cycled across America, and Sam was also at Heriot Watt University at the same time as me, so there was plenty to chat about. We all went for a walk and some dinner at the Dubai Marina, and checked out the yachts. If anyone knows how you earn enough money to buy one then let me know!

After 48 sleepless hours, I think its time for an early night.

• Dubai