I got to the check-in desk at Seoul airport and was told I couldn't board the flight to Sydney because I didn't have an onward ticket from Australia. I didn't really know how to deal with this, and my brain pretty much just refused to accept it, so I ended up just standing there, smiling blankly at the lady behind the desk. She tried telling me a few more times but was met with the same uncomprehending smile, and being a polite Korean person, she finally said I could board the aeroplane as long as I signed an indemnity form releasing the airline from any responsibility. I signed the form and she warned me that when I got to Australia I would probably be deported. I nodded calmly, still grinning in a possibly very creepy manner now, and walked away. I found a fiendishly complicated public payphone that looked like a computer and had to ask someone to help me figure out how to work the telephone card I'd had to buy. I managed to get through to the company's travel agent, Gwen, about 10 minutes before my flight was due to board, and asked her to book me a provisional flight to New Zealand. I warned her that she might receive a call from me when I reached Immigration early the next morning and she said that was fine and was very nice about it all.

I was assigned a seat on the plane next to a guy called Jimmy who said that he was happy to be next to someone to talk to as he got really bored on the 11 hour flight. He talked continuously for about 20 minutes before I decided enough was enough and moved seats, saying that I wanted three seats to sleep across. I'm always wary of garulous people in confined spaces. I didn't get much sleep and was half way through the film "Finding Neverland" when we landed.

I stood in the Immigration queue at Kingsford-Smith, eyeing the faces of the officials, trying to decide which one was least likely to take me off to a small room and shine a torch in my eyes. When my turn came, I handed over my passport and she stamped it immediately and handed it back. No problems.

I went into the office in Sydney and then caught up with some friends. It was nice to be back in a familiar city and it was so warm and bright!