There we were in Mecca for the Islamic festival of Eid Ul Adha, merchants filled the streets selling everything from silk scarves to souvenirs and toys when in the midst of the hustle and bustle I spotted an animal wearing a multi-coloured garland.

On approaching it there was a Saudi Arabian camel kneeled down on the roadside heavily decorated with garlands of flowers. I wasn’t sure if it was real flowers as I was too timid to go close. The camel was properly muzzled and had a chair like carriage on its back complete with a roof to shade from the sun.

“Ride, ride, ten riyals” called the camel owner holding up his fingers to show me ten.. Even though Saudi Arabian riyals translates to just £1.34, it was still not going to tempt me to climb up and take a ride. So, I admired the camel from a distance. The single hump, Arabian camel represents 90% of the 14 million camels in the world and there it sat right in front of me.

Kneeling down on its knobby knees totally bored waiting for someone to take up its invitation, its docile large eyes staring into space with the occasional flick of its double row of long curly eyelashes. There he sat, this great mammal that once made a crucial contribution to man's survival in this desert environment all dressed up with nowhere to go!