Water has been a recurring theme on this trip. Nepal was positively gushing with the stuff. If the investment case for H2O as the new oil holds any water, then Nepal will soon be minted. The topography of the country suggests that the poor Nepali Sherpa will soon be replaced by a rich Nepali Sheik. In India, I had to be wary of drinking the water. I relied on Coca-Cola and Pepsi bottled-water, which I was assured was reverse-osmosified and filtered multiple times. Of course, in India rivers such as the Ganges are sacred. As for Australia, well it’s undergoing its worst drought ever. Melbourne has suffered drought for the last thirteen years, something that is difficult to fathom considering it has the world’s most imperfect weather system. Everywhere in Australia water-restrictions are in place and there are signs requesting me to cut down on my usage, such as the one reminding me to keep my shower to less than 4 minutes. They are having a laugh, right? I think they mean 40. Australia must have had plenty of water at some point as there is a creek sign-posted every few miles. In Victoria all the creeks I passed had plenty of water but around the corner in New South Wales some creeks have been dry for the last four and a half months. Not good if you like panning for gold. I have yet to come across Jacob’s Creek but if this particular creek is also dry then I’ll be massively disappointed.