Two men, marooned in the desert after a plane crash decided that they had no option but to try and walk to saftey. They salvaged what water and food they could from the wreckage and began their long trek.

After two weeks, all their provisions were exhausted. ‘If we don’t find water soon, we’ll surely perish’ exlaimed one man to his companion.

Two days later, as they mounted the crest of a sand dune, they spied in the distance, a huge market. Driven on by unsatiable thirst, they raced as fast as their blistered feet could carry them, towards the oasis.

Very soon the two men encountered their first stall. ‘Water ... water ... please give us water !’ they begged. ‘I am so sorry’ exclaimed the stall holder ‘I only have these little dishes, filled with raspberry jelly,laced with sherry and little sponge pieces, topped with custard and then smothered in cream and liberally sprinkled with hundreds and thousands to offer you’.

This would not quench their thirst, so they moved on to the next stall.

‘Water ... Water ... please give us water !’ they begged again.

‘I apologise for having no water to give you’ replied the stallholder ‘but how about this rather nice bowl of strawberry jelly, laced with sherry and little sponge pieces, topped with custard and cream, and then dusted with chocolate flake?’

Once again, our heroes thirst remained unabated.

In desperation they moved to the next stall, only to be met by the same response.

After many hours and hundreds of stalls later, they still had not received any water. At each stall they were met with exactly the same offer of bowl of flavoured jelly, laced with sherry and little sponge pieces, topped with custard and cream, and then dusted with various sweets.

On leaving the market to continue their quest for water, one of the man remarked to his companion ‘That was a very strange place indeed’. His friend replied ‘Yes, it was a trifle bazaar’.