I had a very vivid, logical and consistent dream last night.

Our spaceship was crash landing into an unchartered planet. I remember the ship free falling through the atmosphere. When it came closer to the planet’s surface, we found that the planet was magnetic and the ship was pulled in. As we stepped out of the ship, our steel boots were attracted to the ground too.

Some natives of the planet came out to meet us. They looked human and spoke English. They were very friendly and invited us to settle into the population. When we said that we would try to get back to our planet, they looked doubtful. We compared star charts and calculated that Earth was many light years away. So we agreed to stay for the time being.

The planet was highly developed, with no unmodified ecosystems. I remember Kate, one of my fellow astronauts, was despondent because as an environmental engineer, there was no career for her on this planet.

There was only one patch of nature left — a grassy pasture, which was the focus of an annual festival. We had landed just as the festival was beginning. The festival included markets, shows and competitions. One of the major events was a dance competition. I wandered around the carnival stalls, watching people practice for the dance competition. Most people were doing variations of break dancing, hip hop and jazz dance.

In the middle of it all, I heard the familiar strains of Britney Spears’s “Oops! I did it again.” I followed the sounds and saw a young brunette on stage singing the pop song. I knew that this could not be possible — we were an alien planet! I read the advertising on the stage and discovered that Britney Spears’s record company had somehow found its way to this planet and was manufacturing pop stars in the way it knows best. It was a comforting familiarity.

I watched three particular boys doing break dancing. They noticed me watching.

Later, everyone was gathered in a big hall, much like an Olympic gymnasium. The call for dance competition entries came over the broadcast system. What the hell, I thought, Might as well enter. I walked up to the registration booth. When the lady asked for the entry fee, I bit my lip and pulled out some Australian dollars.

I’m sorry, she said apologetically. Our money doesn’t look like that.

I was about to walk away when one of the break dancers I was watching before (the one in the red tank top) came up beside me and offered some silver coins to pay for my entry fee. I smiled gratefully. These aliens were all so nice!

I walked back to the stands with my new friend.

My dream ended before the competition began. Darn, eh.