Yesterday was began slowly, as I slept til 3 with the jet lag! Bah... Nik teaches on Sundays so the three of us headed off on the metro (3 yuan - 30p for a single!) And went to Shanghai's biggest camera market - a shopping mall on 4 stories, starting from the top down, with cameras from the 19th century to the latest gadgets and gizmos of today. I got some film - costing about a pound for 36 exposures (!!) Rick marvelled at the delightful old cameras, as did I. But the antiques were a little out of our range.

After this, we went to perhaps the best and biggest fabric market in the world. Time Out had a lot of articles about it, lots written or from the perspective of people who work in fashion in Paris and Milan who come to Shanghai to get their clothes custom made at this very market.

Imagine the biggest clothes shop/haberdashers/John Lewis fabric department and times it by 10 thousand. Then you'll be starting to understand the size and variety of stock on offer here. Before we ventured inside, we stocked up on some street food - hot dumping for 10p - about the size of a cricket ball. Mmm.

Once inside, we set about the task of finding some fabric that we each liked - in order to turn it into an item of some sort. The quality of fabric was amazing - raw silk, Thai silk and pure Chinese silk in abundance in all styles and patterns... It was heavenly. People from all over the world go there in order to purchase made to measure clothes in posh fabrics that one could never afford at home. Handmade leather jackets - made to measure - which fit like a glove are about 600 yuan (60) and made to measure suits for men are very popular too. They key is to barter. One man that I approached, as I really liked some of his fabric, wouldn't barter at all, pointing out that he would need even more fabric than usual for someone of my size... A lost sale there. He has a point, but still.

Anna had a dress with her that she wanted to be re made in a different fabric, as it was very old and tattered. She chose a nice dusky pink colour and managed to barter the man down to 350 yuan (35 quid) for the whole made to measure dress, complete with lining.

Even - to my astonishment - Rick decided to get a made to measure suit for Helen's wedding! We found a few different materials that he liked and shopped around. I bartered some really low offers and in the end Rick has gone for lovely blue colour with a kind of check, in a lightweight cashmere, all made to measure all for 500 yuan! We are so chuffed with that.

As for me... Well, it took me a very long time to find something that I wanted - there was just too much choice. Also, there were SO many fashionista tourists, mainly French, German and Italian getting fitted for things that it made it quite hard to get a good look at stuff. Yes, I know I was doing the same as them!

In the end I went for what I think was an amazing fabric, we'll have to wait and see what the man does with it, but he measured me and planned the dress together, so hopefully it will fit and be a gooden. I am excited!

After this we walked to the river - the Bund. We went to a bar at the top of a tall building and could see everything. after that, Nik met us and we did something very special - really made me wish that you were all there too. We went to a 5 star hotel called the Peace Hotel and went to their Jazz Bar, where the same Jazz band who started playing there in the 30s are still playing today. It was real art deco, 30s style glamour, and the music was fab. We could only afford one drink, but it was still cheap compared to London prices.

After that, we walked to the Oxford street area and headed for food. As it is the new year, the Chinese have a national holiday today, so last night things closed at around nine, making it difficult to find food... Eventually we went to a fantastic central asian place, sort of Chinese but sort of Kazakhstani/Usbeki too. Big hot breads were served instead of rice. I have mainly been eating boiled veg with chillies and garlic - broccoli, pak choi, aubergines etc. But had a really lovely thing here called 'three silks', which was strings of pepper, cucumber and carrot with glass noodles, chilli and garlic. Tres tasty. Ate too much tough and felt a bit sick after! Rick had something called 'detonation mutton' this was very spicy.

The Chinglish - english to chinese translations have been very funny - I am taking lots of pics.

Today, we went to a fantastic exhibition - mum and rose, I so wish you could have seen it! In fact, you All would have really liked it. It was an exhibition of Chinese propaganda, all saved and preserved buy this one man, throughout the 1940s to 1980s. It was breathtakingly good.

After that we saw another exhibition at the Spanish embassy of photographs, then walked down the busiest street in the area to get street food and chinese cakes. We have just had them with a big pot of tea, now we are preparing to go to one of Shanghai's many 'ladies nights' - these happen city-wide each night. In fact, there are cheap food and drink deals everywhere, every night and the city does seem to be abuzz with people crazy nights out.

You can get dvds here for 50p of new releases, so can you all let me know if you want something in particular? Can't guarantee it, but name a few and I will try to get them.

Right, I'm off for Sangria and Margharitas - free all night!