Not sure how many 'parts' this report will ultimately number. Guess it depends on my ability to stay awake and type!

Shanghai was everything we had heard/read and so much more. The city is growing so fast that 'guide books' quickly became outdated! Recent October issue of Departures Magazine featured China and was pretty helpful. Flyertalk.com also had interesting information. Best help I received was right here from Marcie and Joanna about the market!

WOW! The shopping at the Xing Xang market was unbelievable. For starters, I knew we were in the right place when we opened the cab door and had a dozen guys come up to us with 'catalogs' saying....hey ladie want to buy lewwweee weetoon?! Totally amazing.

As you walk down the aisles of this huge huge outdoor flea market type place, all these kids (the stalls all seem to be run by these kids...all of whom have the same level of workable English) call out to you saying "Laaaadieee, laaaadieeee, want to buy a pocketbook...... I felt like I was in the middle of this bad Jerry Lewis movie. Hey Laaaaaddddddieeeeee...........

The 'badgering' is really not difficult to deal with (India was much tougher for me)and it clearly becomes a bit of a game. Anyway, a tremedous profusion of knock off pocketbooks, watches, sunglasses, polo sweaters, you name it. Some of it is awful copies but most of it is pretty good...and some of it is exceptional!! Thank you again Marcie for the Tommy Bahama guy (stall #A044)!!! Perhaps cause it's winter, there were not a lot of Tommy Bahama nor Polo type things, but we found 'Marcie's guy' pretty easily!

And if you want something that you don't see...no problem. I had a picture from a magazine of a Chanel pocketbook I wanted and these kids would all come up to me, look at the picture and say "Just a moment, I go get it for you....just a moment". Sure enough a few minutes later, the kid would materialize (you could keep walking,,,they always found you!) with what you wanted. Sometimes, the 'copy' was not a good quality, but when you asked for 'better', they dug it up out of somewhere!! As I said, this was quite an experience. Bloomingdales it isn't...but soooooo much fun!!!!

We probably went to this market three or four times and always came away with lots of goodies! As I said, it was so much fun!

Taxis were VERY inexpensive and pretty easy to find. Forty five minute taxi ride to the airport cost about six or seven dollars! Taxi drivers do not speak English (Can't even say Laaadddiiieeee!) but are very polite and can read your card written in Chinese directing them to wherever you're going. You pick these cards up at your hotel.

Shanghai Museum was amazing. Gorgeous building and awesome, tremendous collection! Spent several hours there...could have been there for days. The museum gift shop is wonderful too!!

OK, need some coffee...or maybe a nap! More later!