Hi Everyone

At last have managed to find time to make an entry on this blog - didn't think we were going to manage it as our first attempts kept bringing up the blog pages in Chinese - however, the kind lady in the hotel business centre has now shown me which button to press and here I am.

The last few days since leaving the UK have been rather hectic - we got to the airport really early to avoid any delays on the M25 and managed to check-in and get through security relatively smoothly. The flight left on time and was uneventful - we had been a little worried when we heard that Shanghai had been hit by a typhoon earlier in the week but all had calmed down by the time we arrived. Having said that we arrived to heavy skies and rain ( a bit like home only warmer!) which have remained throughout our stay in Shanghai.

The Friday night rush hour traffic in Shanghai is much like the M25 which meant that the 50km drive from the airport to the hotel took us much longer than anticipated so we had to have dinner as soon as we arrived - we were all a bit smelly and tired after an 11 hour flight and 3 hours getting to the hotel but, as our luggage was coming separately and hadn't arrived by the time we got to the hotel we were just glad of something to eat. Not the best way to met new friends but we were all in the same boat so made the best of it.There are 16 of us on the Magic of the Yangtze tour - all couples from various places in the UK and all older than us!!

After a good night's sleep we were woken by an early morning call at 7am (12 midnight UK time - we're 7 hours ahead) and, after breakfast, headed off for our full day tour of the city of Shanghai at 8.30am. we had driven through the centre of the city the night before with all the tall buildings lit up - an amazing sight - and were really pleased to be on the 32nd floor of the hotel with amazing views over the city. Just as well we got a few pics early on as the heavy low cloud set in more as the day went on and the tops of the buildings were soon hidden from view.

Anyway, back to our first day in Shanghai, which means "up to the sea" according to our national guide, 'Jacky' Chan who is 25 and " very handsome" (in his own words). Our first stop was the private Yu Garden in Old Shanghai.

This garden was developed by a high official in the local government for his aged parents and demonstrates how to combine the 'yin' and 'yang' of formal planting and architecture to create a sublime oasis in the middle of the bustling city. A beautiful and very restful place set amidst the delightful but hectic Old Town with it's myriad of shops selling local goods - the local knife shop looked particularly interesting/worrying with small blades to meat cleavers available for purchase! There was a delightful couple of elderly Chinese ladies singing and dancing and colourful red paper lanterns strewn across the beautiful zig-zag bridge towards the garden.

Our meeting point was Starbucks where the coffee was three times the price of the brollies we bought (see below) - an interesting contrast between east and west!

On route to our next stop Jacky waxed lyrical about the Chinese Family Planning policy ( those of you at the PCT may particularly be interested in this ... only one child per family or you are fined approx 6000 pounds and the child is regarded as illegal so you have to pay for all education and health needs. there are, however, a few exceptions - if you have a girl first you are allowed a second chance and if you come from one of the 8% ethnic minority groups )Tibetan/Mongolian) the government encourage you to have more children to redress the balance!

[As it was raining were inundated with offers of umbrellas and managed to purchase 2 for 3 US dollars (approx 75p each) which kept us and the camera dry - we persuaded the two young girls who sold then to us to have their pictures taken after much hiding behind the counter and giggling! We successfully fended off the many vendors selling 'Omega' and 'Rolex' watches on the way to and from the coach, although one of our party was very tempted when, a clearly exhausted young man offered him three watches for 100 Yuan ( approx. 7 pounds - sorry no pound sign on keyboard!!)]

Anyway next stop was the South China Pearl Company where John threatened to stay on the coach with the credit card . However, I did persuade him to come and listen to the fascinating explanation about the culture of pearls in the South China Seas and was delighted to be able to make my first real purchase of some rice pearls which I had specially hand-made into a twisted necklace of 6 strands of varying colours for less than 20 pounds - a bargain I think. John was taken in by our lovely Shangaiese sales assistant who thought he was a true gentleman!

Lunch was buffet-style at a local Government run restaurant - very tasty - it was fascinating to watch the locals on the street below (through the window) on their bikes with trolleys carrying children's cots, beds and even grandmas(!), cruising the slow lanes whilst an endless stream of slow-moving traffic passed in lanes 2, 3 & 4.

We spent most of the afternoon at Shanghai museum with well-organised displays of bronze, sculptures (lots of buddhas), ceramics, furniture and jade and we were provided with individual audio handsets so we could browse in our own time.

We then attempted to take a romantic stroll along the Bund (by the river) but by this time the fog and rain had really set in so we headed back to the hotel - we hope to get another opportunity to see the Bund in sunshine when we return to Shanghai toward the end of our trip.

After a very short time time to shower & change ( I don't think Jacky understands how long it takes a woman of a certain age to get ready for dinner!) we were off to another local restaurant for dinner then onto the most amazing acrobatic show I've ever seen. This was a real treat and not to be missed should you ever come to Shanghai! No time to describe now as have to go but will try and log on again soon with a little more info about this.

Leaving Shanghai today after a visit to the local silk-making factory and the Jade Buddha. We board the Victoria Prince river boat later this afternoon for an 8-night cruise along the Yangtze and hope to update the blog most days.

This is already proving to be an amazing trip and looking forward to all that the next few weeks brings.

Speak again soon.

Lots of love

Carol & John xxx