MIAMI: WHERE EVEN THE MANNEQUINS HAVE HAD A BOOB JOB

After a week of bright and breezy weather in New York, the humid heat of Florida hit us as soon as we got off the plane. Being budget travellers, we decided to take the budget route into Miami Beach - $2 local bus rather than an indulgent $25 supershuttle taxi - and we soon realised why as the bus broke the record for slow driving. Two hours later (OK, that's an exaggeration but it felt like it) we got to our hotel, which is great. No less than two episodes of the original Miami Vice, and a Sylvester Stallone film called the Specialist, were filmed here.

Next morning, we lugged our pasty skin over to the beach for a good frying. Hmm, fitting in well with all the bronzed beautiess and Baywatch lookalikes then. We lasted about 20 minutes before we retreated to the shade of the palm trees. So much for hurricane season. It did rain, briefly, in the afternoon, but then the sun came out again. We took cover in The Big Pink Diner which wasn't as gay as it sounds. We wandered around Miami Beach looking at all the art deco buildings - the area is full of them and the architectural style is great, really cool and modern and suits the beach area well.

After dragging Duncan round every single camera shop in Florida, Emma finally decided which camera she wanted for her birthday and we spent a good couple of hours haggling in scenes reminiscent of a Turkish bazaar before emerging victorious. Now the practice begins... perhaps with Beard Watch - it's been three days since Duncan shaved (Dave, hope you're proud) and there are early signs of promising growth in the chin area, although the cheeks are still holding out. Regular updates to follow. The goal is for him to resist the temptation to shave at least until Christmas Day, but it's gonna be tough as he's already complaining about diminishing snogs from the wife.

Off to Venezuela tomorrow. Not sure what the internet access will be like, but we'll update you on Beard Watch etc when we can.

Hope all's well - get in touch soon!