It was an amazing feeling seeing the nightlife of Manchester unfold in front of me. Shaan has already made half a dozen friends in the city and it’s his first time in this place. Now, my room at the Picadely has turned into a party lounge. First, Shaan and his guy friends went and bought the latest video game from town. Yes, this was a football game. I guess it’s very popular with the youth of England although their team only managed to reach the semi-finals of the world cup. Next, the entire gang of friends went to the local pub and dancing clubs.

As I was about to go to sleep, bang, my room was invaded by half a dozen adolescent young English girls and with them, right in the middle was our Shaan. “Yo uncle, give us company, man. These are all your friends.” Indeed, it was a delight to see the girls in the room. It felt like a totally different avatar of me. When I was last in this city, I was a shy boy only interested in food and sleep. I was never the party time in those days but I certainly am getting the party feel in this city this time around.

After shooting Shaan rap, this was the other high point of the day partying with chicks full UK style. I tried to capture the moment and film but I was stopped by a lady in the hotel. So I let it be. Music keeps the energy going and the chitchat of idea banter spreads around the room.

Manchester has been the icing on the cake. Although mostly confined to my room, I was able to pull a lot of the action from the city into my room thanks to Shaan. Like a king, I just paid the bills and enjoyed the entertainment.