I'm writing this from Frankfurt, inside ISH 2009, probably the biggest bathroom, heating, plumbing and air conditioning show in the world.

Now while that sounds impressive, for the lowly (and unfit) journalist like myself, it means a daunting expedition akin to getting Chris Moyles up Kilimanjaro. I've been in this game a while now but it all starts to blur when you're in an exhibition hall full of thousands of taps.

But this four day show, which opened today at 10pm, represents the innovations, trends, and product directions the bathroom industry will take in the next couple of years - and this year, of course, it also represents a measure of just how bad it is out there.

As for me, I'll be blogging as I go so hopefully you'll follow me round the show as I try and pick out some of the more interesting sites, products and Germans so you don't have to.

So how is it out there? I can definitively tell you already that it's miserable, awful in fact - it's been bucketing it down since we arrived. But anyone who's been to an exhibition like this in Europe will know that the last thing you ever see while you're here is the outside.

The showguide this year is the size of a brick with over 2100 exhibitors, so there's clearly an enthusiasm for having a stand, whether that is matched by the number of attendees is yet to be seen. There's also the obligatary map which, typical of all European shows, is virtually incomprehensible.

For example, in Hall 3.1 there's a feature called "Pop Up The Bathroom". Any ideas? Is it a bit like "Pump Up The Volume", have they made a feature entirely looking at wastes? There's only one way to find out....

Email Andrew at ISH