For one-stop souvenir shopping, you can tick off half your list at Chinatown Point, aka the Singapore Handicraft Center, 133 New Bridge Rd. The best gifts there include hand-carved chops, or Chinese seals. Chinatown Seal Carving Souvenir, #03-72 (tel. 65/6534-0761), has an enormous selection of carved stone, wood, bone, glass, and ivory chops ready to be carved to your specifications. Simple designs are affordable, although some of the more elaborate chops and carvings fetch a handsome sum. At Inherited Arts & Crafts, #03-69 (tel. 65/6534-1197), you can commission a personalized Chinese scroll painting or calligraphy piece. Amid the many jade and gold shops at Chinatown Point, La Belle Collection, #04-53 (tel. 65/6534-0231), stands out for its jewelry crafted from orchids. The coating lets the flowers' natural colors show, while delicate gold touches add a little extra sparkle.

My all-time favorite gift idea? Spend an afternoon learning the traditional Chinese tea ceremony at The Tea Chapter, 9-11 Neil Rd. (tel. 65/6226-1175), and pick up a tea set -- they have a lovely selection of tea pots, cups and accessories, as well as quality teas for sale. When you return home, you'll be ready to give a fabulous gift -- not just a tea set, but your own cultural performance as well. Another neat place to visit is Kwong Chen Beverage Trading, 16 Smith St. (tel. 65/6223-6927), for some Chinese teas in handsome tins. Although the teas are really inexpensive, they're packed in lovely tins -- great to buy lots to bring back as smaller gifts. For serious tea aficionados or those curious about Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), stop by Eu Yan Sang (269 South Bridge Rd.; tel. 65/6223-6333; where they have stocks of very fine (and expensive) teas, plus herb and herbal remedies for health. For something a little more unusual, check out Siong Moh Paper Products, 39 Mosque St. (tel. 65/6224-3125), which also carries a full line of ceremonial items. Pick up some joss sticks (temple incense) or joss paper (books of thin sheets of paper, stamped in reds and yellows with bits of gold and silver leaf). Definitely a conversation piece, as is the Hell Money, stacks of "money" that believers burn at the temple for their ancestors to use in the afterlife. Perfect for that friend who has everything? Also, if you duck over to Sago Lane while you're in the neighborhood, there are a few souvenir shops that sell Chinese kites and Cantonese Opera masks -- cool for kids.

There Are also a few shops on Arab Street that carry handicrafts from Southeast Asia. For antiques and curios, try Gim Joo Trading, 16 Baghdad St. (tel. 65/6293-5638), a jumble of the unusual, some of it old. A departure from the more packed and dusty places here, Suraya Betawj, 67 Arab St. (tel. 65/6398-1607), carries Indonesian and Malaysian crafted housewares in contemporary design, the type you normally find for huge prices in shopping catalogues back home.

Other unique treasures include the large assortment of fragrance oils at Aljunied Brothers, 91 Arab St. (tel. 65/6293-2751). Muslims are forbidden from consuming alcohol in any form (a proscription that includes the wearing of alcohol-based perfumes as well), so these oil-based perfumes re-create designer scents plus other floral and wood creations. Check out their delicate cut-glass bottles and atomizers as well. Finally, for the crafter in your life, Kin Lee & Co., 109 Arab St. (tel. 65/6291-1411), carries a complete line of patterns and accessories to make local Peranakan beaded slippers. In vivid colors and floral designs, these traditional slippers were always made by hand, to be attached later to a wooden sole. The finished versions are exquisite, plus they're fun to make.

Little India--I have a ball shopping the crowded streets of Little India. The best shopping is on Serangoon Road, where Singapore's Indian community shops for Indian imports and cultural items. The absolute best place to start is Mustapha's, 320 Serangoon Rd./145 Syed Alwi Rd., at the corner of Serangoon and Syed Alwi roads (tel. 65/6299-2603), but be warned, you can spend the whole day there -- and night, too, because Mustapha's is open 24 hours every day. This maze of a department store fills two city blocks full of imported items from India. Granted, much of it is everyday stuff, but the real finds are: rows of saris and silk fabrics; two floors of jaw-dropping gold jewelry in Indian designs; an entire supermarket packed with spices and packets of instant curries; ready-made Indian-style tie-dye and embroidered casual wear; incense and perfume oils; cotton tapestries and textiles for the home; the list goes on and prices often can't be beat. Little India offers all sorts of small finds, especially throughout Little India Arcade (48 Serangoon Rd.) and just across the street on Campbell Lane at Kuna's, #3 Campbell Lane (tel. 65/6294-2700). Here you can buy inexpensive Indian costume jewelry like bangles, earrings, and necklaces in exotic designs and a wide assortment of decorative dots (called pottu in Tamil) to grace your forehead. Indian handicrafts include brass work, wood carvings, dyed tapestries, woven cotton household linens, small curio items, very inexpensive incense, colorful pictures of Hindu gods, and other ceremonial items. Look here also for Indian cooking pots and household items.

Across the street from Little India Arcade, the second floor of Zhujiao Centre is packed with stall after stall of inexpensive salwar kameez, or Punjabi suits, the three-piece outfits -- long tunic over pants, with matching shawl -- worn by northern Indian ladies. Don't be afraid to bargain for the best price.

Punjab Bazaar, #01-07 Little India Arcade, 48 Serangoon Rd. (tel. 65/6296-0067), carries a more upmarket choice of salwar kameez, in many styles and fabrics. If nothing strikes your fancy at Punjab Bazaar, try Roopalee Fashions, a little farther down at 84 Serangoon Rd. (tel. 65/6298-0558). Both shops carry sandals, bags, and other accessories to complement your new outfit.