The second coffee shop has to be Kaffeine. Having only recently come across this one, I was certainly impressed and they may even have the best coffee I've had, since a short stay in Portland, Oregon.

An intimate live music venue in Dalston with lots of underground and experimental music you won't find anywhere else in London.

I grew up in the countryside, and if you're ever in need some instant escape from the city, this place is like a time warp. It's a huge space full of over grown mausoleums and graves, feels like a movie set. They also do tours.

Half a mile from Markfield Park down the River Lee is Springfield Park. The park rises steeply up from the river and has an amazing array of tree species making it beautiful in all seasons. At the brim of the hill there is a line of park benches each one surrounded by box hedge offering a private view across the Lee Valley, Walthamstow and beyond. The park warden was nice enough to give me a chestnut log a couple of years ago from which I carved a bench and two stools.

Home to hundreds of stray cats and dogs.