A charming family-run restaurant offering a great selection of freshly made hand-rolled pasta. Delicious:p

If you like some nice cool beer, portuguese sweets (the once with yellow custard inside) tasty and affordable sandwiches, good strong coffee and football, at all hours. Max Snack Bar is worth checking out.

Though the city is amazing with a lot to offer, of course it’s great to have your own hideaway. My room is essentially my studio/desk space too and the hub of my creative activities.

Small little Rose Garden in a beautiful neighbourhood. All the houses surrounding the park have a dutch appeal to them.

I spend many hours in the bookshops along this stretch, namely Henry Pordes for second hand books and new discounted titles (pile on left of photo), as well as Koenig Books for new art books with lots of great discounts in the basement. (photo right). In 2001 the rents for much of this strip were increased to align them closer to market value but thanks to public support they were reduced again. Unfortunately some bookshops still closed down; Koenig replaced the beloved Zwemmers - a real institution - but thankfully still provide great books, although others are no longer bookshops at all.