Great casual, with different designs, from the traditional thing, to the originality of the season, colors that rarely you find in any other shoe store. The quality is top, I still have got some shoes from my teen years. I find them still very useful, even if colorful.

The worst part: the prices. The shoes are very expensive. I always get them on sale, but even then they make a hole in my wallet. I try to save on clothes to spend here. Anyway, I think they sell the loveliest boots and shoes. Great way to look original (which is difficult when other shoe shop is selling the same designs).

I love this place. I would like to describe their lines.
Woman: generally the most extensive one and is subdivided in many sections where to find from clothes to dress, to the denim... Attention to the basic, always renewed and to very good price.
Man: the footwear is very original. Interior and Bath; simple but hot tokens, always with a sound super amusing, the weavings are very smooth and very comfortable, a little expensive but is worth while because the quality of the intimate clothes is very good. Complements; unimaginable! From umbrella, to suitcases, to belts, to clips for the hair, shoes, caps, is perhaps where they waste more imagination, besides the prices are done more accessible.
Great place to shop.

Enjoy the British Museum when it is empty. I love being there, because the ancient part is a feast for the eyes. Where else could you see Egyptian pharaohs, the doors of Mesopotamia and the Parthenon? The eyes of Ramesses II look at you and you suddently feel so tiny and unimportant. It is a very humbling experience.

The worst part: kids and uninterested tourists hanging around. They touch everything (including 2000 years old pieces) and bother other people. My complain is that the staff at the museum does not show them the way out as often as they should. But it is free, and we have to accept others.

If you want to eat well and save your pennies (in this time of credit crunch), go to this Sainsbury branch. They open until late and they are fairly big, so it is easy to find everything you need.

Let me give you a tip: Sainsbury Organic Line is great. The milk is so tasty and the yoghourts are so creamy. However, they are expensive. Why bother to spend more if you can buy their basic line? Concerns about health and taste, mainly. However, there is my tip: this Sainsbury branch uses to reduce all its organic line around 9 o’clock in the afternoon. So, if you go there, you can eat organic for the price of basic food.

This is my favourite stationery shop in London. In my opinion it is difficult to find a nice shop where they do sell notebooks (notebooks to write my diary on them) without having to buy one of the über – expensives Moleskines, which are sold everywhere.

Ryman has its own brand of notebooks, of sturdy pages and beautiful simply design. Their colours are black and brown, and the size is either A4 or A3. They also sell great notebooks for sketches, very classy as well.

You do not have to buy an expensive notebook to feel that you are following Van Gogh’s or Hemingway’s steps. Ryman gives you the same for less money. And they offer 10% discount for students.

National Gallery: a delight.
If you followed my advice and went to the National Portrait Gallery, you should not miss the other gallery around the corner. Late opening on Wednesdays afternoons, it is a great place to go and relax after work (especially if you work in the city centre). Outside, there is Trafalgar Square, always full of tourists. However, the interior is very peaceful.

Great old masters inside. Do not miss the Van Eycks (especially the Arnolfini marriage), the Christ by Piero della Francesca, the impresionists, the sunflowers by Van Gogh, the nympheas by Monet. A delight for every sense (for free).

Compulsory visit if you are visiting London. The Museum is free, so it is great if you are squint at the end of the month. You can begin by visiting the permanent collection, which includes some great portraits since 15th century onwards. Do not miss the twin sisters with their daughters (both of them born on the same day), 15th century. Afterwards, you can navigate from great 19th century portraiture to contemporary artists, such as Bacon. I love the photography section, with great pictures of the Beatles, very natural style.
They are now hosting the BP Portrait Award, a great way to see what contemporary art is doing right now in terms of respresenting people.

Their café offers good quality coffee and hot chocolate. Wine as well.

Jigsaw is a great shop. Do no go there if you want flashy clothes or the “it” accessory. It is not worthy. However, if you want timeless design and a great fit, it is the place to go.

The Charing Cross’ branch is huge. There were two parts of the shop: one in sale, with great offers, and the other one with the new collection. I love the grey combinations and their handbags looked great.

The staff were very helpful and not pushy at all. Trinny and Susannah recommend Jigsaw as a very nice shop for the 30s onwards. I can vouch for that.

I love beigels. And this bakery is everything waiting for. The queues can be huge, especially at night. It is full of taxi drivers and late clubbers. But the food… ah, the salted beef beigel is my best snack in London. The beef is absolutely tasty (not something that you can find elsewhere).

I would like to add that they also sell cakes. I tried a chocolate fudge cake and it almost melted in my hand. It was absolutely lovely. I think I saw some Jewish cakes (or similar), but I had no more cash at hand! So, my advice: go for a salted beef beigel and a cake.

I do not like this place. The sizes are minimal; frankly, I do not understand how I fit size 12 everywhere and in Zara I must have size 16 (at least). I do not know if they design for pretty thin people, but that is it.

However, I must admit that I like their designs. Perfect clons of catwalk collections, sometimes too close to reality to be true. Last time I bought a lovely dress with ruffles there and, checking on the internet, it proved out to be a very close copy of a Luella dress! As I cannot afford Luella, I must to to Zara then…