what a fantastic shop, got everything in store bongs, pipes loads of smoking stuff!, they have wood…read morecraft art, jewelry, phones, vaporizers, and if your that way inclined you can buy herbal/legal highs and laughing gas paraphernalia. great shop loads of funky stuff you dont really see!!

Manchester Souvenirs & News have had locations popping up all over the city of late as the…read morenewsagents' chain look to expand - this is probably one of my favourite stores they have in the city, and I do like it much more than their newer locations at Arndale Centre Exchange Square, Shudehill and Deansgate, as well as their other location at the other side of Piccadilly Gardens. Refurbished of late to include a Post Office, this is one of the latest opening Post Offices in the area which is open from 6 in the morning to 6 in the evening throughout the week, opening a couple of hours later on Sunday and 8 - 8 on Saturday. The Post Office inside this newsagents is all the more important especially with the Town Hall's refurbishment meaning the Post Office there is out of action for now, and this one does seem a little quieter with less queuing compared to the other Post Office in their other store at Piccadilly Plaza. Despite being located in an older building on Mosley Street, close to Primark and Metrolink services, the inside of the store is pretty modern including multiple friendly staff working the store and Post Office checkouts as well as a pretty decent drinks/news selection, although I do find the prices to be a tad higher compared to nearby. 4* - A very innovative idea to add a Post Office into this store after the Town Hall's closer for refurbishment was announced which meant there would still be a Post Office on Mosley Street, while still being a useful store in a good and central location too.

A bit out of city center if you're visiting town but has a great selection of silver and steel…read moreitems from Sheffield. Knife sets, cutlery, flasks, frames. 18/10 Stainless, Silver plate, or sterling silver. There's a lot of stuff to get here but if you want one of the bigger sets of cutlery, they have to order it. Phone ahead to see if they have what you want if you're looking for something specific...might save you the trip.

After being heckled by an Aston Villa supporter, who was campaigning for a charity in Birmingham,…read morewalking around with my Manchester City shirt, I noticed this store and as a football fan, had a walk in to see if Aston Villa's central Birmingham Shop was as bad as well... Aston Villa (Aston Villa fans stop reading now) With a 4-0 victory over Villa, around a month after my visit, I still felt I had bragging rights, when I walked into this store, but still for a club like Aston Villa, who seem to sack their managers everytime something goes wrong (I still don't know why Tim Sherwood went) I was quite surprised, in a good way. This is a pretty cool store, to me it looks quite new and modern, it is on New Street, quite close to both New Street Station, Grand Central and The Bullring, and did have a good selection of jerseys. It also had a good selection of merchandise for Aston Villa fans, and even a ticket office on the top floor. If you're an Aston Villa fan, this is actually quite a good club shop for a soon to be Championship Club and actually can compete with the larger clubs stores in city centers such as Manchester City, and even beating Stoke City's club shop by far. I'm not an Aston Villa fan, but I found this store to be great for Aston Villa supporters to warrant a solid 3 star rating.

I'm not a footie fan myself but have been raised in a household of devout 'Villains', hardcore AVFC…read morefans who don't seem to realise that more often than not their team is a bit rubbish. However, despite my ignorance on the subject of football, every annual Brummy Christmas shopping trip with my mom means a brief visit to the Villa football shop to ensure Santa brings my brother various Villa-shaped goodies. It's a great little shop and sure to please any dedicated fan, with everything from the latest home and away shirts to mugs, pens and fun but throwaway merchandise. At any other time of year, my mom would think it ridiculous to splurge on some of the stuff she's bought here - but, hey, everyone goes a bit mad at Christmas. Ever in need of Villa-branded sweets? I'll try not to judge you if you are. Just know that this place can sort you out if so. The stock is spread over two floors and staff are positioned across the space to help out anyone like me who has zero knowledge of the 'beautiful' game. It's all-encompassing, with items for blokes and ladies - as well as cute little garments for babs, which led to my mom shelling out on some kit for a newborn in the family. Definitely one for Villa devotees, but Birmingham City fans might want to steer clear.

Actually a really lovely garden centre with a good range of goods and little shops inside. I hadn't…read morebeen for a while until I needed to go to the aquatic centre to buy some gifts for a fishy friend (Koilie Minogue, Koiffer Sutherland and Koi George are all very happy in their new home) I love the little farm shop outside too, although a couple of the items I was overcharged for on one occasion. I bought lots from here to do up my Granddad's planters, and everything stayed well and healthy

I started to understand some traditional English habits that didn't make sense at all before for me…read moreuntil I moved to the country. Gardening is one good example. We like our gardens in Brazil but here people are really fond of it. And it can be spotted in the raise of visitors to the garden centres spread through the country. Especially during the spring and summer. I like visiting garden centres as well and I just can't avoid my annual visit to Hollybush, one of the largest garden centres in the country. HollyBush is an independent gardening centre with more of three decades of service. Luckily it is not just a pace for gardening experts and people like me can also visit and learn something more about seeds and bulbs. Or just appreciate it anyway. I just adopted a Bonsai tree which I call Alice and I hope she survives my lack of experience in the garden issues anyway. By the way, I just love the Japanese and oriental garden area at Hollybush. It's a piece of Japan right in the middle of this gardening centre. If you are looking for garden tools and furniture, this is a perfect place to have a mooching around. And it's definitely a great way to put you in the mood of summer, if you don't even have a garden like me. The range of benches, fountains and barbecue tools are just an invitation to start planning all those special meals outside the house. The aquaria is another great feature at Hollybush. Fish tanks and species of all kid, plus fishing equipments make this space pretty popular. The kids can't get enough of watching the fish and there are even some piranhas there. Indoor bonsai and cactuses are also something that always bring my attention. I always bring a new adding to the family every visit. Hollybush has a huge shopping area with candles, sweets and cards and gifts. And if after visiting you feel like need some cake and a cuppa, it's compulsory to pop to their café and restaurant before leaving this place. The entrance is free and here is a parking space for over 600 cars.