Justin Lee Collins, Bill Bailey, Pieminister. There are some names that are just inherently…read moreassociated with Bristol. But arguably the most famous of them all is Banksy: graffiti artist extraordinaire. Banksy has left his tag all his beloved city but my favourite mural can be found at the bottom of Park Street. Opposite College Green on the side of a building you'll see one of his funniest pieces: the story of a lover hanging on to the window ledge for dear life while the suspecting husband looks on. You may need to wait for a minute or two while eager tourists have their photographs against it - but it's definitely worth the wait. Sadly, vandals couldn't stand the witty talent of Banksy and felt the need to deface it with putrid blue paintball shots. The city council have done an excellent job at restoring it back to its former glory, so don't let it put you off visiting. And, if you like this, you'll love the rest of his Bristol collection. Just pop down the road to Fopp and pick up a guide to Banksy's Bristol.

Banksy shows that street art can be thought provoking, beautiful and fun. One of the pieces that…read moresays Welcome to Bristol is the Mild Mild West Giant Teddy Bear vs policemen. Bristol has long had a reputation of musical cool for not only putting out some of the best drum and bass in the country but Trip Hop was known as the Bristol sound. Banksy has most certainly put Bristol on the map as the hub for exciting new urban art. Whereas in London the exciting arts movement tends to move around so that poor artists are pushed further and further into the recesses of deeper darker London, throughout Bristol, North and South pockets of artistic communities have emerged. Bedminster for example has some gorgeous pieces by Cheo and there are Arts Trails that take place all over the city. Banksy is not only responsible for fantastic pieces of art but for helping legitimise creativity all over the city and showing that grafitti doesn't have to be crappy tagging and vandalism but art that enhances the environment.

If you're in town and you want somewhere pleasant to get away from Broadmead, this is the spot for…read moreyou. Indeed, the thing I most associate this place with is grabbing a lunch time bite with some colleagues when I worked nearby. Due to its location it's not exactly a communal spot, and the layout, with lots of hills, flowerbeds and trees, means that unlike College Green, frisbee and footie games are unlikely to break out. It's a pleasant place though and big enough for you to grab a spot of your own, possibly with a view of the river.

Castle Park, a great place to escape from the hustle and bussle of broadmead. I found this delight…read moreafter getting bogged down in the christmas shopping mayhem, I was after a slice of tranquility then... bam! ... I arrived in castle park, the snow had settled and all was peaceful. Soon my eye was caught by a monuement standing out on the carpet of green and white (from the snow!), there stood this beautiful old derilict church, around the back of the church my eye was caught with a row of trees side by side, leading me down to a fountain at the end. I was sold, took a couple of snaps (see 'Snow hit' photo I uploaded) and Voilá!, my grandparents christmas present had been solved with a few clicks of my camera! Perfect in summer or winter, with the river so close on one side and shops on the other, it's like a link between relaxation and retail therapy.

Millenium Square is quite a stunning open space in the city center. It is always filled with kids…read moreplaying around in the shiny silvery water features, flatland BMXers practicing their tricks in the middle of the square, or just people sitting around the benches and steps, having a good relax. This square plays host to a variety of things, such as a Sunday art market and numerous festivals when summer rolls by. There is a computery device on one of the square that provides some minutes of fun, where it points to any planet you type in, and tells you how many kilometers it is away from the earth. Interesting, but I think it gets abused by the drunk masses on a Friday and Saturday night. In the floor of the square is an analemma - lights that show the path of the sun as viewed from the earth. On the benches at another end of the square, are brass statues of historical figures, one of which I know is William Tyndale translating the New Testament. All these little quirks of Millenium Square give it its soul, despite it being just a big, flat, bare open space. Thumbs up!

A fabulous public open space. A great big screen for the sports-inclined and fountains and pools…read morefor the little ones. It may have been mid-March, but my little cousin adored the water. He splashed about with his dad for ages. Surrounded by lovely restaurants and lots of museums, etc. (@Bristol). Great for young and old alike.

The Folk House has a number of fingers in a number of pies. Its main business is adult education -…read moreevening and daytime classes on pretty much everything from languages and writing, singing and music lessons, art and pottery, dance and drama, knitting and self-help. They run their classes in three 'terms' so you can pick a class up every 12 weeks or so, plus they have summer schools and Saturday day classes. I have learnt how to knit and sing in harmony here and enjoyed the mix of people it brings to the classes and the level of knowledge of the tutors. Art from their students is displayed about the place to buy with regularly changing exhibitions.. The House also has strong connections to live music of Bristol - obviously perhaps the folk scene but also blues and jazz. Live music is often on. This also draws in the record fairs every few months. Lastly, and this ties in the comings and goings of the various user groups, there is a cafe with nice food and cake and very good cup of tea. You can use the cafe if you are not attending a class. There is a nice little cobbled courtyard out front and undercover bike racks. The Folk House is signposted on Park Street, but is easy to walk past - you have to duck into an alley next to Nomad (see one of the photos). You can pick up a programme of their events and classes without going all the way in though as it is on the wall at the alley entrance.

Perhaps you're attending an art course at the folk house, or perhaps you've been shopping on Park…read moreStreet - the cafe is a perfect pit stop for those seeking a light lunch and a lovely cup of tea. They dish up homemade local dishes like cauli cheese or shepherd's pie, with crisp fresh salad. What made me drool is the rows of lush-looking cakes - I sampled (just for research purposes obviously) a slice a blackberry crumble flapjack with yoghurt topping - tart and sweet all in one, crunchy and yummy. You're cocooned by bright tribal art (from the courses they run) and afternoon's even offer up a plethora of musicians to lull you while you munch! Its not a load of hippy nonsense, its wholesome, warming and immediately filling - just like mum used to make.

For a real slice of Bristol head to Portland Square. This regal Georgian square is flanked by the…read moremotorway and Broadmead on one side and St. Pauls on the others. Add to this that the buildings are all full of offices and a saunter through Portland Square means your as likely to see a few prostitutes as well business men and shoppers. Whilst all of Bristol's parks over a respite from the stresses of the city, this one is particularly good if you've just traipsed around Cabot Circus or Broadmead and need a break. You will have to take a bridge over the three lane road, but this just mean you will appreciate the square all the more Last night I saw a fantastic fireworks display (it being bonfire night), when things were definitely not as quiet as usual. Most of the time though, Portland Square is quiet, peaceful, and elegant.

Hey, if you like fabulous artisan beer and you have a few bucks to spend. …read more. Go Moor Beer in Bristol, UK. Their tap room is the best I've been in. The brewer is from California and he's changing the way British folks look at beer What a wonderful treat!

About a year ago, during an uncharacteristically romantic walk along Redcliff Quay, me and my then…read moreboyfriend stumbled across the Exploration statue. Maybe it was because love was in the air or because we'd just been for a rather boozy lunch, but I was taken aback by the beauty of the 10ft sculpture. There were three artists involved in the production of the statue - James Blunt, Philippa Threlfall and Kennedy Collings which was commissioned in 1991. The rings on the top symbolises the seasons, whereas the main obelisk depicts mythical sea monsters, fishes and serpents. For me, it represents peace and calm in an otherwise chaotic city. I love a walk along the river regardless, but I always make the effort to pay a visit to Exploration once in a while. If you're paying a visit to Bristol and coming by train, make a detour to the statue on the way to the city centre and see "a celebration of Bristol's seafaring heritage".

To experience an amazing night of magic, storytelling, poetry and music this good there has to be…read morerules. The rules, I've discovered, are as follows: 1. Acoustic Night is held fortnightly in the back room at the delightful Halo on the Gloucester road. 2. There are 17 open mic slots, half for spoken word poetry (often like stand-up comedy) and half for live, live music. 3. Acoustic night is a safe place to experiment new songs or poems and the audience is there to cheer you on! 4. Starts dead on 8.15pm (register to perform at 7.45pm) 5. Its free as a bird, but donations are gratefully received. Previous 'guest' performers have included spoken-word meisters fresh from the festival circuit - Byron Vincent, Tim Clare, Nathan Filer, Rosy Carrick and Kate Tempest. What a cultured and memorable way to ease into the week! .

Run Bristol. It's…read morethat simple - just Run Bristol! I really enjoy running, and have especially enjoyed running in Bristol - for anyone who fancies their hand at a bit of light jogging but needs some motivation the Run Bristol is perfect. They offer the Sport Relief, followed by the Bristol 10k then the Bristol Half Marathon - so a really good way to work up to some quite serious distances! The events are always really fun and are a mix of all abilities, some people have no intention of going faster than a brisk walk and others hope to break the speed of light - which ever category you fall into... Run Bristol!

The trail bends and dips with the River Avon from Pill, North West Bristol, all the way to Bath -…read more23 miles in total. Just yesterday I joined the trail right by the Bedminster Asda and followed it to Pill and back, I passed many a dog walker, family bike outing and several quicker runners passed me! The surface is relatively flat but it does take dips and hills in places. I really recommend it is good running scenary! It was a shame to see a lot of the river bank covered with rubbish - mostly plastic bottles with the odd drowned bike - it needs a good clear up to restore it to its full potential.

I really don't know how to describe this other than as a wooden structure that seemed to appear in…read moremy local park overnight. Although I'm normally loathe to do this, the only course of action seems to be to copy and paste some info from the website then take it from there: "Acting as a shelter and meeting point, the structure is also open for free for park users, local residents, groups and organisations throughout its six months in the park." I think the idea is for locals to congregate under here for communal events, though it's not difficult to imagine that the only people doing that will be cidered up chavs (indeed, a small bit of it had been kicked off when I walked past). There's a notice board next to it which will inform of forthcoming events, which may be worth keeping an eye on as, as a structure alone, it's not particularly thrilling beyond a couple of minutes.