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.

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.

Along Bristol's harbourside you shall find this link to Bristol's past. Trundling up and down the…read morerailway lines ingrained into the ground a steam train runs, pulling along cart loads of tourists. It's quite an evocative experience - I can remember well the smell of the fire burning and the piercing whistle just before the train juddered into life. Something I did whenever the sun came out when I was young, this is a wonderful family day out. Get a kid to buy themselves a ticket, help them up into the carriage (things have been kept pretty authentic here, so you might have to clamber around a bit, and they should have a whale of a time. The train billows huge amounts of steam,which means you can see from all over the city when it's running. More often in the summer months, make sure you take the opportunity to go for a ride when you can.

Okay so having been in Bristol for a good few years, I had never thought to check out these train…read morerides until a couple of family members came up and wanted something touristy and different to do - and it was actually pretty good fun! We wanted to check out the SS Great Britain and took an old fashioned steam train along to it, at just around £2 each. This is the kind of thing worth doing once in terms of exploring Bristol, but probably not something you'd do again - purely because once you've done it you've done it, and there's not a whole lot more you can get from the experience! It's very touristy but if you're a resident and have never done it then it could also be a bit of fun. One thing i would add is to make sure you check out when the trains are running - they tend to be every other weekend, and occassionaly run on Mondays too!

One weekend every summer the harbourside transforms to celebrate all things furry, spiky and scaly…read morewith the Bristol Festival of Nature. With input from the formidable BBC Natural History Unit, which is based in Whiteladies Road, that makes it something extra special. You can catch exclusive showings of BBC documentaries, talks from photographers and explorers and debates about environmental issues with famous faces. Best of all, it is all free, you just have to book a place. All round the @Bristol site you will find stalls and mini-events with local and national charities and businesses. Although this really peaked a few years ago, the last couple of years have been a little lower key, this still has some great events and I look forward to it every year. The next one is 5th and 6th of June 2010.

If you want a festival which is a bit rough around the edges but packed full of passion you'll love…read moreThe Bristol Festival. It's only been going for a couple of years, so it's still trying to find its feet a little bit, but it's got a lot going for it. There's live music, a cabaret tent, face painting, market stalls, a drum workshop and charcoal drawing to be done. It isn't quite as slick as other festivals: there's a long wait between bands on the Mr Wolf's music stage and there's not a great deal of choice of food and drinks. But there's loads to take part in, all covered by the ticket price, a fantastic party atmosphere and an interesting mix of people. Among the many highlights, my favourite thing at the Bristol Festival was learning how to graffiti. I loved the paint dripping down my arm, breathing in the toxins while recklessly defacing a wall (all very controlled and legal, you understand!) I can't wait for the next festival, as I'm sure it's going to get bigger and better every year. If you want to help out or perform check out the website and get stuck in!

Despite it's own independent stance, Bristol Festival is undoubtedly a reaction to the unfortunate…read morelost of the annual Ashton Court Festival a few years go. Taking place each September around the waterfront, Lloyds Amphitheatre and Queens Square, Bristol comes alive with food, music and plenty of cider. Spread over two days, the evening portion of events sees several clubs come together for Rave on Avon - a wrist band will get you in to places like Blue Mountain, Lakota and Mr Wolfs. Speaking of wristbands, although there are stalls and stages around Bristol, the main stages require a wristband, that can either be bought for one day, both days or both nights. It's a shame that this festival usually falls around the same weekend that first year uni students move into halls as it means they miss out on the opportunity to experience what is fast becoming a classic Bristol event. The festival is all about volunteering and the organisers hold regular consultations and fundraiser club nights throughout the year so that the festival can go ahead.

Lloyds Head Office in Bristol has a massive outdoor bit behind them, that has been quite the cult…read morephenomenon for skaters. On any clear, warmish day, there will be a hoard of them out here skating their hearts away. It's on most skater's top skate spot lists in Bristol, and also is well known over the globe. The fact that Lloyds seem to somewhat recognise this, by not putting metal grooves in the steps around that would ruin it as a skate spot, is pretty cool of them. It is right on the water's edge, where you get a great view of the river and the boats that pass through it all day. In the summer, music festivals are held here back to back, and this area generally is just an amazing spot for these big outdoor events. The rest of the time, it is a perfect place to soak up the sun and enjoy a take-away lunch, watching the skaters do their tricks. Quite perfect.

The Bristol Eco Veggie Fayre is the largest of its kind in Europe. Each year they expand in ever…read morediversifying directions, making it a centrally located, multi-faceted event that has something for everyone, especially families. It's essentially an inner city festival, that spans a weekend. These days The Bristol Eco Veggie Fayre concentrates a lot of its efforts in keeping people entertained as well as educated and informed of the new developments in all things green and edible. The entrance fee is justified for the bands alone, especially considering that 3 Daft Monkeys are putting in an appearance this year. It also features an eco cinema and eco art exhibition this year too. Always well attended, this event is a lot of fun, always buzzing, always refreshing. With more stalls this year than ever before, there will be plenty of delicious food to sample and innovative gadgets and devices to see. Let's hope the weather will be kind to them again this year.

Never a dull moment in Bristol, particularly in the summer months, there seems to be almost…read moresomething going on every weekend. This year, on 29th-30th May is the Bristol Eco Veggie Fayre, which as the name suggests is geared towards all things green. You will be hard pushed to find much meat around, but you will find over 140 stalls with some tasty vegeterian options. There are lots of things going on; cookery classes, veggie awards, live music, presentations... all of which are expected to be seen by around 8000 people over the weekend! A great day out for all the family, here's hoping the weather will be nice. If you've been wanting to become a bit more eco friendly then this is the perfect place to pick up some hints and tips about what you can practically do to make a difference.

I only heard about this at the very last minute on Saturday, and I was glad I did. I was in the pub…read morewhen I received a text from a mate saying there was a free climate change gig (anti - obviously!) taking place in an hour's time in Millennium Square. I made my way down and, considering it was free, they'd assembled a great line-up of local talent. Kid Carpet was the highlight, climaxing with his Van Halen meets Orbital-esque re-squiggling of 'Jump'; The Red Hot Frilly Kickers led an energetic can can to Bad Manners; and Babyhead finished it all off with some of their trademark ska funk. A great event, with BYO booze, that supported a truly worthwhile cause, while apparently confusing the hell out of the chavs making their way to the waterfront. What's not to like?