(53 Rua Saraiva de Carvalho, Campo de Ourique. Tel. 213 971 916) This cheap and cheerful restaurant won't win any prizes for décor, but the food is great and the service friendly. Opposite the Lisbon Players' Theatre.

  (4 Rua da Paz, São Bento. Tel. 213 901 963) This long-established Indian restaurant specialises in Goan cooking. People come from far and wide for Sebastião's prawn curry. Good wine list and friendly ambience, too.

  (5A-B Rua Manuel Bernardes, Praça dos Flores. Tel. 917 588 281) Fresh food and a constantly changing menu make this place one of the most interesting and imaginative in the area. Variations on a Portuguese theme and attentive service.

  (88 Rua Rodrigo da Fonseca. Tel. 213 811 400) Located in this landmark hotel, with great views over the city, this restaurant has a Mediterranean menu with a strong emphasis on fresh fish dishes and Portuguese specialities such as cataplana (fish stew).

  (Igreja da Graça. Tel. ) On a nice evening, this is the perfect place to begin your evening as the sun sets over the Tagus. Sip a cocktail with the city spread out before you.

  (39 Praça da Alegria. Tel. 213 467 369) Celebrating its 60th birthday this year, this is one of the oldest jazz clubs in Europe. A steamy dive, as such places should be, it has a varied programme of local and international jazz.

  (155-157 Rua de São Bento. Tel. 213 961 083) This is one of Lisbon's best-known African clubs with great rhythms, both live and recorded. Open from 11pm-4am.

If you're into antique jewellery, Isabel Lopes da Silva is the place. An exclusive collection of gems and jewels from the 18th century to the 1970s (67 Rua da Escola Politécnica).

Into second-hand stuff? Get to the flea market early—before 9am—and you may well strike gold on Tuesday and Saturday (Feira da Ladra, Campo de Santa Clara, Graça).

Principe Real is a fashionable area spreading out from the garden of the same name with its amazing cedar tree, the refuge of overheated citizens for centuries. Don't miss the Botanical Gardens and check out the many restaurants and designer shops that cluster around the charming Praca dos Flores.

If you want to catch Amy Winehouse, Bon Jovi or Alanis Morissette, the great Rock in Rio festival is on three stages in the Parque de Bela Vista from 30-31 May and 1, 5-6 June (rockinrio-lisboa.sapo.pt, Portuguese only).

 – The old summer capital where royals would escape the heat of summer, this small town is everything Lisbon isn't: verdant, cool and bucolic. There's lots to see: three palaces, gardens laid out by the eccentric William Beckford at Monserrate and the stylish Hotel Seteais, open for tea or drinks. Just 25 minutes away from Lisbon.

Amazingly, Portugal is the only European country where films are not dubbed but are shown in their original language. This applies to cinemas and all television in a foreign language. Why? No one knows, but there's certainly always been resistance to it when it's been tried.