Notes from a small flat in Lisbon
Seven years, forty-one square metres and one balcony chair: what living small in Graça has quietly taught me.
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Notes from a small flat in Lisbon
Seven years, forty-one square metres and one balcony chair: what living small in Graça has quietly taught me.
Twelve books that stayed with me this year
A dozen books I finished this year and keep thinking about, from Pessoa on a tram to Ishiguro on a rainy Sunday.
Film
Lisbon, with Rick Steves
A gentle half-hour tour of Lisbon’s lanes, viewpoints, trams and fado from Rick Steves’ Europe.
The things I no longer buy
An honest list of the things I quietly stopped buying after moving into a small flat, and the few I still refuse to give up.
A slow weekend in Porto
Three hours north on the train, a francesinha I am still digesting, and the Douro turning copper at dusk.
Project
Lisbon on Foot
A free, hand-drawn walking guide to seven Lisbon neighbourhoods, reprinted every spring and autumn.
Golden hour on the 28 tram
Riding the old yellow tram through Lisbon in the last hour of light, with one small camera and the window pushed open.
Reading in two languages
How I learned to read Portuguese one children’s book at a time, with a patient neighbour and a very stubborn Saramago.
Film
Porto in three minutes
Rick Steves’ Europe squeezes Porto’s bridges, river and port lodges into one lovely three-minute postcard.
My grandmother’s lemon cake, written down at last
The lemon loaf my grandmother made from memory every Sunday in Manchester, finally measured, tested and written down.
The year I stopped planning trips
How I swapped colour-coded itineraries for one booked night and a lot more luck.
On keeping a five-line diary
Five lines a night, no more: the smallest habit I have kept, and the one I would miss most.
Project
The Sunday Letter
A weekly newsletter since 2020 — one story, one recipe, one thing worth reading — sent free to about 6,000 readers.
Learning to see with one lens
A year with a single fixed 23mm lens, and how it made me walk closer and look longer.
Film
How to make pastéis de nata
Cupcake Jemma bakes Lisbon’s famous custard tarts at home, scorched tops and flaky spirals included.
Sunday Letter: figs, rain and a borrowed bicycle
A wet ride to a fig tree in Benfica, roasted figs on toast, and a book I keep on the balcony chair.
Everything I cooked in a week of rain
Seven days of grey skies, one small kitchen and a diary of every meal that kept me cheerful.
Five days in the Azores, mostly in fog
I went to São Miguel for the views and saw mostly cloud, hot springs and the best stew of my life.
Sunday Letter: the first cold morning
Autumn finally reaches Graça, a pot of caldo verde for the first chilly evening, and a book about resting.
Film
Caldo verde in thirty minutes
A brisk two-minute film from Serious Eats on Portugal’s potato, kale and chouriço soup.
Project
The Stairwell Book Swap
A single shelf on our second-floor landing that slowly became the whole building’s library.
Film
Bookstores, and reading more
Max Joseph’s funny, thoughtful video essay on bookshops and finding your way back to reading.
Project
Small Kitchen Suppers
A monthly supper for eight neighbours, cooked in a kitchen built for exactly one person.
Film
A beginner’s guide to 35mm film
Teo Crawford’s friendly, clear introduction to shooting 35mm film, from loading a roll to reading the light.
Film
Street photography tips from the pros
Pat Kay gathers practical street photography lessons on distance, patience and finding the light.
Project
One Roll a Month
Twelve rolls of film over one year — one a month, one city, no reshoots and no peeking.
Film
Fourteen things to do on São Miguel
Before You Go’s bright, well-organised guide to lakes, hot springs and tea fields on São Miguel in the Azores.