A city within a city. Salford is well worth exploring, if only for the great ale pubs and architectural delights off Chapel Street (a three-minute walk from Deansgate). Salford Quays is just the gentrified (read: largely dull) part of a very characterful city.

Chapel Street and elsewhere, Salford

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Most people know how rapidly Manchester has been transforming over the last decade. But nowhere can it be seen more in real time than from Deansgate. If you stand at the Spinningfield stop for the free buses 2 & 3 (right by RBS bulding and the newer of the Wagamama restaurants) and look towards either end of the long street, you will see how it has changed and still changing. Also with the restored exterior of the John Ryland library, the old architecture is ever present with the new. Look behind you from the bus stop (away from Deansgate) and you will see the new business/law district coming up with modern architecture. It's very exciting as a resident but even more interesting for visitors.

Spinningfield stop for the free buses 2 & 3 on Deansgate by RBS building.

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Manchester Central Library is not only architecturally impressive with its neoclassical style (shaped like a pantheon), it also houses a huge collection of publications on various media.

The shape of the building is circular so, when you are on one of the upper floors and you walk along, before you know it, you find yourself where you started without realising you're going round in a circle.

The building also houses the Library Theatre which regularly hosts high profile productions.

St Peter Square (tram stops there too) next to the town hall. www.manchester.gov.uk/libraries/central/index.htm

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This imposing building on the edge of the Salford Quays is made up of huge shards designed to represent a globe fragmented by war. Architect Daniel Libeskind, who also created the Jewish museum in Berlin, knows how to make an impact with his stark aluminium design and dramatic angular lines.

Inside, exhibitions centre around a timeline and feature traditional artifacts alongside interactive material, with giant screens and surround sound films bringing the harsh realities of war to life. There's a good section on the role of women at war, but perhaps, most harrowing is the collection of letters sent home from soldiers on the front line.

Climb or take the lift to the top of the air shard which shoots up from the main building for an impressive view of Manchester's cityscape and beyond.

Free admission
Open 10-6
Trafford Wharf Road, Trafford Park, Manchester M17 1TZ
www.northiwm.org.uk

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Breathtakingly brilliant photographer showcasing Manchester in its seldom noticed technicolour glory. When the rain falls hard in the humdrum town centre, his pictures remind you of how beautiful the city can be.

www.neilroland.co.uk

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It's an easygoing exploration of the architectural sights of Manchester city centre. Will also take you past some very nice bars, restaurants and shops.

Be spontaneous if you can and pick a sunny day, start at about 11am. Manchester doesn't get much more rain than most of the Southern English cities (and certainly less than Wales, Scotland and South West England) so there should be plenty of opportunities!

Start at Sackville Street and explore that area first. There are some magnificent buildings and if you are new to the city you will find yourself confused - it often reminds me of continental European cities (particularly northern Europe) with its mix of rich Victorian and gothic styles. Walk through Canal Street (Gay Village) as well, not far from Sackville Street and make your way towards Oxford Road.

Take a look at the magnificent Palace Hotel and have a drink at the Cornerhouse bar (on the first floor) which also gives a good view of the surrounding hustle and bustle. Then head towards the Central Library (the round pantheon-like building next to the Town Hall) and have a good look at the surroundings. You will be stunned by the variety of styles and ages of the architecture. Explore the various side streets around there and the Town Hall.

Then head to Cross Street and walk down towards Victoria Station from the top of Cross Street (where it crosses Princess Street/John Dalton Street). You will go past the various shops and bars. But when you first get to Cross Street, have a coffee at Caffe Nero near the start: to me it feels like Milan in Manchester!

Once you get to the end of Cross Street you are at the heart of the city centre main shops: Selfridges, Harvey Nichols, all that is in that area. Have a look at Urbis and Victoria Station, which you can spot from the area behind Selfridges (it has a big screen across a shopping centre called the Triangle). If you are hungry by then, try a late lunch at Wagamama (outside the Printworks, across the road from Urbis). From there walk past Harvey Nichols which is by the Manchester Cathedral and head towards St Anne's Square to take in the continuing varied architecture. You have a medieval looking church (St Anne's I think) in the middle of a Victorian architecture shopping centre.

Just before the church is the Royal Exchange Theatre in the middle of the square to the left. Go in and have a look. When you are inside the main building and look up at the very tall ceiling, you will be stunned! I won't spoil the surprise though. Anyway, go up to King Street past the Church, explore the boutiques and then take a right and head to Deansgate (a few yards’ walk) and then turn left and head towards the new Beetham Tower skyscraper.

Once you get there, there is a nice restaurant called Dimitri's that does Spanish and Greek Food. If it's summer sit outside at the back. It's lovely. And then finally finish your architectural walking tour by transporting yourself thousands of years back to Roman times at the Roman ruins and remains of the old wall just off Liverpool Road (which is where the Museum of Science and Industry is). From Deansgate, if you are tired of walking, you can get the number 2 free bus that takes you back to just outside the Cornerhouse - not far from where you started at 11 am!

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A high-gabled, utterly original masterpiece on the delightfully named Daisy Bank Road, just south of the city centre. Built in 1903 to designs by Manchester architect Edgar Wood and raved over by Nikolaus Pevsner. Bit of arts and crafts movement, hint of art nouveau, lots of anticipation of German expressionism.

Daisy Bank Road

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Manchester's biggest surprise: the interior of the Royal Exchange Theatre in St Ann’s Square. Don’t look it up or read about it. Just go.

St Ann's Square; Tel: 0161 833 9833; www.royalexchange.co.uk

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Walk with eyes raised to take in the Victorian confidence of the buildings of the world’s first industrial city. Italian Renaissance palaces, Dutch gables, Greek temples, Gothic pinnacles – they’re all here. End up open-mouthed in Alfred Waterhouse’s town hall in Albert Square.

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