A three- course meal will cost around Bfr2700 (pounds 45) without wine.NIGHTLIFEMost of Antwerp's nightlife is based around its bars and cafes, which close when the last customer leaves. If you fancy making a night of it there are plenty of different clubs to choose from, with a beer costing anywhere between Bfr60-120 (pounds 1-2). But if your tastes don't run to pubs and clubs, or the brothels of the red-light district, check the Cultural Bulletin for more highbrow art theatre and music events (see Information).De Muze (Korte Koepoorstraat 15) rates as one of the trendiest places in town, with a young jazz-oriented crowd.Swing Cafe (Suikerrui 13-15) is the place you're most likely to encounter some spontaneous jazz. Audience participation is welcomed but not obligatory.Pelgrom (Pelgrimstraat 15) is a cavernous candle-lit cellar, where customers sit at beer-hall benches and tables, selecting drinks from a large and tempting menu.De Kulminator Bar (Vleminckveld 32-34) stocks 350 speciality beers, which make it well worth the five-minute walk just south of the centre.Le Beau Zoo Le Bo Zo (Godefriduskaai 50; free entry) has an easygoing atmosphere, playing an eclectic mix of funk, big beats and mainstream.CURRENCYThe Belgian franc (Bfr) is around Bfr61 to pounds 1.

It even runs a number of guesthouses, including the Seaside Guest house, where I stayed: pounds 6 per night for a gigantic air- conditioned double room in a former colonial mansion. The fact that the Sri Aurobindo ashram is all about work does not stop people taking their holidays there. We are finding a new spirituality for the next millennium."To my eyes, an ashram was a place where people went to learn wisdom from a guru, a monastic retreat involving yoga, meditation, and maybe a touch of hippyism?"This ashram is about the virtues of work," came the stern reply. "The Mother taught us that everybody should seek enlightenment through work We all have to be productive. We are not hippies." Oops.As well as owning large swathes of Pondicherry, the ashram also employs half its citizens in cottage industries, producing goods ranging from perfumes to fabrics to paper. We all felt that to make working on the Newton easy, you would need the optional keyboard which adds another pounds 75 to the cost and is something else to carry around."It's fun to use but too big and heavy to carry around in your pocket," said Jen. "It's like a laptop's, the keys are full size which makes working easy."Martin was enthusiastic about the software on the 5, "The sketch program is like a standard drawing program, you can do freehand sketches and draw geometric shapes with the tools provided."The connection kit for linking to your PC is included with the 5, with an optional kit available for the 3 and a kit is available to connect to Macintoshes.If you need a bit more than the PalmPilot has to offer, the 3c is a good choice and good value for money.We all felt the 5 was worth the extra money and it was a close run thing between it and the PalmTop for the best high-end choice.

"The Sri Aurobindo ashram is independent of these old-fashioned concepts We do not think of nationality or religion. His book Antiques from the Garden (Garden Art Press, pounds 25) covers the whole range of collecting, from the rustic - summer houses or elaborate stone seats whose prices reach five figures - to the rusting: elegant trowels or plant labels worth only a few pounds."Some people think of garden tools as mundane objects," he said as he showed me round his collection "But they're fascinating There are lots of different approaches to collecting them. I know people who just go for watering cans: they love the different shapes of their handles and spouts."Then there are some who may be more interested in the agricultural type of antiques. Other people collect old lawn mowers and have their own museums and rallies."Billingshurst is the sole branch of Sotheby's to hold regular sales of garden items There are two a year, in May and September. Only the one in May includes collectable tools, generally in the upper range of the market. Alternative sources for collectors are house sales, antique and bric-a-brac shops, even car-boot sales.

Londoners can browse in the shops that line Columbia Road in the East End, site of the regular Sunday morning plant market They often have old watering cans and other tools. The Chelsea Gardener in Sydney Street, off the King's Road in west London, stocks cans.One of the most unusual cans in Alistair Morris's book comes from his own collection. Small but ornate, possibly Austrian and for indoor use, it is made of tinned copper with an imitation horn handle. He paid pounds 80 for it some years ago but it would fetch substantially more today.The earliest watering cans, made of pottery, had no spouts. Instead, small holes were pierced in the bottom and the gardener controlled the flow by covering the filler hole at the top with his thumb.

A few have survived from the 16th century and fetch up to pounds 1,000 at auction today. By the 17th century the shape had developed to something more familiar. Squat glazed earthenware pots had a rose attached to the front on a short spout. Excavations at Bamber Castle in Sussex suggest that many were made there.