6 must-sees in Maastricht according to local Chazia

Chazia's heart beats faster not only for her native France, but also for England. She loves London and high tea. In Maastricht, she prefers to enjoy an extensive English high tea with her daughter at Piece of Cake. 'It's fancy here, but not pretentious and not too posh. It's festive, with chandeliers, brocante chairs and cakes.' You can also enjoy sitting in the garden on sunny days. The complete high tea with as many different delicacies as possible is her favourite. 'And the in-house teas are so delicious, especially the flavour Jardin des Merveilles.'

For a touch of Paris, Chazia goes to Harry's, a brasserie in Wyck that serves breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. 'It's urban chic there, really Maastricht. It's sophisticated without being posh. With a beautiful wooden floor, a lovely house smell and birdsong in the toilets. 'Here I imagine myself in Paris,' says Chazia. 'The staff are so sweet' and serve photogenic dishes prepared with fresh seasonal produce. As many ingredients as possible come from the restaurant's own 2000m2 vegetable garden in the beautiful Jekerdal on the southern edge of Maastricht. With new dishes on the menu every week, you never have to order the same thing twice.

Chazia prefers to dine at Witloof restaurant, which she says is located in one of the city's most romantic streets. 'Witloof is run by two nice young people. It is a place with soul and a nice atmosphere," Chazia says enthusiastically. The restaurant, which serves only typical Belgian dishes, won the Dutch Design Award and other prizes and scored in the New York Times' top 15 of 'the 100 trendiest restaurant concepts in the world'. All this fame has not made them walk beside their shoes, because, according to Chazia, the place is still "just pure. Under the Maastricht roof, in-house gins are distilled and unique beers are poured. 'The food is real comfort food and here I feel like a child staying with grandma. My favourite is witloof with fries'.

An oddball in this list: a donkey. A statue of a donkey at the Ezelmarkt in the Jekerk Quarter. Donkeys were never really sold here and possibly the name comes from 'eselen', the knocking of sheets. The sculpture has been here since 1976. Chazia says of it: 'there is something very sweet about the donkey, with the water behind it and the buildings around it. It is as if time stood still here and you step into another time. On Maastricht's footbridge, people often take selfies, but this donkey really is another hidden gem.'