Maxine Clayman is a travel writer and editor of the blog My Hidden Gems. In the next in our World In London series she meets Croatian born Ana-Maria Volaric who explains why it’s her mission to bring a taste of Croatia to London.

“Last year my husband Chris and I decided to set up D’Issa, a company selling exclusively Croatian produce.

“I’ve lived in London now for 24 years and I’m married to a North Londoner. I’m originally from Zagreb and I still feel incredibly connected to my roots. I wanted to draw on my knowledge and passion for Croatian culture and introduce Londoners and visitors to the capital to Croatian food.

“Currently we’re the only Croatian retailer in the UK. We have a stall in Borough Market and we also sell to Fortnum & Mason and a couple of specialist delis in London. Our merchandise is quite high end, which may surprise a lot of people, as Croatia isn’t a country that’s necessarily associated with quality cuisine.

“There are only around 2,000 Croats living in London so our food is still relatively new to people. My aim is to educate Londoners about one of the best-kept gastronomic secrets Europe has to offer. For instance, it might come as a surprise to discover that some of the finest truffles in the world can be found in Istria, Croatia.

“Our fig products are proving incredibly popular with Londoners. Smokvenjak is a traditional Croatian fig cake made from dried figs, almonds, lemon juice, raisins, rosemary and sage. It’s packed with natural energy, so it’s good for athletes, and you can use it as a base for canapés, with cheese or ham.

“Pumpkin seed oil is another unique item that we stock. It’s got a wonderfully nutty flavour and is great for roasting and marinating meats. But my top tip is to drizzle it over vanilla ice-cream. Delicious.”

Visit D’Issa at Borough Market on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays in the Jubilee Market area. www.dissa.co.uk

Searching for Congolese culture for our World in London challenge, we came across rising Congolese-Belgian star Baloji.

Born in the Democratic Republic of Congo and raised in Belgium, Baloji combines rap and hip-hop with Congolese rhumba to create a unique sound.

You can catch him in London on 23 May, when he’ll perform his first London headline show at Village Underground.

Where else can you experience a taste of Congolese culture in London? Let us know in the comments below.

Journalist Marina Soteriou is a long-term London resident. Writing as part of our World in London series, Marina adds her experiences of Cypriot culture in the capital.

Every Thursday evening at a church hall in Waterloo, a group meet to perform dances which have been danced for centuries. They are the Philhellenes Dancing Group.

I joined nearly three years ago as I wanted to feel closer to my family on the other side of Europe, in Cyprus. The only thing I can remember from my dancing class at primary school in Nicosia was somebody finding a centipede in their shoe, but last October I performed seven Pontic dances at the annual Dance Around the World Festival at Cecil Sharp House in Regents Park.

The group has been running for 21 years, and has performed in Cyprus, Athens, Lesvos and Andros. In London, they’ve danced at the Royal Festival Hall, the Barbican and the British Museum.

Cypriots love a debate and since the so-called “Cyprus problem” has remained unsolved since 1974 – as a result of a Turkish invasion which followed a coup by the junta ruling Greece at the time – we are never short of a topic. Following the division, thousands of Cypriots came to live in London, when the Greek Cypriots fled to safety in the south and the Turkish Cypriots went north.

My grandfather, Andreas Soteriou, was from the beautiful village of Agios Epiktitos in the Kyrenia district in the North, perched high with breathtaking views of the coast. But being born in 1982, these lands were not known to me. The Cyprus I knew stopped abruptly where the rusty barbed wire and UN soldier was. The bullet holes in the Nicosia church we went to every Sunday morning were testament to the violence which was followed by decades of stalemate.

It was not until 2003 when the border crossings opened that the link with my ancestors could be restored and I could visit the house where my grandfather was raised, see his father’s grave and share gifts and stories with the Turkish Cypriot neighbours.

There is something restorative in folk dancing, knowing these intricate steps, double steps and jumps have been replayed for thousands of years and that now is just another dot on the timeline. Although we do not know what the future holds for Cyprus, we know these dances will survive.

Whenever I go back to Nicosia, one of the first things I like to do is go to Ledra Street in the city centre and buy a Papaphilippou ice cream and do as the locals do and promenade.

On one such visit, the first thing I saw was a group of Pontics in traditional costume performing their dances in the public square, the very same dances I have performed with my Bulgarian, Greek, English and Cypriot friends in the church hall in Waterloo on a rainy Thursday night.

For another slice of Cyprus, you can choose one of the many Cypriot restaurants all over London, but I prefer the hive of activity at the Yasar Halim Bakery in Haringey. The bakery was opened by a Turkish Cypriot in 1981 and has everything you can imagine, from the sweet Tahini tachinopites, to the Cypriot doughnuts dipped in syrup, “loukoumades”, which are eaten with the semolina-filled shiamishi at fairs.

To join the class or attend a Greek folk dancing workshop visit www.philhellenes.com or email greekdancing@philhellenes.com. The next Dance Around the World folk dancing festival, which has performances and workshops, takes place on 20 and 21 October. Visit www.datw.org.uk to find out more.

Do you know any other instances where you can sample Cypriot culture in London? Let us know in the comments below.

One of the smallest nations competing in London 2012, The Cook Islands in the South Pacific is named after British Royal Navy Captain and East London resident James Cook.

Originally settled in the 13th century by migrants from what is now French Polynesia and Samoa, the islands were surveyed and charted by Captain Cook in 1773 and 1777.

As well as The Cook Islands (known as the Hervey Islands until the 1820s), James Cook also charted New Zealand, Hawaii and the eastern coast of Australia.

Cook’s ship The Resolution encountered The Cook Islands archipelago in 1773 while searching for the mysterious “Terra Australis”. On his return to London, Cook was promoted to the rank of captain and offered honorary retirement from the Royal Navy as an officer in the Greenwich Hospital, sited at the Old Royal Naval College.

However, he returned to The Resolution on his third and final voyage and revisited The Cook Islands in 1777. He was murdered two years later in The Sandwich Islands, now Hawaii.

Cook has a firm place in the history of many Pacific nations, and his navigational skill and legendary voyages are marked in museums and statues across the region.

In addition to The Cook Islands, his name has been given to places in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Kiribati and most recently a crater on the moon.

In London, artefacts from Cook’s voyages can be found at the Royal Museums Greenwich, including a replica of the famous H4 Marine Chronometer and there’s a statue of Cook in the grounds of the National Maritime Museum.

You can also see blue commorative plaques at Cook’s former London homes at Shadwell (340 Highway marks the site of Cook’s house at 126 Upper Shadwell) and Mile End (89 Mile End Road marks the site of Cook’s house at 7 Assembly Row).

Do you know of any other London connections with The Cook Islands? Let us know using the comments section below.

The London 2012 football kits for 10 Puma-partnered African countries were unveiled at the Design Museum earlier this year. It was the perfect opportunity for us to look at the exhibition for our World in London blog project. Cameroonian artist Barthelemy Toguo was chosen to design his country’s kit, which features a lion’s head.

“This imposing animal is emblematic of Africa, simultaneously expressing forcefulness and serenity,” said Toguo. “It also suggests an ability to overcome any adversary, which is relevant to the nature of a sporting challenge.”

Cameroon’s men’s football team won the country’s first Gold medal at the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000, when they beat Spain in a penalty shootout. This year, the men’s team have been knocked out of the competition, while the women’s team have qualified for the 2012 Games.

You can buy tickets for the Olympic Football Tournaments at www.tickets.london2012.com

Do you know anywhere else you can see Cameroonian culture in London? Let us know in the comments below.

We spoke to Cubana founder and Managing Director Phillip Oppenheim about opening Cubana 12 years ago, scouring Cuba for pre-revolution recipes and serving the first mojitos in London:

Choosing Cuban Cuisine

I was always fascinated by food and drink and fortunate to have travelled widely. I was a journalist in the early part of my career but I always wanted to do a restaurant. I thought of sushi in London or a greasy spoon in Paris. I wanted to do something different, not a theme bar. By the time we got round to it, sushi had already been done in London.

My then-girlfriend had studied Cuba at university. Although I had travelled a lot, I wasn’t very familiar with Latin America so we went there. We discovered cocktail culture (we served the first mojitos in London), cigars and salsa but the food had gone into decline after the Communist revolution.

To research the food, we found old pre-revolutionary cook books in a book market in Havana and we also found old plantation cooks in the countryside who gave us recipes. We also got some from Cuban-Americans in Miami. We found the mojito recipe from a barman in an illegal private bar in Havana – at that time no-one did mojitos and we brought them to the UK.

Cuban Food at Cubana

Cuban food is obviously Latin American but Mexican is spicier. Cuban food is based on very good ingredients so they don’t need to use too much spice. It’s an eclectic cuisine with North African and Spanish influences.

Our food is always made from fresh ingredients – we never use anything pre-prepared. Everything is free-range – we’ve even received an RSPCA award. Our steaks are from a top quality supplier. We use fresh fruit to make our cocktails – apart from cranberry juice!

We have two signature dishes: Pollo Criollo, that’s free-range chicken marinated in orange juice served with fried plantain and black bean rice. And Ropa Vieja which means “old clothes”. It’s a gloopy, shredded beef stew that takes a day to cook – it’s real comfort food. We sell a lot of it at Glastonbury festival.

Bringing Cuba To London

There aren’t vast numbers of Cubans in London but we get a steady flow in Cubana. The guys from the Embassy often come in and we have Cuban bands that play here. We have lots of Spanish and South American staff.

We do Cuban music and street food as part of Waterloo Carnival and Waterloo Quarter – there are music and street food events throughout July. We also have a Cubana event at Glastonbury festival.

Why Visit Cubana?

Fresh food, great cocktails, reasonable prices.

Cubana, 48 Lower Marsh, SE1 7RG

Where else can you enjoy Cuban culture in London? Tell us in the comments below.

Costa Rica’s well-known for its coffee, and you can taste some of the best right here in London.

We wanted to find out more for our World in London series, so we tracked down coffee expert Andrew Tolley of Taylor St Baristas, who was a judge at this week’s UK Barista Championship.

“It’s more complex than wine in terms of the flavours you can pick out of coffee,” he told us. “You can travel the world in a cup.”

Tell us about your Costa Rican coffees

“The high quality Costa Rican coffees have a nice Demerara sugar sweetness up front with a tangy green apple and balanced finish. Santa Lucia has some really nice taste notes. We choose coffee from some of England’s best roasters, Union Hand-Roasted Coffee, Square Mile, Has Bean and Peter Jones Gourmet Coffee.”

How long have you been in business?

“Five years. We started in Richmond in a little coffee concession inside a food store, Source Food.”

How did you become a barista?

“I’ve been making coffee since I was about 18. I worked my way through uni and got more and more heavily involved.”

Do you run coffee courses?

“We do home barista courses where we teach people how to taste coffee and prepare coffee in different methods – how to make a flat white or a latte. It’s based around tasting all the different flavours in coffee and how to explore them at home. They keep on selling out.”

What makes a great coffee?

“It has to be within about 20 days of roast – so fresh. Coffee that’s got clean, distinctive flavours and that suits your mood for the time of day. It’s hard to describe, because there are so many different flavours in coffee.”

What’s your advice for budding coffee connoisseurs?

“Go into a café and talk to the barista and try different things.”

Please share any other ways you can get a taste of Costa Rica without leaving London in the comments below

Colombiage is a London festival that celebrates contemporary Colombian art. 2011 will be its 5th year, and there are plans to make it bigger and better than ever. We spoke to Landa Acevedo-Scott, Founder & Artistic Director of Colombiage about the project.

“The first Colombiage was a one-day festival. It was on a Saturday – I remember it very clearly! It was a real experiment. We did it to see how people would respond. Three strands: music, literature and cinema. There were four events; it started at 2pm, with a literary event with Juan Gabriel Vasques, the writer. We held all the events at the Riverside Studios in Hammersmith, keeping it all under one roof.

“It was packed! There were a lot of Colombian people, of course, but also British people, which was great, because that is what we were hoping to attract. To introduce a different side of Colombian culture to lots of people has always been the hope of Colombiage.

“My favourite moment was working with Manu Chao last year. We had a big benefit concert last October at The Coronet. It was fantastic to work with such a high-profile figure, and one that was so lovely! He brought a lot of people together.

“For 2011, Colombiage will no longer be a one-day festival. We’re quite an established brand now; we want to do things throughout the year, so people can have a chance to come throughout the year.

“This year we will still focus on cinema, literature, music, and we’re branching out into theatre and the visual arts. We’ll use different venues too. There’ll still be things at the Riverside, but also at Rich Mix and at Southbank, and Sabor in Islington (for the literary evenings).

“The team behind Colombiage are mostly Colombians who’ve been working and living here for a long time. But it’s not exclusive! There are Americans, French and English on the team. That way we have interests included from all over the world. They’re people who have extensive experience in their specialised areas.” Landa mentions that Colombiage is currently recruiting, and asks anyone who’s interested in helping out to get in touch via the website.

Landa believes that there are two things that make Colombiage stand out. “Firstly, it’s never been done before. Lots of the Colombian events that come to the UK are sporadic and traditional. This is more about the contemporary: the latest things, the latest releases. For example, we ran the first showcase of experimental Colombian cinema last year.

“Second, there’s the education strand. With any country, people jump to conclusions, and develop perceptions. Our education programme aims to look at the problems in context; looking at Colombia’s many contradictions through its culture.” 

Here’s a video trailer for Colombiage 2009, which gives a great taste of what to expect from Colombiage. Visit www.colombiage.com for more information, including more videos.

Where else can you find Colombian art, music and food in London? Let us know in the comments below.

Chilean blogger Maria Jose Ovalle, writer of mummysbusyworld.blogspot.com (@verybusymama on twitter) tells us about her hidden reminders of Chile in London for our World in London project

Being homesick is a feeling like no other. A strange feeling of unpleasantness comes over you. Living away from the sights, smells, and noises you are accustomed to leaves you feeling like you don’t belong.

I have been an expat for a big part of my life, yet I always feel a pull to Chile, the long skinny country in the last corner of the earth. I have been living in London for five years with my American husband and our son, and despite Chile not having a large community here in the UK, I find London is scattered with little bits of Chile among the busy streets, even if it’s only me who sees the similiarities.

Those hidden reminders of Chile in every corner of the city always bring a smile to my face. Getting on the Tube one day I was transported back to riding the subway in Santiago all those years ago. Seeing children walking to school in their matching uniforms reminds me of being rushed off to school by my mother and adjusting my tie before heading out the door. Sitting down to have a cup of tea and cake on a cold winter day reminds me of being in my grandmother’s house and the warmth of the kitchen after baking all afternoon. On a recent family walk in leafy Richmond, I came across a small statue in honour of our founding father Bernardo O’Higgins. I always knew it was there, but not planning to come across it brightened up my day.

Chile has been in the news quite a bit lately, with the devastating earthquake in February, our long-awaited appearance at the World Cup in South Africa and most recently with the rescue of the miners. These events really made me realise just how much I miss my home, my people, my foods (even if I am thousands of miles away) and helps refuel my national pride even more.

I have a pretty good group of Chilean friends here and we tend to have dinners and barbeques. Nothing like a barbeque among friends and familiar accents. When my husband and I are craving a little something special like Chilean “empanadas”, we head over to El Vergel. You won’t find any other Chilean restaurants in London, but this small, quaint café does the trick. Just the smell of fresh baked bread brings tears to my eyes. The restaurant serves South American cuisine, but it is Chilean through and through.

I write about life as a new parent, being an expat and bringing up my son bilingually on my blog Mummy’s Busy World. I may not be in Chile, but London never fails to deliver a little piece of home to me in its own special way.

Do you know any more hidden Chilean gems in London? Let us know in the comments below.

As our World in London series continues, we come to our friends in Canada. Writer and comedian Ryan Millar tells us the best place for Canadians to get their caffeine and sugar fix in London:

When I first rode by 56 Haymarket, SW1, I did a double-take. Across four busy lanes of traffic I glimpsed a frosted Tim Hortons logo. I couldn’t resist stopping. There are more than 50 Tim Hortons in London, Ontario, but I wasn’t expecting any in London, England? I had to get a taste.

Doughnuts and coffee have a peculiar magnetism on the Canuck. Almost any journey made by a Canadian – be it a quick pick-up from hockey practice, a family road trip to Head-Smashed-in-Buffalo-Jump, or – evidently – a cycle through central London to the Royal Academy of Arts, can be waylaid by Tim’s coffee and doughnuts.

The coffee is earthy and spicy with notes of nostalgia. And the panoply of baked goods is a feast of fruit and sugary deliciousness, perfectly formed to feed a nation. How else to explain that Tim Hortons is, by some accounts, a bigger fast-food retailer in Canada than McDonalds, and a bigger coffee chain than Starbucks?

And it’s now available right in the centre of the swirling metropolis of London, England – just a two minute walk from Leicester Square and half that to Piccadilly Circus. For any Canadian feeling far from home, the comfort of comfort food can be sweet in both the “double sugar” and metaphorical senses.

However, the Haymarket Tim Hortons isn’t a full-blown outlet. No such luck. It is just a small wall display in the Spar supermarket. The doughnut selection isn’t huge (What? No crullers?) and the coffee comes from a self-serve machine on the counter.

But there’s no mistaking it – this is a Tim Hortons coffee and doughnut. And that’s enough for me.

Check out Ryan’s brilliant blog www.roadstorome.blogspot.com for more musings on life in London.

And let us know where else in London you can get an authentic Canadian in the comments below…