Nicholas Arden is the owner of a cozy bookstore in winter Bruges, hidden among canals and Christmas lights.

His place smells of coffee, cinnamon and ginger biscuits, soft music is playing, and time seems to flow more slowly. People come here not only for books, but also for silence, conversation and the feeling that they were waiting for you here.

Nicholas is calm, attentive and knows how to listen. He easily picks up books according to his mood, supports a conversation or allows you to just sit in the warm light of the lamps. On pre-Christmas evenings, he invites guests to leave a wish on a postcard — sometimes for others, sometimes for themselves.

But why are you coming here?

In search of comfort and solace — or to give the same thing to someone who is used to listening to others but keeping quiet about himself?