Weekend in Truro

I had a legitimate reason for hopping off the island over the weekend as it was time for my annual eye check (2 hours well spent here). Sasha and I made up for lost time however with a sprint to the finish line in what was another marathon shopping spree for me. The ladies in the Truro charity shops welcome me like a local celeb as they know I'll be spending more than 30p on a tea towel which does make Sasha laugh. She has been known to stand behind me at the desk explaining to waiting customers about island living, limited retail opportunities, and my infrequent visits culminating in these bulk shopping buys. So you know the drill. Here's the luggage before and after shots, and the rest will follow.

The large holdall belongs to my son, but it's great for taking on the ship where it will travel squashed into a container therefore needs to be sturdy. Notice that it's not quite full yet, and it does hide a Russian doll effect - a bag, within a bag, within a bag - ready for the spoils. 

And here they are on my return at Truro railway station where three bags have turned into five. Said holdall and spare bag (note only one, I still had another in reserve) are now both busting to the point that I can't actually lift the large bag, but it does have wheels for such eventualities. Only one more manoeuvre to make on and off the train and then it's helpful taxi driver round to the docks to get this home.

I travelled by Scillonian this time which takes about 2.5 hours and wasn't too rough on either journey. The ship sails in all weathers apart from the most severe gales and I do take precautions against sea-sickness as I'm not the best of sailors. Stugeron tablets and Seabands on my wrists work as a good combination in my case, along with staying up on deck and keeping my steely gaze on the horizon. While those around me may flounder and flail, I have to focus on my own well-being.

Leaving the islands behind as we head across the Atlantic to mainland Cornwall.

Land ahoy, and the very welcome sight of St Michael's Mount. A 40 minute train journey takes me up country to Truro where Sash and the shops await. Next morning, armed with empty bags, I was out at nine to see what I could find. Sasha joined me about lunchtime and we headed off to our favourite shoe shop, TK Maxx.

I love the jamboree that is TK Maxx's shoe department. All sorts of colourful footwear lie abandoned as if there had been a sudden call to arms and everyone had flee'd. We had a great time trying on, discarding, discovering and finally deliberating. I can reveal that Sasha is now the proud owner of the turquoise sandals and the (high heeled) beige suede boots in the centre. My shoe shaming comes later. 

We had lunch at the Lounge in Truro which had a fab atmosphere as well as a great range of delicious food. We ate in the restaurant downstairs but the seating area upstairs was quite funky too.

We hit the shops big time after refuelling and I think the term shop 'til you drop probably comes into play here. Eventually we admitted defeat when we couldn't carry any more. Our evening was spent comparing our finds, trying on and for me, a great deal of packing. On Sunday after my eye appointment we went out to Hubbox for lunch then mainly chilled for the rest of the day as I made ready for the journey home. 

All too soon it was time to head back home. The trip was on a full ship when I travelled back but I was happy to find my favourite spot on deck to hunker down. We passed the Minack theatre at Porthcurno (see it clinging to the rocks above the left of the cove) before leaving the mainland and all its retail temptations behind.

A bank of cloud sits heavily across the Cornish peninsula.

And finally the Isles of Scilly can be seen in the distance. St Martin's is the first to show.

The Firethorn is motoring towards St Mary's to collect the passengers from the Scillonian to take them to the off islands.

Home again and it's time to spread out the loot and take stock of everything. I have some repairs to do on the yellow maxi dress, the black lace dress and the olive and brown maxi skirt in the centre of the pic. The clothes tally reads like this - 1 wet gear coat, 1 sports top, 1 swimsuit, 2 handbags, 1 maxi skirt, 2 maxi dresses, 4 dresses, 2 pairs of culottes, 1 shirt, 4 pairs of trousers, 3 skirts, 2 pairs of shorts, 6 tops and the shoes...

My final count up of shoes was 20 pairs. Gasp if you will, but four were for Sasha, two for Polly and one wasn't quite glamorous enough to warrant inclusion in the photo (chunky plain brown sandals for wearing to the beach). Of these only two were full price from TK and 11 pairs were bargain basement prices from charity shops with the most expensive being £9. Who needs 14 pairs of shoes in one fell swoop, you may ask? Well clearly I do! Many of these were brand new and must have been a bad fit/gift/wrong choice for the owner, but are a great addition to my summer wardrobe. 

I've just remembered that I bought a fuchsia coloured silk jacket in a charity shop that's by Jaeger. It's currently at the dry cleaners, and I can't wait to feature it with my black hat. Seems I forgot to photograph my two new hats, one in black and the other white. My next shopping trip will be in September when I'll be updating my autumn/winter wardrobe. I hope you've enjoyed my lastest spree and would love to hear your thoughts. Have a great week!

Anna x