Hello! Good morning and welcome to our Sunday Meeting
There’s a lot more of us this week, so a very warm welcome if you are new, and thank you thank you for still being here, if you have been here a while!
Each week it’s a mixed agenda. As Forest Gump once said ‘Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re gonna get’ and that pretty much sums it up.
Sometimes we discuss fashion, some weeks it’s travel or interiors, and sometimes it’s just what happens to be in my head at the time, and I am incredibly grateful that no one seems to mind. We go with the flow. Whenever anyone says that, I’m like cool, yeah… we go with the flow (BUT WHAT TIME IS THE FLOW?!)
Over the past couple of weeks all schools have broken up and we are now knee deep in school holidays. Newquay is in FULL holiday swing. We have lived here full time, since cold, wet and windswept March and the landscape feels very different here in high Summer.
I thought I’d share my findings as a ‘local’ - I use that term very loosely - I am very aware that I am still very much an emmet - but I feel I have done enough research to share a couple of observations … and at almost the half way mark through the year (can you believe it) I answer one of my most asked questions…
‘Home’ … define home… Cornwall really does feel like home. Blame my parents. We have been coming here since I was born so my love for this county - (and need to escape to it,) is entirely their fault. Gav and I have been coming here for over 35 years too. Chop us in half (please don’t actually) and I am sure we are like sticks of rock, confirming CORNWALL on the inside. I’ll loop back to this - moving back, not being chopped in half - later. (Does anyone still buy sticks of rock?)
(if you are new - READ HERE and it will all make sense)
In no particular order … Let’s start with getting around
If you want to drive from Newquay to Truro, there are approx 43958340 different ways to get there and Waze will take you a different way each time.
You will never learn a route. I think only true locals know the route. They are born knowing the route. The rest of us… no hope.
Don’t blindly trust the sat nav. The ‘quickest route’ anywhere, might look fine but the robots in charge of directing you, do not understand that some roads here are the skinny kind, I’m not even sure they could be described as roads… they have grass growing up the middle, and only occasional passing places. Earlier today, we encountered a lady out walking with her dog, and not even joking, we had to pull in our wing mirrors so she could squeeze past. Then we met a Fiat 500 coming the other way and there was a stand off because no one could remember where the last passing place was. We caved and had to reverse half a mile up a hill. I was like ‘Americans would never put up with this’ (it’s kind of quaint but also… not)
If it hasn’t got grass growing up the middle, you aren’t doing it properly.
If you go out on a Saturday, say to the shops or supermarket, make sure you are safely home before lunch time latest. It is changeover day and if you leave it too late you’ll just become part of the traffic jam arriving slowly to Newquay, backed up somewhere after Indian Queens. You might as well resign yourself to living where you are stuck. If you have been food shopping, at least you’ll have snacks.
You will become obsessed by tide times. Life revolves round what the sea is doing. Going for a walk? TIDE. Fancy a coffee? TIDE. Even if your plans don’t involve the beach, knowing the tide times for the day is just what you do. Your phone will be full of photos of various high and low tides, and sunsets. (That you’ll probably never look at again)
SAND. Resign yourself to it. It’s everywhere. It’s relentless. How does it end up in the fridge?? Also in bed ( where it’s quite abrasive) & my bra (ditto). I have decided that it’s no longer a case of bringing sand in, we just live with sand now. The end.
Half the beach comes home with us every time - I blame the dog Seagulls. They WILL steal your pasty straight from your hand. They literally don’t care. They work in gangs, have a knack of finding the weakest link (usually me) are remarkably accurate at dive bombing and the element of surprise always yields. Seagull radar. Not to be underestimated.
Holiday makers do an awful lot of what I call ‘Walking Round’. We have spent the last 29 years since we had kids, partaking in ‘Walking Round’ so this is in no way a criticism, more an observation.
Much Walking Round happens. Go to St Ives - Walk Round. Newquay - Walk Round. Padstow … same. Weather has a lot to answer for because when it’s sunny, most people are choosing a beach based activity and rightly so. Unfortunately, when it isn’t sunny, the only thing to do, is go somewhere and… Walk Round.
Walking round the back lanes of St Ives or Padstow kind of reminds me of IKEA. Stay with me. There’s one route in and only one route out. There are no arrows painted on the ground though, and there are pasty shops instead of meatball cafes, apart from that, it’s the same, ha. Everyone walking the same route in the same direction at the same pace, & just like IKEA, it’ll cost you at least £50 to leave. When it is really busy it’s shoulder to shoulder and you must not walk against the flow. If you miss a shop you fancy - too late - you’ll have to go round again - do not upset the tide of people Walking Round. Do not deviate.
TAKE NOTE - this is where knowing the tide times comes in REALLY handy because if you hit St Ives at low tide, you can walk almost all of the 7 beaches in one go (almost). You will miss the main drag and find MUCH nicer places. It’s one of our favourite things to do.
DRY ROBES. I am on a sticky wicket here because I have one (not an actual Dry Robe - just Dry Robe-ish. I don’t even remember how it appeared. I suspect some sort of weird Cornish osmosis) and I cannot ever bring myself to wear it. I am always amazed that people wear them about the place like they’re actual giant coats. I think there are 2 types of people. Dry Robe people and not Dry Robe people. And the former are also Croc people. I get it, but unless you are literally coming off the beach (in which case it’s an extremely practical outfit) you have NO business wearing that get up around town. NONE.
Which brings me on to acceptable beach going footwear. It is either wellies or flip flops. There is absolutely no in between. Same for hats. Beanie or cap. No further notes.
Popping out for a little walk, we have discovered, ends up minimum 15k steps and involves a pit stop for a coffee and an ‘I’m not having cake…. Ohhh go on then’ No point fighting it. And anyway, you are supporting the local economy along with walking off the cake. Double win
The longer we are here, the more secret places we discover. Short cuts, coffee shops, the best table to book, the nicest people, the best bakeries, the best local independent shops and the people running them. The best places to park, and the places to avoid at all costs, at least until September. The longer we are here the more we find to love.
The Burning Question
To answer the - the burning question , the one I am asked regularly - ‘Will you be able to leave once the year is up’ It is a very good question indeed.
Yes. Yes we will.
We LOVE it here so much, but we love the people we miss, more. Short of asking them all to relocate (which is not an idea I have totally discarded) we know we will go home. Although I fear we shall forever feel displaced. Damn geography! I do have a couple of curveball ideas up my sleeve (of course I do haha) but we shall see. Stay tuned.
Until then, we will enjoy every single drop of it, every single sunset, every single dog walk. Retiring here must be amazing. We aren’t ready for that yet - too busy haha! Working here for me is easy - it’s ok for Gav too, but ultimately it makes more sense for him to be located near the family business. And I will find it way more convenient to be closer to London. Geography gets on my last nerve. Lobbying for Concorde to fly between Newquay and Gatwick for no more than £80 return, ideally.
This Week’s Finds
I have had a very nice mooch round the sales and there are some REALLY good ones - if you fancy harbouring (geddit?!) a slice of beach life (without it being naff)
Have a mooch in this link where it is all there waiting for you - including, but not limited to, the bits in the image below which is merely the tip of the seaside based iceberg
The fish candle holder. Completely unnecessary but also VITAL to requirements. The internet is all about adding whimsy to your home and imo you can’t get more whimsy than a fish that holds candles.
I found 2 excellent tea towels because who doesn’t need to chuck out and replace a few old, stained ones that seem to go under the radar and are actually a bit gross (just me? pretend I never said anything)
The shoes are posh and on sale - I have discovered a few brilliant bargains in that particular rabbit ‘ole. There’s a GORGEOUS platter, and some striped espadrilles - remember the 80s when espadrilles with the backs trodden down were the only acceptable things to wear on your feet? I had yellow ones aha - anyway I found some glorious pairs!
Lots of excellent sale things and that woven shell bag - LOVE. ANYWAY - some really good stuff that I love and therefore, I think you will like it too including the best flip fops I have ever (been bullied by the internet) bought. Honestly, their advertising budget must be enormous! If you have seen any flip flop ads, it’s only a matter of time until you cave too. And the cutest lobster themed knitwear. Save yourself!! Don’t looooook
Here's the link again for your perusal HA
RIGHT! this is where I bid you farewell
Today I am taking part in the STYLED SUNDAY event at Lanteague Studios. It’s about a 10 minute drive from Newquay town centre. Styled Sunday is a sale of 2nd hand and vintage clothes, and you’ll find local Cornish businesses there too. Food to keep the wolf from the door is by Naughty Nonnas - and we are all there from 12-4. I will have a rail of stuff for sale - basically everything that never made it on to Vinted and everything will be £5 - some absolute bargains - I (and others) don’t have a payment terminal though, so please bring CASH. Come and say hello! It’d be lovely to see you
We pray to the weather gods that it won’t rain. DETAILS HERE LOCATION HERE
If you are nearby and fancy a mooch, everyone is welcome!
Have a peaceful Sunday and a happy week & I’ll be back next Sunday for our usual natter.
As usual, thank you so much for being here!
Love
Sally xx
Our Sunday Meeting is a free read and always will be - I use affiliate links when I can, to help keep it that way. Thank you xxx
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