8 (Shopping Areas in Truro)

Member Name: Smark1985

Product:	Shopping Areas in Truro
Date:	15/06/01 (1177 review reads)
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Cornwall is unquestionably one of Britain's favourite holiday attractions. Mainly because of the vast abundance of beaches and other such summer delights, Cornwall is not known to be the best place to shop, especially if you are a tourist (or, as us Cornish say, "emmet") on holiday. But if you live in Cornwall, believe it or not, you still have to live a normal life, and shopping is included. So, for any of you who has had the pleasure to visit the wonderful county, you probably wouldn't have noticed the great shopping towns such as Truro as you were probably concentrating on getting a tan down at Gwithian. But great shopping cities, whilst not in the same league as London etc. do actually exist. Before I go on, and confuse any of you, I will now point out that Truro is a city, albeit a rather small one. Not only is it Cornwall's only city, it is also Cornwall's capital, and a very deserving one at that. Truro is without a doubt the busiest and best shopping city in Cornwall, and before you ask, Plymouth is in Devon, so doesn't count. So there. In fact, I am such a fan of Truro that I feel obliged to write an opinion on the great city, it would be rude not to.

Many of you probably don't envy me living in Cornwall and are no doubt very happy living wherever you live, after all, Cornwall has no "Harrods". But, give me Truro with a side of salad any day. Whenever I go, or have gone, to Truro in a car, parking is not really that much of an issue. It's no secret that Cornwall is sparsely populated compared to the likes of Britain's big cities, so obviously car parks are a lot quieter. Come on, you don't have to Michael Portillo to work that one out do you? But, of a weekend, Truro still attracts many people, flocking to buy something or other, so there are quite a lot of car parks available. There is the customary multi-storey car park that is found in most big towns (no, Camborne is not a big city), but it isn't actually that popular, and you are guaranteed to
be successful in securing a parking space. Perhaps the most popular car park in Truro is the *other* multi-storey, situated behind the business park. Why this is more popular than the other is a good question. I could lie for the sake of lying and say that it is because it's closer, but I don't want to give any of you false information, so I will confess that the quieter multi-storey is actually closer to the city centre. Hmm, must be something in the pasties... But, would you believe it, there are yet more car parks available! An ever popular choice is the car park near the Council offices, and is in fact the workers park during the week. But, when the weekend rolls around, the car park is free for all to use. Well, actually, and before I get any complaints, the car park is in fact quite expensive, and you will be charged £2.50 for the privilege. As of yet, I don't seem to have made you want to visit Truro much thus far, and I can sense that you're unconvinced. So, just as you think all is lost, I will retrieve Truro's pride by pointing out that anyone who pays to park their car in Truro is clearly somewhat of a nonce, as there is a *free* car park. Whilst it is not situated in the most convenient location of Truro, surely you can spare two minutes rather than two pounds? For anyone who's interested it is on the same road as Burger King, approximately 3 minutes away, on the left. There you go, I may have just saved you money, when you wisely park your car here, you know who to thank! But, although I know what I am talking about concerning Truro's car parks, it is never a problem for me anyway as I catch the bus!

As you are almost certainly bored after my "car park paragraph", I will lift you from your boredom by discussing Truro's wide array of fabulous shops. Yes, that's right. Truro does indeed have a fabulous array of shops, catering for almost every hobby and interest that there is. Visiting Truro, you will probably enter at the top of the city, and t
hat is where the journey begins, I'll try and make it interesting, but if I don't, I don't. I never get crowns anyway!

Upon entering the city of Truro's "shopping area" you will be greeted with two well established shops, differing from the general array of quality Truro-only shops that largely fill the city. On the left, there is the female paradise of "New Look". Unless you have visited Truro within the last two months, then New Look is a new addition to Truro. "C & A", known by many middle aged ladies as "Coats 'an 'Ats", had a much publicised collapse earlier this year, and it's Truro store fell victim. This is a great shame for Truro as shoppers of all ages would visit C & A, and the clothes market was largely centred around this store. But, all good things come to an end, and C & A was sadly no exception. Shock, Horror! An all-female shop replaces it... as if Truro needed it's 291st women's shop! Well, you understand if I exaggerate slightly... I'm an emotional kinda dooyooer! Anyway, to help you keep faith in Truro before you even start, the treasure chest of music, "Solo Music" is situated on the immediate right, and is undoubtedly one of the better shops sin Truro, Mr. Reliable, it will never let down. The great thing about Solo is that it caters for every music fan. For any Cliff Richard fans (there must be a few) out there, you will be impressed with Solo's dedication to people without taste. But mainly, because of public demand I'm sure, Solo is mainly for fans of the Dance and Rock genres. Yes, chart music is available, but Solo appreciates good music, and this is where you will find bands such as "Korn", "(Hed) PE", "Cold" and many other of our favourite Metal bands. But, just for arguments sake, is Solo the bestmusic shop in Truro? Well, although back street "Number One Records" puts up a good fight, Solo prevails due to the cheaper prices. Music fans need not stay away from Truro, they will be pleasantly surprised at what they find.

>Carrying on through the town centre, you stroll past high street regulars "Dixons", "Boots", "Mothercare" and "WHSmiths". These are good shops, and WHSmiths is possibly my favourite in Truro as a whole, they do not add anything different to Truro, and they are all expected in most big towns and cities. The Cornish magic just isn't there and everything is all very corporate, but that is not to mean you shouldn't go into them, they just aren't worth extensively writing about in this opinion as everyone is already familiar with them.

But, do not despair, directly opposite WHSmiths is "Ottakers", perhaps the best book shop known to man... certainly any Cornish man anyway! Ottakers really know their literary stuff, and you will be hard pushed to find a book that they don't stock. Two floors are filled with authors as diverse as Mick Foley and John Irving. For any book lovers, and I know a lot of you are, a Truro visit just isn't complete without a look in Ottakers.

Next door to the un-intimidated Ottakers is "Marks and Spencers". Although I am sure many of you are Marks and Sparks fans, I have to honestly sum the store up in one word. Dire.

Homelessness has never really been a problem in Truro, but there are a few unfortunate citizens selling Big Issues. These do not make you feel guilty, and they are usually very polite, so if you are in Truro do try and help them out. They are genuinely trying to create some money for themselves honestly, and they are not begging. Honest is something that cannot be said for the hooligans who make a living selling copied, and possibly stolen posters on the streets of Truro. Thankfully, they are usually told where to go by the police, and the majority of shoppers as well. These cheap and nasty posters featuring sports and music stars cost £1. Next time you think about buying one, walk back to the Big Issue seller and buy a copy instead. It will make you feel a lot better.

On a lighter note, Truro is
fortunate enough to have a majestic cathedral and you really must visit this wonderful attraction, and pay your respects to our Lord. Outside, you are welcome to light a candle in memory of a deceased loved one, and this is a very nice touch to a absolutely beautiful cathedral which is the pride of Truro.

As I am writing in the shopping area section, I suppose I should return to writing about the actual shops. Past the cathedral is another line of high street stores. But they all offer something very different, so no one will really feel disappointed with what they see. As you walk past the selection of fruit shops and travel agents that follow, you are presented with a tricky situation, but a good one. Roads lead left and right, each with their own wonderful selection of shops to browse your way through. My impulse fingers are typing in "right" so that is where I shall imaginatively lead you first. On your immediate left, you will stumble across the biggest store in Truro, "Littlewoods". This is perhaps many shoppers idea of the ultimate store, as there are aisles and aisles of clothes downstairs, albeit mainly for the older generation. Also downstairs is the "Index" ordering booths. Much like "Argos", Index is a catalogue based company with a huge storeroom ready for your orders. But, in this case, stick with what you know, Index seem to take a very long time getting your order from their storerooms, and Argos would get the job done in half the time. If you have been unfortunate enough to have a stressful order with Index, simply wander upstairs to the Cafe where you can eat yourself silly.

But eating is by no means restricted to Littlewoods, and there are a number of shops vying for your cash, "Burger King" just one of them. You will have a large choice of where to go, but it really is your own discretion where you choose to eat.

The main part of Truro is brimming with countless (?) shops, each trying to make you buy something differe
nt. Conveniently there is a William Hill bookmakers crammed in the middle of it all, and you might find it hard to resist placing a wild bet on the afternoons match. Truro is a funny place, and from years of experience I have came to the conclusion that the best shops are the unknown ones which not many visit. Well, I am telling you now to visit them. From Littlewoods, stay on the left and you will be greeted with many superb shops such as "Games Workshop", the modelling hobbyist shop, and the surfers paradise "Cornwall Sports". But, there are so many other uncovered gems such as the comic emporium which is literally overflowing with comics and cards of yesteryear. Even better though, there is perhaps the greatest sweet shop in the entire world on the left of this back road, and every boiled sweet invented will no doubt be jarred and ready to sell. You simply must visit this shop.

After a while though, you will come to nothing but houses, so this is the time to turn back and head for the direction that I rejected earlier. For any sports fans, then you will feel at home here. "JJB" and "Giles" Sport shops next door to each other. You will be spoilt for choice over which Nike jumper to buy I am sure! While the males are in here, females can feel free to go into the crop of women's shops such as "Dorothy Perkins" and "Etam". Obviously, once the female shop-a-holics step into these, they won't be coming out in a hurry. Brilliant market research then that a minute up the town there is a computer shop selling all of your console requirements. The shop is named "Console Connections", it is quite a small shop so you will be lucky to have a sustained look at anything without other customers pining for the game you are looking at. This can get extremely annoying and won't endear yourself to the shop too much.

Unquestionably my favourite shop in Truro. "Acorn Records". This small shop is a second hand specialist in videos, music and games. The prices in here
are absolutely superb and you can pick up good as new releases with a £5 budget. As some of you may know, I am a collector of WWF videos, and much to my delight I often find old videos in Acorn for a £4 fee. Marvellous!

Obviously, I cannot go through all the shops in Truro, but I hope I have given you a feel to what a brilliant shopping town it really is. Just a fifteen minute drive from where I live, I would much rather shop in Truro than the more commercialised Plymouth.

Quite simply, Truro is Number One. If you go to Cornwall and don't visit Truro, you are making a very big mistake. Don't say I didn't warn you...

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