On Saturday I headed out to the North East coast to check out the lovely town of Tynemouth.

Without realising, I’d actually had some chips in the area before when visiting friends before making the move proper to Newcastle. However, I didn’t really get to explore the many kitsch giftshops or the Metro station market. My friend Matt was quite shocked at this, and defying the grey skies and miserable rain, gave me a guided tour that began with roasted med veg and goats cheese paninis at Hugo’s bar/restaurant.

I kind of forgot to be ‘touristy’ and make like Pete Hall (ie take the hallowed foodie picture) so you’ll have to make do with a sample of the leftovers!

After lunch we went to Gaf, which stocks one of my favourite t-shirt brands, Lazy Oaf, plus loads of other delights such as scented candles, solid perfumes and cards. I even tried on some glasses, but they certainly weren’t as pretty on me as their rosy tint suggested…

After Gaf we headed over to Raspberry Bazaar, which reminded me of a shop called Salamander in Maidstone – all mirrored trinkets and wooden beads (with incense on the side). Aside from the hippy clothing department (featuring festival-staple label Rico) the whole shop is arranged not by item but by colour… it’s quite a dazzling effect as you walk around the store as if walking alongside a rainbow! I bought a new piggy bank to replace the one that smashed during my move to Newcastle from Birmingham last June.

After Raspberry Bazaar we headed over to the Green Ginger Shopping Arcade which is actually a converted church filled with shops (including a hair salon and a cafe).

Out by the arcade ‘conveniences’ I found a detailed history of the church including a wonderful description of the remaining congregation before the church was converted.

I bought some of my favourite incense from one of the shops and marvelled at a specialist cake decorating shop too. There was a few antique shops as well, selling furniture and smaller items of jewellery.

I think my favourite bit of my camera-touting trip was when we headed over to the market held in Tynemouth Metro Station. The market, which held stalls on both sides of the platform, featured both food and less ‘vital’ bits and pieces, from second hand paper books to vinyls and vintage furs. I snapped up a bow broach for a pound and a small structured handbag with gold detailing and a gorgeous inky blue hue (I’ll feature it on this blog soon).

We bought some olives to satisfy my cravings for all things Mediterranean and Matt got some Kate Bush and Joe Jackson to listen to in vinyl format. All in all a rather satisfying trip, culminating in a bubble gum blowing display…

(Please note that the scraping back of hair was just to stop gum getting caught, rather than a permanent ‘look’!)

Where should I go next in the North East?