Antiques, Cakes And Non Purchase Regret?

Nigel really wanted to introduce Alice to one of his favourite places in Christchurch .....

.... to wit The Emporium, as he knew it was a place where Alice could mooch her most favourite sort of things, to her hearts content, all under one roof ...... 

..... and also thought it might be, from memory, a place to perhaps get in a bit of early Christmas shopping, with a bonus slice of cake on the side, at the end.

He was right, noticing that the ever fragrant Alice was hypnotically drawn to anything that glittered and sparkled ........

..... proclaiming that in one cabinet alone, packed with rings, there simply was tooooooooooo much to choose from, but she would try!

So, while Alice ermed, ahhed and tried on, Nigel took the opportunity to have a wander on his own, finding the most perfect mug for Hugh, Darrell's best friend and mentor and doyen of all things of a Eurovision, past and present. The little fella was absolutely thrilled, what were the chances of ever finding another antique Eurovision mug again?

Next, he spotted something that initially shouted Alice to him, but then he hivered and hovered about it. Alice certainly had the most beautiful lips, but was this brooch a little too on the personal side .......

...... could she possibly be offended?  After all, she was certainly a lot more than a pair of lips!  In the end, he discounted said brooch for a more subtle sort of gift, as there was no rush, Christmas was still a way away but hoped he wouldn't regret it later.

Then, when Alice was finally finished her browsing, after about forty five minutes,  she joined Nigel at the cafe, at once noticing that they also had some delicious looking Viennese Whirls, just like the ones she'd bought from Lymington market, that they'd later had for their supper.

However, since they hadn't had any lunch yet, Nigel suggested that they had something a little more substantial to start with, like a locally sourced, real life Dorset sausage bap and then take a couple of slices of cake back to the caravan to embrace while reliving the day.  A most excellent suggestion!  The sausage, Alice proclaimed, was the best sausage that had ever passed her lips!

So, after that and a pot of tea, Alice and Nigel returned to peruse the cake station again, finally opting for two very large cheese scones .......

 

....... plus, two slices of toffee fudge cake, a slice of lemon drizzle and a ample slice of coffee and walnut, which I hear were totally, totally exceptional!  What are they both like, other than VERY full!