The Great Wetherby Car Boot Sale
Last summer Brad and I went to a few car boot sales and were not very impressed with this British version of a flea market. When fall hit and the weather began to get cold, car boot sale season was over. Now that the weather has begun to get warmer, car boot sales are in season again. We had heard about a huge car boot sale that takes place at Wetherby race course and this morning headed over there with much anticipation. We met disappointment again. Granted, there were a lot of vendors, but most of the offerings were pure junk. Rickety old furniture, chintzy china, cast-off clothing, tacky souvenirs, blah blah blah. There were books galore but they were mostly cheesy romance novels -- nothing I was burning to read. There were a handful of vendors offering what might be considered collectibles, but again, nothing I was interested in. What really rankled me was the 60 pence admission fee. Sure it's not a lot of money -- only about a buck -- but what in the world is it for?!! The venue was a wet grassy field with no cover in case of inclement weather.
In England just about every flea market or antiques fair has an admission fee. I've decided I can judge the wares simply by the amount of the admission fee. If admission is free then there will be nothing there in which I will have the slightest interest. Admission under £1 means there will be mostly junk with a few items of interest. Admission between £2-3 means there will be some items of quality that I should be able to afford. Admission £4 and above means the goods will be of a high quality but the prices will be out of my reach. Oh, how I miss the shrine sales of Tokyo!
Last summer Brad and I went to a few car boot sales and were not very impressed with this British version of a flea market. When fall hit and the weather began to get cold, car boot sale season was over. Now that the weather has begun to get warmer, car boot sales are in season again. We had heard about a huge car boot sale that takes place at Wetherby race course and this morning headed over there with much anticipation. We met disappointment again. Granted, there were a lot of vendors, but most of the offerings were pure junk. Rickety old furniture, chintzy china, cast-off clothing, tacky souvenirs, blah blah blah. There were books galore but they were mostly cheesy romance novels -- nothing I was burning to read. There were a handful of vendors offering what might be considered collectibles, but again, nothing I was interested in. What really rankled me was the 60 pence admission fee. Sure it's not a lot of money -- only about a buck -- but what in the world is it for?!! The venue was a wet grassy field with no cover in case of inclement weather.
In England just about every flea market or antiques fair has an admission fee. I've decided I can judge the wares simply by the amount of the admission fee. If admission is free then there will be nothing there in which I will have the slightest interest. Admission under £1 means there will be mostly junk with a few items of interest. Admission between £2-3 means there will be some items of quality that I should be able to afford. Admission £4 and above means the goods will be of a high quality but the prices will be out of my reach. Oh, how I miss the shrine sales of Tokyo!
posted by lenora at 2:54 PM
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