The General Chat Thread (2016-2022)

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caseydog said:
When I hear "High Street" from the UK, I think of "Main Street" in the USA. For example, my town of Frisco is a booming city, but Main Street is a nod to the past.

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Businesses on Main Street have a tough battle against competitors in the many "strip malls" around town. But they are quaint, sometimes 100-year-old buildings that have only a nostalgic feeling on their side.

Is "high Street" in the UK similar to that?

CD
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"High Street" (generally) is essentially the same as "Main Street", i.e. the street in a town with the largest concentration of shops. You see the name Main Street in a few Scottish towns, though rarely in England or Wales. Our (small) town has a High Street.
 
caseydog said:
Is "high Street" in the UK similar to that?
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To add to Duck's explanation, they may also be at least somewhat pedestrianized, so shoppers can get from the butcher to the baker to fruit & veg shop without getting run over, and if you're lucky, if the town has a weekly market day, with outdoor stalls, they'll frequently be set up somewhere in the high street, so you can get all your shopping done in one convenient location, but from 10 different places.

I was as guilty as anyone of going to Tesco when I lived there, but I really did love market day. To an American, walking around from stall to stall with my own wicker basket for my purchases felt almost medieval, or at least Victorian, and like so many things there, it was just so charming. I always felt so...good after doing my shopping that way.
 
First grilling of the season:
59548
 
Most areas did and still have a block of shops for surrounding homes, usually about 10 to 12 shops, growing up I had a 10 min walk to get to,
From memory
2 butchers
2 dairies 24/7 type shops.
1 haberdashery wool shop
1 chemist
1 bookshop.
1 hairdressers men
1 hair stylists women.
1 shoe shop
1 doctors rooms.
1 fish n chip shop
1 post office banking and mail.
That's from memory. I still go to those shops to support the wee guy. Things pretty much the same except souvlaki shops and other ethnic shops

Biggest nearest road is Riccarton rd about 4 km long with shops and malls either side.

Russ
 
MypinchofItaly said:
Going out to the caffetteria near me to take-away a cappuccino and croissant. I’ll have a walk afterwards through the countryside. It’s a sunny Sunday morning yet the air is crisp, I like it
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Sounds lovely! Enjoy!
Having my coffee with cream by the window, will go out for a jogg near the river after breakfast...
 
Timenspace said:
Sounds lovely! Enjoy!
Having my coffee with cream by the window, will go out for a jogg near the river after breakfast...
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I do lots of jogging, errr, I did. I miss very much not going out for a daily run, also a short one. But seeing at this pandemic situation, I prefer not to risk by going into some problem with ankles/legs or whatever, so only gentle walks (which are more than ok, I love walking)
 
MypinchofItaly said:
I do lots of jogging, errr, I did. I miss very much not going out for a daily run, also a short one. But seeing at this pandemic situation, I prefer not to risk by going into some problem with ankles/legs or whatever, so only gentle walks (which are more than ok, I love walking)
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Nice! Of course, do as you feel is right for the circumstances.
I missed 2 weeks of runs due to my cold...I can't wait to get out and jogg again...but I did walk.. hour and a half daily...
 
Back on the subject of high streets, those in Britain's larger towns tend to be somewhat depressing - so many now look almost identical with the same shops and an entirely homogenised appearance. Reuben mentions pedestrian areas, which is very much the case these days, certainly in bigger places.

High streets in the smaller towns and villages tend to have more local shops. Our town is a case in point - only the rather small Co-op is part of a big group. There was, until a few weeks ago, a branch of the giant Ladbrokes bookmakers, but that has now closed down. We did, a few years ago, have two banks in the High Street, but both are now closed. The last one, a TSB, shut last month. They even boarded up their cash machine.

There are some worrying signs. Until recently, we had two bakers' shops in the High Street, but both of them have closed down. A new (and rather expensive) artisan bakery has appeared, though it only opens on two days a week. It's not all bad news - we have an excellent greengrocery and while we have no use for the fishmonger or butcher's shops, I am told they are also very good. We also have Grain & Sustain, a "refill" store where you can bring your own container and fill it up.

Our High Street has a plethora of cafes, hairdressers and barbers for some reason. It's hard to imagine that all of these will survive. What we have seen, though, is that those people who have put in some time and effort (and doubtless money) can do well, so there is some encouragement to be had.
 
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