POPPING CORKS in St Ives

Susan Taylor celebrates New Year in Cornwall with bracing walks and fancy dress

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I could feel it in the air - almost reach out and touch it. Not the wind and rain; even that was strangely quiet, - mirroring the subtle sense of anticipation and excitement, slowly building. It was two days before the last day of the year and St Ives in Cornwall was both calm and at the same time abuzz with expectation. Renowned for hosting one of the country's biggest fancy dress parties and fireworks displays, preparations were quietly well underway throughout the town.

We were walking the cobbled streets, dipping in and out of little independent shops and art galleries, chuckling at how every other shop seemed to have morphed into a fancy dress emporium and every bar had a fridge overflowing with champagne.

As well as shops, galleries and bars, there are five beaches here, and it's easy to spend a day just pottering and exploring.

Even a rainy winter's day can't dampen my enthusiasm for being beside the sea, and Willow, our dog, just loves running on the sand.

More giggling ensued as we tried to wipe her paws before calling into The Sloop Inn, reputedly the oldest inn in town, one of the oldest in the county and certainly one of the most popular. Dating back to the early 1300s, it has a prime position on the harbour, almost within touching distance of the sea and right in the midst of those shops and galleries. With its stone floor reminiscent of past times, now filled with tired, wet dogs (and children), we really needn't have worried about sandy paws.

Pier review

Another famous feature of St Ives is its pier. Named after its engineer designer John Smeaton, Smeaton Pier stands proudly at the mouth of the harbour.