IKEA Revisited

Given that my first visit to IKEA's Belfast store turned out to be a flop last week, I decided to give it another try this morning. I deemed it a smart move to arrive there on a Monday morning at about nine-thirty, thus avoiding the coachloads of Irish shopping tourists.

I managed to obtain a sneaky parking space as close as possible to the store; walked in and was immediately informed that the store didn't open till ten o'clock! They redirected me up to their cafe; however I'd just had breakfast, so I browsed until ten o'clock. By the way: how, on earth, can they sell an Ulster Fry for ninety-five pence? Gosh.

I sought a duvet filled with goose down and I thought, mistakenly, that they sold these with a 13.5 tog rating. Little wonder the assistant couldn't find it on her computer.

At any rate, the whole IKEA Experience took me over an hour, if the return journey is included. I left empty-handed. I imagine there are doubtless tens of thousands of IKEA fans: not Timothy Belmont, I'm afraid. It's not a shop to visit if you are in a rush. Allow a few hours for the Experience.

Instead, I purchased a new goose down 13.5 tog duvet on Ebay. Along with a cover, it cost seventy-nine pounds, including delivery.