I have been In America since April 15th of 2002. I moved over here to America From, Brighton, England, where I grew up and spent 21 years of my life so that I could be with my new and wonderful American wife Samantha, but oh how much I miss being by the seaside in Brighton!
Brighton is England’s premiere seaside resort, with Beautiful pebble beaches, great shopping, some of the best nightlife around, and the wonderful rolling hills of the glorious South Downs! Brighton is situated on the south coast of England and is just 70 miles from the wonderful city of London. There are 7 miles of beautiful pebble beaches at Brighton! There is nothing better than to be able to go down the beach on a summer’s day!, Soaking up the sun and listening to the waves crash on the beach! Just be sure to get there early as the beaches fill pretty quickly during the summer! Great History, architecture, and wonderful places make Brighton the Perfect holiday destination!
Brighton has got a very long, interesting history. I actually come from a Part of Brighton called Whitehawk, and it is here that the very first settlement of Brighton was situated. Remains and artifacts dating back to 2700 B.C have been found and can now be seen in Brighton’s museums. Long after the druids had settled in Brighton, the Romans and the Saxons came to Bristelmestune (as it was known back then) and renamed the town to Brighthelmstone and that’s when the town started to rapidly grow!
1066! The Battle of Hastings took place about 30 miles from Brighton and the French leader William the Conqueror, defeated the English armies and killed King Harold. Hastings is just 30 miles from Brighton yet it took 20 years for William to set his sights on Brighton and he arrived in the town in 1086! This is when the town which was then called Brighthelmstone became Known as Brighton!
William turned Brighton into the countries best fishing town and Brighton grew and grew because of this. Up until 1703 Brighton was still the best fishing town in England but Brighton got struck by a huge storm destroying much of the town and killing thousands of residents. It seemed as though no one wanted to live there anymore because they thought the town had been cursed, all of this changed though when Prince Regent (who later became George the 4th king of England) was attracted to the town.
A great doctor thought that the seas at Brighton had great medicinal properties and thought that by swimming in the sea all of your illnesses would be cured! The Prince moved to Brighton and ordered construction of the great and now world famous Royal Pavilion. People flocked back to Brighton and made Brighton the town it is today! There are so many wonderful things to do while you are in Brighton. I will list just a few of the best places to go while you visit the town. I will start off with the truly wonderful and world Famous Royal Pavilion!
Prince Regent had this wonderful palace built for him when he moved to Brighton. Englands best architect John Nash built it in 1815. The prince wanted it to reflect the glorious Taj Mahal of India. The Prince Regent wanted to demonstrate British supremacy by building a Palace with an exterior heavily influenced by Indian architecture. Many people have commented on the similarities between Brighton’s Royal Pavilion and the Taj Mahal near Agra in the north east of India. The exterior of the Royal Pavilion paints a romantic image with its domes, cubes, and spires.
It is Because of the Pavilion that Brighton was not bombed by The Germans, in World War 2! German leader Adolf Hitler wanted to make the Pavilion his home once he had conquered England! Fortunately that never happened.
The Pavilion is now a huge tourist attraction and you can take a tour of the place. It costs $12 for adults and $6 for children. It will be the most well spent money during your time in Brighton. The Interior is simply breath taking When it was built the palace could boast the largest dinning and music room in the country and they are outstanding! The walls are covered in Oak and everything in the room is made of gold and silver! While touring the palace you also get to see the master bedrooms and the kitchens of the palace. The Palace is decorated with all of the original furniture and a few extra that have been loaned to the palace by the Queen of England. The grounds in which the Pavilion sits are beautiful. With Huge trees, wonderful green grass, and some really exotic flowers. The grounds can be used by the members of the public for resting and relaxing. On good days hundreds of people flock to the grounds for picnics and such! If you visit only one place in Brighton make it this one!
Resident Magnus Volk built the world’s first Electric railway in Brighton. Volk who was born in Brighton in 1851 was an electrical pioneer! His house was the first in Brighton With Electricity! Volk thought Brighton was the ideal place for an Electric Railway! The railway is situated on the seafront in Brighton and is just 500 yards from Brighton Marina. The railway used to extend out into the sea and go along the seafront to the palace pier! Over the years the weather and the sea destroyed the track that was on stilts out in the sea and only the track that was built in land remains! With parts of the tracks re-built, you can now ride on Volks Railway between the Marina and the Black rock (Black Rock is part of the seafront in Brighton) It costs $5 for adults and $2 for children. Volks Railway is a must see if you are visiting Brighton
If you love Shopping, Brighton is the place to be! One of the best places to shop in Brighton is Called The Lanes, the lanes are all that remain of the original town of Brighton. The Streets are very narrow and dark, and they are lined with all kinds of small wonderful shops, Most of them are antique and jewelers. You can find some very unusual items in some of the lanes shops. The lanes are also home to some of the best restaurants in Brighton. The best of the restaurants being the Italian restaurant, Donnatello’s! They serve freshly made Pasta and pizza and let me tell you it is absolutely wonderful!
When you come out of the lanes, you might want to head to Churchill Square. Named after Winston Churchill, Churchill Square has just been completely redeveloped. A huge new shopping mall now sits where the old Churchill Square used to stand! You will find all sorts of shops here ranging from Nike, and Reebok, to Versachi and Armani.. There are many sports, games and general interest shops there too! Brighton is a wonderful place to shop.
The Palace Pier is the largest Pier in Europe. It extends a half-mile into the English Channel and is a floating amusement park! On the palace pier you will find, Amusement arcades, Vegas Style slot machines, a theater, haunted houses, roller casters and many other rides! The Palace Pier is Brighton’s second biggest attraction after the Pavilion. There is nothing better than going down to the pier on a beautiful summers day, buying candy floss (or Cotton Candy) as you call it in America, or freshly made doughnuts, sitting down in a deck chair while you look out to sea watching as the day goes by! You will have so much fun on the pier! Definitely not an attraction you should miss!
If you want to get away from the hustle of the city, just 10 minutes drive from Brighton you will find the rolling hills of the South Downs! The South Downs are simply stunning! I used to spend so much of my time there, and at one place in particular Devils Dyke. Devils Dyke is a huge Canyon that is carved out of the hills and there is a great story behind what happened and how the Dyke got there. It is said that many thousands of years ago, there was a blacksmith that had a shop on the South Downs! One day the Devil Appeared, the blacksmith was scared of the devil, and in self defense he stamped the devil with a red hot Iron Poker. The Devil screamed and told the Blacksmith that as punishment for what he had done he would make a Dyke (a canyon) in the floor, so that when it rained it would fill with water, over fill and flood the town of Brighton killing everyone and Everything! If you are feeling up to it you can walk through the Dyke, but trust me you have to be extremely fit! I am not fit and I have walked through the Dyke once and it nearly killed me! It is very deep and is about 5 miles long! You can do this for free, and if you can do it, it is very worthwhile!
I hopeyou have enjoyed this review of my wonderful hometown of Brighton. I have highlighted the best places to go to, but there is so much more in Brighton for everyone to do! It is a wonderful Seaside Resort that really has something for everyone. If you go to England be sure to see Brighton, it will be an experience you will never forget!
Sources
www.wikipedia.com
