Brighton Revisited

Alison had never been to Brighton, so we decided to take advantage of a Paramount Hotel offer(previous similar deals have taken us to Harrogate and Redworth Hall in Durham) and have two nights at The Old Ship Hotel right on the seafront. I had spent parts of five years from 1963 to 1968 at Brighton College of Advanced Technology ( later to become Brighton Polytechnic and more recently the University of Brighton), so for me this was a nostalgic return forty years on.

We were going to visit Arundel Castle on the way, but it started to drizzle so we carried on to Worthing, taking in the pier and the promenade before a coffee and some specialist shops (Yankee Candle and Oil and Vinegar).

Made Brighton late afternoon, checked in (leaving the car in the hotel car park for two days) and went for a wander, before the inclusive first night's dinner. The hotel did not have Sky, so we found an Australian pub called The Outback to watch the Chelsea v Liverpool Champions League semi. It was packed, but had about a dozen screens, so there was no problem seeing. It was just we could not hear the commentary over the noise. Memorable. ( Other pubs we have watched football include one in Harrogate for England v Columbia in the world cup and one in Wadebridge to see Arsenal lose at home in the Champions League to Inter Milan).

The next day we took in all the sights. Brighton centre did not seem all that familiar. Probably as a twenty year old, I only remember the pubs such as The Sussex above. We were caught in a heavy shower in the middle of the day, and rushed for the shelter of the aquarium Brighton Sealife. The building is quite historic. It was interesting to see the indoor arena (now unused) where the dolphins were displayed before this was banned in the UK. But the highlight was the tunnel where giant turtles and sharks would swim over your head.

We found a nice Italian restaurant for dinner and took in the pier at night. The next day was our last and we drove to the marina for a nice wander, then a coffee, in glorious sunshine. Later we headed for Eastbourne and walked the promenade and our third pier. Finally we eventually found Devils Dyke for a short walk along the top of the downs. It was a really nice break. The weather was good for the most part and even the M25 on a Friday evening was not too busy.