2023-07-28 07:38:42
The British are known for their sense of humour. In Brighton it can be seen on the beach promenade: Shouldn’t there be a statue of Richard Russell here – in honor of the man who chose Brighton as Europe’s first seaside resort in the 18th century?
Instead, only a commemorative plaque can be seen. It hangs on the house where Russell once lived, now the Royal Albion Hotel. On the plaque is a sentence about Russell, and then: “If you seek his monument look around”. So, let’s take a look!
The landmark of the city is on the water. The Brighton Palace Pier, with its famous lettering, twinkles and invites you on a strip of entertainment that juts out into the sea. The offer: a bizarre mixture of fair, casino and hocus-pocus. Along with fairground rides and slot machines, fortune telling thrives in Brighton.
Source: Infographic WORLD
A lady named JJ wants to read tarot cards for thirty pounds, after all, just under 35 euros. Reason to doubt her and her assessments? There is not any. After all, she helped convict a murderer, a poster explains.
Much cheaper advice is available from the machine, for fifty pence. A female doll head with a glowing crystal ball then spits out a note: “Be wary of strangers, and particularly women with facial hair.”
Being a royal couple, at least for a picture – that is also possible on the Palace Pier
Source: dpa-tmn
But you can also play royal couple on the pier, because there is a photo wall with holes through which you can put your face. It shows King Charles and his wife Camilla – after all, London and Buckingham Palace are only an hour away by train.
How Brighton became a seaside resort
Bathing in Brighton was launched as early as 1753: the British doctor Richard Russell had just settled in the city. He had previously published a piece of writing in which he wrote about how healthy it is to spend time by the sea. In addition to “dipping” Russell advised people to “drinking” – so they should not only step into the sea water, but also drink it. Well, fortunately, some medical recommendations become obsolete over time.
Bathing in the English Channel: For all the entertainment in Brighton, the sea remains the main attraction
Source: dpa-tmn
In any case, the city grew. In the 1780s there were still around 3,600 inhabitants; in 1831 there were already more than 40,000. King George IV also played a major role in this. He came to the city around 1780, at that time still as the Prince of Wales, and was immediately very impressed. “Drinking, womanising and gambling” is how they describe his lifestyle in Brighton. So, women’s affairs and gambling, and it’s safe to assume that “drinking” in this case doesn’t refer to seawater.
Unlike Russell, George IV got a statue. It stands next to the Royal Pavilion, the oriental-style palace that the nobleman had built in his favorite city. With its magnificent garden, the property is a popular destination.
Finally, in the adjoining art museum, which also provides information about Brighton’s city history, there is also a portrait of the physician Russell: chubby cheeks, wig. Severe. You want to hand him swimming trunks and a cocktail.
From a fishing village to a tourist hotspot
Today, nearly 280,000 people live in Brighton and around eight million visitors come each year. With the train connection from London to the seaside resort in the middle of the 19th century, the fishing village finally rose to become a tourist hotspot.
A few key dates: the west pier was opened in 1866 with a theatre, winter garden and orchestra, in 1872 the aquarium, which calls itself the “oldest continuously open” aquarium in the world, in 1899 the famous Palace Pier, the pleasure pier.
The Palace Pier and Aquarium still stand, the West Pier burned down in 2003. Now he juts out of the sea as a skeleton.
That’s Brighton too: luxury accommodation by the marina
Source: dpa-tmn
Brighton’s seafront promenade is extensive. It’s four kilometers from the east, with high-end accommodation at the marina, to the futuristic, height-adjustable i360 observation deck on a 160-meter-tall tower in the west.
There are all sorts of worlds in between: luxury swimming pools for members only or beach volleyball for everyone. Ice cream for dogs or classic fish & chip stands. And: Volk’s Electric Railway.
It’s like something out of a Wes Anderson film
The world’s first electric train has operated along the Promenade since 1883, connecting the stretch between Palace Pier and Black Rock, an eastern stretch of beach. Slow-moving wagons in cream and rusty brown that look like something out of a Wes Anderson film – antiquated, surreal and pretty in their own way.
They were invented by Magnus Volk, a pioneer at the time. The electrical engineer is said to have been the first person on England’s south coast to have electric light.
Volk’s Electric Railway carriages – here at the Black Rock terminus – have been on the road for 140 years
Source: dpa-tmn
We’re getting on at Jude Wilson-Smith’s. She moved to Brighton from London ten years ago. She explains that the steering wheel is actually the brake. Otherwise, she regulates the speed and rings the bell for passers-by at the transitions. The journey on Volk’s Electric Railway takes only a few minutes. The old train squeaks and jerks. A few people on the side of the road look embarrassed. Others wave.
Arrive at Black Rock. Smith’s colleague Dale Green poses for a photo with a mischievous smile in front of the battered cottage from which he sells the tickets. Green has lived in the city for 40 years. Unlike other seaside resorts, Brighton has a future, he believes. This also applies to Volk’s Electric Railway, which was guaranteed in any case.
The most open city in Great Britain
Much in Brighton may be in need of refurbishment. The weathered benches or rusted balustrades on the beach, for example. But the city is young, colourful, lively. Or as they say on a sightseeing tour in a red double-decker bus: “People are as colorful and extravagant as ever!” Brighton is considered the most open city in Great Britain.
Small, colorful Victorian houses characterize Brighton’s cityscape
Source: dpa-tmn
Colorful are also many of the facades of the small Victorian-style houses that are so typical of Brighton. The tour by bus is worthwhile for an overview – the streets are steep and narrow. The noisy tourist bus also pushes its way through quiet residential areas. Doesn’t that annoy the local residents? An English lady waves cheerfully from the terrace. Also an answer.
Walk through the Kemptown neighborhood. A book about gay fathers and a guide for parents with trans children lie in the window of a bookstore. Inside, Remony Hart works. Brighton is not as conservative as London, says the 23-year-old. In the capital, people are always rushed.
More tips for holidays in England:
Further through the neighborhood: A bakery offers sourdough baking courses with a German baker, a shop sells clothing for dogs that is reminiscent of life jackets or hand luggage, and in a café you can choose between 37 types of juices and smoothies.
In chic Hove, which borders west of central Brighton and is home to wealthy people, judging by its Victorian boulevards, the streetscape is little different: a feminist bookshop here, an expensive wall paint shop there, greyhounds walking on leashes. Oat milk in the cafe is standard.
Elegant residences in chic Hove, which borders Brighton to the west
Source: dpa-tmn
In a window on Upper North Street called “Anna’s Museum,” you’ll find strange stuffed animals – including the spiny fur of a hedgehog. One does not know what is more disturbing: this sad remains of an animal, the description (“found in a drawer”) or the year of the find: 2022.
One of the oldest cinemas in England
Back to the past. One of the oldest cinemas in England is also in Brighton. The Duke of York’s Picturehouse showed the first film in 1910. Thoughts of the little stroller from the beach come to mind when looking at the program: All of Wes Anderson’s films are to be shown over a weekend – a 24-hour “Wes Festival”.
The Lanes is a maze of lanes full of pubs, cafes and shops in central Brighton
Source: dpa-tmn
The Lanes in the center are also worth a visit: Narrow and winding streets with special boutiques, Brighton’s oldest pub (“The Cricketers”), nice cafes and small restaurants. A pizzeria recommends eating quickly because the seagulls would already be lurking.
Walking is enough entertainment in Brighton, but tours can also be booked. The offer is as diverse as the city itself. For example, you can choose between an evening guided tour through the lanes on the tracks of ghosts, a fishing trip on the sea or night dining in the observation deck i360.
Approaching seagull: The birds like to compete for food with guests
Quelle: Getty Images/by Andrea Pucci
Not to be forgotten is the green countryside around Sussex, which invites you to extensive cycling and hiking tours. But it’s best to keep it simple – and follow Robert Russell. Because with all the hustle and bustle, the sea remains the main attraction.
also read
After work, residents and tourists alike gather on the long pebble beach – to fish, read, have a barbecue, flirt, go for a walk. Or, that’s still possible: just for swimming. Good Russell recommended diving in almost 300 years ago.
Tips and information:
Getting there: Direct train service from South London Gatwick Airport to Brighton. Travel time a good 30 minutes, single ticket from the equivalent of around twelve euros, southernrailway.com
Accommodation: “YHA Brighton Hostel”, rooms from 60 euros per night, yha.org.uk/hostel/yha-brighton; “The Grand Brighton”, rooms from 250 euros/night, grandbrighton.co.uk
Volk‘s Electric Railway: Trains run daily, starting at the Palace Pier near the Aquarium, tickets cost around 5.50 euros, volksrailway.org.uk
Information: visitbrighton.com
#Brighton #England #Quirky #charming #Europes #seaside #resort