Brighton 7 February 2013

I feel that I've been rather staid recently, mostly hanging out in the same parts of the countryside so when Judy arrived it was awesome to step out of what has quickly become a comfort zone and find some new sights.  West Sussex, here we come!

We caught the train to Brighton on what started out as a sunny day.

It hadn't even occurred to me to bring a hat - clueless I know!  The wind was howling - it is a city on the edge of the English Channel after all and it is midwinter - cold!  Hoping to warm up we took a brisk walk from the station down do the sea.  Hat shopping had to happen though - I'm acquiring a collection of hats this way.

Our first sight was of the Old Pier - in it's day it was incredibly popular. Between 1918 and 1919 more than 2 million visitors were recorded.  It was abandoned in 1975 and after two fires is now derelict but still iconic.

Walking along the beachfront I was strongly reminded of Durban - without the heat.  It has the same feel of a holiday seaside village - seagulls, amusement arcades, holidaymakers, candyfloss - lots of childhood memories.

Pebbled beach though - that's not cool!  Uncomfortable sun tanning to say the least.

And it appears, always a dedicated surfer ...

The Brighton Pier calls you - warmth, music, movement, delicious smells, laughter.

Judy made a new friend - meet Frank.

Fantastically colourful horses and calliope music.

We had a look around the casino, but it's not really our thing.

I suppose there are some foolish enough to try swimming off the pier, but not today, the water was not inviting in the least.

The view back to Brighton

Look up ...

White cliffs in the distance - with Dayne & Matt arriving soon and summer apparently arriving sometime, here's somewhere to explore.

Fresh doughnuts - the smell was irresistible!

Thinking that we would explore the lanes, until a squall of rain blew in off the sea,  instead it was find a bus quickly and have some more reasons to come back and explore.

Then it was time to head back.  Thanks for the great weekend Judy.