31 July Brighton

Today we went to Brighton to meet up with a friend from Jeddah, Ellie and have a look around. The weather finally decided to show its true British (summer) colours and the photos at least prove that I was in the country (not just photoshopping things) as we woke once again to blustery, misty/damp conditions, although it was not raining as it did the day before.

The train was late due to someone being hit by a train a few stations up from here and an earlier signal problem - the only time we have had issues with trains running more than a few minutes late whilst we have been here. We arrived and walked down from the station to the shorefront.

The remains of the old pier that burnt down

The pier in the mist

Not exactly beach weather - it was pretty rough

The walkway along the seafront

We walked along towards Brighton Pier in search of doughnuts to feed the ravening hoard (Jacob) and were successful at the entrance to the Pier. They were fresh and hot (although no cinnamon sugar as per Australia) and I handed the out - after taking my own out I was suddenly 'attacked' by 2 dive-bombing seagulls that snatched the doughnut out of my hands! A short time later another gull came in behind Ethan, landed on his shoulder and attempted to get his doughnut too! There were plenty of signs around about not feeding the birds, but they don't need to be fed - they help themselves!!!

We spent over an hour on the pier, the boys played some of the 'games', feeding 2p pieces into them in an attempt to win a prize. Jacob won some tickets on one game and so they did at least walk away with something! The rides were mostly running, despite the gusty winds and mist - but as we had been to Legoland we didn't ride them! From the Pier we headed into "The Lanes" a rabbit warren of streets with many different shops and cafes, ending at an "English Pub" for lunch.

Interactive puppet show at the museum

The Pavilion

Full with lovely food we walked through the lanes some more and over to the Pavilion. We ventured into the local museum that was housed in the Dome, finding some very interesting artworks and collections of local memorabilia and information. After coffee we headed for home - it was a really great day with Ellie catching up of everything that had been happening.