It’s a truth universally acknowledged that we travel the world while leaving our own backyard unexplored. I’ve seen very little of the UK despite spending most of my life here, choosing instead to go to more exotic destinations for weekend breaks and longer holidays. Now I’m resolved to turn my attention to this great nation, exploring more of London and beyond…
First up, Brighton: a seaside resort since the 18th century, it’s been called “The Queen of Watering Places” (Horace Smith), “one of the best physicians” (William Makepeace Thackeray), and “London-by-the-sea”. Alas, the weather was not quite beach-worthy on Sunday, but that just meant that it was cool enough to walk around all day exploring the city…
Sunday was the day of the London to Brighton bike ride, and the streets were filled with bikers arriving at their final destination. It was also World Naked Bike Ride day. Luckily for me, though, Brighton had chosen to do the naked bike ride the previous weekend, so riders on this day were fully clothed in gorgeous lycra. Some were dressed as smurfs, but smurfs with clothes on, thank goodness.
Brighton is also sometimes referred to as “the gay capital of Europe”, most evident perhaps in the artsy Kemptown area, where I spotted one or two elderly gents with blonde pigtails and pink cardigans. I also witnessed a brawl, which was very exciting. (Don’t people have better things to do than to punch each other? Life is short, people!)
It’s a city full of history and colour, and I can only imagine it comes to life even more on a sunny summer’s day…
