SUN AND SEA....BUT NO SAND!

It doesn't matter what the occasion is, when there's a long weekend holiday in the UK it's called a Bank Holiday, and the August BH is a very special one for the south coast city of Brighton. Each year, hundreds of people, reliving the 1960's when Mods ruled the roads on their Vespas and Lambrettas, descend upon the seaside town to celebrate the era.

Sounds good, so the LegsyBoys piled into Concord for the short 90 minute drive. It was nearing sunset when we arrived and so we strolled along the beachside promenade leading towards the town centre and the famous Brighton Pier. 

Things are very different to the Australian definition of beach. Like it's (Brighton) counterpart in Melbourne, there are scores of bathing boxes, the difference being they're located on the edge of the road and not the beach.

Excellent advice!

Strange concept of grass!

And there is the major difference - there is no sand, instead the complete foreshore consists of rocks, which sort of makes bringing a bucket and spade somewhat redundant; calling it a beach is somewhat fanciful. Then there's the twilight aroma. Anyone familiar with Bali will know the unusual smell of beach BBQ's, and surprisingly it is the same at Brighton. This is due to myriad groups of people clustered around disposable instant barbeques in aluminium trays - regrettably there are a lot of people who don't take their rubbish with them!

The sunset is beautiful and by the time we get to the pier darkness has descended, and so we find a bistro for dinner and then walk back to our hotel for the night.

The Birdcage, bandstand circa 1884

There is a quirkiness to Brighton that suggests another time, whether it's art deco architecture or modes of transport.

After breakfast by the seashore, we make our way into The Lanes, a maze of tiny streets filled with unusual retail outlets and cafes.

The Castle Fine Art Gallery was particularly amazing, with artwork by both Ronnie Wood and Bob Dylan for sale.

Hendrix by Dylan

Dulcinea's been here before whilst working (likely story!) and recommends having a coffee at the Marwood Cafe; Don Legsy warily agrees.

It's a very funky little establishment run by a couple of Australians, which immediately lowers the tension, and the coffee is ordered - it's GREAT!

To clinch the deal, there's also a tabletop SPACE INVADERS game!! Put it in the Quest diary - Marwood Cafe Brighton is right up there!!!

Next to The Lanes is another snazzy shopping precinct called North Laine and it too is vibrant.

Que???

As we stroll along we have our first encounter Mods who are gathering for a Small Faces tribute band show. The scooters are amazing, a portent of things to come.

Close by is the Brighton Museum, Theatre Royal and the extraordinary Royal Pavilion, it's some kinda holiday house!

Max Miller

Next up we make our way to Brighton Pier where Dulcinea and Don L enjoy a well earned vino blanco whilst los ninos while away the hours on the carnival rides.

Everyone's in high spirits as we leave (Aimee with the giant banana she won!), and have another chance encounter with some ageing Mods and machines.

Wee're at the seaside so it seems right to have seafood, and we decide the plaice (haha, get it!!) to try is the aptly named Fish And Chips on Kings Road - MISTAKE!! Supposedly in business for over 40 years, it's the worst f&c I've ever had...go figure. A subsequent check of online reviews seems to reinforce our sentiments - pity we didn't check beforehand!

The following day we've received a tip that the foreshore is to be awash in scooters ridden by men (and women) dressed as 60's Mods - all of whom are well past the fancy dress stage of life. And so after brunch we walk along the promenade and...bingo, a truly incredible sight. There were hundrerds of the little suckers, some plain, some with multiple mirrors and lights, there were foxtails and there were some with spectacular paintwork, it was brilliant.

Some have seen better days!!

We stayed for several hours before departing Brighton and headed towards Seaford hoping to find a way to the coastline to have a look at the Seven Sisters, the spectacular (but lesser known) white cliffs alternative to Dover, unfortunately we couldn't make the walk at this time due to injury. Instead, we head a few miles north to see the Long Man Of Wilmington, a 72 metre long perfectly proportioned (from ground level eyesight) figure carved into the chalk and originally thought to have dated back to the neolithic age (although more recent evaluation dates it only to the 16th century!!).

Finally, we pop in to the beautifully preserved village of Alfriston, and it really is postcard stuff. We decide to have dinner here at the 16th century Star Inn before making the drive back home.

The Star Inn

Short and sweet, we had a terrific weekend in Brighton. the LegsyBoys all highly recommend it as a destination on your tourism agenda. There's plenty to do and see for young and old alike, mind you, some sand wouldn't go astray!!