Brighton beach is known for lots of things, but the first thing that comes to mind for me is the Stray Cats… there’s a rumble in Brighton tonight. I’ve always loved that song, so naturally I listened to Stray Cats the entire train ride to Brighton and back.
When the train pulled in to the station I had been sitting down for 2 hours, so I decided to walk to the pier from the station. It’s about a 1 mile walk and on the stroll you pass North Laine, which is full of small shops and cafes. I loved being in Brighton first thing in the morning because the streets were empty and absolutely adorable. I stopped at Loving Hut to get a full vegan English breakfast and it was delicious. I’m glad that the full breakfast was good because after my experience with fish and chips, I was a little nervous.
After snacks and shopping in North Laine I walked to the Royal Pavilion, which is beautiful Asian-style palace built for King George IV. I did not expect to see a giant palace in the middle of Brighton, so naturally I paused my walk to the pier and surveyed the architecture and surrounding garden for awhile. The palace is now a museum and if I had extra time I would have loved to explore it for awhile. I guess I’ll have to save that for next time around.
When I finally made it to the pier I was excited to see that everything was open and ready to ride. I spent so much money on amusement park rides and I don’t care that I did it all alone. If it’s weird to ride solo at an amusement park in your 20’s, then I’m weird and happy. I did every ride on the pier and the best one, by far, is the Booster. It’s on the very edge of the pier and it spins you in circles and upside down over the edge of the water.
After I significantly upset my stomach on the drop zone ride I walked down to the beach and laid out for a little rest and relaxation. Once I walked down to the shore I was greeted by another thing I didn’t expect in Brighton, rocks instead of sand. After I got past the mental barrier of a rock beach instead of a sand beach, it was actually quite nice. After a few minutes I fell asleep on the hot stones and hoped the seagulls wouldn’t attack me during my nap.
After resting, or not, on a beach full of rocks I walked around the shops and random streets in The Lanes. At one point during my wandering I passed by an artist painting a picture of the street I had just walked down. It was an interesting meta moment and I loved it. For dinner I went to Purezza and got a delicious wood fired and plant based pizza. Once I was full of pizza I headed back to the train station and took the last train back to London. I spent the entire 2 hour train ride listening to the Stray Cats, questioning whether the rumble in Brighton was their stomachs after riding the Booster or the rocks against the shore.
