Brighton Beach Memories

We took a great little daytrip to Brighton the other week. Just a 45 minute train ride from Victoria Station, it's on England's southern coast, along the English Channel and a (long) stone's throw from the northern coast of France. The beaches are in fact all stone, tailor-made for boys with a penchant to skip rocks if not for sunbathers craving the feel of sand between their toes.

For a mental image of classic Brighton, think of the last scene of the Remains of the Day when Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson had their rendez-vous, boardwalk stroll, and heart-wrenching goodbye. Indeed, Brighton's centerpiece is a classic boardwalk pier, built in the late 19th century (1879?) and just like you'd imagine it. Sort of. Fast forward from simpler, slower post-war Britain to 2008, the pier is about as classy as Ocean City, Maryland. But there's nothing wrong with some cheesy fun, filled with air hockey, bumper cars ("dodge 'ems" in England), and lots and lots of candy. On a sunny though gusty day, the boys had a ball riding all the rides and (hopefully without sounding too boastful) I totally dominated the adult bumper cars. It's an extreme sport imho, but apparently the gaggle of young women with whom I shared the rink hadn't been thinking in those terms. Caveat emptor.

Post-boardwalk, we walked all around Brighton, which actually was a lovely little town. The annual arts fair was taking place, so there were tons of people out and with a number of pedestrian streets or regular streets blocked off for the fair, it was easy to stroll. Some of the off-streets had numerous small, hip boutiques. We enjoyed a basic Italian dinner of pizza and pasta and even with a large Italian beer (Messina - Tom's namesake town!), the total was just $45 (dollars, not pounds), a somewhat normal pricetag that quickly reminded us what a rip-off most of London is. We'll be back.