Holiday: Holiday in Brighton

Tuesday
On way to Brighton, had great idea to pop into Caterham Cars to take a look.   Sadly, Lynn took one look and declared she wasn't going to be able to sit in it...so have crossed Caterham off my car list

We also stopped at National Trust Wakehurst Place and had nice walk around the house & gardens and had lovely picnic sitting at one of the viewpoints.  Didn’t realize it was run by Kew Gardens so the gardens were spectacular (if you’re into that sort of thing)

Arrived in Brighton around 2:30pm and found our hotel.   Starting to spit as we go out for a walk, but have a nice cup of tea & cake.  

Walked up to the pier and back, getting back to the room around 5:30pm with a worn out Lynn!  Went out for dinner, ending up at Harry Ramsdens for our Fish & Chips, then back to the smallest pub in Brighton for a drink.

Wednesday

Had a disturbed night due to the “elephants” in the hotel, but mainly the Seagulls screaming at around 3:30am.  The awake at 7am when Lynn woke from her deep, uninterrupted sleep (lucky her!)  Had a nice breakfast, then out around 9am.   It was cloudy but warm, so had a walk around the shops, had a coffee, then wandered around North Laine area, then back down to the beach for a nice rest and ate our lunch there.

We then decided to walk up to the Marina, but is actually quite a long walk, so ended up getting the bus back to the east pier!    The approach to the marina itself is pretty grotty and looks like a 1960’s car park, but once inside the boundary is more what you expect.

Having got back from the Marina we needed another sit and rest with a nice cup of tea, before walking along the beach and then back to the hotel.   We found the car had a parking ticket, as it seems I parked in a residents bay rather than a pay and display bay, but will appeal that one as it was very confusing signage!

We decided to go see Bridesmaids at the local cinema (just up the road) which was very good… we both enjoyed the film, and is well worth seeing.    As we got out late, just had a Burger King for supper (really pushing the culinary boundaries )

Thursday
It’s Poker day 1 today but woke up tired, due to noisy hotel until midnight, then noisy Seagulls at 5am, then Lynn woke up at 7am.  We were up and out by 9am again, but this time it’s a lovely sunny day so went down to sit on the beach.   Had a small walk, then found lunch in the Italian Kitchen restaurant on the sea front.  It was OK, if a little un-imaginative, but wasn’t all that hungry with the pre-game nerves starting to kick in.

Went back to the room and got ready around 1pm and went to play Poker… with Lynn going off into The Lanes for her shopping trip.   Lynn didn’t buy anything as she was worn out and ended up sitting on the beach most of the afternoon.

I got back to the room around 2am

Friday
Woken up around 7:30am but managed to get a lie in until 8:30am.  Had a nice Full English breakfast and we were off to the beach for 10am to relax.  We had taken out full beach regalia with us this time as it was another glorious day, just a bit windy.  Luckily we had our chairs and wind break to make ourselves comfy and relax. 

Had a small walk around midday to find something for lunch, then went on the open top tour bus.  It was very busy, but worth doing as you do get to see a lot of the city quite quickly and easily.  The ticket is also valid for 48 hours so you can hop on and off as much as you like.

After all that excitement we needed and Ice Cream and rest on the beach again.   It was getting quite windy so got our chairs and windbreak out again and had a nice long rest.

For dinner we ended up in Pizza Hut ! then had a drink in the hotel bar before getting an early night

Saturday
Awake 7am after a lovely long sleep (at last!) although still feeling tired.   It’s day 2 for Poker and the weather is very windy and raining hard, so after breakfast go the short distance to the undercover shopping area.  It was heaving, so seems everyone had the same idea!

After a good look around we had a quick lunch before heading back to the room to get ready for Poker.

I wasn’t expecting to last very long, so Lynn came in with me and planned to go see Harry Potter film when I busted out.

As it turned out, I lasted until around 1:30am so Lynn had to amuse herself again.

Sunday
Woken up around 7am but don’t want to get out of bed   Have another Full English breakfast to build up the energy levels again and are out of the room homeward bound by around 10am.

Although the main reason for the visit to Brighton was the Poker, we certainly both felt we had a nice mini holiday as well… particularly the hot and sunny days we had!     It was a lovely break and although I don’t feel rested and refreshed, was glad we went and definitely enjoyed it!

Will do the same thing next year perhaps…