Brighton Wonders

Brighton, the city of colour and vibrance, where every local is bubbling with a mellow charisma who welcomes you upon your arrival, one of my favourite places on a summers day. Stepping out of the train station and you become part of the busy hustle on the high streets, with focused pedestrians on their way to work, having a glamorous shopping spree, or simply exploring the sights. However a trip began with a slight fail, with Brighton being on the larger scale, we struggled to find our way to the famous North Laine, but with the help of staff in nearby coffee shops and plenty of free maps, we entered the North Laine in high spirits.

The North Laine is popularly known for its bohemian perception, with the faint distinctive smells of 'matured' clothing shall we say and ageing books. Retro shops are on every corner selling vintage Levi jeans and the wackiest patterned shirts treasured inside. You are treated to many many restaurant, diners and cafes when you want to have your midday pit stop from exploring, on my visit we indulged for the Gourmet Burger Kitchen, in which the burgers were UN-REAL, unfortunately there is no charming way to eat a burger, however I tried but failed, there were no regrets though as it was an insane burger. Much to our joy, we stumbled upon a Photo Booth emporium whilst exploring and what trip skips an opportunity to have a Photo Booth photo!

My favourite thing about the North Laine is that every entrancing street you go down, you are never afar from the glitz and glam of Brighton, with joyous bunting hanging above you, coffee shops selling unique and mouthwatering flavours of cake, juxtaposed with the antique stores of vintage treasures that would lead to your parents coming out with the classic line " Oh my god, I haven't seen these for years!" or "we had these when I was a kid!". Following these stores were prime graphic novel and retro record stores, which were always jam packed with people looking for which timeless possession they could get their hands on next. A district that takes you back through time.

Our next adventure was to find ' The Lanes', which was quite literally hidden inside Brighton, as walking down the main high streets, you have to look at the right time to find the concealed slipway to the maze you are about to enter. When I say a maze, I don't mean it metaphorically, as you are quite literally greeted with lanes upon lanes of shops, going in all different directions, you walk down one street and you have to quickly decide if you want to keep on going or turn left! Secluded in the depths of the lanes, was of course the famous

'Choccywoccydoodah", a chocolate galore. Stepping inside the store (or should I say, fighting our way through) the heavenly essence filled my nostrils, and is if on cue, my feet rose from the floor, floating around the shop in my element. Chocolate was left right and centre, even chocolate wedding cakes! Much to my excitement, The Lanes had many unique homeware shops and quirky
independent shops, that are one of my beloved shops to go into, I could spend hours looking at novelty gifts or exclusive home accessories I could fill my bedroom with, I was very content browsing from shop to shop.

And finally, what Brighton trip is complete without a visit to Brighton Pier. The hike down to the pier was a true struggle as the
winds were treacherously forceful, every step we took blew us back. And don't even get my started on my hair, the entire journey was blinded by the hair wrapped round my face, I definitely wasn't going for the electrocuted attire when I left this morning! However we fought through this and the view at the end of the light was phenomenal, with the choppy waves crashing onto the pebble beach that outstretched for miles, and there it was, the famous Brighton Pier. With its eccentric arcade and distant fairground screams from the rides, our trip was complete. Of course we had to splurge out and have an ice cream by the beach to complete our adventure, and whats better than an ice cream from Boho Gelato, containing the most incredible flavours of ice-cream, from custard cream flavour all the way to mojito for you cocktail lovers! I went with the banoffee pie ice cream and certainly wasn't disappointed!

All in all, moping back to the train station after the longest day of getting lost and exploring, I left the city with a smile on my face and a dazzling shine with the charismatic atmosphere I had been welcomed to, The day was one to remember.

Until next time x