We did venture out briefly to try to catch the sunset. I think we either missed it or the sun was wrapped in clouds, preventing a fully fledged sunset.

Looking west along the promenade

A red sky at night is proverbially a promise of fine weather on the morrow. Let’s hope the promise is fulfilled.

Pink sky over the Palace Pier

Even looking south, we could see pink clouds. Let it be fine tomorrow!

Another look to the west

Notice the dark shape in the sea roughly in the centre of the picture.

Wreck of the West Pier

Brighton was known as a resort with two piers, the Palace Pier and the West Pier. Compared with the raucous entertainments of the Palace Pier, the West Pier was the genteel cousin, a pier for strolling on rather than guzzling ice-cream and candy floss and playing the slot machines. Brighton could happily accommodate both but the West Pier was allowed to deteriorate. It closed in 1975 and succumbed to a fire (probably deliberate, though no one has ever been held responsible) in 2003. I have been on the West Pier many times and feel very sad at the sight of its charred ruin.

At around 4:30 pm, we felt that we were ready for lunch and set out to see what was on offer. It turned out to be that awkward time when cafes were closing and restaurants were not yet open.

The Druid’s Head-

We eventually found ourselves in Brighton Place and in front of a pub called the Druid’s Head. The menu posted beside the door included beer battered halloumi with chips and mushy peas.

Inside the Druid’s Head

That was enough to tempt us in and we easily found a table (number 17, if you wish to know!). We ordered our food and a pot of tea for two.

Beer battered halloumi and chips
Photo by Tigger

It is served with a little bowl of tartare sauce and you can have garden peas instead of mushy peas, if you prefer.

Chapel Royal

Afterwards, we went for a stroll, passing, among other landmarks, the 18th-century Chapel Royal, once a prominent church because of its connections with the Prince Regent and his set.

TK-Maxx

Finding ourselves in North Street, we went into the branch of TK-Maxx there to make a necessary purchase. I mentioned that the hotel does not provide towels. It also does not provide a bath mat for when you step out of the shower. We therefore sought to provide our own. Rather than buy an expensive bath map, we bought a £3 towel that we can use at home as a hand-towel.

Sainsbury’s for supper

We may have escaped Sainsbury’s yesterday but it caught up with us today: we went to a Sainsbury’s Local to buy some items for tonight’s supper.

Holy Trinity

Continuing on, we passed the imposing Holy Trinity Church. Built in the early 19th century (consecrated in 1816), it finally closed as a church in 1984, taking on other roles, latterly that of art gallery.

Ship Street

We followed the evocatively named Ship Street down to the sea front

The sun shining between clouds
Photo by Tigger

The rain clouds had disappeared and the sun shone on and off between white clouds. I hope this is an omen of better weather to come.

Sunshine on the beach

This view along the beach to the Palace Pier looked a lot more cheerful than the similar view I had photographed earlier in the day. There was, though, quite a strong breeze blowing, enough to put one’s hat in danger of flying away.

We now turned for home (if a temporary lodging can be called “home”), where we shall probably stay till tomorrow. Tigger has said something about photographing the sunset and if ever we do go out again I shall duly note it here.

It is Monday and we are off on a trip to the destination in the title. We are spending four nights in this famous Regency-flavoured city.

Back at EL & N

We have returned to St Pancras Station and to EL & N where we had breakfast while again watching the Eurostar queue file past.

Coffee and croissants

I don’t need to tell you what we had for breakfast but the photo tells you if you are new to our little foibles!

The Thameslink Southbound platform

After our pleasant repast, we made our way down to the Thameslink platforms. Our train for Brighton was due at 9:50.

Aboard the Brighton train

The train arrived on time and we went on board. Despite it being a weekday, the train was not at all crowded, as you can see.

Bridge gazebo
Photo by Tigger

We always look out for this bridge with gazebos at either end.

Arriving at Brighton

I spent the first two decades of my life in Brighton so every return to this lovely city is a sort of homecoming. I am waylaid by memories at every turn.

The Bystander Cafe

We always used to visit a certain cafe near the station but today found it had closed down. Instead, we went to the Bystander Cafe. Perhaps we will adopt it!

Tea and buttered toast
Photo by Tigger

We had tea and buttered toast. Does that surprise you? 🙂

Gardner Street

We walked down the hill from the station and passed along the famous Gardner Street, which forms the heart of Brighton’s “alternative” culture. As you can see, the weather is wet though it’s not (yet) raining heavily.

An old law court

We went by this old law court which is now converted into offices, I think.

The Royal Pavilion

I gained my first glimpse of the remarkable Royal Pavilion (“Indian outside, Chinese inside”). Originally a royal possession, it now belongs to Brighton who is engaging in a long, careful process of restoration, making useful historical discoveries along the way.

The Old Town Hall

Not as beautiful but still interesting in its way is the old Georgian period Town Hall, built in 1830-32 and now a Grade II listed building.

The Lanes

The network of narrow passages called The Lanes is famous for its shops, especially those for jewellery and antiques.

Pier, beach, sea

Then down to the seafront for our first look at the sea, the well-known shingle beach (sand is for sissies!) and the pier. These days this is misnamed “Brighton Pier” but all true Brightonians call it by its real name, Palace Pier.

Pool Valley

This street is called Pool Valley. This is appropriate as it lies in a hollow. (Perhaps the name Pool is deserved too – see here.) This used to be a bus station for the green and cream Southdown Buses which ran from 1915 until the company was bought out in 1969. Much of Pool Valley’s surface has been covered with paving stones though some buses still call here.

Here comes the rain
Photo by Tigger

We went back to the hotel and sat in the lounge/cafe. Our room is being made ready. We will have to go out for lunch at some point but it is now raining determinedly.

Our room
Photo by Tigger

At 3 pm on the dot, we received the electronic key to our room. The room’s amenities are, shall we say, basic, but we have everything we need. In particular, there are enough electric power points and they are sensibly located, e.g. there is one each side of the bed, handy for our phones.

I can now explain that visit to the Mountain Warehouse (see Hampstead Heath): this hotel does not supply towels free though you can hire them. So we bought our own microfibre towels (designed for camping) to bring with us.

We are having a little rest now and later we will venture forth for a late lunch.

We are not performing our usual shopping run to Sainsbury’s this week for reasons that I will explain later. Instead…

Aboard the 476

…we caught a number 476 bus.

St Pancras Station

The bus brought us to St Pancras Station which looked its splendid best in the sunshine.

The concourse, St Pancras

We entered the station in search of somewhere to have breakfast. Many places were crowded and so we headed to EL & N.

Coffee and croissants
Photo by Tigger

We were happy to find that EL & N was not busy. We ordered our usual coffee and croissants and sat in one of the small booths along the wall.

Inside EL & N

EL & N is quite small though it has tables both inside and outside.

The Eurostar queue

There was a long, slow-moving queue for the Eurostar, all along the concourse. As we consumed our breakfast, we watched the queue file slowly past the windows.

A work of art?

In a corner of the cafe is this display, presumably a work of art on the theme of travel to France, though what the French might think of being symbolised by a perky French Poodle, I don’t know.

Passing through King’s Cross Station

Afterwards we walked through King’s Cross Station (which is just across the street from St Pancras) with its striking tree-shaped roof support.

Celebrating 170 years
Photo by Tigger

This display celebrates the station’s 170 years of existence.

Aboard the 73

We walked up the road to the baggage shop, where Tigger hoped to purchase an item, but we found it closed. The notice indicated that it would open at 12, so we planned to return later. In the meantime, we caught a 73 bus and returned home.

After resting for a while, we returned to the luggage shop. Unfortunately, they did not have what Tigger wanted.

The Cutting Bar

We caught a bus back and came here, to the Cutting Bar in White Lion Street. We are once more synchronised as far as haircuts are concerned and so we both went under the shears today.

Inside the Cutting Bar
Photo by Tigger

We had a little while to wait but not too long, happily. It is a no-frills service but the standard of work is as good as you would find at a conventional (more expensive) barber’s. (Neither of us is in the picture, in case you are wondering!)

Cash – still required

The Cutting Bar is one of a small number of businesses which accept only cash. After paying for our haircuts, I had very little cash left and, as I like to keep a small amount in case of need, I replenished my meagre stock at an ATM. I can’t remember when I last drew out any cash. I think the Cutting Bar is the only place where I ever need it.

Starbuck’s

On the way home, we passed the local branch of Starbuck’s. Tigger fancied a coffee so we went in. We bought a coffee for Tigger and sandwiches for lunch. No coffee for me as I don’t like Starbuck’s brew and preferred to make tea at home.

Tomorrow is Monday but will not be like our usual Mondays but I will tell you about it in due course… 🙂

The weather was not promising when we started out this morning.

Cloudy skies in Amwell Street

p>Notwithstanding the cloudy skies, we headed to the deli for coffee and were able to grab a table.

Coffee for two
Photo by Tigger

While we were a-coffeeing, the clouds parted and the sun shone… for a while. It continually alternated between clouds and sunshine.

Upper Street

Afterwards, we set off along Upper Street as we had an errand to run.

Mountain Warehouse

Our destination was a shop selling articles for hikers, campers and climbers.

Inside Mountain Watehouse

This is not really my kind of shop but there was a particular item that I needed. We found it and bought it. (More about that in a later post.)

Aboard the 214

We took our purchases home and then caught a number 214 bus.

Entrance to Parliament Hill Fields

We left the bus in Highgate Road near an entrance to Parliament Hill Fields, part of Hampstead Heath.

Laz Bistro Restaurant

Nearby were two restaurants, Al Parco and Laz. We know both and today plumped for Laz.

Pizza Fiorentina

We chose a vegetarian Fiorentina pizza each. Every pizzeria makes the Fiorentina slightly differently but, whoever makes it, it is usually delicious.

Into the park

Afterwards, we entered the park and climbed up the slope that gives the Hill its name.

Lower pond

The Heath has several ponds and we tarried a while beside this one which is the lowest. We had a few bits and bobs for the ducks and coots which made us popular for a while!

Heron fishing
Photo by Tigger

On a small, possibly artificial, island, we could see a heron watching for fish. It was a long way out so the photo is not very clear.

Pigeon refuge

There were pigeons too but, unlike the ducks and coots who can feed on the water, pigeons can only alight on dry land. Because of the coming and going of people, the pigeons stayed perched on a branch watching enviously as we fed the water fowl. I did managed to give food to one of the pigeons, though.

The hilly path-

Afterwards we had a long climb up a hilly path.

A view of the City

We reached the top where there is a clear view to the distant City whose tall buildings stand on the horizon like a row of broken teeth.

Patches of buttercups

There were flowers in the grass, particularly large patches of bright yellow buttercups.

Looking back

From the top, we continued down towards the streets of Hampstead. In the lower reaches, there were more people sitting out on the grass including some quite large groups.

Out into Nassington Road

We left the Heath by a gate into Nassington Road. This is a long road that slopes upwards and after our previous climb, proceeding up it was hard work.

Hampstead Heath Station-

We emerged at Hampstead Heath Station in the South End Green district of Hampstead. I was relieved that our path was now downhill!

Inside Starbuck’s

We thought of going to a cafe for refreshments and a rest. Most places seemed crowded and we ended up in Starbuck’s which is far from being a favourite of mine though Tigger seems to like it.

Iced coffee and tea

Tigger had iced coffee but I preferred tea to Starbuck’s coffee. Even this was not very good as it was over-strong and stewed. I drank only a small amount.

Drinking fountain, South End Green

We now made for a bus stop, passing this beautiful Victorian (1880) drinking fountain. Unsurprisingly, it is a Grade II listed building.

Aboard the 46

We just missed the bus we wanted but we saw a 46 arrive. This would take us part of the way so we hurried and managed to catch it.

Changing at Kentish Town

We changed buses at Kentish Town. The building on the left with the black superstructure used to be, first, the North-Western Polytechnic and, later, part of the Polytechnic of North London. I was a lecturer here for a number of years before moving to the main precinct in Holloway Road where I spent 9 happy years lecturing in computer science.

Obsolete sign

Although this sign still advertises Indian food, that business it belonged to disappeared years ago. One evening when it still existed, we went in and tried to have a meal. The rather eccentric owner looked us up and down and remarked that he didn’t serve just anybody. In the impasse that followed, I happened to remark that I used to be a lecturer at the poly across the road. Unwittingly, I had pronounced the magic password and he thereupon agreed to serve us! After that one experience, though, we never returned. I shall never know whether my “password” would have worked a second time!

Aboard the 214

A 214 eventually arrived at the stop and we went aboard to be carried back to the Angel, completing today’s outing.