Grand Places and Special Occasions

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Geo: 50.8209, -0.139846

While in Guildford, we took advantage of seeing other places within England and also celebrated a few other special occasions within the period that I was based there.
A few day trips here and there and I was able to see more of the country and yet still a small percentage of the entire UK, but it's a good start.
One of the first places Anna and I went to was Brighton for our 11 month anniversary. The seaside town is famous for its rounded pebbled beaches, popular in the Summer months (When the sun does actually shine).
The unfortunate thing about being based in Guildford is that access to these places are not as direct as you would like. In most cases we had to go up to London and branch out from there.
Getting to Brighton form Guildford was pretty good though as we caught the train east to Gatwick Airport and then caught the adjoining line down to Brighton. We left early in the morning knowing that it would take some time to get there and the maximize the amount of time we had there.

The train station is a fair walk to the beach, but you just walk down the main street and there it is. We decided to visit the city first and stumbled on the most bizarre architecture that you would think of seeing in Brighton or England for that matter.
It's called the Royal Pavilion, a seaside retreat built in 1787 for King George. What makes it odd is the Indian style architecture, something totally out of place in the UK, but visually beautiful and different. I am sure the King would have had a seaside and coastal view back in the day, but in this modern society the Royal Pavilions view is predominantly obscured. We chose not to visit the inside and continued through the streets and "Lanes" of the town.
The Lanes are the alternative shopping streets of Brighton, the type I like, selling all sorts of products for all sorts of styles. My daily shop included a Tee shirt and sunglasses.
We had lunch on a small strip of grass and then proceeded to the direction of the beach, via town hall. I noticed that Brighton had a large amount of buses in the streets, giving the impression of a mini London. The weather was very good, blue sky but not overly hot. We made our way to the Brighton Pier with it's deck chairs and amusement park.
The beach is pretty nice and I can just imagine the congestion on a hot weekend. Overall I really enjoyed the feel and look of Brighton, definitely a place worth going for a visit.

Another special occasion although not much to do with me was the 50th anniversary of the Guildford Cathedral. We were in our room one night and all of a sudden heard loud bangs nearby. Everyone ran out the back to see what was happening which turned out to be fireworks. A small but impressive firework display made for some nice photo opportunities. Happy 50th Guildford Cathedral.

Stone Henge is one of the most well known sights in the world, random bits of stone forming a random shape in a random place. It's a nice thing to see, but that's all there is. The stones lie in the middle of a field with nothing but countryside to accompany it but iI guess that's what adds to the beauty of it. I would recommend seeing it if you were interested and motivated because getting there can be a bit of a hassle via public transport if you don't have a car.
I was lucky enough to go with my friend Bec and her partner who had a car, so we drove directly from Guildford. It took a fair while to get to, over two hours, and it was a great buzz when all of a sudden you come to the top of a small hill and there it was, just magically exploding in to the landscape.
Upon arrival you buy a ticket and get a free audio guide. You get a nice understanding about Stone Henge as you circle the sight anticlockwise.

Guildford had been my base since January but there were still areas I had not been too yet, and one of those areas was along the canal. Anna and I were keen for a walk so we took a walk along the canal where the canal narrow boats are plentiful and popular with people who want a cruise down stream to the surrounding towns. I was impressed by the greenery and surrounding vegetation which it basically lead us to the outskirts of the town. We noticed you were able to hire rowing boats which we were keen to try.

A special occasion that everyone in a relationship will go through is the one year anniversary. I am happy to say that Anna and I have now been together for a year and we treated ourselves to a little bed and breakfast in Guildford. We then took the opportunity to row down the canal for a couple of hours, with lovely weather and lovely company. We continued the special day with a gorgeous dinner at one of the local pubs in Guildford called The White House. A very special day with a very special person in my life. To be able to share these experiences with Anna has been the icing on the cake and the memories will last a life time.

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