I am still alive, but exams are looming im afraid! Hope you're all well, and hopefully speak soon!
I am still alive, but exams are looming im afraid! Hope you're all well, and hopefully speak soon!
Member since:23.01.2003
Reviews:65
Members who trust:55
Although im not actually living in Brighton at the moment because im away at University, I do have a great loyalty and admiration for the place, which is why im writing this op. By the way, if you're wondering why im a uni student staying in to write opinions on a Friday night rather than being out "on the piss" with the lads, it's simply cos last night was extremely messy - I don't make a regular habit of staying in at weekend's! Anyway before I get sidetracked any more, here goes:
Until last October, ive lived in Brighton since birth. To be quite honest, I was pretty sad to leave come last October when I started my university course as I have so many good friends, as well as my close family in Brighton. In fact I think it's going to be quite difficult to summarise why Brighton's such a great place in this op as there's simply so many good things you can say about the place.
As a young person, there's always been plenty to do in Brighton. The town centre is vibrant, with a vast array of shop's, both highstreet brands, as well as plenty of interesting yet expensive independent shops in the laines. As a shopaholic, Brighton is a great place to live, especially since the new ChurchillSquare shopping centre was opened a couple of years back. Brighton is also home
to 3 cinemas (It was 4 until recently, but unfortunately the abc closed down) showing all of the latest films, as well as the classics.
As an avid sportsman myself, the wide array of facilities and opponents in Brighton have been a godsend over the years. As a tennis player, there's a huge number of clubs to choose from, most of which cater for all ability levels. Furthermore, ive never had a shortage of opponents to play against, which meant I was rarely bored as a teenager.
Personally, I think one of the best things about Brighton is the clubbing scene, which really is second to none. Because of the sheer number of clubs, and club nights on offer, there's something to cater for everything, even for the most diverse of tastes. From Chopper Choons at the Zap on Wednesday to indie night in The Gloucester on Friday I guarantee you'll find something to cater for your own personal taste.
Not only are the clubs great however, the bars and pubs are pretty good too. Last time I checked I was told that Brighton is home to around 600 pubs, although unfortunately because of the sheer number, I havent been to most of them! The town centre is home to many pre-club bars, most of which offer drinks promotions during the week, so it can be a pretty cheap destination for a cheap night out. My personal favourite is The Prodigal on Wednesday which offers a wide selection of drinks for only a pound!
Although im at university in Exeter myself, I can imagine that Brighton would be a pretty cool place to study. The University of Sussex has been around since the 1960's, and is located extremely close to the south downs, making it an extremely green and attractive campus. The university of Sussex's reputation has also been improving immensely in recent years, now making it a popular option for some of the brightest students.
Although The University of Brighton does not possess such a good academic reputation, it's still a popular university, and was voted university of the year in the Times good university guide, a couple of years back. However, if you're thinking of studying in Brighton be warned - it can be quite an expensive place to live!
Because of it's close proximity to London, property prices in Brighton have skyrocketed in recent years to well above the national average. In fact a recent report found that Brighton is the second most expensive place to attend university, behind London. Depending on where about's you want to live, it's now almost impossible to pick up even a small studio flat in the City for less than £100,000.
One thing that ive always admired about Brighton is its diversity. No matter what category you fit into, very few people will judge you here. Although many of you will know of Brighton as "the gay capital of Europe", the gay population is not as substantial as you may at first think. Personally I have no problem with gay's at all as I'm quite an open-minded fellow, however if you do then I recommend that you avoid the city's gay pride festival which is enjoyed by over 50,000 gay and lesbians each year.
Although for most of the time Brighton could be described as an extremely friendly and "open-minded" place to live, unfortunately it does have quite a few significant social problems which I feel I must mention in this op in order to allow you to form an unbiased view of the place. As many of you may already know, Brighton has a huge homelessness problem, second only to London I think. Obviously this has not been helped in any way by the recent house price boom which has made the situation even worse.
Secondly, unfortunately Brighton possesses quite a serious drug problem, although most people will rarely come across this I must stress. Thirdly, unfortunately Brighton can become quite a dangerous place at night, although I myself have never been affected by this. I have always found that if you keep yourself to yourself, you'll get few problems, however frighteningly, you do still hear of the occasional unprovoked attack. Still, most areas of Brighton are extremely safe places to live although there are a couple of council estates that I would not set foot in, in a million years!
Anyway, enough about the bad points. I forgot to mention earlier that the quality of restaurants, and take-aways in Brighton is superb. Whatever your pallate, you'll find plenty to interest you. Whether you're into Italian, Chinese, Indian, or simply good old English grub, the quality of restaurants in Brighton could simply be described as breathtaking. And it doesen't cost an arm or a leg either, there's plenty of places where you can happily eat out for under £10 per head.
I really have enjoyed every minute of growing up in Brighton, and im almost certain i'll return after graduating in a couple of years time. There's so much to cater for even the most diverse of tastes so what are you waiting for?
p.s. I thought I should mention that Brighton is an excellent place to live if you commute to London on a daily basis. It's far cheaper to live in than the capital (although it's not cheap as such), and the road and rail link's with London are excellent.
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Tom - I've never been into the clubbing thing, so that bit I couldn't relate to. Any good pubs / restaurants? Hope you are enjoying Exeter - it's a nice town and I recommend the Hotel Barcelona (hmmmn - perhaps I should do an Op on it..)
pumfster 11.03.2003 21:26
Great op mate. I have been in Brighton for the last 3 years in Sussex uni and have had a great time. One added advantage is that it is near to Gatwick so I can get over and see my girlfriend in Irealnd quite cheaply and easily.
Melissah 08.03.2003 22:20
Glad u like Exeter so much, I'm originally from Brighton but I left last September; u don't know HOW much I regret ever leaving for...stinking GREENWICH!
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Advantages: good variety of artwork, absolutely free unless you buy some artwork,you get to see some lovely houses, meet some friendly artists Disadvantages: you can't see them all, can be a bit tiring trekking around Brighton!
Mar 8th, 2003
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