A to Z of Brighton

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A to Z of Brighton
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June 2013
Vitali Roubtsov, Lauriane Granmagnat, Héloïse Gauthereau, Thomas
Maugeais, Pierre-Alain Emo, Jérôme Radal
At the Louvre museum. From left to right (Vitali, Pierre-Alain, Héloïse, Jérôme, Lauriane)
1
Accommodation
First step in Brighton: find a place to live!
It’s not so difficult as you think but abandon the idea of renting a house together because it’s 6
months minimum, except of course if you start to live in Brighton in August. So you have several
choices to find an accommodation:
-
Go to the accommodation office linked to the university (in Moulsecoomb campus) and
ask for a homestay.
Go on the Internet (for example Gumtree, Easyroomates, Studentpad) to post a
message about your situation (student, length of your stay….)
Stay in a hostel. It will be hard at the beginning but if you are sure to stay several
months, you can ask the owner of the inn to have your own room.
Belushi’s and its Burger
The Belushi’s is a pub near the Brighton Pier. They serve delicious burgers. You can also have a drink
with friends until 2 am but for burger it’s over around 8 o’clock so be quick. You could enjoy the
Karaoke night every single Thursday and parties almost every night.
There is the St. Christopher’s Inn upstairs, which is good but if you are on the first floor, the music
may be disturbing. You might have a great view of the Brighton Pier!
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City Travel
Buses, Coaches and Trains are Brighton’s circulatory system. Seeming to be the most regular and
efficient structure ever encountered, it displays a visceral and unexpected fear of the mighty
snowflake. During the first week of classes the students will have the opportunity to obtain a smart
Key card that can be charged online with quite an interesting student discount (£110 for 3 months).
Be wary of the winter’s breath though, because the service can be promptly shut down by the first
snow.
Disney Store
In the Churchill Square, you can find a lot of shops of different kinds and among them, the most
important: the DISNEY STORE!!!! You can buy gowns and pyjamas for the children, mugs, Disney
dolls, cushions and stuffed animals.
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English SIM card
You will need to have an unsimlock phone if you want to use an English SIM Card. You can unsimlock
it for free, three months after your purchase (if it’s blocked). You have to call your provider or to
check online how to do it.
You can get a “pay as you go” subscription that you just need to top-up every month or when you
don’t have balance anymore. This subscription is quite cheap: around £10/month is enough.
Fresher’s week
You’ve just arrived in your university and feel lost? Whether you’re just looking to meet people, take
a tour of the campus, or fancy a drink with your friends, the Freshers’ week will provide you with
everything you need during the exhausting task that is waiting for your vacation to come to an end.
That say, they’ll also take this opportunity to warn you about partying too hard during the year, but
you know you’ll succumb to it anyway.
Any fresher should go there; be it to make new friends, or just familiarize with your new
environment. It really helps not being stressed on your first real day of work.
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Gay Brighton
Brighton is the gay capital of England. Indeed this is decidedly the most open minded city among all
the cities in England. The gay district is called the St James district and is located right next to the Pier
and the seafront. The most popular Gay Bar and Night club is undoubtedly the “Revenge”, the best
place for socializing and dancing to some of Brighton’s best DJs.
Hove
As Western Road drifts westwards and turns into Church Road, a new land of opportunities emerges.
Hove is technically a part of Brighton but appears more as a settled, spiritually older version of it. It
seems rustic and dull, but when you know where to look, you can find pearls partying Londoners
have no eyes for. One of them is The Sussex Pub, at 17 St Catherines Terrace BN3 2RH, which is great
for relaxed and friendly evenings.
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Ice rink
Usually over Christmas there is an ice rink in front of the Royal Pavilion. There is also a restaurant and
a café. It is quite expensive for a one-hour session. During the night, the lights around the rink are
colorful and beautiful.
Don’t worry if you are not skilled: you can get a penguin skate.
6
Job
If you want to have a job, you have to hurry!
You have to go to the Job Centre in Edward Street and ask for an insurance number, without this
number you won’t be able to work. It takes at least two or three weeks before getting the number,
but you can start asking for a job just after having an appointment. It may be the first thing to do
when you arrive in Brighton. There are a lot of jobs in the town centre in cafés, pubs, etc… If you
speak another language you can try in foreign restaurants (Italian, Chinese, Indian…) or in American
Express office (there are some foreign language skills required, such as French).
Krispy Kreme (Doughnuts)
The American influence could not be better defined in this fair city than by a gigantic box of toothmelting sweetness, tightly packed in a polycoated white box sprinkled with the barista’s radiant
smile. Situated at 130 North St, BN1 1RG, this little piece of heaven offers a large selection of
doughnuts and bagels of all sorts, for as low as 66₵ a piece. Whether you seek to get in shape or eat
healthy, you cannot miss the one place that will make you say toodaloo to all that.
Lanes
The Lanes contain numerous narrow pedestrian alleyways with shops (there are several antique
shops), restaurants and luxury jewelers. The Lanes have several entrances.
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Marina
Located east of the city, it’s a most famous place in Brighton. Lots of people meet for entertainment:
whether you just want to watch a movie at the movie theater, enjoy a meal at one of the multiple
restaurants, or lose money at the casino, this is the place you want to go. You can also do your
grocery shopping here, as the supermarket is open 24/7! Even if the place is somewhat outside the
city, it is easily reached by bus (10-15min ride), or if you feel like taking an evening beach walk.
North Lane
The North Laine is a set of streets with many shops and independent traders. You can buy secondhand books or clothing, musical instruments, vinyls or CDs and find fashion, gifts, services, arts,
crafts, pubs, bars and cafes…
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Off Course
Foreign Languages
The University of Brighton offers the possibility to follow a free language course. One can choose
French, Spanish or German, and there is a range of six levels: Foundation, Elementary, Intermediate,
and Advanced 1, 2, 3. The courses are held either at the Moulsecoomb campus or at the Falmer
campus. In January, there are two assessments: an oral presentation and a written essay. These
assessments allow students to obtain a University Certificate in Modern Languages.
Music
The Brighton Music Society (BMS) was founded in 2011. One evening per week, you can go to the
Falmer campus to play music with other students for about two hours. Bring your instruments!
You can play different styles of music such as rock or pop. So if you are a singer, a guitarist (or a
ukulele player!), a pianist or a drummer (there is a piano and a drum kit at the Falmer campus, don't
bring yours), and you want to practice, feel free to come! You can get more information (such as the
date and place of the first meeting) at the Fresher’s Fair late September.
Sports
There are many sports offered at the University of Brighton. Each lesson costs between £1
and £2.5 and lasts about 45 minutes or one hour. The lessons are either at the Falmer
campus
or
at
the
Moulsecoomb
campus
(Cockcroft
building).
For example, you can do Zumba, Boxing, Yoga, Swimming, Badminton, Capoeira, MMA and
many others.
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Pier
On Brighton beach you can’t miss Brighton Pier! Here you could eat some Fish’n’Chips, play some
arcade games and video games, enjoy your time with rollercoasters and have a beautiful view of
Brighton. The Pier will be very busy on sunny week-ends.
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Queens Park
A pleasant park where you can spend a great time with your friends to play cards … until the rain
begins!
This park is situated east of the centre of Brighton.
Royal Pavilion
The Royal Pavilion is a former royal residence. It was built between 1787 and 1823 for the Prince
Regent and future king George IV. Queen Victoria, George IV’s niece, decided to sell all the building
and its land and to the city of Brighton in 1845.
It contains many "chinoiseries" and it is very impressive. The garden of the Royal Pavilion is beautiful,
there are many squirrels and you can listen to musicians.
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Sea Life
The Sea Life Brighton Aquarium allows you to discover a lot of species of fish, sharks, octopus,
jellyfish ... A ticket costs £16 but you can have 50% off with a discount available at the Brighton Pier.
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Tea Rooms
Tea Rooms are very popular in England. Usually you can make your choice among a wide range of
tastes regarding the tea. In addition don’t miss the scones, these delicious biscuits are filled with
sultanas most of the time. The tradition requires you to eat the scones with jam and clotted cream.
In Brighton, I suggest you go to the BlackBird, the most traditional tea rooms on the South Coast.
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Unbelievable things
A bus full of Santa Claus
Halloween Night
Penguin skate (see the Ice Rink chapter)
Storm Troopers snowman
People are so nice!
14
Visit Brighton
You don’t know what to do in Brighton? Go on visitbrighton.com/things-to-do and you could get a list
of 50 things to do in this exciting city!
You are new in the city and you have no idea where to go tonight? Go on drinkinbrighton.co.uk
You will have an interactive map, and you can find a HUGE quantity of clubs, pubs and bars. You can
also check for some events in the next days.
15
Watts Building
This building is the place where you will be for all the courses. You can find the Computer Suite (with
the Usability Lab), the MegaBytes Café, and classrooms. It’s quite a big building with six floors.
All the teachers in Computing have their office there.
There is also a great coffee machine with the tastiest hot chocolate ever.
Xmas
As holidays are coming, the spirit of Christmas is filling the air. North Laine unveils its new look, and
the main street is shining with Xmas lights. Brightonians and people from all over the region are
coming to buy presents for their loved ones. Don’t expect too many lights though, as the everblowing wind prevents from hanging lights next to the raging sea. Approaching Christmas, the city is
then filled with Sales panels, gingerbread cakes, Santa’s pictures (nay Santa himself), eventually
riding a typical red double-decker bus.
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Youth Hostels
If you choose to stay at an inn or hostel, you have a wide range of opportunities to go on.
The St Christopher’s Inn is the big place above the Belushi’s pub, right in front of the Pier. Prices are
fine, but the internet connection is a little drowsy and without a private room, you might have
someone walk in in the middle of the night and pee on your backpack after ten hopeless minutes of
searching for the bathroom.
The Seadragon Backpackers, found at 36, Waterloo Street, is a cutesy little inn offering 2- and 4-bed
dorms at very reasonable prices. It has a great internet connection and a play room with a TV and a
gaming console. Reservations allowing, I suggest it to be your place of choice.
The Smart Sea View is a dump. Don’t go there. The Armenian guy at the desk speaks with an accent
that will make Stallone weep, the prices are inadequate, the cleaning lady is annoying and the whole
place smells funny. Plus the card-reading doors break down, leaving your door unlocked 24/7; the
maintenance guy looks at the lock, then at you, then at the lock again, gives you a creepy smile and
says something like “better take your valuables with you then, huh ?”. Seriously guys. Don’t go there.
I won’t even give you the address.
Finally, the SoBo Student Inn, in close geographical and essential proximity of the SmartSea View, is
not more worth your time than this last travesty of a hostel. The desk lady is much nicer though, and
it’s a little closer to the bus station. The word on the streets is Stay downtown! And have a nice stay
:D
Zombie Walk
Need a break from the living ? Once or twice a year the city closes off the main roads so the
neglected undead can roam free for a few hours. Fortunately very accepting and polite, these putrid
masses welcome anyone with a smear on the face to join them in a gruesome display of flesh and
blood slowly making its way from the Seafront to Churchill Square. Civility is key, nevertheless, as
biting and raiding shops are strictly forbidden.
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