Hello World

Hello World

Hello and welcome to my blog. This is all new to me, but I promise things should improve as we go on, like a fine wine. My blog aims to bring you everything Sussex, its people, landscapes and produce and especially the South Downs, Weald and the dramatic white cliffs of the Seven Sisters.

A Bit About Me

Before I devote my time to Sussex, I want to give you a bit of background about me.

My name is Lawrence and I live just on the edge of Brighton between the sea and the hills of the South Downs, in fact I can see the sea from my front door and the hills of the South Downs from my kitchen window. I am incredibly lucky to live here, it is only a five-minute walk to the Downs or the beach and a 10-minute drive into Brighton, one of Britain’s most lively and cosmopolitan cities, which is only an hour by train to the centre of London!

Cornwall and Sussex

I did not grow up here, I spent my childhood growing up in the far south west of England in the county of Cornwall. So, I have been lucky enough to spend my life in two of the most beautiful parts of the country. I still have family and many friends in Cornwall and try and get back as much as possible but like many Cornishmen before me I left the county some 25 years ago to study here in Brighton and never returned home. I am an immensely proud Cornishman, but Sussex has been my home for over half my life, I met my wife here (she is Irish) and our children were born here.

Since leaving university in 1998 I have spent most of my working life in tourism. I have been lucky enough to take groups throughout the UK and Europe making new friends and seeing beautiful cities and wonderful countryside.

Going Alone

Six years ago, I decided I needed a change, my children were growing, and I needed to spend more time with them as they grew up. It was time to do something for myself and use the 20 years’ experience I had acquired. But what?

Then it came to me, I was talking to friends who were visiting, and I mentioned that most people are never tourists in their own back yard, I was. I love the South Downs and the white cliffs of the Seven Sisters. I love the wonderful landscapes and little quaint villages and my family, and I would regularly get out and visit them when ever we could. So why not bring people to my back yard and show everyone what a great place this is, so Brighton & Beyond was born.

The Future

So, six years on there have been many ups and a big, long drawn out down. But now we are getting to the end of our covid nightmare, and a rebirth is just around the corner. So, with this blog I am going to bring this corner of England closer to everyone, giving you ideas of what to see and do and how to make the best of your stay in beautiful Sussex by the sea.