BRIGHTON, England — When traveling, there are many things that make a place memorable, and for Brighton, it is the giant, aggressive and hungry seagulls.
Brighton sits on the coast of the English Channel, and it’s a beautiful seaside tourist city. These birds can be seen in all parts of town from the sea front to the inner neighborhoods. On a sunny day, people sun bathe along the pebbly beach or take a walk down Brighton Palace Pier. There are food vendors lined along the pier’s walkway, selling everything from donuts to fish and chips. People of all ages, from tourists to locals, enjoy these delicious treats — including the seagulls if one is not careful.
On the first day I arrived, my study abroad group and I went to the pier to check it out, and our professor got us sugar and cinnamon covered donuts. In this day and age, one must Instagram their food before thinking about taking a bite, and that’s what my friend Morgan Collier did with her donut. As she raised her donut and phone trying to take the perfect donut picture, a seagull swooped down and took the treat out of her hand.
The scene that unfolded before us was absolutely terrifying. It’s like when you open a pack of gum in school, and everyone immediately swarms around you asking for a piece — but more violent. And the birds won’t take ‘no’ for an answer. It all happened so fast that we had to make sure Morgan didn’t loose a hand in the aftermath.
I’d never seen 30 or more seagulls fight fiercely over a donut before and I didn’t know whether to run the opposite direction from these demon birds or admire them for going after what they want with such passion.
Fortunately for Morgan, I wasn’t too hungry because I was too tired from the jet lag of an 8-hour plane ride with no sleep, so I gave her the second half of my donut.
During one of our outings in town, I saw one seagull pluck a bag out of a trash can that someone just threw away, and, Bam!, all hell broke loose. That poor bag was destroyed in seconds. For some reason, these things always happen in close proximity to my group and me. Maybe they can smell my fear.
These birds are not only aggressive, but they just don’t seem to give a damn about anything or anyone. They fly directly at you, and if you don’t move quickly enough, then you’re done for. I lost count on the amount of times I had to dodge these damn birds in the past five days. My reflexes are being sharpened, one bird at a time.
A side note, these seagulls are also big as hell. They must either have gym memberships or they inject themselves with steroids, because I’ve never seen such big, buff birds before. Needless to say, I’m usually not afraid of a lot of things when I travel, but these birds are bred from the depth of hell. Hang on tight to your food if you decide to travel to Brighton, because they will show you no mercy.
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