Why you should visit Birmingham

Why Visit Birmingham ?

Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the English West Midlands. It is commonly considered to be England’s “second city” and is the largest of England’s core cities.

The city’s reputation was forged as the powerhouse of the Industrial Revolution in Britain, a fact which led to Birmingham being known as “the workshop of the world”. To this day over a quarter of the UK’s exports originate in the greater Birmingham area.

Birmingham has a recorded history going back 1000 years. In this time, it has grown from a tiny Anglo-Saxon farming village into a major industrial and commercial city.

The Birmingham area was occupied in Roman times, with several military roads and a large fort. Birmingham started life as a small Anglo-Saxon hamlet in the Early Middle Ages. It was first recorded in written documents by the Domesday Book of 1086 as a small village, worth only 20 shillings. In the 12th century, Birmingham was granted a charter to hold a market. By the 16th century, Birmingham’s access to supplies of iron ore and coal meant that metalworking industries became established. In the 17th century, Birmingham became an important manufacturing town with a reputation for producing small arms. During the Industrial Revolution (from the mid 18th century onwards), Birmingham grew rapidly into a major industrial centre. Unlike many other English industrial cities such as Manchester, industry in Birmingham was based upon small workshops rather than large factories or mills. The city expanded in the late 19th and early 20th century, absorbing parts of Worcestershire to the south and Staffordshire to the west. The city absorbed Sutton Coldfield in 1974, and at the same time became part of the new West Midlands County.

Places of interest

Aston Hall
Birmingham Botanical Gardens
Birmingham Zoo
Blakesley Hall
Brindleyplace – Canalside development
Cannon Hill Park
Cadbury World
Centenary Square
Central Mosque
Chamberlain Square featuring a BBC Big Screen
Convention Quarter
Gun Quarter – Once the foremost gun manufacturing community in the UK
Jewellery Quarter – The largest concentration of dedicated jewellers in Europe
MAC
National Sealife Centre
Sarehole Mill
St Philip’s Cathedral
Sutton Park
Victoria Square

Museums and Art Galleries

In Birmingham one can find a number of museums and art galleries. Some of the famous museums and art galleries are:

Barber Institute of Fine Arts
Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery
Birmingham Think tank – Science Museum
Birmingham Railway Museum Trust
Edgbaston Museum
Lapworth Museum of Geology
Soho House Museum
The Transport Museum, Wythall
Warwickshire County Cricket Club Museum

Birmingham has some theaters and groups, following are the famous of all:

Alexandra Theatre (“the Alex”)
Birmingham Repertory Theatre (“The Rep”)
The Birmingham Hippodrome and the Old Rep

Shopping

The city has a world famous jewelry quarter. In addition to exploring the Jewelry Quarter, Birmingham is a great town for shopping. There are more than 700 retail stores, and many people in the Midlands come here just to shop, especially along Cannon Street and New Street with its recently opened top-brand designer stores. The city’s Mailbox complex at Wharfside Street was once used to sort the mail. But now it’s becoming a big shopping center, with department stores like Harvey Nichols moving in. In the heart of town, The Bullring, near St. Martin’s Square, is being developed into Europe’s largest city-center retail area, based around the historic street patterns of the city and linking New Street and High Street. The reinvention of “Brum” (as Britain’s much-maligned second city is nicknamed) is reflected by the opening of a grand department store, Selfridges, Bullring Centre. As a fashion emporium, its architecture was appropriately inspired by a dress. The curvaceous complex is adorned with 15,000 aluminum disks ? la Paco Rabanne’s 1960 chain-mail frocks.

Food and Drink

Birmingham based Breweries included Ansells, Davenports and Mitchells & Butlers. Aston Manor Brewery is currently the only brewery of any significant size. Many fine Victorian pubs and bars can still be found across the city. The oldest inn in Birmingham is the Old Crown in Deritend. The Anchor Inn (1797), is also nearby in Digbeth. Famous food brands from Birmingham include Typhoo tea, Birds custard, Blue Bird Toffee, Bournville cocoa, Cadbury chocolate, and HP Sauce. Alum Rock Road, Alum Rock, contains the largest concentration of take-away businesses in Birmingham.

Ladypool Road, Sparkhill contains the largest concentration of restaurants in Birmingham and possibly the UK. The Wing Yip food empire first began in the city and now has its headquarters in the Chinese Quarter. In 1945, Abdul Aziz opened a cafe shop selling curry and rice in Steelhouse Lane. This later became The Darjeeling, the first Indian restaurant in Birmingham. The Balti was invented in the city and has since received much gastronomic acclaim for the ‘Balti Belt’ of restaurants in the Sparkbrook, Balsall Heath and Ladywood areas.

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