Birmingham, more than just a city

From Amiril Muttaqien Meketar

BIRMINGHAM, Aug 9 (Bernama) -- For sports fans in Malaysia, they may know Birmingham as the host of the oldest badminton competition, All England Badminton Championships or home of one of the England’s football club, Birmingham City Football Club.

But this year, the second largest city in the United Kingdom had been transformed as the home of the 22nd edition of the Commonwealth Games which was also the biggest sporting event in England after the London 2012 Olympic Games.

While the ‘Brummies’ (a person from Birmingham) bode a fond farewell to the athletes as the Games closed its curtains yesterday, the hosting of this quadrennial multi-sports event will definitely leave a lasting impact to the city and West Midlands as a whole.

City centre resident, Louisa Lewis, 34, was glad to see Birmingham become the third city to host the event after London 1934 and  Manchester 2002 as it had certainly opened the door for the people, especially sports fans worldwide, to get to know more about this city.

“Birmingham has a lot of history, interesting to come and see, it’s good for the Commonwealth Games to be back in England especially here,” she told Bernama.

As for the Games volunteer, David Dickinson, 64, believed that the Commonwealth Games will make people around the world realise that Birmingham has a lot to offer especially for tourists.

“Not just the city centre, from nice eateries, hospitality and friendliness of its people, I do think that Birmingham has been a wonderful place to be during the Games.

“In fact, this Games was terrific from day one as all of the events were very well-organised. Everybody involved seemed to be happy and satisfied to deliver such a superb Games,” he said.

Known as the ‘City of 1000 trades’, Birmingham is also in a region bustling with vibrant cities, beautiful countryside, world-class tourism venues and engaging attractions in the heart of the UK.

If you travel in Birmingham, you may not have to worry as the the city is well connected by rail, road, and interestingly water whereby visitors can take a trip from Edgbaston down to Cadbury World, explore the region’s industrial past through the Dudley’s tunnel network or kayak on the famous waterways, thanks to Birmingham’s newest attraction, The Roundhouse.

Foodies, on the other hand, will be absolutely spoilt for choice when it comes to a world-class meal in Birmingham as it has more Michelin-starred restaurants than any city in the United Kingdom outside London.

Chocolate fans may well notice that Birmingham was the birthplace of the infamous Cadbury some 115 years ago by John Cadbury, who opened shop at 93 Bull Street in the city centre.

The city also has so much to discover when it comes to arts and culture as people can walk in the footsteps of Shakespeare, experience breath-taking performances from some of the best dancers on the world stage at Birmingham Royal Ballet or even pay a visit to Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery.

From high street outlets and expansive malls to quirky independent and farmers’ markets, the city has also something to appease all shoppers such as Birmingham’s Bullring and Grand Central, Lower Precinct and Central Six in Coventry and Touchwood in Solihull.

If you are a big fan of Netflix television hit series, Peaky Blinders, paying a visit to Birmingham is a must as you can go on a special Peaky Blinders Tour around Digbeth, the location where the term "Peaky Blinder" was first penned and head to some of the actual filming locations at The Black Country Living Museum.

And the list goes on…

Perhaps it’s now time for you to immerse yourself and experience life as a ‘Brummie’ when you visit here.

-- BERNAMA