Not too long back a US TV host from Fox News made some pretty startling claims about England's Second City, Birmingham. As someone who lives less than fifteen miles from the city in question, the prejudiced claims took me by surprise. Had they been on a less serious and controversial subject, I may well have laughed at the ignorance of other cultures displayed by the man in question.
Birmingham has responded to that and the other recent international faith-based incident - the Charlie Hebdo shooting - with a multi-faith rally which included speakers from six of the city's major faith groups; Muslim, Jewish, Christianity, Hindu, Seikh and Buddhism. Having been to the city many times over the course of my life I thought that maybe I would share some information about the city from my own point of view.
I have been a wheelchair user for a number of years now and have to admit that unless you are planning on driving somewhere, then travel in Britain can be quite annoying for the less mobile. However if you either phone ahead or talk to the ticket office then train stations will make sure that someone will sort out ramps to get on and off the trains. Lifts are available on all Birmingham's train stations for disabled visitors, with plenty of escalators and stairs also available.
As you may already know, Birmingham has some award-winning modern architecture as well as more traditional architecture. The new library shown in this image is next to the recently renovated Rep theatre, which has been home to some fantastic shows. Within easy walking distance is Symphony Hall, where I had my own graduation ceremony, as well as several other halls where some exciting events have taken place in recent history (aside from my graduation, that is).
If traditional architecture is more your thing then you may want to investigate the Art Gallery and Museum, which is located close to the City Hall and the infamous 'floozy in the jacuzzi' as she is known locally. Well, she is nekkid and sitting in a great pool of water!
There have been a lot of changes to the Birmingham of my youth, which was far less pleasant than it is now. Once of those casualties was the old rag market, which has been replaced with a modern version that is lovely to have a wander around. If shopping is your preference, you could do a lot worse than visiting the rag market, located within walking distance of that other widely talked-about piece of modern architecture, Selfridges.
Although it is physically impossible for me because of the medical conditions I have, Birmingham City centre isn't too bad to get around for wheelchair users who are otherwise fit. If you do have a mobility impairment and cannot self-propel over great distances I would recommend either making sure that you have someone fit to push you, or hiring an electric wheelchair or electric mobility scooter. However you choose to get around Birmingham, it is definitely worth a visit.
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