Birmingham City Guide

United Kingdom>Birmingham
Nearly six million people live within 50 miles of Birmingham, England's second largest city. It's an industrial city, with a rich history that helped spurn the Industrial Revolution (James Watt patented the steam engine here; we still use his name when talking lightbulbs).

Birmingham city, seat of the metropolitan county of West Midlands, central England. A major industrial center, Birmingham is the second largest city in Britain. Visit the city as it is the hub of the British metal goods industry and is served by a network of railroads and highways as it is located in an important coal-mining region.

Visit the Symphony Hall, located inside The ICC, the home of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. Acclaimed as the "finest concert hall in Europe", Symphony Hall is the nearest thing to acoustic perfection you can get. It stands on a floating base designed to minimise vibration from outside.

For a taste of nature, "The River", sat in the upper pool, with a monumental female figure representing the life force. The figure has been nicknamed "the floozie in the jacuzzi". The River is also a fountain - one of the largest in Europe - with a flow of 3,000 gallons per minute.

Soho House - Where Great Minds Met, the elegant home of industrial pioneer Matthew Boulton, who lived at Soho House from 1766 to 1809. Here, he met with some of the most important scientists, engineers and thinkers of his time - the Lunar Society. Possibly the first centrally heated English house since Roman times. Displays tell the story of this fascinating man and the interests he shared with his famous visitors.

There's also the chance to see some of the products of Boulton's nearby factory - where buttons and buckles, clocks and vases, and silver and Sheffield plate tableware were made - and where he developed the steam engine in partnership with James Watt.

The Museum and Art Gallery has an ever changing programme of temporary exhibitions and its permanent collection includes the famous Pre-Raphaelites. Major shows are housed in the restored Edwardian Rates Hall. Entrance to the Museum and Art Gallery is free, and visitors are welcome to drop in and take a look around at their leisure.

A much loved historical building, Blakesley Hall has been enjoyed by generations of Birmingham people, and thousands of school children have had history lessons in the old barn classroom. Now, Birmingham Museums & Art Gallery is embarking on a project which will safeguard Blakesley Hall into the 21st century.

Visit the Weoley Castle which was once the center of the medieval manor of Northfield. It was surrounded by a moat and a defensive wall with six turrets and was a typical fortified manor house of the medieval period in the Midlands.

Learn how Sarehole Mill works, Sarehole Mill is a fine example of one of more than fifty water mills that existed in Birmingham at one time. Matthew Boulton's father rented the Mill and Sarehole farm in 1756. When his father died, Boulton used the Mill for making buttons and for metal rolling until he moved his operations to Handsworth in 1761.

Birmingham is known as the Capital of the Balti (bucket), but in reality it is a round bottomed wok with handles, which is not surprising as this spicy dish was introduced to the city by its large Kashmiri population. You can also find superb international delicacy here.