When you arrive in Bournemouth you see sandy beaches, traditional brick houses, multinational population and start thinking that this is nothing more than one more typical English town. However, looking around and reading its history reveals an exciting past and a great future to come.
The town was first inhabited by Lewis Tregonwell in 1810 and from there on people started settling down in Bournemouth. In 1880 the population was 17,000, but due to the excellent railway connections developed by 1900 this increased to 60,000 bringing numerous theatres, cafés, art demo cinemas and more hotels.
In the late 20th century Bournemouth gained the name of a big retirement home and moreover British people preferred spending their holidays abroad.
‘Foundation of the Bournemouth University and numerous language schools brought with it an influx of a young and cosmopolitan population turning Bournemouth into a thriving town again’ says a 59 year-old teacher Mireille Jackson.
The number of the students (about 100,000) adds to the 160,000 resident populations and makes an exciting, lively society.
Besides, Bournemouth seems to be preparing to fight back the title of the best seaside resort of the UK. There are many projects concerning tourism and one of the major projects, scheduled for completion at the end of October 2008 is the artificial surfing reef.
‘Artificial surfing reef will make Bournemouth the best seaside resort in the UK. It’s the 1st in Europe and the 5th in the world’ says the 23 year-old surfer Matthew Guile.
Another important project is restoration of the 200 year-old Mary Shelley theatre in Boscombe. £1.3 million pounds will be spent on the restoration and it is expected to attract numerous tourists.
Bournemouth seems to be getting ready to show its best and obtain popularity among different age and nationality people.
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