A Colonist in London: Chiiichester

My trip to Chichester was certainly a surprise. I saw a poster advert in the train station saying you could get tickets there for 3£. OK... so what's in Chichester, I asked! Um, a cathedral... and um, hm. Well, whatever. Tickets are cheap. It's only a little over an hour from London, so why not? The day I asked about tickets at the train station, the lady informed me that the following day was "Everyone Ride a Train" day or something and not only were tickets 3£ return, BUT they were going to be 90% off in celebration! Woot! I took advantage and got both my ticket to Chichester and to Arundel for a total of £2.50. Yes!! It turns out that Chichester has a lot more to offer than just a cathedral. I am very glad I took a chance!

Oh, and for the record, it's pronounced "chih-chester" not "chee-chester."

Here is a back view of the cathedral, seen from the park behind it. What a lovely day, eh?

The beautiful interior of the cathedral. This place gets my vote for "friendliest cathedral in England." There were greeters waiting at the door as I entered (on a random Tuesday morning!) They offered to help me with any information I might like. There was also a free guided tour given by another greeter. It was very informative.

A cool sundial on the outside of the church.

The Marc Chagall window. It is especially significant in that it's red.

His windows are usually all blue.

Painting along the side wall showing the kings of England.

This is Henry VIII.

The tomb of Richard Fitzalan II and his wife Eleanor. This is thought to be the only medieval effigy showing the couple holding hands. He's even taken off his glove for her. Sweet!

This is known as the Cross. It is situated in the main (only??) intersection in the center of town. I think technically, it belongs to the cathedral.

I treated myself to a wonderful vegetarian lunch at this all veggie and organic restaurant called St Martin's Tea Room. I had welsh rarebit for the first time. Still not sure what it is exactly, but it was divine!! This is the back garden seating area. Beautiful!

The oldest building in Chichester. This is the Church of St Olave that dates to the 11th century.

Someone told me that the city was still surrounded by portions of its original Roman wall! Um, so I had to go see that! It turns out you can walk along it, too! Amazing!

In addition to the Roman wall in the city, I was told to go visit the Fishbourne Palace that is a few mile outside of town by bus. It was a bit of a trip out (long wait for the bus and then a walk down a random road to the museum!) but well worth the trouble. Fishbourne is basically a museum built over the ruins of a Roman palace that was discovered there in the 60s during construction. The floor mosaics are the true treasure here. In addition, they have recreated the Roman style garden outside based on seeds found at the excavation. They also have a food garden growing on the site with vegetables and herbs that would have been around in the Roman times!