Read my Chester Travelogue here

The fourth city on my list is the West Sussex city of Chichester located 61 miles south of London.

Having gone way up north for my last trip to Chester, I’ve headed down south to visit Chichester. My journey starred very early as I had to be at Victoria station for 8.35am. Generally, I wouldn’t be getting trains so early, but it was £18 cheaper than later trains. And I got to see a woman screaming at nothing-in-particular, while the police looked around awkwardly.

Anyway, my train from Victoria left promptly at 8.36 and we arrived at Chichester at 10.15. Maybe I’ve been spoiled by London, but I was surprised at the size of the station. It only had two platforms. But as has become tradition with these city trips, I headed first to Chichester Cathedral.

From the station, I had to go through some of the back roads to enter the cathedral through the cloisters. The roof was under renovation, but it was no less impressive. it also contained a couple of art exhibitions by artist Kate Viner: one was called Shape of Faith which had eight cast-bronze female figures in a celebration of femininity. The other – Resilience in clay – was a collection of sculptures that celebrate everything that makes us different. it also had a little section where the public could contribute their own thoughts too. I find it interesting how the Catholic church – once a bastion of the preservation of tradition, is striving hard to prove that is is actually modern, liberal and progressive.

I also can’t help but think that compared with Canterbury or Chichester, Chelmsford cathedral has been somewhat short-changed. It’s far smaller than its counterparts. After a quick look in the giftshop where I tried and failed to find matching coasters for my girlfriend and I, I headed into the neighbouring Bishop’s Palace Gardens. This was a very pretty park partly encompassed within the historical city walls. When Chichester was part of the Roman empire, the Romans built walls to keep out the Barbarian tribes.

Anyway, it was eleven at this time, so I chilled in the lovely park for half an hour. But then it was time to continue my adventure. I exited the park through the back and navigated back to the city centre where I found the Ackerman music store. As a kid, I was a grade-one viola player before I grew up and lost interest in it. Two years ago, I started learning again. But as the viola is not as well-known as the violin, it is more difficult to find sheet music. Yet within Ackerman I bought a book with music from the movies including LOTR and Star Wars. I fear some of it might be too advanced for me, but I’ll give it a go nonetheless. The Ackerman was a good find.

Next to it, I was intrigued to see an armoury that sold hunting equipment such as guns and bullets. Unlike our transatlantic cousins, the UK has stricter gun laws that restrict gun ownership to license holders. Licenses can only be granted by the police after the owner has been properly assessed and if they have good reason, e.g for hunting or for work. And the guns available are generally restricted to shotguns and rifles. Handguns have been outlawed since the Dunblane massacre. I don’t think I’ve seen an armoury shop before.

It was nearing lunchtime, so I went to the West Street Deli. They were running a flash sale, so I bought soft cow cheese for 25% off, a smoked salmon and cream cheese sandwich and a can of coke all for £14. Granted that’s a lot more than what I paid for my lunch in Chester, but I wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth. My stomach was rumbling so I searched for a park to eat in. Instead, I found a little market in the old town hall where I bought a piece of Rocky Road from the Bluebell Bakery.

I also went into the health food store Holland & Barrett where I bought some spiced apple + vanilla tea to help my sleep, as well as watermelon, apple and matcha water infusion to aid my metabolism. I hope they taste as good as they smell. Every time, I opened my bag, I was greeted by a warm fragrance. Anyway, in my quest to find a park, I found a priory and its grounds where a game of crick was being played. I didn’t fancy getting walloped by a cricket ball, so I returned to the Bishop’s Palace Gardens.

(Chichester Priory)

My salmon sandwich was yummy, but the Rocky Road was *chef’s kiss.* It was rich, decadent with a lovely, gooey centre. Just delicious. Unfortunately, at 12.45, it started raining. I took shelter in the nearby Novium museum, which detailed the history of Chichester from the Paleolithic to the Romans to the Stuarts and all the way up to the modern day.

I learned that the name Chichester came from the Anglo-Saxon name Cissa and the Roman word for fortress ‘ceastre,’ so it means something similar to the ‘fortress of the city of Cissa.’ I also learned that Chichester had a thriving needle-making industry and that although it was intensely impoverished in the Tudor era, it was regenerated during the Georgian era. It also explained that there are two Peregrine Falcons nesting in the spires of Chichester Cathedral which would explain all the wildlife photographers that were camping around.

Anyway, it was close to two at this point, and the rain had stopped, so I navigated to the Chichester City Canal that was once a shipping canal linking the city with the sea, but it has since become a haven for walking, cycling, swimming, fishing and SUP boarding. I saw all of these. It was a quiet waterway – not like the Grand Union Canal which I live near to in London – but still quiet and tranquil. I saw some sculptures of butterflies.

By three, I had finished the canal, so I headed back into the city centre. I thought about going to the Patton Street Gallery, but it was £14 admission, so instead I went back to the Priory, and I made sure I stayed far away from the cricket. But I also saw some cute little birds they kept near the Priory cafe. But having stayed out of reach of any stray cricket balls, and with only a couple hours until my train home, I went to Chichester’s Wetherspoon’s pub ‘the Dolphin and the Anchor.’ I didn’t manage to go to Wetherspoons in Chelmsford or Chester, so I was very glad to drink a San Miguel opposite Chichester Cathedral.

I finished up in the pub about 5.15. My train home was at 6.08, so although I would have been a bit early, I figured I would wait on the platform. Turns out I was too early and had to come back alter. And so I returned back to the Chichester canal basin, and spent the last twenty minutes of my trip taking in the beautiful scenery. And then it was time for me to go home. Chichester was lovely. And for my next trip, I’m returning to Essex for my final city in that county: Colchester!