Chichester

It was a very short drive this morning from Portsmouth to Chichester.  Finding the Premier Inn took some doing but we did it!  I could not believe it possible to hide such a large building...

Being too early to book in, we left the car in the car park - at least that was easy - and walked the mile or so  into the town centre.  We walked passed the railway station which still has gates, and a bridge over the line for pedestrians. 

The cathedral is really something. It has a separate bell tower and a large area of land around it, containing various residences for church officials.  The whole complex has an air of being well maintained.

The Baptimal font was lovely, a large shallow beaten copper now, set in black stone. Very striking.

We spent quite some time seeing everything and then decided it was time for a coffee.  I wanted to find somewhere in the town but then noticed a sign about the RSPB being in the cathedral cafe garden  public access to view the breeding peregrine pair up on the spire, so we turned back into the grounds and had our coffee there.  Afterwards we were lucky enough to see the birds, through an excellent scope set up by the members of the RSPB.  It was amazing as we saw the parents deliver a white dove to their noisy and demanding offspring. I even managed to get a photo, not of their eating the dove, but of one of the parents. 

 The birds are on the masonry at the bottom of the spire.  This is the photo I took with my little compact.

After that bit of excitement we ambled back through the town. 

Painted by a budding Banksy maybe?