A short break in Sussex

Chichester is a lovely town to walk around. It's town walls are intact, so you can do a circuit of the place (it takes about 20 minutes) or you can walk up and down its main shopping streets without fear of getting lost. It still has its roman cruciform street plan. The Cathedral (probably built on the roman forum) is in the middle. There's one street heading north, one south, one east and one west, all meeting at an ornate white stone belltower. Definately take the time to look around the Cathedral as it is a really lovely one (the white stone seems to glow in the sunshine - it's a very pretty and peaceful place).

Quick Tips:

Do not go home without sampling the wares at Maison Blanc - it sells fantastic handmade chocolates and the most stunning cakes and pastries (take away, or do the full 'tea and cake' thing in the cafe). Take out a second mortgage first though.

Best Way To Get Around:

You can walk from one end of town to the other in about 10 minutes, and the centre of town (in fact, the whole county) is as flat as a pancake.

En-suite room. Decorated nicely in the English country style. A friendly family run place in a very pretty English village. The hotel has a courtyard garden where they will serve afternoon tea (if it's not raining, of course!), a bar and a really nice lounge with an open fire and lots of books and local information.

You can choose to have a full cooked breakfast, cereal, toast, fruit, juice - or all of the above.

A relaxing place.

Pub food with a difference. A range of starters, which seemed a little expensive until they arrived.

I had a smoked salmon platter which was massive and served with a hunk of homemade bread. A lot of seafood for main courses and a good deal of British game. I had marlin steaks (2 whoppers) served on a bed of sunblush tomatoes and olives, with sides of new potatoes and vegetables.

Again, it looks expensive on the menu, but when it arrives, you can see where every penny has gone. The quality of the food was first-rate, and it was imaginatively served and well-cooked. You won't manage a pudding after that, I promise! If you do, though, there was a rather nice chocolate mousse thing.

This is a cafe/patisserie rather than a formal restaurant, and a great place to stop for lunch or afternoon tea, but it's pretty expensive for a cafe (allow £5 each for a drink and a cake).

A range of hot and soft drinks are available (but no alcoholic drinks), which, in common with the cakes and pastries, have a distinctly Continental air.

In the drinks department, the coffees and the hot chocolate are very good. The cakes are all so beautifully presented that it's almost a shame to eat them. Definately try a fruit tart or the chocolate marquise (or both--they do take-aways).

The shop at the front of the cafe also sells handmade chocolates which are expensive, but are just as good as the cakes.

Since discovering this place, I've deliberately gone back to Chichester to have another go!