South Downs England

As soon as we finished our coffee we were out of Newhaven and driving along the coast to the famous beach resort of Brighton. 

We manage to find a spot to park along the main parade into town and as it’s before 9am, it’s free. 

We enjoyed a lovely stroll to the Pier. It’s been a tourist attraction ever since it opened in 1899. We aren’t fussed about going to the amusement park at the end so it didn’t matter that it wasn’t open. 

We walked into the town admiring the very English styled buildings. 

The Royal Pavillon was quite remarkable with its mix of Indian, Islamic and Chinese styles built in the 1800’s..

Some sights as we drove out from Brighton.

Next we drove inland a bit to Steyning. We managed to get free street parking  and ventured into the heart of this typical Downs market town with a variety of architecture including, half timbered homes, some made with stone and others with white render. We fortified ourselves with a sausage roll, a pastie and a cinnamon bun.. The free museum also had lots of interesting history of the town and its people. Of course we couldn’t help but have a Quick Look in the church too.

Defibrillators instead of phones now..

Our Back Roads Great Britain book next suggested Amberley which is a small village with many very pretty houses made out of honey coloured rocks and thatched roofs. Once again we managed to park in the street. 

A local told us how to get a glimpse of the castle via a small path through a gate and to ignore the No Trespassing sign. The Manor House is now a hotel so we could have been guests walking about … 

we popped into church where local volunteers were decorating it for the Harvest Festival this weekend. 

Petworth is next and we are excited as there is a National Trust property to visit there and , yes you might have guessed it, it’s free for us as we are Australian National Trust members and so have reciprocal rights. Although the membership has cost us $120pa, at £19 pp/$37pp for the entry, it will soon pay for itself. Although having been a family home f or over 900years, it wasn’t until the 1700’s that the 3rd Earl of Egremont, that the art collection began to fill the staterooms that still remain today. 

We also visited the 18th Century Servants Quarters and all the rooms dedicated to feeding the guests and servants. 

It was then time to find a spot for tonight. There were a few options in towns but we decided for the peace in the country. The road there was very narrow (getting us in training for Cornwall) but we got there in one piece and it should be a quieter night than Newhaven port.