Jersey Island, Autumn 2001

I will have to qualify my earlier statements that this family does not to mornings well, to they do not do mornings well unless they have too. We rolled out of bed at 3:30 am and by 4:18 am were pulling out of the drive in the pouring rain, headed to Weymouth. We arrived at 6:30 am and met up with Gordon and Christine, long time friends of Jenny and Bob's.

One of the truly wonderful thing about visiting and traveling with Bob and Jenny is that while I never know where I'm going to end up next or by what method of transportation I will arrive there I know that wherever we do, I'm going to love it.

In 1995 it was the Orkney's via a small dirty ferry, in 1997 it was the Scilly Isles via helicopter and this time it was Jersey via ferry. Not just any old ferry but "One of the worlds most advanced wave-piercing catamarans that cruise at speeds of up to 41 knots." 

Ferry Interior

The ferry along with every other form of transportation has heightened security. The officials did a halfhearted search of the car, looking in the trunk and asking all they regular questions about had we packed our own bags, etc. We all stumbled up to the passenger deck and groped our way to the buffet and purchased a badly needed up of coffee/tea and some breakfast. The crossing was a bit choppy but I had taken some seasick pills as a precaution before I left home so I had no problems with my tummy. 




We arrived about 11 am and eventually, after many wrong turns and much hilarity found our hotel, L'Emerald. 

Jersey is the largest of the Channel Islands and gives its name to a type of pullover and to a breed of light brown dairy cattle that originated on the island. The capital of the island is St. Helier. According to the tourist information "Jersey is loyal to Britain, it is a Crown dependency and not part of the United Kingdom. The Island, which is located in the English Channel is about 15 miles from the French coast and 90 miles south of England, is small about 10 miles by five miles and has a population of about 85,000. It's a major international offshore finance centre holding deposits worth billions" and I've been told that unless you were born on Jersey you are not allowed to buy property there unless you can verify that you are worth at least a million pounds. That's to keep the riff-raff out I guess, but  it would hardly keep out the big time criminals who,  I would think,  are probably the richest of anyone. Oh well, that's not my concern.

Hotel L'Emerald

As soon as I walked into the lobby of the hotel my imagination went off on a tangent.  It was the kind of a place where you would not be the least bit surprised to see Hercule Poirot in the dining room having breakfast or some Nazi officer strutting in through the front door. It was circa 1910 (or earlier) My room was up 20 stairs, along a corridor, through a door, down five stairs, around the bend, up three more stairs and Voila! I had arrived in room six. The room was small, the carpet was shabby and non-too clean and the bathtub had a rust stain. But aside from that, the rest of the room except for the carpet was spotlessly clean.  The bed was very, very comfortable and the bathtub was larger than my cabin on the QE2.  It was so big I could stretch out and float in it and hot water gushed from the spigot. I loved this hotel.  The place had character. Much nicer to my mind than a cookie cutter Embassy Suites or it's ilk that until you go outside you could be any place in the world they are so much alike. There was absolutely no doubt about that hotel. It was BRITISH! 

After dumping our stuff in a heap in the middle of the room we set out to explore St. Helier. We walked all around the shopping area down near the waterfront. You would think you were in France if you went by the names of the stores and shops. Because Jersey enjoys duty free status it's a veritable shopping Mecca.

We found the most wonderful indoor market. It was sort of an up market market.  The market covered about half a city block and was crammed with all kinds of produce, meets, bakery goods and because Jersey's climate is very mild year round, fruits, vegetables, flowers, and of course dairy products are the major industries on the island, aside from sheltering money that is. 

Finally we all started feeling the effects of our very early start that morning and with some difficulty because we got lost again found our way back to the hotel for a shower, or in my case, long deep bath and a nap. Jenny consulted the tourist information booklet that we had picked up and did a very unscientific eeny, meeny, miney moe and managed to find what the taxi driver told us was the best food on the Island. I think he was probably right. Terrific dinner. I had the lamb.

On Sunday morning we visited the German Underground  Hospital, built during the German occupation of Jersey from 1940 to 1945 using forced labor. Originally planned as an artillery barracks and ammunition store.  Then when the Allies invaded Normandy the Germans,  figuring their turn was coming, converted it into an underground hospital and bomb shelter. Today it is operated as a museum and sets out the story of the appalling hardships the residents of the island underwent during the

After leaving the museums we circumnavigated the island, stopping at scenic overlooks and stopping and walking along the beaches. We had a terrific pizza for lunch and the Pizza Express and had an ice cream cone for dinner. I took sixty-seven pictures and bought a bunch of post cards.

My Jersey Album on Picasa

The ferry left at 9 pm, 25 minutes late but managed to make up most of the time on the journey back. We must have really been zipping along. I dozed most of the way back. We arrived back in Bristol about 2 am I think. </P>