What a day!
Began when the alarm went off at 4.45 to be out of the house an hour later.
Adrian very kindly drove us to St Pancreas station and we caught the 6.22 train for Gatwick airport arriving almost 60 minutes later
Found our way to the book in counter only to be told of a two hour wait as a bomb had been found on Guernsey the day before halting all air traffic
The bomb was 200- 300 lb and was left over from the occupation of the island in the second world war
Vouchers issued for snacks/meals and finally we were on our way for only a 35 minute flight
We had no sooner arrived in our room when we had a phone call from Brian De Jersey arranging to pick us up an hour later at two
What an afternoon we had !
Brian very generously drove us all over the island for the next two or three hours taking us on a tour of de jersey houses and mansions that he had found thus far
Henri de Jersey described as a gentleman in occupation was the owner of "Mon Plaisir "the de Jersey home where John Wesley preached
It appears that the grounds extended for at least a half mile all around the house
We saw the house at the moment in a state of neglect and restoration
Brian very boldly made his way in saying he would "just pretend to be lost"
Not to worry no workman in sight so we made our way in and did a tour around
Outside in what would have been part of the garden was a stone about 3ft X2ft X 1 1/2 ft high with a plaque stating this was the stone on which Wesley preached in 1787
We went on to another de Jersey mansion built in the 1600's named "Le Crute' "
Further down the lane to another De Jersey home built in 1450
This home now occupied by a mr & mrs Roper
They are aquaintances of Brian (I think like half of Guernsey )
The Ropers very kindly offered to show us around their home and we took many photos all around the place
We looked at about another dozen homes of de Jersey including Le Terres overlooking the castle and the harbour
This is where Geoff's great great grandfather was born
We also did a tour of WW 2 German bunkers which were all built around the island but the best overlooking the harbour
We clambered down and had a look inside
After this we picked up Glynns Brian's wife and went to their home for tea and scones (scones pronounced rhyming with cones)
They had booked a place for dinner but mentioned that it was their usual custom to go for a swim and asked if we would like to join them We borrowed some swimmers and went to the boat ramp /beach
Water was 18 degrees or less but we survived and were refreshed
The dressing was Mr Bean style on the beach
Can you remember the episode where he discreetly dresses in front of what he thinks is a man in sunglasses sitting on the beach.In the end he turns out to be blind
Well that's what we did managing a sense of modesty
Every one does the same thing every day apparently
We had a lovely dinner and then more sightseeing around the whole island
Island measures 7 miles along both north and east coast and 9 miles on the west
Back home to b&b very much ready for bed

We awoke to the sound of seagulls the smell of sea air and people outside people speaking French
Got ready and went down to the dining room for a delicious breakfast which kept us going most of the day
Back in our room we had just finished seeking the Lord when a knock at the door produced Brian De Jersey again with a book for us on the history of Guernsey He gave us a lift into town in his van Geoff sitting with some glass doors in the back
Good photos again over the whole of Jersey before heading off to Castle Cornet to have a look through
Some parts dated back to medieval times 1220
The castle contained five museums and four gardens so we spent quite a few hours there
There have been finds in the Guernsey harbour dating back to the iron and stone age so it has been used as a port for a long time
One display of a 7th century Gallo Roman sailing ship which is being preserved as an exhibit
Another Roman wreck found 286 A D
Geoff found evidence of the ship building De Jerseys
It appears that the de Jerseys mostly settled on Guernsey not Jersey
Lots of things to see and do We could have spent many more hours there
On the way back we walked along the broadwater again
The castle had once been on an island till this was built
We passed an empty harbour not of boats but water
The tide was out and cars parked in the harbour as tide variations are an enormous 31ft
We also called at an antique shop and noticed some first day covers from Guernsey
I found one lot depicting the bi centenary of John Wesley's visit to Guernsey
The set showed a stamp depicting Wesley's visit to "Mon Plaisir" the home of Mr de Jersey
Another showed him preaching on a rock platform outside the home
The card included in the set told the story
What a find