Guernsey Liberation Day

  At the end of World War ll, on May 9th, 1945, the German occupation of the island was ended.  They have a huge Liberation Day celebration every year.  I got a few pictures in between downpours  of rain.                           Main port street with people, food and souvenir booths.

Vintage cars, and jeeps were parked for viewing after the motor cavalcade.

Car owners dressed in the style of the day.

Fun pedaling for the youngsters.

Stilt Walkers 

French market, food booths, entertainment - lots to see and do for everyone.

There were fireworks at night to end the celebration. 

More sites in England

Following the conference, the Senior couple group drove to Bath to tour the ancient Roman Bath ruins.   Using an audio device we listened to explanations and history of the baths as we walked through the facility.                     a picture of the main pool...

                              This was a unique half-circle apartment building in Bath.

                             In the city of Wells, we walked through the Wells Cathedral.

The front has a gallery of sculptures.. starting at the lower niches with biblical scenes, it rises through kings, bishops, angels to the twelve apostles with Christ over all.

We drove through this pretty mountain area, called Cheddar Gorge

The earth is so beautiful, and has so much variety!

And back on Guernsey the Bluebells were blossoming all over the island.

There is a spot they call the Bluebell Woods.  We went for a walk to check it out - oh my!

"For the beauty of the earth, for the beauty of the skies...

...hill and vale, and tree and flower, Sun and moon and stars of light..

Lord of all, to Thee we raise This our hymn of grateful praise !!

Trip to Senior's Conference

April 11, our Ferry ride to Poole was on the "fast ferry" which usually takes 3 hours.  Even though it had a turbine problem and took 4 hours, it was so much better than the old 7 hour ferry we had to take in January when coming to the island :)    This one wasn't drafty and cold; the seating was nicer, too.

              We loved our time in the temple; so grateful we could go.  It fills our hearts with peace,                                       deepens our love for the Savior,  and strengthens our souls.

Touring the Royal Windsor Castle

The changing of the Guard

At Oxford University.... One of the colleges, named New College - distinguished for drama and music.    Some scenes connected with a Harry Potter Triwizard Tournament were filmed here. 

The Dining Hall in Christchurch college, where they said Harry Potter's meal time was filmed.  There were lines of tourists walking through to see it.

The "head table" area. 

However, when I got back to my computer and checked the facts, I found out they got inspiration from looking at this dining hall, and designed a replica inside their movie studio for filming the Hogwart's Dining Hall scenes. 

Stonehenge, a mysterious ancient religious site, out in the middle of a large green field.

We arrived at Trowbridge for the Senior Missionary Couples conference.  We were spiritually uplifted, enjoyed the discussions, getting acquainted activities, and associating with the other couples.  

  

  

Flowers

We took a walk one nice sunny afternoon to what is called Candie Gardens.  It used to be a large private estate, and was donated to the city upon the death of the owner.  It's a lovely open space, full of flowers and all kinds of green beauty, a calm and peaceful park, sitting in the midst of a busy city; a  nice spot to meet people, ask questions, learn more about the island, and the culture.  These bold colored flowers were amazing.  Though the air is always chilly, these and other "cold tolerant" flowers like pansies have been in bloom since we arrived in January. 

While in the garden we met an elderly lady named Ruth, who had a fascinating life story ...born in Germany, a child during the war, a Jew, escaping, growing up in Africa, later getting to England, becoming a doctor, retiring, and now living with her son here in Guernsey.  She asked about us, we told about ourselves and about the church; she listened intently, and asked questions. We gave her some pamphlets to read, and she said she'd see us the same time there again, when the weather is nice and not windy... saying "if it's too windy, it blows me right over."  (She was a thin little gal). 

All through March, daffodils were up and blooming everywhere.  It was strange to see many groups of them in the grassy fields.  We were told that previously flower farms were common, with budding flowers being a main export at one time.  

              Large groups of tulips are now blooming in many places along the main port street, mostly                                                     in the center of big round-a-bouts.

This beauty, I think, is a flower on a Camellia tree, which has also been in blossom since we arrived on the island.  They look like roses in their design.  Getting really close to one, it seems the pedals are waxed; they are very sturdy tough pedals, and they last a long time.

No idea what this is, but it is very unique and a lovely color; also seemed to be thick and strong.

And on to other interesting things:
          This is Elizabeth College-Junior School...which is like Jr. High School in America.  This one is for girls.   We have no idea what the very colorful knitted pieced wrapping around the tree trunk is for, but it caught our eye.  We hope to pass by there sometime when a person is available to explain :)

This school is for the young men and women upper high school grades.. Called the Elizabeth College.

The regular city bus system also does the school children's busing.  They have to walk to the bus stop areas along the main streets to get on the bus.  In the afternoon, all the children and youth we see walking to their homes or to the bus stops are dressed in uniform... that is- the boys in sharp suits, and the girls wearing plaid skirts and tights, and tailored jackets.

Guernsey Cows

In our drives about the island to members homes, I've been looking into the small grassy field areas for livestock, but never saw any.  One day I saw a small herd of sheep grazing, and then a fenced area of large goats, but no cows.  We found out that the fields are so wet and boggy from all the rain that the cows are kept in barns all winter.  With the sun coming out a little more often now, we finally saw Guernsey Cows nibbling grass in a field as we drove by.

 And while walking one day, E. Dame got this picture...

We are told that only Guernsey milk is allowed to be sold on the island :)

We think this rock wall is amazing.  Not only is it the back wall of an apartment building, it also is the wall along the street.  It looks like the horizontal lines had to be adjusted as the rocks were being set, due to the ground going up hill a bit...

                                             A view further back....

Progress

We have had success in finding several less active members of our branch; some were warm and friendly ... we're excited to get to know them better, and help them return to activity in the church.

The young woman we met earlier - who said she'd like to learn about the church - didn't answer her phone when we called.  We tried calling at different times of day, evenings and weekend... no luck.
One day we went to B and Q - which is like our Home Depot - and there she was, doing the vote reminder and registering service again.  She recognized us and immediately told us her phone had been damaged and had to be sent to mainland to be repaired; she apologized if we'd been trying to call her, and said how hard it is to function without a phone.  Other people came up and she had to get back to work, but smiled and waved to us.  So in a few weeks we'll try again. :)

Elder Dame met a man named Roger, while walking on a trail one morning.  After talking quite a while about spiritual types of things, he agreed to have us teach him at his home.  We have had 3 good lessons with him, and he is now praying and reading the Book of Mormon.  He is a kind gentle man, and has a sensitive heart; he's felt the spirit as we've taught him about our Heavenly Father and His plan.  It's been a sweet experience for us.

One sunny afternoon, on a walk from our place to a pharmacy store, we passed by the opening to this ... hidden behind the walls along the street.

    We have found out it is the Lt. Governor's house.

On each side of the entrance gate, there's a covered portal.  E. Dame thinks it's where guards used to stand...to guard the entrance, and stay out of the rain. :)

A picture of the capitol city, St. Peter Port, main front street...taken from the "car park" on the pier. Parking areas have signs that indicate how long you can park there; some are 1 hour, others are for 2, and some for 8 hours.  We found out the hard way that we have to get a "Time Card" from the Housing Office to have in our car; we must place it on our dash board when we park .. with it showing the time we parked.   (there are officers walking around, checking, ... and they leave an expensive note if you didn't display your time card :)

Nature

We are still having lots of winter wind and rain storms.  Last week, a really bad storm hung around for two days and nights. It rained constantly.  The wind was extremely strong; it rattled and shook our windows and it seemed the glass would burst out.  Several roads and lanes were closed due to downed trees and branches.
  In between storms we've been blessed with a few more hours of sun and blue skies.  When the tide is really low, and the sun shines on the ocean, the water color seems to change and looks a bright turquoise.  The picture doesn't capture the color as well as I'd hoped, but it is beautiful.

In the distance you can see the small island of Herm.  We're told it's 3 miles away from Guernsey, about a 20 minute boat ride.  It's 1 and 1/2 miles long, by 1/2 mile wide. In summer people like to sail there to walk the trails and enjoy the sandy beaches.   We will likely take a day trip there some time.

 On a P-day we visited one of the historical sites on the island.  Below is Clarence Battery, a defense fort that was built in the early 18th century.  It is on a high knob of land that juts out into the ocean and provides a multi directional view.

From the high point of Battery hill, we could look down on the "swimming pools" built in ancient days.  We are seeing low tide here - the pools hold water after the tide has gone out.  At high tide the water comes clear up to the rock wall at the roads' edge.  In the distance we can see Castle Cornet. It opens for tours the end of March, so we'll learn about it later.

Below the battery is the Guernsey Aquarium set among tunnels, quarried out of solid rock by the
German occupying forces during World War II to store ammunition and vehicles. The main tunnel was dug out by locals in 1864 to create a short cut to the cliff paths and a nice sandy beach.

                                                  nice sandy beach on the other side