On an overcast Tuesday morning in April, I was up and out the door by 6am! After playing musical cars in my driveway I was on the road, heading for the big city! Arriving in Broomhouse I called my brother (might have woken him from a deep sleep!… it was only 7am!). I parked the van up for it’s holidays and wandered up to Johnboy’s flat, proceeding to wake up the rest of the household (which was okay as they had slightly overslept and were now quickly making their packed lunches and getting ready to head out the door!)
So after a quick blether I grabbed my big rucksack and headed along to the tram station at Saughton. I’d never been on the Edinburgh Trams until now and I must say it was pretty good. After only 15 minutes I arrived at the airport to an eerily quiet, large, free standing EDINBURGH sign, kinda like the Hollywood sign!
I wandered inside and knew I was way too early to check in, so treated myself to a wee bacon roll and a hot chocolate whist partaking in people watching!
After a while I headed to the check in desks where I was greeted by many machines with scales and DIY attitudes! So with my bag on the scales, boarding pass scanned and passport in hand I successfully checked my rucksack in on the computer screen, to then be chased by a member of staff who told me that my bag was to be put at the oversized conveyor belt!! Cheeky!! My rucksack was way smaller than most suitcases I’d seen that morning, and a lot lighter than the recommended 15kg!
Anyway, off I went, breezed my way through security, found a seat in the middle of the ‘shopping centre’ and read the free Metro newspaper that I’d picked up on the tram!
After about half an hour I decided to have an obligatory pint!!
PING went my phone… I didn’t know that the Easyjet app tells you when and which gate to head to for departure! Within minutes of arriving at the gate we were boarding the plane and heading to Jersey!
Just before take-off I was moved forward a row to a seat with extra leg room and an emergency door which I was briefed on how to operate if need be. The shortest legs and the largest leg room!!!
The take-off was perfect, the plane wobbled a bit going up through the thick Edinburgh cloud and by the time we were above the cloud in the bright blue sky the food trolley appeared… I was in my element… 2 of my favourite things on the menu…
By the time I’d had my soup and cider we were descending, getting a good view of Guernsey on route. The plane arrived ahead of schedule despite departing 10 minutes late.
Jersey’s airport is very small. My rucksack appeared quickly. I grabbed it, headed through security, and headed for the exit, spotting my bus in the distance.
The bus journey seemed to take ages to arrive in St Helier, however it was a beautiful day, the sun was shining and the countryside we drove through was definitely worth it.
I got off the bus at the main square in St Helier where there just happened to be an ice cream stall waving at me!
One mint choc chip ice cream later I started to wander about the town, enjoying watching the boats come and go in the many docks.
I sat by the Freedom Tree listening to the sea and looking out to Elizabeth Castle for a while, knowing that I wasn’t able to get into my accommodation until 5.30pm.
The weather was fantastic, high 20’s, hardly a cloud in the sky. I walked along the coast passing Elizabeth Marina, Albert Pier, Old Harbour, Engish Harbour, French Harbour, Victoria Harbour, the Power Station!, La Collette Gardens, Boulevart and the Outdoor Swimming Pool, before heading inland up to Howard Davis Park, where throughout my stay in Jersey I liked to sit and enjoy the peace and quiet!
Just after 5.30pm I met Steve (my Air bnb host) at the apartment.
My room was comfy, spacious and I had access to the kitchen and bathroom facilities and the TV when he was out!
I quickly grabbed a shower and headed back into town for food and to catch the sunset. I found many restaurants closed, the takeaways weren’t looking that appealing and I didn’t fancy walking into a pub for dinner on my own, so down by the harbour a Pizza Hut it was!
When I was full up on pizza and juice I walked along to the Freedom Tree and took some photos looking out to Elizabeth Castle with the sun setting in the distance.
With the sun almost set for the night I headed back to my room via the Howard Davis Park, taking only 15 minutes, and I was out for the count in less than that when my head hit the pillow!
Snuz's Adventures 