Jerseys Galore

As our last blog reiterated, Dana and I love Jerseys! We also love the Jersey family. It seems that if you have Jerseys and you are around someone else with Jerseys, you'll always have a friend! This has been true for us as we've been welcomed onto La Ferme Farm and into an amazing family. The neatest part is that several members of the family have visited our farm, too! These amazing connections are nice reminders how small the world really is!

We were greeted by our hosts as we drove through a lovely arch and welcomed into their beautiful home to enjoy some tea and delicious chocolate cake! After settling in a bit, we rode with our host to see how his son was doing with turning grass to dry it for silage. We got to see firsthand how small the island really is as we drove around the entire northeast corner. We loved that at almost every turn you could see the sea. We also quickly learned that we were in for some amazing food throughout our stay!

We tried figs for the first time (fresh off the tree) and found that they are delicious!

The next day was filled with some one-on-one time with some beautiful Jersey girls! As Jersey has a show coming up in October, Dana and I had the privilege of clipping some of the farm's cows in preparation. As was our system when we showed sheep, Dana did the clipping while I kept the cow calm and assisted with anything else. We had a lot of fun and hope that the girls do well at the show!

Just doing what Jerseys do - being curious!

The farm is very close to the coast (well, really most places in Jersey are!) so after clipping one day we headed on a cliff path to Rozel Bay! The path offered some incredible views. We could even see France!

Land 'hoy! I could really see France in distance!

Since arriving on the island, we kept hearing about the air show.    We decided that it was something we needed to check out! We went by bus to Town, aka St Helier, and found a spot near the Bay in a park. Although all the planes were neat, the highlight was the Red Arrows! These fast flying, synchronized planes shot through the sky with colored smoke right above our heads! We enjoyed the many different formations they made, including a heart! We are glad we made the trek ( about 5 miles) across the island to see the amazing show!

Our bus ride back included making new friends with our host's neighbors. It is so crazy the incredible connections we have been able to make. After a super day in town, we enjoyed a lovely barbecue with our hosts and spent the evening swapping stories!

We've had so much fun on Jersey and can't wait to see what else is in store for us!

The Isle Of Jersey

"The Jersey breed originated on the Island of Jersey, a small British island in the English Channel off the coast of France" (http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/breeds/cattle/jersey/#content). 

Jerseys! The beautiful brown ladies whom we believe to be the best breed of dairy cattle around! At home we have a herd of over 550 head and milk around 300 girls every day. Julie and I love Jerseys and love being around these amazing big-eyed beauties! 

During the planning of our trip a year ago, Julie and I made the decision to travel through the UK. After thinking about it further, we knew we couldn't do a working travel experience and not visit the land of Jerseys! Therefore, with the help of our well-connected brother, we were able to find amazing hosts on the most beautiful Channel Island, Jersey! 

After taking a late night bus from London to Poole, Julie and I made the early morning walk under the stars to the harbor where we would board the ferry headed south. We were a bit tired from our week of random hour transports, so before the ferry even left port at 5 am, we were both hunkered down in our comfortable reclining seats sleeping away out to sea! 

It was an incredible experience when I awoke two hours later to find the large windows in front of me showcasing the expanse of open water. It was beautiful and so wonderful to be fully in the middle of the ocean and all there was to see was the horizon! 

Around 9:30 am, the ferry made it's way into St. Helier's harbor and we had officially arrived to the Isle of Jersey. Our wonderful host for the first few days on the island was there to pick us up and drive the few short miles to a super sweet cottage just near a big and beautiful bay. From the first moments on the island we knew our time here would be remarkable! 

Our fantastic host showed us around the small cottage and allowed us to settle into our own little space. We set about making tea and showering and just relaxing after all our train, bus and ferry travels. We were quite tired and drifted off for a several hour nap. 

Once we had caught up on some sleep, we headed out towards the sea and began to take in this wonderful island! We had four brilliant days near the main town of the island. 

Julie and I spent these first four days on Jersey taking walks along the bay at night and enjoying the lights on the ocean as well as in the towns. We visited the farm of those who hosted us and allowed us to stay in the cute little cottage. We pet and played with the Jerseys, chat with the herdsman and enjoyed just being on a Jersey farm. 

We also went shopping at the local supermarket, cooked our own wonderful balanced meals and drank numerous pots of tea! Julie found St. Matthews Glass Church nearby and after a run and outdoor wellness activities along the beach, we headed to a wonderful Sunday service and met a few really nice and friendly people. 

In our sweet little apartment, we read and journalled and watched the Jerseys graze outside our kitchen window. We also hiked up some of the bluffs and ate berries along the trail. We loved where we stayed, we enjoyed all we were able to do and see and had a lovely host who made sure we were taken care of and doing well! 

On Monday afternoon our short time near St. Helier was coming to an end. We are so grateful for the wonderful and restful time we had!  Our new hosts awaited us and so we headed north to another Jersey dairy farm to further experience this super small, yet mightily amazing island and work side by side with the best breed of dairy cattle around!

Good Morning! 

Almost to land! 

Welcome to Jersey! Let's have a cuppa! 

Always amazing views along the bay, in the morning or late at night! 

The beautiful Jersey girls on the farm!

The best walks involve wild berries along the route. 

Dusk! 

A fit morning in so many ways! 

Jumping jacks! Our current favorite!

Pork chops, roasted potatoes, corn on the cob and kale! Brilliant lunchtime meal!

Jersey Bronze statues! 

Julie looking quite at home among these brown beauties!

Jersey Lemon Curd yogurt! It is SOOO good! Yum!

This wonderful island is only five miles by nine miles. It truly is a magnificent island with wonderful beaches, beautiful Jersey cattle and some of the most friendly people you'll meet!

In the North...and London!

Last Tuesday morning we said goodbye to our Scarborough hosts and headed north to Scotland! Dana and I both wanted to visit Scotland and figured, why not go to Edinburgh? We enjoyed our train ride there, especially when the track took us beside the sea. It was so beautiful! 

Once we arrived, we knew that Edinburgh would be nothing like any of the other cities we'd already experienced! It is a medieval city with a dark history of public punishment and executions. However, the city offers wonderful architecture, views of the North Sea, and great street performers. Additionally, we had the pleasure of seeing a wonderful friend for the first time in almost 18 months! My good friend, Sonia, flew to Edinburgh to meet us! It was so lovely to see her and to have another travel partner!

While in Edinburgh we enjoyed time just chilling in the Princes Street Gardens, views of the Castle, and even an art gallery. We frequented one of our favorite supermarkets, Lidl, and Dana prepared a delicious meal back at our hostel. Sonia and I used the time to catch up, and did the washing up after the meal!

Wednesday morning we went for an early morning run to watch the sunrise over the sea. Sonia never thought she would be watching the sun come up with me as before the trip I would've told you that I didn't need to see the sun rise, but just trusted that it would!

In classic our style, we attended a free walking tour to learn more about the city. Did you know that Sherlock Holmes and Jekyll and Hyde were inspired by real people who lived in Edinburgh? Or that J.K. Rowling  wandered a cemetery in the city and used names from it in Harry Potter? How about that there was a dog named Bobby who had a key to the city and voting rights before women? I really enjoyed the Harry Potter connections on the tour!

J.K. Rowling's hand print! 

Dana and I then had the distinct pleasure of sharing a Cream Tea with Sonia and introducing her to this fantastic English tradition. It was a lovely time!

The land that Edinburgh sits upon was once a very volcanic area. The land has shifted over time to create small mountains around the city, like the one the castle sits upon. We were able to climb another one which has what is called Arthur's Seat at the summit. There were incredible views of the city and the sea from the top! The climb was so worth it.

When we asked others about Edinburgh, we were instructed to try some haggis with 'neeps and tatties.' We found a nice pub and ordered up a haggis tower. Haggis is a Scottish specialty made from sheep stomach and other offal. It is served with turnips and potatoes. Our consensus was that it is delicious! Since we were in Scotland, we thought we should have the full experience and ordered a whiskey as well. That we could have done without!

Dana and I said "See you later" to Sonia and boarded a night bus to London. We discovered that Sonia was flying to London so we made plans to meet up with her there. Since we didn't have a ton of time at the Science Museum the first time, that was our first destination. We also took a nap in Kensington Park and saw the Kensington Palace thanks to Sonia's knowledge! We also had lunch in the Victoria and Albert Museum courtyard and enjoyed a walk past Buckingham Palace at dusk. We enjoyed that London was slightly less busy later in the year than our first visit!

Kensington Palace

Sonia and I imagined that this was the lamp post in Narnia!

After saying goodbye to Sonia, Dana and I boarded another night bus - Destination: Poole!

We had a brilliant time in Edinburgh and London. It was so lovely to have Sonia join us for a few days as well! What an adventure every day can be!?!