Visiting The Isle Of Wight ~ England

In September 2018,  while visiting London,
my daughter, Suzanne and I took 
 a day to visit the Isle Of Wight,

A small Island on the South tip 
of England, a place of our roots.

My Great Great Grandfather, was born 
on this Island and came to America in 1767.

We left London very early in the morning.
It took us most of the morning to get there.
We took the subway and 3 trains 
from London to Portsmouth.
We did take a wrong connection  
 somewhere, which lengthened our 
 ride, and to make matters worst, 
when we arrived at the Ferry Dock,
 we were told we had the wrong tickets. 
Our tickets were for a Hovercraft
crossing to the Island, not the Ferry.
(The person who sold us the tickets back in
London, did not tell us about a "Hovercraft".)
So we had to take a bus around Portsmouth
to another dock to get the Hovercraft.

The Isle of Wight is about 

2 miles off the coast of England.

Queen Victoria's summer home

"The Osborne House" is there. 

"Please note that there are bus services
 directly from Heathrow Airport and 
other points in London, to
 The Isle Of Wight."
Our hotel being near EarlCourt Subway,
is why we chose the subway and
train route.

It was the first time 

I had seen a Hovercraft.

It was a bit scary to see 

this huge apparatus,

 arrive right up on the sand, 

turn around, and deflate.

Apparently, at this time (2018)

 this is the world's only 
passenger Hovercraft service.

We board in the front of the Hovercraft

I said a silent prayer before  boarding

Comfortable seats inside.

Controls up above.

A little video

The look on Suzanne's face,
says it all. (excitement)

We couldn't see much through the window, 
because of the speed and the salt water mist.

In 10 minutes, we landed on 

The Isle of Wight.

Our first time ever visiting this beautiful Island.

The shores of England in the distance.

At the train station nearby, 
we waited for our train to the
  seaside town of Shanklin,

"Mind The Gap"
is a common sight in London at all the
subway/underground tracks.

And here it comes.

An Antique Train.

It made me think of  The Polar Express.
The same sound and speed rolling over the tracks.
It may be antique, but it sure has speed. 
Apparently they are London's

 old subway cars repurposed.


As you can see, we had our choice of seats.
It was more crowded when we returned.

We enjoyed the ride though beautiful countryside to Shanklin.

A change from the packed subways and the busy city of London. 

At Shanklin we walked 

towards a beach café and 
 stopped for lunch.

Below, I came overdressed.
It was much cooler in London.
I had to buy a scarf and gloves
for the cooler mornings there.

We visited the beautiful beach.

This waterfront was damaged by 

Nazi bombs during the war.

Traces of the war are still visible

Fishing

We met a nice lady, Heather

who visits the Island each Summer.
She lives near London and
drives her car, takes the ferry
across, and stays at an Inn, nearby.

Some of the lodgings and restaurant along the beach. 

A Menu and "We welcome Ankle biters"
Pets are welcome.

We took a walk to visit the town.

"Jingle Bells" the perfect name

for a Christmas Store.

Of course, I had to go inside.

We visited the Shanklin Chine Gardens.

With it's beautiful tropical vegetation,

 Along a gorge.

An Aviary.

We were surprised at all the Tropical vegetation
and the warmer climate.

Waterfall

Fisherman's Cottage Pub

Royal Marine Commando

1942-46

"In Memory Of Our Comrades

Who Remain On Foreign Fields"

During the war Shanklin Chine was taken over 
by the Royal Marine Commandos.
They trained here and prepared for the 
Dieppe raid of 1942. 
This is a plaque dedicated to their memory. 

Also on the Island, 
"Pluto",  the famous pipeline under the ocean, built
to carry petrol/fuel  to the Allied Troops in France,
to supply their tanks and vehicles.

2 Day's names, listed here.
AE Day age 36, at sea and
R Day, age 22, Italy.

We returned to the beach and 

did some treasure hunting. 

Seaglass and stones, 

"Little pieces of the Island"
that I was able to bring home.
The circle on the right, 

is part of a bottle neck.
By it's condition, it has

 been many many yrs in the sea.

Suzanne's Treasures.

It's the first time we see

 a pure white snail shell.

An albino?

In the late afternoon,
we left the Island, and
 started our long journey back to London.
We arrived back at our hotel 
exhausted and exhilarated.
A day to remember!

Our Roots on the Island.

Unfortunately we didn't have more time

 to do search on our genealogy.  

We're hoping to return one day,

  stay longer, and visit all the Island.

My Great Great Grandfather,

James Day Esq., was born on this Island,

in 1767. He came to Canada at 24yrs. old

and became a Master Shipbuilder

for Robin, Jones and Whitman, 

entrepreneurs from the Isle of Jersey. 

They dominated the cod fishery of 

the Bay des Chaleur, 

in Eastern Quebec, Canada,

 from 1766 to 1825,

surviving piracy on the Atlantic and

suffering occupation during the

American Revolution. 

James Day Esq.

More about James, 

in another blog post,

in process. 

Thanks for visiting my blog xo. 💚
All photos taken my Suzanne and myself.

Visit other sites we saw while in London:

 Kensington Palace, Buckingham Palace,

 Windsor Castle, Royal Botanical Gardens ~ Kew

 and An Afternoon Tea In London.