Travel, Wine & Shoes

Guernsey is located in the Channel Islands between England and France.  Official languages are English and French and you can either fly or take a ferry from England or France to get there.  Guernsey was a port on our British Isles cruise in 2009 so we only had a day to explore.  Definitely worth a visit!  An interesting fact is Guernsey was occupied by German troops in World War II.

St. Peter Port

St. Peter Port is the capital of Guernsey.  It has attractions like Castle Cornet and Hauteville House which is where Victor Hugo (author of Les Miserables) lived when exiled there.

Castle Cornet

Castle Cornet was built between 1206 and 1256 and sits on an island about 600 metres from Guernsey.  Today Castle Cornet it is a museum.  We explored the battlements and gardens.

Every day at noon, a cannon is fired.

Check the Castle Cornet website for admission times.  Entry is £10.50 for adults and £3.00 for children and students.

Grinning From “Ear to Ear”

The phrase “grinning from ear to ear” originated from a punishment of cutting each corner of the mouth to each ear.  The jaw would then drop.  Our Tour Guide demonstrated the practice on Bryan.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

While researching Guernsey I came across a novel called “The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society” by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows.

The Random House description is:

January 1946: writer Juliet Ashton receives a letter from a stranger, a founding member of the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. And so begins a remarkable tale of the island of Guernsey during the German occupation, and of a society as extraordinary as its name.

I thoroughly enjoyed the book!  What a great read it was, especially as I was going to be in Guernsey not too long after reading the novel.

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Links

• The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society – Random House
• Visit Guernsey
• Castle Cornet
• Potato Peel Pie Recipe

Guernsey