First impressions of ST HELIER - The capital of JERSEY Channel Islands
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- čas přidán 2. 02. 2023
- Hi everyone! In this video, I visit St Helier (or Saint Helier), the capital and only town of Jersey. The Bailiwick of Jersey, together with the Bailiwick of Guernsey, make up the Channel Islands which are situated in the English Channel.
As Jersey is a Crown Dependency, I've added this vlog to the 'British Overseas Territories & Crown Dependencies' playlist.
Jersey is the largest Channel Island and is renowned for its mix of French and English culture. It is closer to France than England but it was still only a 30 minute plane journey away from Gatwick Airport!
The video shows me giving my first impressions of Jersey in general and St Helier in particular. I start the vlog by showing my room for the weekend and I talk about the dimensions of Jersey as shown on a map in the reception area of my guest house.
I then hit the streets and walk towards the town centre. I'm immediately struck by the volume of traffic and the interesting architecture, whilst noticing the similarities with the UK in things such as the road signs and post boxes. I then come across a beach in town where I marvel at the amount of seaweed or kelp that are washed ashore and talk about the apparent significance of seaweed as a fertiliser for Jersey Royal potatoes.
Back in the town, I talk about the development of Jersey's road infrastructure in the 19th century and also give my first impressions of the town centre. I also stumble upon statues of the famous Jersey cows as well as other interesting monuments such as the Jersey Girl statue.
I then get to Liberation Square where I talk a bit about the history of the island, in particular its occupation during the the Second World War. I also then take an even further step back in time and briefly mention other key eras, dates and events in Jersey's history - including the significance of 1204 and how the development of steam technology changed the demography and culture of the island. I also talk about the development of Jersey's tourism and offshore finance sectors and how the island needed to attract seasonal workers and immigrants from Madeira.
As I try to find my way towards Elizabeth Castle, I'm again reminded about the traffic and the number of boats or yachts in St Helier. I also talk about the significance of knitting on the island and tell a story featuring Charles II...
In the latter part of the vlog, I meet a local man who gives me some information about the tide. I then walk towards Elizabeth Castle and Hermitage Rock - the latter features a small church or oratory dedicated to Saint Helier.
Hope you enjoy! If you haven't done so already, please hit the LIKE and SUBSCRIBE buttons - it really helps this channel to grow!
Brilliant, your tour has been more informative than anything the local Tourism board has done in the last 5 years. They could learn something from you.
Wow Jeremy, what a compliment to receive! Glad you enjoyed the video, it was a great trip for me and I hope you'll enjoy the next videos of Jersey I'll put up in due course too
As a jersey man born and raised, I really enjoyed this video, well researched!
Thank you very much Christian! Glad you enjoyed this video!
I’m a Jersey girl and I learnt so much!
That English breakfast looked incredible. The dish I can find about anywhere in the world...yet can never find when I need it the most. Awesome video, brother. Very informative. I've always wanted to visit Jersey. Always see it when I'm surfing the globe for places to visit. But I had no idea about anything you explained in the video.
Cheers mate. I agree that a good English breakfast is hard to find! Glad you find it interesting and informative :)
Throughly enjoyed your blog. Lived in Jersey 🇯🇪 for ten years in the 90s & 00s & also met my wife there. I return there as often as I can. Lovely island.
Delighted to hear you enjoyed the video and I really appreciate the support. Thanks for sharing your story too - no wonder it holds a special place for you!
It’s crazy watching this after living in jersey over 20 years ago. I lived in st Helier and it has changed so much.
Thanks for taking the time to watch my video and for the comment! I'm sure it has changed a lot over the years but you'll always have the memories :)
For good or for bad?
Seems like a great place to visit! Thanks for the informative video, WillieExplore!
Cheers for watching! Glad you found it a good watch!
Oh wow I didn’t know that about the knitting pattern in their jerseys wow 🤯 I feel like I learn something new every day ahah beautiful views 🥰 thank you for sharing your travels are always so fun ! 🌈
Thank you very much for your kind words! Yep, that knitting pattern part is probably my favourite thing about Jersey - thanks for watching and supporting my channel!
Well done my friend great video all the best John 😊
Really appreciate this comment John! Cheers for watching my videos :)
Excellent presentation. From a Jersey ‘Bean’, whose late husband was South African. But that’s another story!
Thank you very much Marion! Glad you enjoyed it. I understand there are lots of South Africans on the island
Welcome back Monsieur 🌹🇹🇳 another beautiful journey to witness with you 🧭🌏
Thank you mon ami! Appreciate you watching the other vlogs on my channel and taking the time to comment!
This video was brilliant👏. We have visited Jersey every year since 2012 and love it. We learned so much from you too. By the way, hens and chickens live on premises on Elizabeth Castle island, near the cafe! Shame it wasn't open when you visited
So glad you enjoyed it Sheila! Thanks for taking the time to watch the video and for commenting. That is so interesting regarding the hens and chickens! I need to get back to Jersey and St Helier at some point - I bet it is magnificent in summer!
@@willieexplore just about to watch the walking tour now and then your Guernsey videos, another lovely island😊
@@shm1270 that is great! I had such a wonderful time in both Jersey and Guernsey :)
I used to live at La Collette, left turn at the beginning of the tunnel, Green Street. Good video. Enjoyable, and I actually learnt stuff I didn’t know even though I was born and have lived in Jersey all my life! I have lived in St. Helier all my life and walked a round the town centre and never noticed some of the things you mentioned in your video. It just goes to show how ‘blind’ you become when you live somewhere and just don’t notice things! Great information, thank you.
Hi Jeannine! Thank you so much for watching my videos and for commenting, I really appreciate it. I really enjoyed reading up about Jersey's history and some of the interesting facts about St. Helier. As you say, one often does not make this effort if you live in a place! But what a wonderful island and you can be very proud to be from there. Have a great day!
Your videos are brilliant. We are going to Guernsey in 3 weeks for summer holiday and we are looking forward to visit this beautiful Island. We drive to St. Malo from Denmark and go by the Condor ferry. Can you please arrange some sunny weather - that would be so nice 😅
Thank you so much for your great compliment, Gitte! I am delighted that you enjoy my videos. Your trip sounds amazing - I do hope that the sun is out when you are there :)
Fascinating introduction to St Helier, undertaken at a nice slow walking pace!
Thank you very much Richard! Appreciate you taking the time to watch my content and leaving a comment. Glad you enjoyed the slow walk :)
Great vlog Willie and I'm pleased you enjoyed your visit. Just FYI the mural near the steam clock was created by Gabriel Pitcher and is called The ‘Home’ mural. It is a celebration of Jersey’s immigrant communities’ contribution to Island life, and the modern, multicultural place that we all call home. 😀
The holes in the sand on the way to the castle were made by Razorfish!
Cheers clusterofchaos! I'm very glad that you enjoyed the vlog and I'm really grateful for this additional insight and clarification! I did think that the mural was a wider representation of the immigrant communities but wasn't sure enough to mention that in the vlog. As for the holes in the sand, I knew it must have been some marine creature or organism so thanks for confirming that too! I'll put up a couple more vlogs of Jersey in due course - a silent walking tour of St Helier town centre and then a vlog where a local takes me on a tour of the wider island - watch out for those!
The holes in the sand are made by Lugworm, not 'Razorfish' (there is no such thing. Perhaps you meant Razor Clams, but they do not make holes like that).
nice to see my old mate Gunner Gilly (Chris) in this video. he actually lives out at the castle, he is also a re-enactor for the Jersey Militia and fires the midday cannon out at the castle. I got to know Chris when I worked for the museum service working on the amphibious vehicles transporting tourists back and forth from the castle.
the holes in the sand are where razorfish have berried themselves and the squiggles of sand next to the holes is what they have excavated out when doing so.
the concrete causeway leading out to the castles was made by the German in WWII. there is an actual German Jackboot imprint in one of the sections.
the building in the rock on the breakwater is not a church it is a hermitage. it was the home of the hermit Saint Helier, who ended up having his head cut off by Vikings. that is why the capitol of the Island is called St Helier and the crest is 2 axes.
BTW good job on learning the St Ouenian accent. lol
Oh wow that is great that you know Chris! Hope he is keeping well. He gave me a lot of reassurance that I could visit the area around the castle during low tide. And thanks for providing all the additional interesting information. The accent is local! Ha!
Great tour!
Cheers a lot!
Great video, Jersey's a lovely island. Glad to hear that you're going to Guernsey too though, one of my favourite places in the whole world (well...of the parts of the world that I've seen, anyway)! 😁
Cheers Andy! Glad you enjoyed this vlog and that it brought back some memories. I really enjoyed my day in St Helier and I look forward to Guernsey in due course!
@@willieexplore I'm sure you'll love Guernsey! BTW, I'm heading to Tunisia in the morning, I'll be reviewing your videos for some tips when I'm there! 😊
@@andybaker2456 ahh mate fantastic news re Tunisia! Hope you have a wonderful journey and experience. I would absolutely have no hesitation in recommending every single destination in Tunisia that I visited. And many more! Safe travels
@Willie Explore Thank you sir! 👍
What a funny chicken, I love it 🤣
One of my favourite parts of the video! Thank you so much for watching and supporting my channel!
I love your conversation with the chicken, 😁
Haha yes a bit random! Pity they did not want to follow me all the way :)
Excellently researched again Willie. It never even occurred to me that Jersey gave its name to knitted jumpers. Weird how Americans use it for t-shirts now (eg 'soccer jersey'). They even say it in Spain (spelt the same but pronounced 'hair-say')
New Jersey fact was very interesting as well.
I used to stay on the island a lot when I worked for British Airways, we used to stay at the Radisson Blu Hotel and I always used to get a bike out and tour the island. Favourite part was Portelet Bay.
Good to see you've carried on your series of UK overseas territories, look forward to seeing Guernsey. Cheers and sorry I waffled a bit 🤣
Cheers for watching mate, as always! I never made the connection with the knitted jumpers either until I read up about it. Glad you enjoy this playlist (I don't think I can really call it a "series" as it is not continuous, but hey...) - it is definitely one of my favourites and I hope I'll get a chance to do the remote ones such as Tristan da Cunha and Falklands one day - bucket list stuff!
@@willieexplore I read a book by Ben Fogle where he went to Tristan da Cunha, think he had to sail for a couple of weeks from Cape Town to get there! And tried to get into Pitcairn but wasn't allowed! Will make a fascinating series/playlist mate, good job!
Brilliant video on this one as show within the range of different styles of places that you could explore further I enjoyed your experience showing viewers with your experience personal view especially own opinion Willie one more question please as Scotland wants independence would Scotland be accepted or better as crown dependence country as these are crown dependence country connection to the crown as royalty thanks for your time especially considering making these videos useful for us to watch.
Thanks as always Simon! Your support and encouragement keep me going with these vlogs. As for Scotland, that is a matter for the Scottish people!
Thank you for your video Willie! I lived and worked in St Helier in 2007 to 2008. This brought back so many memories. I love Jersey. It’s a beautiful island and I’ve been back a few times for holidays. I learnt lots from your video about the history. Very interesting. And the chicken 🐓 did make me laugh! 🤣 Thanks again.
That is wonderful to hear Kim! Really appreciate you checking out the video and supporting my channel. Glad you could learn something too - I certainly enjoyed reading up on the history of Jersey before my trip! That chicken was so random but what an encounter haha!
@@willieexplore Did you visit Howard Davis Park? That is my favourite part of St Helier. Such a gorgeous park.
@@kimflavell73 unfortunately I didn't - just looked it up and it looks absolutely magnificent!
@@willieexplore It really is stunning! I was staying at The Merton Hotel when I first arrived for work so I walked through it every morning on my way to work. Great memories. Maybe next time… x
@@kimflavell73 no wonder it is so special to you, that walk in the morning will have lifelong memories for you!
"Monsieur" !! nice video as always !
Merci mon ami! Thanks for watching some of my "other" content too! :)
@@willieexplore you welcome Monsieur, i watched all of them, always pure pleasure to discover countries with your way of showing it. thank you Monsieur for making us travel while sitting in our bed
@@jayceontalylor4244 you are a wonderful support for this channel!
The seaweed on the beaches, locally called vraic … pronounced without the ‘v’, is more a bladder type, than kelp, though there will be some kelp mixed in.
In the past it was used a lot to fertilise the potato fields, but artificial fertiliser has taken over. The one time we did try and use it again we were stopped pretty quickly by the road safety brigade/ local police.., Vraic and water … slippery stuff, difficult to keep it all trapped in a trailer with mesh sides to drain the water out. Added to the difficulty of keeping trailers fully roadworthy to modern standards … brakes, working electrics etc, even for driving ½ mile up the road, made the whole thing just far to impractical and expensive. So we did not carry on. Older days people would not have been so worried by a few bits dropped on the road, but nowadays, just considered far too dangerous
Thank you so much for providing this additional information and context Neil! Greatly appreciated!
@@willieexplore Glad to. Those beaches are clean of weed in the summer, just the winter storms that bring it up. I never got to see any SA Beaches..I was always inland..Jp;burg / Midrand. Always planned to do some holiday stuff whilst there.,,,but work, work work,,,
@@npaisnel definitely worth checking out some of the SA beaches, but if it is any consolation, those usually come with a bit of a breeze. If you are a nature person though, SA never disappoints. I was very impressed with the Jersey walking trails / green spaces given the dense population / small island - will post some more Jersey vlogs in due course so watch out for those!
Great video. I lived and worked in Jersey from 1970 to '74 and my last trip there was in the mid 80's; it looks as though the place has been completely rebuilt. The only shop I recognized in King Street was "Voisin", the department store. It also looks a bit "run down" with all the empty and boarded-up shops. Pity about the dreary weather as my recollections are mainly blue skies and sunshine, even in winter.
Cheers for your kind words Colin, much appreciated! I really enjoyed Jersey even on a cloudy / rainy day. I know that many of the locals have some heated debates regarding the pace of development of St Helier, especially given that Jersey is not a big island. However, as you mentioned, I also noticed several shops that were closed or in the process of closing down (as was the case in St Peter Port in Guernsey too). I would really love to visit the Channel Islands again in summer!
Great video as usual 👍🏻
Cheers for watching Seif! Really appreciate you checking out the other content on my channel in addition to the Tunisia vlogs :)
@@willieexplore Sure thing! I really enjoy your content, very good and spontaneous energy. Thank you for sharing your travels with us. 🍀
@@espadasensei you are most welcome, thanks for exploring together!
The best 2 yrs of my life living & working on the rock,could see Elisabeth castle from my room on the esplanade,(The customs hotel,public house) also could see the ferry from Portsmouth coming in at 8.30am every day, great times in the early 80s. Does anyone know what the customs pub is now??.
That's a great story June! Thanks for sharing and for watching my videos. Hope someone can help you out with your query :)
Nice. I’ve lived in Jersey all my life and learnt a couple things I never even knew! I’ve never in my whole life seen a wild chicken either.
Hopefully you got to explore all the island. Much more beautiful areas than St Helier.
Cheers for watching Jake! I enjoyed reading up about the island's history but the chicken was just very random :)
There's a lot more wild chickens in Jersey. Valle des Vaux is a prime example
@@piotrswoboda4504 cheers for the info
Awesome video of you going to jersey. If the castle was open you would enjoy it and the war tunnels. If you come back again we can take you around the island. And show you more places. And we will take you out on a ghost hunt😂. 🇯🇪🇯🇪🇯🇪
Thanks for watching and the kind offer! I really had a great time in Jersey and would love to visit again :) Ghost hunt sounds interesting!
If you ever get to New Zealand you will see the kelp there too. It is a great fertilizer for veggie gardens. My Dad used to go and collect sacks of it for his garden. Lots of jersey cows in NZ too. In NZ we called our sweaters Jerseys. But never realised the name came from the Island. Thank you Willie for the history talk on the Island of Jersey. Kiwi from Virginia
Really appreciate you watching all my videos, from Lonely Planet to Greenland to Jersey! It is a pleasure to have you travelling and exploring along. I also never made the connection re the jerseys before my research but now it makes complete sense!
@@willieexplore I really appreciated the Greenland tour because I just found out I have family living there. After a DNA test. Greenland was just a country before. You helped me understand it so much more. I cant thank you enough.
It's true that the island almost doubles in size when the tide's out, but as I used to tell people when I worked at Elizabeth Castle, always err on the side of caution when dealing with an incoming tide. If, for example, the sea's just lapping at the causeway to the castle when you set out walking from one end to the other then by the time you're half way you'll be up to your knees.
Good to see Chris(Gunner Gilly) is still doing well.
Thanks for providing this additional insight! And yes, I was really grateful for Chris' assistance and guidance :)
You need to come back in the summer when Jersey is at its best and get out of town and head west (it’s the best) lol
Definitely plan to go back :)
Lol 😂 my granddaughter Leah and her friend Maddox are in your video.
Haha that is great! I often wonder in how many videos or photos of other people I randomly feature in :)
It was lovely to see her and totally unexpected, I hear they spoke to you and asked to be kept in your video 😂
@@karinaleboustouller5311 ahh right it's them! Yes, they were walking past and when I finished filming the scene they came back to me and asked if I have a CZcams channel. Bless them!
The seaweed, its reffered to as Vraic. You need a licence to gather it. Stack up in piles over the winter , then add to Fields. The best place for the spuds, is the West coast, St Quen (Got to do something right there) grown ion fields, measured in Vergess, that are almost pure sand. You from South Africa and don't mention Tom Davis!!
That is so interesting! Thanks for watching and giving this additional information!
@@willieexplore Your'e South African? And you didn't mention Tom Davis, the Island Philantropist?
@@willieexplore Your South African, and didn't mention Tom Davies the Island Philantropist?
@@51WCDodge yes I am. Not familiar with Tom Davies though?
@@willieexplore Thomas Benjamin Fredrick Davis, born in Jersey 1867 (Died 1942) he left the Rock 1899, moving to The Cape Colony, where he started a stevedore company and made his fortune. His son Howard was killed in the Battle of the Somme (1916) Hward Snr. Then started a lot of philanthropic work in Jersey, including, The Howard Davis Park in St Helier, and the Howard Davis Memrial Farm (The States Farm). He also owned and raced a J Class yacht,
My Mum met my Dad in Jersey, neither from there. Her, him and a bunch of their mates would live half the year in Jersey and half the year in Spain until my Mum got pregnant with me in 87.
That is such a great story! Thank you for sharing and for watching my content :)
Had no idea this place existed. My last name is saint hilaire . Very similar!!
Wow that is great! Maybe you have some connection with the island you never knew about!
Can you please point to where Swansons Hotel was located, I worked there in the early 60's.
Sorry Ron, but I'm not familiar with the area as I was only there as a tourist. Hopefully someone can help you.
Knitting was a necessity not a leisure activity.
Jersey Heritage would be a great place for you to be information from as these people are professional historians and researchers
Cheers Gemma. I did indeed use Jersey Heritage to gather some information before my trip. Activities done through necessity can be enjoyable too - they are not mutually exclusive. It might have started as a necessity, but if you consider that formal (1608 law) and informal (church ban) laws had to be put into place to curtail knitting activity, as well as the fact that it was a profitable industry for some, even a lay person can make the reasonable inference that at least some of the population must have enjoyed doing it.
👏👏👍👍
Thank you :)
Your accent makes you sound like a local!
I've been told I sound just like an old Jersey Bean ;) Thanks for watching and commenting!
Can anyone tell me the name of the bed and breakfast?
Thalatta
Very informative, great video thanks! Originally from Guernsey I have been to Jersey a few times, but ages ago. Perhaps Im biased - but I think St. Peterr Port is by far prettier than St. Helier.
Cheers for watching and leaving this wonderful comment Steven! I really enjoyed my visits to both St Helier and St Peter Port. If views are anything to go by, my St Helier videos have gained a lot more views than the Guernsey ones so many will differ from you :)
@@willieexplore Well then I must be biased ... But still: Jersey is better known than Guernsey. Perhaps thats the reason for the "likes" 😉😉Anyway cheers for your great video! As somebody else already commented, you give far more information (i.e re Elizabeth Castle, King Charles II and New Jersey) than the Jersey tourist board ever managed to post anywhere. Well done!
@@stevenr2463 I really enjoyed reading up about the island before my visit - I could not believe that I never made the connection re Jersey and jerseys one wears! Cheers for watching :)
I love your accent! Sounds a little German
Thank you for watching my friend! Haha yes South African :)
What hotel was this?
Thalatta
What
was hotel called ?
It was the Thalatta Guest House.
@@suffolkngood certainly was!
5% of the population here in jersey are 🇿🇦 South African ❤️just in case you didn’t know
Quite a large percentage! I know there are a lot on the Isle of Man - maybe there is something about Crown Dependencies that attract us Saffas :)
@@willieexplore I worked at Ernst & Young (Accountancy) at Liberation House in St Helier in 2007 to 2008 and we had lots of South African staff who also lived and worked in Jersey at the same time as I was there. I am still friends on Facebook with them and follow their lives back home in SA! 😃 🇿🇦
@@kimflavell73 we are just everywhere on the globe! :)
Promote alderney bro they need it 🙏
Would love to visit one day! :)
@willieexplore thanks bro 🙏 🙌 really peaceful hardly any cars and alderneys position was strategic .so lot's off bunkers
No body walks through the tunnel.
Thanks for watching!