Wild Alderney!

Arrived on Alderney yesterday morning after a beautiful flight over (only 3 passengers on the plane) in the sunshine. It's a lovely little island with a wild rocky coastline - more wild than usual at the moment because it's very windy and the waves are thundering up onto the rocks. There are about 10 old Forts dotted around the coast, originally built in the time of the Napoleonic wars, but some of them added to during the German occupation in WW2, very picturesque. Some are virtually completely ruined, some have been done up and coverted to housing, and some (like Fort Corblets, which is Diana and Stephen's one) with potential!

They are in the process of of doing theirs, a major undertaking. Dad, you would be very impressed with the place, and immediately see opportunities for wall-knocking-down and window/door-installing. They are not living there yet, as it has been pretty much completely gutted in the doing-up process, but we went over yesterday and had a good look through.

We went back in the evening and had champagne watching the sunset from up on the ramparts. This is actually an enclosed area which was a greenhouse but is now a living area, right up at the top of the fort with the old gun emplacements just outside the window. Magic!

Today we have been into town and had a bit of a wander around the shops. As you can imagine, a wander with Diana involves stopping to chat with half the island, and actually a drive with Stephen seems to involve to stopping to chat to the other half out the car window! However I did manage to stop for a chat myself with the other 2 people who were in the plane with me on the way over.

They have another friend staying too, an old friend of Stephen's from the film industry named Bill.

About to brave the weather and go for a walk on the beach.

Good blogging from the German half of the team - keep it up!