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[Shadow]

Question for Shadow - whats Jersey like?

It's lovely actually yeah ... it's a 9 mile x 5 mile little island with its own thriving community - it's divided up into 12 "Parishes" (basically like really tiny towns ?), each of which has its own Parish Hall (which handles small issues like speeding tickets, minor crimes, changes of address, issuance of driving licences etc., etc.), a school, and a set of shops. Most of the Parishes are named after Saints - e.g. "St. Lawrence", "St. Ouen" (pronounced "Saint One" or "Sin 'Twon" if you're a local), "St. Saviour" and so on).

We lie literally within the clutches of France, and so there is a large French influence here (lots of the streets have names in English and French - e.g. King Street / La Rue Derrière), and we import French foods on weekends sometimes and sell them in the larger supermarkets ... but we are most definitely more British than French in many ways. I think the diehard local people are more French-oriented (the local language (which I do not speak) is called "Jerriais" or "Jersey French"), and most of the adults that are here NOW are from England (Portugal, Poland ...).

It's got a healthy pace of life to it, insofar as people do run businesses - we're not all sheep herders or hermits ... the island has international renown as an "Offshore Finance Centre" (repeat after me IT IS NOT A TAX HAVEN ) and, even though our tourist trade has all but dried up in recent years in favour of the Finance Industry, we do still get quite a few tourists each year.

The crime-rate is *touch wood* low (watch me get mugged on the way home now), and it's the kinda place where people do still sleep with their doors unlocked ...

Wouldlikemuscle was HORRIFIED that I left my iPod in my car outside the house, but over here you just don't think about that sorta thing ... which is cool.

... and you're NEVER more than 15 minutes from a beach, in virtually any direction.

There are some STUNNING views and beautiful sites, and NO POISONOUS WILDLIFE (apart from the locals).

Anything else you wanna know babe ?

I'm going to ask a question of Phil! now ...

Phil!, were you born in Ireland ?

!?!?! Shadow !?!?!