Done

Sadness overcame me today, when Iris, my Austrian co-mate, left Herm. Two days later Ina will depart as well and then it's my turn to abandon ship. (The coming week will see a great many tears and I think I will stop wearing mascara for economical reasons.) Summer has raced past and September has come far too quickly: In 10 days I will bid good-bye to so many people that I got to know and like really well: I will leave my temporary island home for my beloved Austria.
Anyways, summer is almost over and it's time to recap: I came to this beautiful spot in the English Channel with certain plans and here are some things I managed to accomplish:

I...

1. went to La Valette Underground Museum : crap; don't ever go there - it's not worth the money. They don't even have toilets...
2. swam to Caquorobert (rocky little islet about 200m off Belvoir Bay) and climbed to the top
3. went for a spontaneous midnight/moonlight swim in same bay
4. went to Lihou Island: a small island with ruins of a monastery (12th century) that can only be reached during 2 hours of low tide every day
5. went to two of Guernseys many neolithic tombs
6. dined in TDH (see last entry)
7. tried scallops - I can't decide whether I like them... they taste.... weird.
8. spent a nice day off at the beach - swimming and sunbathing
9. took a walk along all the beaches at low tide and climbed from Shell Beach to Belvoir
10. visited the weekly farmers' market on GY -- not really spectacular, but at least I got strawberries that actually tasted of something
11. went to the Guernsey Museum and Art Gallery
12. walked the beautiful Princess Radziwill's Path that's reserved for hotel guests: Ina and I sneaked past the little round prison, climbed over the wall and rushed past the marquee unseen in order to get there
13. went for a run at least once a week (to combat the effects of the not achieved point 4 of the following list)

In short I think I made very good use of the 10 offdays I've had so far and it makes me happy to think back, but there are also some things I did not manage to do - for different reasons:

I didn't...

1. keep away from books entirely in order to use the time for socialising: Our Ex-KP (Kitchen Porter) Mick left me his book as a present and I haven't managed to finish the almost 1000 page novel yet (because I socialise too much).
2. walk the whole length of the cliff paths framing the southern coast of Guernsey: I did a bit with my parents - that has to be enough.
3. explore Herm's caves: my stupid shifts and/or the weather have prohibited me from doing that, but it's still on my list and I'm determined to squeeze a short trip into next week's rota somehow
4. lose weight: some things are not possible with pastry chefs like Tino and Chris: temptation lurks everywhere, ready to jump on you when you enter the kitchen: a plate of brownies or chocolate coated strawberries will sit there, innocently smiling at the passer-by and whisper "Eat me! I taste really nice! Go for it!". NO-ONE escapes that trap! (This is especially true for female staff members.) Kitchen is a dangerous place: Full of food...
5. go to Jersey for a few days: I want to get my holidays paid and I decided against going after my contract terminates because I'd rather save the money for my term in Wales next year
6. have a cheese burger in The Ship (ideally followed by an Irish Coffee - just to piss off our barman :D): I had no time for that yet but it's on my schedule for my last day. Can't leave here without having had a decent meal.

So, 10 days of island life still lie ahead of me and I will be careful to make very good use of the little bit of leisure time I've got left before returning to reality. To think about leaving doesn't give me as much pain as last year, but my happiness about seeing my family and all my friends again soon is tainted with sadness and the knowledge that I will miss the island and people here extremely. But I'm determined not to let this oncoming sadness spoil my last week :).