Portsmouth day trip

Day before yesterday I was in Portsmouth to specifically go on the Hovertravel hovercraft service to Ryde, Isle of Wight.  However there’s more to the city than meets the eye, with a few pleasant surprises.

I arrived the night before so I can start off early.  First item was the hovercraft, I took a bus to the hovercraft terminal, then bought a day return ticket at the ticket office.  The ticket seller asked me what time I was coming back, this question surprised me at first but I found out the reason later. I got on the next boat and the passengers (me included) boarded from the beach, as the front of the craft opened up to let passengers in and out.  The staff counted each passenger in, as the number of seats were limited and there were no seat reservations.  This explained why ticket seller asked what time I was coming back.  Once on, I sat on the first available seat I saw. Once everyone was in(it became nearly full), it was ready to leave.  

First it reversed into the sea and turned itself around to face the direction of travel, then it accelerated off. The crossing was smooth and quick, it felt like less than ten minutes had elapsed when it was pulling into Ryde.  I got off, went for a look around the terminal and it was back onboard for the return trip.  Now I can tick “travelling on hovercraft” off my to do list.

The place I went to next was the D Day museum just along the coast from the hovercraft port. On arrival, the first noticeable thing was an actual D Day landing craft outside the main building.  It was actually used on the day and it carried tanks.  Still looking intimidating after all those years, thanks to painstaking restoration.  Next to this was a memorial to those who fell that, lest we forget.

Inside, there were two exhibitions, one was about the landings and its preparation.  Due to the small size of the building, it was less impressive than the same displays at the Imperial War Museum.  Nonetheless it was still informative.  The other exhibition featured the D Day embroidery, similar to the Bayeux tapestry it stretched all around the exhibition room. Unlike the tapestry, the pieces were stitched in.  It shows the preparation, execution and aftermath of D Day, an impressive piece of art. 

After that it was off to my next port of call, the Charles Dickens Birthplace Museum.  I took the bus there and it was hidden down a cul-de-sac, amongst modern buildings.  A  restored three storey building where the great author was born and grew up. I never knew Dickens was a Portsmouth boy until then. Although well preserved, there wasn’t much to see, it was more a Georgian/early Victorian social history museum than about the author.  Still it was must visit place for Dickens fans.

Then it was back on the coast to go on the Portsmouth to Gosport ferry.  Not quite as impressive as the hovercraft but still interesting.  The ferry reminded me of the Star Ferry in Hong Kong.  After getting off, I had lunch in the nearby high street and then return trip back to Portsmouth and took a photograph of the Spinnaker Tower.

It was getting to mid afternoon and still time for one last museum, and I chose Portsmouth Museum and Art Gallery.  Tucked away on the outskirts of the city centre I took another bus.  The museum is a former barracks and the exhibition is spread across three floors.  On the ground floor we had displays for Arthur Conan Doyle and the nightlife scene in the Portsmouth. Moving up one level, I saw an extensive display on the history of the city also its famous maritime and naval connections.  On the same floor there was a display of oil paintings. Second floor had an exhibition about the local football club, Portsmouth FC.

Finally, I was done for the day and headed back to Portsmouth and Southsea station for the train home. Just outside the station lay the Portsmouth Cenotaph, a poignant reminder of locals who fell in both world wars.

All in all, I had an enjoyable day, it wasn’t my first visit, I took the ferry to the Isle of Wight from here twice and I did the historic naval dockyards a few years back.  It was nice to see a bit more of the city and I’m glad to have done it.