An afternoon in Peel

On one of the few sunny days we had, Ken and I decided to visit Peel, on the west coast.  One of its highlights are the castle ruins

A panorama of Peel beach 

A favourite pub with the motorcycle crowd

All the bikes parked outside confirms its popularity!

On our stroll, we came across a really, really small museum called The Manx Transportation Museum

An antique porter's trolley

Another thing Peel is known for is the Peel Trident, 

the smallest car ever made.

They are now very rare and are very valuable

Peel Harbour

We treated ourselves to dinner out at the local Italian restaurant in Port St. Mary, Andreas, run by a charming couple from Italy

...the real McCoy!!

Seafood fettuccine

Only a few days left.....

A little racing!

One of the reasons for our visit to the IOM is the racing, so here is a little of what we have enjoyed so far.

It isn't always go, go, go, so there is some 'down time' between races....this is how I spend my leisure time.

 Check out the Ex Renzo Pasolini 1967 350/4

...it is a very iconic machine!

  Enjoy a few bikes racing up May Hill 

on the one sunny day we have had all week!

After a long day of racing, we headed to our favourite Italian restaurant in Port St. Mary, Andrea's.

I always have their seafood tagliatelle, which never disappoints.

 Still praying for good weather.....

The Ramsey Sprints

The last Thursday of the Classic TT race week, you can find crowds in Ramsey to see another antique motorcycle show.  It takes place in Mooragh Lake Park.

A beautiful view

 Some of the bikes and cars were pretty old! 

  

One of the main reasons for a visit to Ramsey today,

 is to watch the Sprints, 

which is basically a drag race.

The riders burn rubber to warm their tires, then turn up the crank on the throttle to get maximum speed down the straight!

Check out the wheelie!

 Ramsey harbour at low tide

We headed out for an Italian meal at Andreas Restaurant, Port St. Mary to top off the day!

Mussels

Baked Goat cheese with figs

Fettuccine Carbonara

Seafood linguine

Lasagne

Prosciutto pizza

Just a few more days to share of my IOM adventure..

...then headed to the UK

Jurby Festival

On an old airfield, on the north west side of the island, the largest gathering of motorcycles on the island takes place.  

Not only are there bikes on display...

...there is the most fascinating sea of  bikes in the parking lot

During the lunch break, an old 1940 Spitfire and Hurricane gave an aerial display to the delight of the crowds below. 

While walking the grounds, guess who we bump into....none other that 23 time TT winner John McGuinness.

He was kind enough to stop and sign an autograph for me and Shirley!

After a long day of walking, a local Italian restaruant in Port St Mary, Andreas, was just the ticket

Back to the races tomorrow!

Medieval Times in the Isle of Man

Good morning, Port St Mary

Our adventure for today was a to get in touch with the past.

Castletown, on the south east part of the island, is home to Castle Rushen, which was the main protection against the invading forces.

Although its main purpose was to keep the enemies out, it was also used to keep convicts it....imagine being shackled up in these!

...with this for a view...

...and having this as your 'privy'...

(this view came with full sound effects - charming!)

Seems a little barbaric to me....

If you did get a chance to escape to the roof of the castle, you probably would not have been able to scale the walls down, but you would have had a fabulous view!

  Enough history, time to enjoy the scenery...Niarbyl 

has the best view of the western coast of the island...

  We carried on up the west coast to Glen Maye to take in the calming effects of this famous waterfall

Off to Harold's farm for night 1 of practice - it was cut short,
but the bees still had time for dinner.

Then off to our favourite Italian restaurant, Andreas,
for a delicious dinner....

Pepperoni, artichoke & olive pizza with a fried egg

Warm chevre cheese with pecans

Seafood linguine

All in all, a busy but fab day!