It was with a heavy heart that we bid adieu to the Isle of Man for another year.
Skies were clear as we flew east towards Bristol, to meet up with my lovely aunt Shirley.
To me, everything in England is so quaint, including my aunt's 500 year old house in Somerset. With a thatched roof and traditional English garden, it is a charmer.
The front garden even has a lovely rosehip bush; rosehip cordial anyone?
We enjoyed a tasty supper of braised beef and crispy jacket potatoes with broad beans, finishing off with rice pudding and damson plum compote. The rest of the evening was spent chatting away the hours.
Tomorrow; an antique car show boasting over 1,000 entries.
It is hard to believe that after 2 weeks, we are at the last race day. We watched from an area called the 'Goseneck'. It is quite high up and commands an impressive view of Ramsey and in the background, The Point of Ayre, the northernmost part of the Isle of Man
The racing gets underway!
I will digress for a moment and fill in a few forgotten moments from Peel yesterday. The Isle of Man sustained itself for years through the ample supply of fish. It was invaded many times by the vikings. A beautiful monument sits outside The House of Manannan (a museum) paying homage to the fisherman and the Vikings.
Anyone who knows me knows that I frequent our local restaurant called the Creekside, or as we call it, 'The Creek'. I was delighted to find another one in Peel, but did not partake of any refreshments.
The Island's tartan tells the whole story of what is important to their history.
For our final meal on the island, my friend John, pub Manager at the Station, made a special run to the butcher to make me lamb shanks for dinner. A delicious end to our island visit.
Good bye to the Isle of Man. See you again next year.
If you remember my post about the tram in Douglas, you would no doubt have seen the magnificent horse pulling the it. As happens to all of us, there comes a time when we can no longer do as we have in the past. It was heartwarming to see that the Isle has a 'retirement home' for all the Douglas work horses, as well as any other equines in need of a green pasture and leisure time. It is funded solely by donations and has been around since 1950.
Even donkeys are invited to the party. Everyone lines up at the fences waiting for the visitors to feed them treats!
After our visit with the horses, we headed off to Peel, on the west coast. Its main attraction is its castle, which now lays in ruins, but in its prime, protected the coast from marauders.
The quaint city centre is a maze of narrow streets with an abandoned church that managed to salvage its headstones.
We ended the day by visiting our final Glen visit; Silverdale. It is near Rushen Abbey (now a ruin), so naturally many of the attractions have a religious slant.
This bridge is called the 'Monk's bridge' (built in 1046). I can just imagine the monks in quiet contemplation, as they walked through the forest and crossed the bridge to continue on their spiritual path.
Dinner was a simple pasta and salad. We were too tired for anything more adventurous! Too boring for a photo!
Tomorrow; the last day of racing and a 'special order dinner'!
We chose to view the races from a church at Bradden bridge. The church auxiliary do a wonderful job of putting out pews on the front lawn for prime viewing. They offer hot and cold lunches (for a small fee) and most importantly; cakes, cakes and more cakes! With the 6 pound entry fee, you could have a free piece of cake. More on the cakes later.
Here is a sample of some of the racing:
After racing was over, there was a parade lap of most of the previous race winners over the years. Note #23 in the centre is Carolynn Sells, who you read about in the Jurby day post. There are so few women riders on the TT circuit, they deserve a special mention!
And now, the long awaited cakes. It was so hard to choose which one to have, but I settled on the homemade shortbread!
Adjacent to the church is an ancient gaveyard. It was virtually impossible to read the headstones that had been weathered by time. The stories they would have told....
Our next stop was at Peter Murray's motorcyle museum (all his personal collection). Definitely worth a visit.
Our last stop was for a dose of 'good luck'; a visit to Fairy Bridge. It is the home of the 'little people' on the island and is considered to be very lucky if you stop and make a wish. People come from far and wide to hang momentoes, tie ribbons and send wishes to their departed friends. If you are a racer, it is almost mandetory to come to ask the fairies for good luck!
We finished the day at our favourite local pub, The Station, in Port Erin with our friends, Barbara and Eric. The salmon was yummy!
Tomorrow: Horses and monks....
