An Easter return to the Isle of Man COMPLETED 5/10 - Page 14 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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Sunday 5 April – part four: we didn’t see this on the way here!
Suddenly, we realised that we were passing the coast on the Steam Railway, something again we hadn’t been able to see on the way here. I had no idea it was so close, the mist had been so thick!
I will say here that the journey back took a lot less time than the one on the way out here, we think because they were really pushing the speed to try and get back on track with the timetable. We certainly hurtled along at a real pace, and so much for thinking that we’d have a less bouncy ride at the front of the train than the back of the train – let’s just say we were very wrong on that count! We were thrown around from side to side as we hit full speed, and were very glad of our first class surroundings, as I can imagine in some of the other carriages, that wouldn’t have been a pleasant experience.
Soon, we were pulling back into Douglas, and again, they lost no time in turning the engine around, and passengers were boarding as soon as we were off the platform.
We found this guy on the car bonnet (hood):
We headed out of the station, and as we had a bit of time before our lunch booking, I said that I’d like to see the Tynwald (Parliament) building. We drove through some bits of Douglas we hadn’t seen before…
… and we parked up right by the Courts of Justice…
I had a wander, and found various other government buildings…
… including the Tynwald itself:
The church opposite it was certainly very unusual – it looked partially like an office building.
With that, we headed off to lunch at this place:
When we arrived, I was a bit concerned, as I could hear music coming from inside, and I wasn’t sure if it would be our sort of place, but thankfully it was a bar at the front, which is where the music was coming from:
… and then there was the restaurant at the back, which felt very contemporary, but also had a fun feel to it.
I was delighted to see a Rossini on the menu, strawberry liquor and Prosecco, so I had one of those.
We all knew what we wanted, which was the Sunday roast menu. Barb and Dave went for the chicken, while Mark had the pork belly:
….and I had the mushroom risotto, which was absolutely beautiful. With a lot of risottos, they serve up far too much, and you just can’t eat it all, but this time, they served just the right amount.
We all felt up to dessert with the exception of Dave, with Barb and Mark going for the warm sticky toffee pudding with ice cream…
… while I had the warm chocolate brownie with ice cream:
I need to say a word here about our server. I don’t know what her name was, as she wasn’t wearing a name tag that I noticed, and we didn’t find it out, but we did find out a lot of other things about her. I asked her about her accent, as I thought I could detect an American twang, and I was right. She’s originally from Iowa, but moved here 26 years ago, leaving in London for a number of years, before coming to the Isle of Man, as her now ex-husband is Manx. She was absolutely lovely, and did a great job of looking after us.
I would say the Isle of Man train system is highly efficient. Douglas is a lovely town with some varied and interesting architecture. Dinner looked wonderful, too, but right now I'd love to have your dessert.
Caught back up. Those desserts looked like very generous servings! Would love some sticky toffee pudding!
The scenery from the train was lovely, although more than a bit mist-shrouded!
Caught back up. Those desserts looked like very generous servings! Would love some sticky toffee pudding!
The scenery from the train was lovely, although more than a bit mist-shrouded!
and sadly that trend continued for a little while longer...
More great scenery from around town in Douglas and your dinner looked exceptional and quite delicious overall!
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October 6, 2017-Enjoying an amazing dinner at Victoria & Albert's with PP's Dot and Drew
My TR from my most recent trip is now underway. Includes: Universal Studios Florida, Disney World and Sea World Orlando Trifecta TR -Updated December 10th! TR is now COMPLETED!
Sunday 5 April – part five: let’s see what the weather’s like over there…
We sat at the restaurant for a little while, chatting and deciding what to do, as we had another three hours before we were due at the airport. We eventually decided to head over to Laxey, to see what the weather was like over here. If it was foggy, then there wouldn’t be any point in climbing up the wheel at all, but hopefully it wouldn’t be…
We made our way out of Douglas for the last time, and as you can see, it was still pretty foggy along the promenade…
We’d all agreed how much we like this place, and I hope one day we’ll be back. Barb and Dave are already talking about a return trip, which we both thought was really encouraging, and it obviously shows how much they’ve enjoyed this weekend, which was the main aim.
As we headed out of Douglas, we spotted a golden post box, which I had to get a photo of:
These were painted gold for all 2012 Team GB gold medallists, and this one was for Peter Kennaugh, Olympic gold medallist in the men’s cycling team pursuit.
Then we were back on the road, and heading for Laxey. When we got there, the fog wasn’t affecting the wheel, so Mark gave Dave his National Trust card (I know, rebels, right? ) and he and I set off to explore it. It’s literally only just undergone a massive conservation project, which included a complete repaint, which accounts for how good it’s looking. It really is beautiful, and a magnificent piece of engineering.
We first admired it from below…
… then we headed up to the first level…
Dave wasn’t sure about going up another level, but as it was only half a dozen steps, I persuaded him to give a go, and he managed it fine.
I wasn’t going to push it any further, as I remember that it was a heck of a lot more steps than that to get to the top deck, so that was our limit for today.
We made our way back down, with me getting some more photos of the wheel, and Dave reading all about it…
More nice times in Douglas and your photos look so great! Too bad the fog impended things a bit! Glad you got to visit the Laxey Wheel! Wasn't it still under renovation last year during your last visit, if I'm correct? I have quite a good memory and I think I recall this as you tried to visit it last year!
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October 6, 2017-Enjoying an amazing dinner at Victoria & Albert's with PP's Dot and Drew
My TR from my most recent trip is now underway. Includes: Universal Studios Florida, Disney World and Sea World Orlando Trifecta TR -Updated December 10th! TR is now COMPLETED!
More nice times in Douglas and your photos look so great! Too bad the fog impended things a bit! Glad you got to visit the Laxey Wheel! Wasn't it still under renovation last year during your last visit, if I'm correct? I have quite a good memory and I think I recall this as you tried to visit it last year!
we were able to visit it last year. The work started in the autumn and we were there in June.
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Sunday 5 April – part six: I think Barb might enjoy this…
As we came out of the parking area for the Laxey Wheel, I spotted this…
….and a sign for it said that it was home to arts and crafts, and I knew that would be right up Barb’s alley, so I mentioned it to her, and she was up for it, just as I thought. We parked up, and headed inside. First we found a shop, where I got a couple of fridge magnets, and a slate coaster of the wheel.
Then we headed into the exhibition area, where we found the Jurby mice. They told the story of a year in the Isle of Man, and it was all so beautifully done. I loved all of it.
At the end, there was a sign saying that if you’d enjoyed this display to please donate to the local hospice, and as I had loved it, I gave generously.
Then I headed into the next section, where the others were, and this was a detailed miniature display of the wheel and the mines it served. It really helped to put it in perspective just how big the mines are. We’d visited them on our last trip, but even that really hadn’t bought it home to me in the way this did. It was so well done, and again they made the appeal that if you’d enjoyed it, to make a donation, so both Barb and I did, as they deserve recognition for such a superb display.
We all looked at this guy and were convinced he’d been tied up…
Once we were done in there, we headed back to the car, and made our way out of Laxey, with the GPS giving us some really dumb directions. Mark ended up along a steep single lane hill, where he then had to turn around to head back to the main road. After that, we ignored it for a while.
After a few miles, we trusted the GPS again, and we were back down winding lanes, although thankfully this time at least not single carriageway. I still wasn’t happy with the darned thing. I don’t know what its problem was…
We eventually found our way back on to the main roads, and the TT course again…
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We were thrown around from side to side as we hit full speed, and were very glad of our first class surroundings, as I can imagine in some of the other carriages, that wouldn’t have been a pleasant experience. 
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) and he and I set off to explore it. It’s literally only just undergone a massive conservation project, which included a complete repaint, which accounts for how good it’s looking. It really is beautiful, and a magnificent piece of engineering. 
Glad you got to visit the Laxey Wheel! 
I have quite a good memory and I think I recall this as you tried to visit it last year! 
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