Month: January 2026

“THE RETIREES GO AROUND THE WORLD – DAY 9 SS NIEUW STATENDAM – Isle of Man“

Thanks to Wikipedia here are a few facts I have learnt from my visit to the Isle of Man and reading Simon Winchester’s book on the Remains of Empire.

The Isle of Man (Manx: Mannin) is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, known for its Celtic and Viking heritage, rugged landscapes, and unique status as not being part of the UK but under the British Crown. It boasts its own parliament (Tynwald), laws, and distinct culture, symbolized by the three-legged triskelion and motto, “Whichever way you throw it, it will stand”. The capital is Douglas, and famous for the annual TT motorcycle race and its thriving finance sector. Crown Dependency, with internal self-governance; the UK handles defense and foreign relations. Head of State: King Charles III, holding the title Lord of Mann. Official Languages: English and Manx (Gaelic). Symbols: The Three Legs of Man (triskelion) and the motto Quocunque Jeceris Stabit (Wherever you throw it, it shall stand).

The capital is the city of Douglas. I have scanned and placed below part of the brochure from our visit and to help you understand the things we did. First after docking we made our way through the customs terminal for Man then worked our way around to the railway station planning to take a horse drawn tram then a train to Ramsey in the north.

2026.01.07 Isle of ManDownload

As you can see, it was not fair weather and we sheltered under a tiny umbrella. On arriving at the station disappointment awaited us – no trains. What we wanted was on the otherside of the city, so we hunted down a taxi and made our way to the horse drawn tram which would take us on the first part of our adventure. On arrival at the rail station we left the horse and carriage and transitioned to the Manx Electric Railway and then we had to make a decision – do we take to the Snaefell Mountain Railway or take the Manx Electric Railway to Ramsey. We decided to do both.

We boarded the Snaefell Mountain Train with its “third or centre line”. The summit of Snaefell, at 2,036 feet (621 m) above sea level is the highest point on the island. It connects with the Manx Electric Railway (MER) in Laxey. The line is 5 miles (8 km) long, is built to 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) gauge and uses a Fell Incline Railway System centre rail for braking on the steep gradients. Unfortunately the weather remain cloudy and damp and I gave up trying to take clear photos. That did not stop Kerry who took some good photos showing how miserable the weather was on the highest peak. The photos appear below. The first shows the Great Laxey Wheel which is the largest surviving original working waterwheel in the world. The remaining photos show the cloudy ride to the top, the third rail, the whiteout at the top and the cloudy return.

Kerry’s Photos: lunch atop Mt Snaefell, Laxey Water Wheel and vista from half way.

Back in Laxey we travelled onto Ramsay passing through a village having the name “Dreemskerry”. How cute is that?

We arrivied in Ramsey and knew we would need to get back to Douglas if we were going to reboard the ship. We made our way to the Bus Station and there in the same street was evidence of the big event on Man – The Isle of Man TT or Tourist Trophy races. An annual motorcycle racing event held on the Isle of Man in May and June of mostly every year since its inaugural race in 1907. The two week event is sanctioned by the Auto Cycle Union, which also organises the event through its commercial arm known as Auto-Cycle Union Events Ltd. The Manx government owns the rights to, and promotes the event.

The Isle of Man TT is a series of time-trial format races, run on public roads closed for racing. The event consists of one week of practice and qualifying sessions, followed by one week of racing. The closed public roads form the Snaefell Mountain Course, a 37.73 mile route containing 219 turns that traverses through a mix of urban and rural areas. The event currently features 5 different classes of road racing, each competing in two races over the course of the racing week. Since the inaugural Isle of Man TT in 1907, the event has been held mostly every year since, with seasons being cancelled only due to war or disease outbreak. The TT has become part of the local culture and economy of the Isle of Man with more than 40,000 visitors annually traveling to the island for the event.

We caught the double decker bus returning to Douglas via Peel and chose to ride in the front seats upstairs – not a good chose. I think the driver was in training for the next TT event with the bus lurching down narrow country roads at excessive speed. There were a few occassions where I thought I was on a roller coaster. Of course we arrived in one piece and in time for me to buy the island T-shirt and then to catch the next tender to the ship.

Another day of excitement but we were both worn out by the gripping of the rail in the bus. Tomorrow we sail west to Cork in the Republic of Ireland. We have been around Ireland both north and south so we would need to think of something to do that we have done. Read about what we discovered in my next blog “THE RETIREES GO AROUND THE WORLD – DAY 10 SS NIEUW STATENDAM – Cork Eire”

“THE RETIREES GO AROUND THE WORLD – DAY 8 SS NIEUW STATENDAM – Greenoch and Glasgow Scotland “

Leaving Liverpool we sailed north again to visit Glasgow but as all you geographers know Glasgow is not on the coast and our ship was far too large to be sailing up the wee little river (River Clyde) on which the city is located. No other explanation was given as to why we docked in Greenock which is on the western coast. What ever the reason we landed in Greenock. So I did a bit of research and this is what I found:

“Greenock is a town in Inverclyde, Scotland, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. The town is the administrative centre of Inverclyde Council. It is a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, and forms part of a contiguous urban area with Gourock to the west and Port Glasgow to the east.” Wikipedia

Still none the wiser we followed the crowd and disembarked. Later when we returned further research showed the reason why cruise ships docked at Greenock. “Strategically positioned along major maritime routes, it is a key stop for Northern European and British Isles cruise itineraries, offering travelers a perfect blend of cultural heritage and natural beauty.” Still didn’t help my understanding but we found a reason why all travellers should stop there. I’ll let you know shortly. The photos show the terminal which does nothing to help understand the attraction.

We walked from the ship toward the central business district. We passed a car missing its front wheel but didn’t know if it was well equipped thieves or someone without a spare tyre. After passing an Aldi supermarket we came to a major road crossing with an imposing statue on the other side of the road. It was “Ginger” a sculpture by Andy Scott designed to represent all the cart horses which pulled carts during the area’s great shipbuilding and maritime history. Inverclyde was once one of the most important shipbuilding ports in the world. When Greenock engineer James Watt wanted to describe the measure of power, he invented the term “horsepower” which is still used to this day. The name Ginger comes from an actual horse which drowned while transporting sugar on the quay at Albert Harbour in Greenock. A very emotive monument to the industry of Greenock.

We continued our exploration following the road to the CBD passing some very impressive buildings of the nineteenth century including one converted to a Weatherspoons Pub named “the James Watt Building”, the Town Hall and the square in front of the hall. The sculpture of workmen dragging a newly forged propeller again references the industrial history of the town. The harshness of the stone and mortar is softened by the wild flowers and grasses in the garden.

I cannot recall what drew us toward an A fold sign in Wallace Place but I’m glad it did. Here in the old Fire Station the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Museum has been established by a Trust of the same name. It is a museum dedicated to the history of Scotland’s fire and rescue service. It houses a wide range of artefacts and stories from the service’s long history with displays on the history of firefighting, the development of fire safety in Scotland, and the history of the building. Many of the exhibits have been gathered from around Scotland as the station closed in 1960 before it was reopened as by the Strathclyde Fire & Rescue Museum 52 years later. The video story is fascinating and a must see should you visit it. My photos give you a snipet of what you will find.

I have also scanned the brochure on the museum and attached its 4 pages are here.

2026.01.07 Brochure of Fire and Rescue MuseumDownload

We spent most of our visit in this museum before returning to the ship. There must be a reason why such an interesting and important museum has been hidden away in Greenock and we only found it by accident. However that is the way I like it – something undiscovered brought to life in my blogs. Our travels then took us to the 4th Island “THE RETIREES GO AROUND THE WORLD – DAY 9 SS NIEUW STATENDAM – Isle of Mann “. A few interesting facts around this limb of the Empire so you will need to read on.

“THE RETIREES GO AROUND THE WORLD – DAYS 6 & 7 SS NIEUW STATENDAM – Belfast Northern Ireland and Liverpool England”

As stated in my last blog concerning Outer Hebredies, we had visited Belfast previously and felt like a day off, staying on the ship. We docked on a grey morning and this seemed an omen that we had made the correct choice but by breakfast the sky was clearing. It remained chilly – certainly too chilly for the pool so we relaxed reading books and found the games room later in the day. We took an afternoon stroll and I have included photos of the day in port. Notice the empty pool.

Moving onto Liverpool we were also familiar from previous trips with the sights of Liverpool but we decided we would take the hop on hop off bus – no strenuous activity as we caught up with rest. As usual we departed the ship through the cruise terminal onto the Albert Docks. In front of us is the Liver Building Liverpool’s iconic waterfront landmark, famous for its twin clock towers topped with mythical Liver Birds (Bertie & Bella), built in 1911, and known as one of the “Three Graces” with the Cunard & Port of Liverpool Buildings. Further along at Pier Head The Museum of Liverpool. We had visited this last time we were in Liverpool and found it a fascinating museum both for its architecture and for the history it holds. It tells the story of Liverpool and its people, and reflects the city’s global significance. It opened in 2011 as newest addition to the National Museums Liverpool group. As we continued our exploation past City Hall we found a grand old insurance building. Located just blocks from Albert Dock and adjacent to Liverpool Town Hall, this building on the east side of Castle Street was designed in 1889 by G.E. Grayson and housed the British and Foreign Marine Insurance Company for almost 70 years. We were making our way to the Cavern Club some time home of the Beatles and many a tribute band. The lane with its protrait of John and his statue brought back memories of our previous visit.

We met friends Martin and Christine from Manchester to catch up for lunch and ride the bus with us. Even though they lived only 1 hour away from Liverpool they had never been tourists in the city. They joined us and we were all surprised by the Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral. The Cathedral is a dramatic icon of faith, architecture, and human endeavour. An awe-inspiring landmark on the Liverpool skyline. (from the website of the Cathedral) The exterior and interior were both awe inspring. Based on a circular design the layout of the interior was amazing. Multiple small chapels adjoined the centre of the church and the stations of the cross were unique in their design. The guide book suggested that the church was a response to the Anglican endeavours which we subsequently visited. There are two photos of the Anglican church below but it was a traditional design like many others we have seen through Britain and Europe.

We made it back to the tour bus station to take us to a sculpture commemorating the World War One Christmas truce. Two soldiers, about to shake hands, capture the moment British and German soldiers stopped fighting and played football on Christmas Day 1914. The statue is entitled “All Together Now”. The statue was on display at St Luke’s Church, which faces down Bold Street. The statue, designed by Andy Edwards, is on display at Liverpool’s St Luke’s Church which is itself a bombed-out church, a monument to the 1941 Blitz on Liverpool. BBC News had a story on the monuments on 15th December 2014 and reported that “The sculpture will be on display at the church for a week before being transported to Flanders in Belgium where it will be displayed.” This is 2025 and the statue is back.

We continued on the tour passed a very eleaborate gate to Chinatown and an impressive street art drawing of a hawk of some description onto the wharf area again. It was time for lunch and we ended up in a pub near the Three Graces not the curbside takeaway in my photos. With a warm fire and some English ales we warmed up and told stories of the things we had done.

Martin and Christine had travelled by train and they wanted to catch the train home before the rush hour and our ship was close by. Parting knowing that we may not have an opportunity to catch up again brought home the reality that we were both getting older.

I cannot remember what we did once we returned to the ship but we were tired. It had been cold all day and we did a lot of walking so my guess is our bed was calling. Next blog is “THE RETIREES GO AROUND THE WORLD – DAYS 8 SS NIEUW STATENDAM – Greenoch and Glasgow Scotland “. We never made it as far as Glasgow because we found a positive gem in Greenock – The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Museum and Heritage Center. Enjoy our journey and explorations.

“THE RETIREES GO AROUND THE WORLD – DAY 5 SS NIEUW STATENDAM – Outer Hebredies – Isle of Lewis and Harris”

My research into the Outer Hebredies was rather limited. The known history of the archipeligo starts in the Mesolithic era leaving a diversity of important prehistoric sites. The Outer Hebrides, sometimes known as the Long Isle or Long Island (Scottish Gaelic: an t-Eilean Fada), is an island chain off the west coast of mainland Scotland. The islands form part of the archipelago of the Hebrides, separated from the Scottish mainland and from the Inner Hebrides by the waters of the Minch, the Little Minch, and the Sea of the Hebrides. The Outer Hebrides are considered to be the traditional heartland of the Gaelic language. Since 1998 the Council has used only the Gaelic form of its name, including in English language contexts. The council area is called Na h-Eileanan an Iar (‘the Western Isles’) and its council is Comhairle nan Eilean Siar (‘Council of the Western Isles’). There are 19 inhabited islands having an estimated population of 26,020 in 2024, and there are more than 50 substantial uninhabited islands.

The Romans appear to have had sporadic settlements on the islands but little other impact. The Western Isles became part of the Norse kingdom lasting for over 400 years. The ill-fated 1263 expedition of Haakon IV of Norway, resulted in the Outer Hebrides along with the Isle of Man, being yielded to the Kingdom of Scotland a result of the 1266 Treaty of Perth. The archaeological record of the Norse period is very limited with the best known find from this time being the Lewis chessmen, which date from the mid 12th century. With the Treaty of Union with England in 1707, the islands came under the control of Great Britain. Much of the land is now under local control, and commercial activity is based on tourism, crofting, fishing, and weaving.

When we awoke we were met by an austere vision of what we might expect in Stornoway. I have added the tourists Map of Stornoway which will make sense of my tale of exploration. The first photo is the barren “Deepwater terminal”. The absense of residences and human activity had us puzzled.

2026.01.02 Map of Stornoway part 1Download

Map 1 shows the location of the terminal at which we had docked. At that time by means of gossip amongst the passengers, we learned that there was a path to follow through the woods to reach the town or there was the shuttle bus. We elected for the path. Map 2 shows you where the path ended. We walked through Castle Lews (which was closed for a private function) into the harbour of the town.

2026.01.02 Map of Stornoway part 2Download

My photos of the walk through the woods to Castle Lews and then into Stornoway follow.

As we came to the end of the walk, we encountered people from the cruise boat visiting the castle and we became the bearers of the sad news that it was closed for a private function – glad we didn’t pay for that excursion. Crossing the bridge to enter the town we encountered a sculpture of a chessman one of the few Nordic reminders of the past. We strolled into town and found it to be a thriving village. With the back drop of the harbour and the Castle over the inlet it was romantic to walk the waterfront then head into the main street.

We moved into some of the semi-residential areas just on the edge of the town and discocered tha Harris Tweed weaver working in his shed (former garage attached to his house – not really a throw back to the shed outside the croft). And we found a reminder of home – the Foodbank office (Rotary obtains prepared meals for its Community Table in our Senior Citizens Hall kitchen with the meals being provided by FareShare at Morningside heated, packed and delivered by Rotary Brisbane South-East). We also found a memorial to soldiers lost in war and another stylish memorial chair as we saw in Kirkwell.

We also found the Sheriff Court and the bus station. We had decided that we would take the local bus over to the township of Harris. It was not difficult and they buses ran fairly regularly. Leaving Stornoway we passed the gate to the castle and soon we were into the countryside. Remote and wild, it took sometime to cross the island

Just as we were beginning to lose hope that we would get to the terminus, it happened – we arrived in North Harris. Perched on the side of a hill over an inlet the village of North Harris was celebrating with an Artisan Market. Set up in the community hall all the hand made crafts to be found on the island were on display. The first stall had wool not pulled into any shape but we had seen the off cuts in the Weavers shed. The stall holder told us she was having trouble obtaining the offcuts due to the decline in small weavers. As it happened I had picked up the business card for A. Harris Tweed Weaver in Stornoway and I passed it onto her. Not only was she grateful but couldn’t believe that a tourist knew more than she did on her subject. Other things of note were the inlet below, the war memorial perched on the very edge of the rock face of the inlet, the distillery and lighthouse below. Not a traffic light to be seen in the village.

Our bus had return to take us back to Stornoway and our ship to continue our adventure. The next port would be Belfast. We had spent sometime in Belfast a few years back when driving around Ireland (North and Eire) so we wondered what we might do. Lean about our decision when reading my next blog “THE RETIREES GO AROUND THE WORLD – DAY 6 SS NIEUW STATENDAM – Outer Hebredies – Belfast Northern Ireland”

“THE RETIREES GO AROUND THE WORLD – DAY 4 SS NIEUW STATENDAM – Orkney Isles”

Day 4 of our cruise (I am not counting the days at sea). We have arrive in Kirkwall Orkney Islands and moored at Kirkwall Pier. Something of the history of Kirkwall coming from Wikipedia tells us that “Kirkwall (Scots: Kirkwa, Kirkwaa, or Kirkwal; Norn: Kirkavå; Scottish Gaelic: Bàgh na h-Eaglaise) is the largest town in Orkney, an archipelago to the north of mainland Scotland. First mentioned in the Orkneyinga saga, it is today the location of the headquarters of the Orkney Islands Council and a transport hub with ferries to many locations. It is the centre of the St Magnus International Festival and is also a popular stopping off point for cruise ships. St Magnus Cathedral stands at the heart of the town.”

This did not help us with the deciding what we wanted to do with our limited time in Kirkwall. So we looked at the history of the town and Wikipedia provided the following “The town was first mentioned in the Orkneyinga saga in the year 1046, when it was recorded as the residence of Rögnvald Brusason, the Earl of Orkney …..

In 1486, King James III of Scotland elevated Kirkwall to the status of a royal burgh, and in time it would return a Burgh commissioner to the Parliament of Scotland. After Union with England it combined with other towns to form the Northern Burghs, sending a single MP to Parliament. In 1918, the Parliamentary Burgh of Kirkwall merged into Orkney and Shetland.” We made our way to the heart of the town and St Magnus Cathedral.

There is something like 9,000 people living in the Orkneys as at its last census. Tourism, particularly cruse ship tourism contributes to its economy and the Orcadians have been loyal Brits over the years. The street furniture portrayed a remembrance to fallen soldiers in a very useful memorial. Then there is St Magnus Cathedral. I have inserted our map that we used to guide our search and you will see that the Cathedral in “the heart of the town”.

2026.01.01 Map of KirkwallDownload

The website for the Cathedral commences with these words “St Magnus Cathedral known as the ‘Light in the North’ was founded in 1137 by the Viking, Earl Rognvald, in honour of his uncle St Magnus who was martyred here in Orkney. The Cathedral belongs to the people of Orkney and its doors are open to all.” The Cathedral has been maintained utilising its interior to give the visitor its history through the headstones of the many people through the centuries brought to rest at the church. My pictures below walk you through the building.

Some of the raw nature of the materials used in building the cathedral portray a genuiness that many of the ostenatious churches we have seen didn’t. This is a church where people worship not a monument to the faith occupying the building. We had purchased a booklet entitled “Reminisciences of the Cahtedral Church of St Magnus since 1846 by an eye witness” the witness was Samuel Baikie. The researcher preparing the booklet was George Burgher and published between 1990 and 2001. In my pictures you will see the tombstone of William Balfour Baikie August 1825 and the booklet records the restorative work undertaken by Samuel. It contains a floor plan of the deceased remains laid to rest in the church as at 1769 and other restorations performed through to the publishing of the booklet.

2026.01.01 Floor plan St MagnusDownload

The cathedral is in Broad St at the corner of Palace St. The name of the street suggested we would find more and we did. The Bishops Palace and the Sherriff Court. The Bishop’s Palace, Kirkwall is a 12th-century palace built at the same time as the adjacent St Magnus Cathedral. It housed the cathedral’s first bishop, William the Old of the Norwegian Catholic Church who took his authority from the Archbishop of Nidaros (Trondheim). The ruined structure now looks like a small castle. Originally, it is thought to have been like a typical Royal Norwegian palace, with a large rectangular hall above store rooms and a tower house as the Bishop’s private residence. Wikipedia shows the Bishop’s Palace, seen from St Magnus Cathedral tower and I have copied this photo to the collage of photos below.

We also encountered the Kirkwall Sheriff Court. The Sheriff Court in Kirkwall continues to serve as the main court for the Orkney Islands, dealing with complex matters that surpass the jurisdiction of the Justice of the Peace Court (for minor offenses) but aren’t severe enough for the High Court (murder, treason). We found the Cathedral coffee shop which included a film on the history of St Magnus, the Cathedral and the Bishops Palace. The coffee shop was a mixture of uses and the parish offices.

Refreshed we made our way to the bus station in Junction Rd intending to travel to a church constructed by WW2 Italian prisioners of war and onto St Margarets Hope on Ronaldsay. This was a local bus which provided transport for the islanders and tourists alike. My pictures below take you on the trip with us. The countryside has a likeness to Shetland – scattered stone farm houses and lots of sea views. By the time we arrived at the stop for the Italian Chapel, I was exhausted and the thought of an 800 metre walk to and from the chapel did not appeal. Preparing for this blog and researching the history of the chapel, I regret not making the time. Next time might be different. The POWs were not assisted in making the chapel but by 1943 the structure pictured below had been constructed.

2026.01.02 Map of Orkney IslandsDownload

We remained on the bus until it reached its terminus – St Margarets Hope. The village by the sea was a collection of houses plus the post office. My last photo is the Post Office/Convenience store/ Accommodation booking centre – you name it. With such an evocative name I was disappointed. There was some disagreement about the bus journey and whether we should stay aboard to travel on. Unfortunately we didn’t stay on (my fault). It is likely we would have gone onto Burwick on the southern point of Ronaldsay but the information we didn’t have was when would it return to Kirkwall and would it be in time to reboard our ship.

We returned to Kirkwall and then to the ship. I was ready for a nap. Although it felt as though we had done little in Kirkwall, I was very happy to lie down in the cabin and soon was dreaming of the adventure tomorrow. All will be revealed in “THE RETIREES GO AROUND THE WORLD – DAY 5 SS NIEUW STATENDAM – Outer Hebredies – Isle of Lewis and Harris”