Off to the rock

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Got up early to have a little walk around the Albert Dock area, but in my half-asleep state I misjudged the amount of time I had before the ferry so I actually could have spent longer there. Better than the other way around, I guess. The fast catamaran left around 11:15 and we sped over the waves to the Isle of Man. Had a little breakfast at the beginning of the journey because I knew that the Irish Sea would get choppy later, and so it was - wasn't even easy to stand up and walk around. So I snoozed in my seat instead.

My chums met me off the boat and we sped off again in their car, along the winding country lanes to St John's, where my friend works. It's the site of the Tynwald Day ceremony, an ancient parliament going back to the Viking Age, represented here in Lego (see photos). While waiting for my friend to finish work, I perused the exhibition of Manx culture. It's an interesting mix of Celtic and Norse - and latterly Anglo-Saxon. They're very proud of their heritage and are doing all they can to keep it alive, including the Manx language, which my friend and her colleagues at the cultural organisation speak fluently. Had a chat with the language officer about the joys of translation and could identify with some of the problems, even if Manx is very different from the languages I use.

We then headed back to her lovely house by the sea at Port St Mary, where I finally got to play with the cats I've seen so much of on Facebook. Tomorrow, I'll go exploring the island with her partner.

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