We have all heard about the tok tok ghoda gadi. But how many of us have actually heard about a horse tram ? Yup there one in island which is located in one corner of England called the Isle of Man.
Horse trams are found on the capital of this Island called Douglas Port. These horse drawn trams are the world’s oldest surviving horse tram service, dating back to 1876. The trams are fitted with roller bearings to ease the load on the horses bred to pull them. The trams link the 2 miles distance from the Manx Electric Railway to Douglas Promenade Sea Terminal and Port.
The horse has got an open carriage attached to it which can seat about 20 people at a time. The horse rider takes his position in the front and the conductor stands on the side of the carriage.The horses are very friendly and run for a maximum of 1 hr 20 mins a day for 5 days a week and 4 months a year. The rest of the time their stable is the only place for them to be.
As they grow old they are shifted to – Home of Rest for Old Horses which is a famous visitors attractions in Douglas. These old horses love attention and really look forward to visitors meeting them with a bag of feed, carrots or apples.
I spent 2 days in this Island and just loved being with nature.
Srividya,
This is first of your story that I am reading. Thanks for this informative write-up.
I would have preferred bigger pictures to enjoy the horse tram ride and also to enjoy beautiful composition of these pictures.
Good going and hope to read more from you.
Hi Srividya,
Thanks to you for sharing this informative post. I gone through your blog , pictures are much better their.
well nice to know that indians have visited almost all nooks and crannies of the world. your narration of these quaint horse trams is interesting.
which one of the below atatements is correct.? or is it none of the them?Isle of man is well known for
a. oldest constitution in the world
b. oldest parliament in the world
Srividya,
Thanks for taking us to the Isle of Man. Honestly, I always thought that this island was a part of the United Kingdom. Munnabhai’s comment suggests that this is a self governing island and could be a British Dependency.
Good to read about the Horse Trams. The description of the “retired” horses was touching.
Incidentally, there used to be a Tramway system at Delhi – between Bara Hindu Rao / Chandni Chowk / Jama Masjid. In my childhood days I took many a rides on these trams.
Shall await your next post.
@ Manish- Thanks for reading and photos i agree, i am not best impressed as well. I am struggling with some technical difficulty in uploading pics on my account. Its not letting me do what i want to.. :P
@ Mahesh – Yup the pics in my blog are far more better that this one :)
@ Munnabhai – Thanks ! and the answer is none of them :)
@ Ram: – Yes you are right, Isle of man is a self governing Island and its very much a part of UK. They have their own currency, language , culture, banking rules and tax structure. Its like the swiss bank of UK.
Horse trams in Delhi! see that why we need experience writers like you :)
I would love to write, but i dont get the time. I have been focusing on photo blogging (http://spadmanabhan.wordpress.com) so i post something there every day and leaving my travelling blog alone :(
Its been ages now since i have written a proper travel write up, i fear i shall forget even before i start.
Cheers
Vidya
The island’s parliament is Tynwald, which dates from at least AD 979 and is the oldest continuously existing ruling body in the world.[
Very interesting.
Somehow these old world travel modes are fast disappearing , to read that its still in vogue is really heartening. Big thanks for sharing.
For Pics, let me/Vibha know if you are still getting into trouble. I can see something in drafts :), when do we see it published.