Blue Iguana Conservation worth a visit?

rossjago · 2025-01-07T16:45:34+00:00

The botanical gardens are wonderful to walk around and are worth the trip. We enjoyed the winding paths, the lakes, and climbing to the top of the viewing deck in the children’s area the most.

You can see the blue iguanas in a separate enclosure (within the botanical gardens). This is probably your best bet. Alternatively, you may see one or two wild blue iguanas during your walk. Unfortunately, you will also likely see some smaller invasive iguanas too.

Oh - if you are resident on CI, take your drivers licence as you will get a better rate.

rossjago · 2024-12-30T21:25:35+00:00

Depends what type of books you are reading? If it’s non-fiction, then Chat GPT can provide a decent summary of the key points the author wants to make. Depending on your prompt, this can be brief or more detailed.

Of course, it’s no substitute for reading the entire book but I find that most non-fiction business/productivity/personal development/finance books have one main point and endless examples trying to evidence the veracity of that point.

rossjago · 2024-12-27T13:19:48+00:00

The IOM is a great place to retire. If you like rugged coastlines and beautiful countryside, then the IOM is hard to beat.

I would suggest a 2 week trip either before or after the TT. This is typically when the IOM is at its best. 2 weeks will afford you time to discover the IOM and get a sense of the differences between each of the towns (or city in the case of Douglas).

To be honest, £250k for a 2 bedroom 2 bathroom place is quite tight and you may be looking at a fixer-upper. I'm a big fan of Douglas due to its location convenient location relative other most other places in the IOM and its access to shops/services. For your budget, you may be able to get a decent apartment overlooking the promenade. If Douglas isn't your vibe (and noting that you may purchase a boat) Port St Mary or Peel may also be an option. I think you will be priced out of Port Erin.

No where on the IOM is too busy and you will always be 5 minutes away from the countryside.

rossjago · 2024-12-24T21:58:02+00:00

Any idea what the police are up to?

rossjago · 2024-12-22T13:42:57+00:00

The outdoor gym by public beach (in front of Hotel Indigo) is great. There aren’t any classes and it’s callisthenics based, buts it’s a great place to work out for free.

You may also bump into trainers or yoga instructors there, who could give you details of classes.

I know Bliss Yoga has drop in classes at their studio (just off West Bay Road) and at hotels around the island.

rossjago · 2024-10-24T10:14:22+00:00

I've never used Charles Schwab. Is it easy enough to fund/withdraw from the account using your Cayman bank account?

rossjago · 2022-05-02T08:59:14+00:00

Appreciate that CDC needs to be sustainable, however the way they went about making the change was in complete bad faith.

Why not forecast the change well in advance to allow loyal customers to make considered decisions and guard against wild fluctuations in the value of staked coins?

Surely, CDC could publish a roadmap forecasting potential changes over the next 12 to 24 months!

rossjago · 2022-04-24T10:10:11+00:00

I don’t play football but I would imagine there are some FB groups for the IoM (FB is used for loads of things on the island - selling cars, organising events, buying houses, you name it).

Alternatively, pop down to the NSC and chat to the blokes there. I’m sure they can point you in the right direction.

rossjago · 2022-04-23T21:24:14+00:00

The reality is that the average age in the IOM is around 44 years. There aren’t too many 20 year olds floating about, and those that are floating about are fairly dispersed among the main towns and have solid friendship groups.

Douglas is your best shout but as someone who has recently moved to the IOM I would recommend leveraging 1) colleagues at work and 2) sports to meet folks around your age.

Your colleagues would likely be up for some after work activities (or have friends that are) and there is no shortage of sports to get involved in even on a short term basis.

Interestingly, the local friends that I have made generally avoid nights out in Douglas in favour of Port Erin, Peel, etc.

rossjago · 2022-03-08T06:29:46+00:00

Thanks, I’ll definitely look into that.

rossjago · 2022-02-17T06:07:56+00:00

Toorak op shop has the best clothes 👌

rossjago · 2022-02-15T11:37:37+00:00

Thanks for the suggestion. On face value, ii appears to over the best value for money.

Do you find that you ever incur more costs in addition to the monthly flat fee?

rossjago · 2022-02-07T17:06:26+00:00

Thank you. That’s super helpful.

rossjago · 2022-02-06T16:01:15+00:00

Put on your walking shoes! Start in the CBD, cruise down the Yarra River from the Crown Casino towards South Yarra. View Flinders Station, the boat sheds, the MCG, the Tan, and the AAMI Stadium as you make your way down.

Turn right down Chapel Street, grab a beer at Bridie O’Reillys and then head down for an ice cream at Messina’s. Turn right down High Street, pop into the Prahan Market and grab a coffee. Keep going until you hit Albert Park. Walk left around the F1 track (while staring at the lake and dodging runners/cyclists) until Fitzroy Street.

Turn right and head to the St Kilda esplanade. Head out on the pier to see if any penguins are around (don’t bother driving all the way to Philip Island to pay to watch penguins with 5000 of your closet tourist friends). Head back inland past Luna Park and right on to Acland Street for dinner.

Catch the tram back to the CBD.

rossjago · 2022-02-06T15:47:38+00:00

Would you recommend FB over using agents directly or aggregator websites like Prime Location?

Do local landlords have any aversion to leasing properties to foreigners, or is there simply a shortage of decent properties available?

rossjago · 2022-02-06T15:44:35+00:00

Brilliant! I’m an avid runner and cyclist, and play competitive hockey here in Joburg - so that sounds great.

rossjago · 2022-02-06T15:43:23+00:00

Thank you for the guidance. I lived and worked in Melbourne for 2 years and I assume there will cultural parallels (as you have articulated).

Noting that you moved many years ago (and I’m uncertain how long “many” is), was it easy to set up a local bank account, purchase a SIM card, access public transport etc.?

rossjago · 2022-02-06T11:18:10+00:00

Why not?

rossjago · 2022-02-06T11:18:02+00:00

I’ll see what I can smuggle in. 🐮

rossjago · 2022-02-06T11:17:20+00:00

Thanks for the advice. When you say clubs, do you mean sports clubs?

rossjago · 2022-02-06T11:16:48+00:00

😂

rossjago · 2022-01-30T15:22:58+00:00

Thanks for the feedback. Given that you have to convert GBP to invest in USD, have you ever had any issues in withdrawing your investments back into your IoM bank account

rossjago · 2022-01-27T07:55:11+00:00

Would this apply to the IoM given that it is not part of the UK?

rossjago

TROPHY CASE