THe Shetland Islands



Some of  many standing stones




Italian Chapel built by prisoners of war 1945




Skara Brae-5000 year old village uncovered by sandstorm



Ecco house with turf roof on Island of Hoy

We were so sorry to leave the Orkneys. We had a great time there and find the Shetlands very different. There are 22000 people here because of the oil and we can travel to all of the surrounding islands for 10 pound return. The scenery here is dramatic compared with the agricultural land in the Orkneys and some of the cliff walks are pretty treacherous especially with the wind we are having today. We went to see the Gannets nesting on the rocks this morning and the rocks are just covered in white birds, thousands of them. The weather is overcast today but we have had a couple of beautiful days, the best since the start of the holidays. The seas on the ferry crossing were rough today. We  have been to the far north of the Shetlands so now we can only go south.  Had a great day at church with the Church of Scotland (only church available) but really pleasant people.  We missed seeing the northern lights called the Aurora Borealis. They say it occurs more often in the cold nights but we did see a magnificent sunrise which did light up the sky. Only 3 weeks today before we fly out to Shanghai on our way home and 4 weeks and we'll be back on Australian soil.. Oh for a decent haircut.