The Shetlands: Lerwick and Unst

When we got off the dock in Lerwick, the main town of the Shetland archipelago, we were greeted by a group of high school students. Some were musicians and others were dressed up as Vikings.

I took a city walking tour with a local guide. We began our walk along the waterfront where we could see the lodberries.

The word lodberry is derived from Old Norse, referring to a landing rock. In Lerwick the landing rocks jutted out to sea with stores built over them, This enabled goods to be directly transferred to or from vessels and boats.

While the legal trade was happening in the lodberries, heavily taxed items such as gin and tobacco were delivered to merchants via underground passageways.

Of course you can’t say “Shetland” these days without alluding to the detective series Shetland. That series has been a boon to the local tourist economy.

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The next day we woke up in a bay next to the Shetland Isle of Unst.

Population 632.

After breakfast we started off on a five mile round trip hike to the coast .

Along the way we saw fields of cotton flowers.

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When I got back to the dock, there was Charlotte blissfully botanizing and taking pictures of a turtle. To each her own.

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After dinner that night my shipmates and I went to a local community center for some music and dancing.

The band was great! Our dancing , well…

Next stop: Faroe Islands.

Best.

Mary