See you soon, Shetland!

March 07, 2014


We said Goodbye to Shetland on a grey-green Monday afternoon whose melancholic colour setting exactly mirrored our mood. 
It was not easy to leave this place which had already conquered us so completely. 

While the ferry slowly navigated out of the harbour I stood at its platform and watched the houses of Lerwick passing by. I seldom found it so hard to leave a place.



As I told you some time ago I'm not a proven sailor and some days before our departure I started to watch the forecast. And for me as a newbie-on-the-sea, the weather was not promising. Wind force 8 forecast really freaked me out. And the captain promising to make our travels as comfortable as possible (as possible?! Eeek!) didn't help. When the vessel reached the open sea and started to go up and down, and up and down, I really got terrified. Really. But I can assure you: they serve hefty soup on such vessels for a reason. Real sailor food. After some hours the vessel became steadier and the wind decreased a bit, so that I could reward myself with a drink and a knit. The clouds drifted apart, just in time when we passed Fair Isle.


My memories of this passage will always be related to anxiety, the taste of beer and the sound of clacking needles.



While writing this post, I've really got in the mood for novels about sailors and the sea, so any recommendations are welcome! :)

Next stop: Orkney Islands!

9 comments:

  1. wow, I love being on boats. but that does sounds anxiety-inducing. stunning pictures tho!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. These views of the sea are so beautiful and romantic!!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. these are so gorgeous. I would be devastated to leave this place.

    ReplyDelete
  4. The fourth and fifth pictures are really beautiful in their simplicity of shape. It takes an artist to see beauty and bring it to us. I would not have found the harbour beautiful, but you seem to make it so with these pictures.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Enchanting photos! I do not have good sea legs, and I'm afraid I would have had my head leaning over the rail the whole way!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I've been thinking of you recently... watching the second series of Shetland on BBC1.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. :-)

      I'm so hoping they put it on DVD some day!

      Delete