We
anchor in Lerwick about 7:45 am --- we
wait till about 8:45 before attempting to get on a tender -- all the tours go
first then the independents. Lerwick
with a population of 7500 is the capital and main port of the Shetland
Islands-- located more than 100 miles off the north coast of mainland Scotland.
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| Lerwick from the Zeendam. |
We
are in town by 9:15 am -- it is a gray-looking town. It does not have the vibrant flowers we've
come to see in other places and all the houses look like gray cement.
Off
we go to the High Street --- it is a bit busier here with more traffic ---- we
have to be careful since "they drive on the wrong side of the road"
in Scotland.
 | |
| Oil Rigg with Pilot Boat! |
We
trek over to Fort Charlotte which was built in 1665 to protect shipping in the second
Dutch war -- the fort was taken and burned in 1673. It was reconstructed in 1781 and renamed for
Queen Charlotte -- wife of George III.
Fort Charlotte has served many purposes:
a prison, coastguard station, armory and as accommodation to the town's
bachelors. Currently the fort is home
to the TA Defence Volunteers and Army Cadet Force. It is a beautiful spot on the harbor.
We
walked around the back of town passing the Police Station, Town Hall and a
Methodist Church before completing the loop down to Market Street -- directly
on the harbor. I saw a sign that said
"Fudge" so that is our destination.
You'd think they did not feed us on this ship --- the fudge place was packed. We bought four boxes -- hopefully it will
last till we get home.
Back
up on Commercial Street -- we're looking for a lunch place. We are standing in front of Paparazzi when something smells good so we go
in. We get a window table good for people
watching -- they have free wifi -- we're all set. Phil gets the fish of the day --- I get a
soup and sandwich which is delicious.
The wifi is slow for photos -- I'm posting Amsterdam so I wait --- I
order a cup of coffee after lunch and I wait some more --- Phil is long
gone. I told the waitstaff what I was
doing and asked if they minded if stayed -- they didn't mind at all. When I finally left I felt like I should be paying
rent for the table.
 |
| Our view from Paparazzi -- |
I
did pop into the shoe store across from Paparazzi since they are having a sale
and I kept seeing people coming out with bags -- a good sign. They seemed to have some good deals but I
was not in the mood to try on stuff.
I
took the tender back to the ship -- and went up to Lido for a cup of tea since
it has been chilly here. I bumped into
Phil so I had a cup of tea with cookies and he had ice cream. The ice cream on the Veendam is fabulous --
they make it on board. I spent the rest
of the afternoon downloading photos -- getting organized to write and went to
Mass at 5:00 pm. We had a nice dinner
-- but both of us are exhausted.
We
are gradually getting back to Eastern Standard Time -- clocks go back again
tonight. We are now four hours ahead.
Thanks
for Reading!
Pat
Your photo "Lerwick from the Zeendam" looks like it could be a painting. Beautiful. FOUR boxes of fudge and ice cream? Doesn't sound like you - or does it? :)
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