Blimpmeet: Kirkwall style

Just back from a truly amazing 17 days away, 15 of them on Orkney. What a wonderful and astonishing place.  The scenery is breath-taking, green rolling hills, straight immaculately maintained roads, a myriad of little dotted islands and astonishingly blue seas;  the archaeology abundant and gob-smacking (Stones of Stenness, Ring of Brodgar, Maes Howe, Skara Brae and millions of chambered tombs which had to be accessed via ladders or tea trays (!) or minute damp passages); the bird life is loud and lively (plovers, larks, puffins, fulmars and skuas) and the wild flowers unusual and delicate (Scottish primula and squill). We island hopped (short ferries) and walked across Hoy through Highland-like landscape, and cycled down the green slopes on Rousay. We listened to some fine music – the folk festival was underway and one day we managed two concerts back to back the last not starting till 10.30. Another thing – it just doesn’t get dark. The weather was as interesting as Ireland’s – first week bright and breezy, then the haar came down, then the wind got up and one day, when the rest of the UK was sweltering, the temperature reached the giddy heights of 8c with a real feel of 1c in the wind - we had to seek shelter in the 18C farmhouse museum which had a peat fire! Nonetheless I have returned with a peeling nose. It was also the Battle of Jutland commemoration and Kirkwall was looking its best, the Weeping Window of poppies fresh from the Tower of London cascading from the cathedral, and the town full of uniforms and shiny shoes and pipe bands. And there were kilts!!!! TJ and I found ourselves in a chip shop with big beefy blokes from the pipe band all resplendent in kilts, surreptitious blips were taken! Fantastic food too – very memorable flapjacks on Hoy, tons of fresh fish and delicious local cheeses.One of us even tackled the ferociously carbohydrate-laden Orkney fudge cheesecake!

Lovely to spend the first week with TJ,  then look who we bumped into in the second! The place was teeming with blippers. Here were are on our first meet up and I am risking life and limb and possibly guilty of treason by standing in the cordoned off spot as the rehearsal for the Commemoration of Jutland got underway, a massive bouncer right behind me. Great to meet this lovely lot –Houseonahill6   and Mr Houseonahill6, fresh up from the Black Isle which is apparently somewhere near inverness, enjoying the folk festival; two local blippers, HappyValley and Porridge who so kindly shared their very special place with us – and Porridge later turned up in a kilt which caused at least three of us to have palpitations; Sleepyhead from Edinburgh; us two from West Cork and Gitama who is miles from her Australian home. What a treat.
I now have 1070 images to sort out so bear with me for I may first have to tackle the garden which has gone seriously wild!