Ashore in the Shetlands

The Shetland Islands are north of Scotland and part of that area. We decided that we would just go ashore and wander as usual. As we were bouncing along in the tender I realized that I did not have my wallet with me and in fact had left our British pounds back in the cabin. We did not need any id for going ashore but it also meant that we could not go for a local beer at the end of the day. Short of going back or begging from fellow passengers, we decided to just keep with the modified plan (No local drinks today).

Shetland Landscape

Lerwick is a small town with the "typical" old buildings and unique style. We talked to a local tourist bureau agent then headed for a long walk around the cape and back into town. If was cool but a bit breezy but very scenic. We were looking for Puffins but realized that they were long gone. The nesting season was much earlier. Our walk took us to an old "farm" that dated to about 400 bc. The building was actually a tower within a tower. The ruins wee small but still very interesting. After that we stopped at the local recreation centre and watched some children learning to swim. From there it was a walk buy the shops - they don't caro if you have no denaro - and down to the museum which outlined the history of development. After that it was back to the ship for cocktails with our friend from the Paris trip.
Being "Elite" for the first time is an experience. Big deal, no waiting for the tender. However the ship does put on a special cocktail of the day in the Skywalker Lounger (deck 17) with very nice finger food - the blue cheese was great - and a special for the day for $3.00 a drink vs the normal $7.00. So that is a benefit. However we still have not finished off the mini-bar set up. The other thing is free laundry. We got that back as well. Shirts pressed and on hangers! Wow! Everything actually came back. The other thing that is different on the ship is that after 8 pm the drinks go to the $3.00 price. I figure that they must be trying to keep their customers. Good for the drinkers. The rest of the evening went well. Cheers!