For a very small town (population round 9,000) whose surrounding fields you can see from its centre, Kirkwall has a fine collection of antique buildings. This is what's left of the 16th century bishop's palace (replacing 12th century, 13th century and 14th century palaces) which …
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FreeFrom Orkney
Kirkwall Harbour last Monday evening – a truly wonderful sunset followed on Tuesday by glorious blue skies showcasing the Orkney mainland's rolling fields and many lochs at their best. (It didn’t last…. By Wednesday the mists had come down restricting visibility to about …
Allergics and Electrosensitives may rue our departure from Europe
Chefs may have bemoaned the introduction of the EU Food Information for Consumers (FIC) rules requiring all eateries to know about the allergens in their foods; for food allergics, coeliacs and anyone on a restricted diet, this was only the most recent of a whole series measures …
Walking with the waves
Before I went down to Dublin for the Irish awards presentation last week I spent a couple of days out on the west coast with my cousin who lives in the far west of County Leitrim. Leitrim has probably the lowest population of any county in Ireland and does spend much of the year …
Walking the Cinque Terre
Just north of La Spezia where the Apennines tumble down into the Mediterranean, five tiny villages, Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarolo and Riomaggiore cling to the rocks around minute 'harbours'. Thousands of vines scramble along the terraced hillsides above. This is known …