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Sunday 28 October 2012

What did I miss....



....when I first moved to Orkney? was a question posed by "Yorkshire Pudding" in a comment to one of my recent posts.   Hmmmm well I have to cast my mind back to 2000 when I first moved to the island.  I think, even at the time that the things I *found* in Orkney and on Graemsay certainly balanced and, in some cases, outweighed what I missed.  Obviously I missed my friends who had lived nearby. My family have always been scattered around the UK so we were used to keeping in touch by phone and not seeing much of each other.  Many thought I was bonkers to move from just south of London to just North of John O'Groats.  AND to an island!

But as I have said before, I had longed to move out of the suburban town that I had lived in all my life and really was looking for a challenge at that point in my life. I'll write more in a later post on what brought me to Graemsay.

But for now, back to the question in hand.  What did I miss when I moved to Graemsay in Orkney?

Theatre and live performance - I used to go up to London to see a lot of productions, some "fringe", or in the West End.  But I knew I would be giving up the frequency that I could do this by moving to Orkney. I'd spent years going to the theatre but I knew that was one thing that would become less frequent. Of course Orkney has lots of festivals, so there is still the opportunity to go to live performances!

Coffee shops and a variety of "world cuisine" restaurants. NOW around Orkney, particularly in Kirkwall and Stromness you can get a decent latte and Cake in a number of places. But in 2000 it was the more traditional cafe providing beans on toast, mugs of tea, toasted sandwiches, burgers and chips. That sort of fare.  Nothing wrong with it at all - but I craved a lovely cafe latte and luscious cakes.  Now in Stromness at Julia's Bistro I can get both


OOoh which to choose from!


I missed the mix of restaurants where I could meet friends for coffee or a glass of wine, light meal and a chat.    At the time it was mostly the hotels and pubs that served main meals. Some were excellent, but it was the more informal places that I longed for.  Again Orkney now has a lovely selection. There's a great Italian restaurant in Kirkwall (Lucano's), and a variety of Indian and Chinese restaurants as well as cafes and bistros providing "main meals" and great desserts (ooh a meal out isn't complete without dessert!). Of course not forgetting the wonderful fish & chip van that visits Finstown and Stromness once a week. Best Fish & Chips around!

Other than eating places, whatever I could get "south" was available living in Orkney. True there were additional costs for postage (a sore point for many Orkney residents - we pay EXTRA for things to be posted to Orkney!) or shipping charges. There might be less choice and some things were more expensive. There are no large DIY stores like B&Q, or household shops like Ikea in Orkney. But there ARE a variety of places selling similar things - though no one can beat the price of Ikea ...sigh.... The nearest Ikea shop in Glasgow, several hundred miles and a sea crossing away.

Clothes shopping is obviously more limited in Orkney than in the big towns. But again there are independent shops selling lovely things. Though mostly I shop online these days. Um... I just bought these online having drooled over them when on holiday and visiting Exeter.... not sure I will get to wear them often, but just owning them give me a warm glow ;-)



Someone from Edinburgh said they couldn't live in ORkney as it was too far from a book shop. Pah! We have a great little book-shop in Stromness - Tam's.  It's a treasure trove of wonderful books, and Tam will order things in too.  Though - hanging head in shame - I'm afraid I get a lot of my books from Amazon these days......

Food shops (local butchers, bakers etc) as well as the usual suspects in terms of supermarkets also stock a range of items so it's possible to cook up whatever you want!  Though if the weather is bad and the distribution trucks can't deliver to the supermarkets you might need to be a little inventive when cooking!

Overwhelmingly, the lifestyle change was very positive for me. Yes there were some challenging times in the early years, but I always knew this was where I wanted to be and so it was a case of overcoming any obstacles or getting used to a different way of life. And frankly - look at the picture at the top of this post..... these seals are visible from my window (OK I need binoculars to see them clearly!) or a short walk along the shore..... any time......  considering I used to look out onto other houses or a main road in my home south - this is a VAST improvement and even worth giving up cafe lattes for ;-)

12 comments:

  1. I think you did a very brave thing when moving to Orkney and the fact that you have taken so long to reflect on what you "missed" proves that you have settled into your new life with a healthy, forward-looking attitude. I guess the plum coloured high heels will come in handy when there's just a two inch scattering of snow outside. Any higher and you'll need designer wellies.

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    1. It worked out better than I could have imagined really. Bit of a gamble but sometimes one has to follow a dream :-) And I was in a fortunate position to be able to do that.

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  2. I remember Julia's. Isn't that where I put coins in the floppy disk drive? (still embarrassed about that!)

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    1. LOL! Yup that's right. Nearly another international incident! They no longer have pc's in the cafe - but I don't think that was your fault ;-) Now they have wi fi access. Far less hassle apparently.. hee hee

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  3. So glad you got the shoes!! They will certainly brighten up November. Sian, this is such an interesting post, and so wonderfully positive. Thanks for sharing it and not least for all the helpful info on shops and suppliers in Orkney.

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    1. Oh I LOVE the shoes (wore them to the Halloween party!). I do think that those who settle in easily to new things are often people who have a positive outlook. Though there WERE times when I found things hard. But mostly I am a positive person and try to put the difficult things behind me and move on.....

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  4. I did enjoy this, Sian, and agree that your positive attitude must have helped you cope with the rigours of latte deprivation. :-) It's interesting to see how the modern world and its must-haves have made their way across the Pentland Firth in the decade and more since you moved north.

    PS I love the shoes but could never wear them. I have awkward feet. Sigh....

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    1. Yes it's surprising how things have changed in the few years I've been here. Much hasn't, but some things have. As for the shoes - I used to be able to run for trains in such shoes! Not any more. I stick to flat surfaces indoors now!! But I do love my shoes :-)

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  5. Great post, Sian. You are reminding me of all I miss about Orkney though... though I had to move for work. Fantastic though life in Orkney can be, you still need work, and I had to move to get enough of that to live. Rural areas have so many benefits over urban ones though (IMHO!)and you've summed these up so well. And I'm looking forward to reading about the occasions when you wear 'those' shoes!! :-)

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    1. Absolutely agree Fiona. I really struggled in the beginning to get any form of work when I first moved here. Fortunately I had some contacts south so did do a bit of work. But it was quite depressing doing the job hunting after moving up from South where I could "temp" or get some work to pay the bills. And yes actually Orkney is like many rural areas in the uK and have MANY benefits over urban ones! And I wore "those" shoes to Halloween Party - have not made much of them as thought I might be giving completely the wrong impression about myself. LOL!

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  6. I love your blog, and I wish I could live in Scotland (though I'd rather live near Ullapool...) but I'm stuck in France :) Please keep writing, it gives me a small taste of life in Orkney, and I love it :)
    Thaaanks !

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  7. Oooh I LOVE Ullapool! I've been on holiday twice in recent years and next visit is in June 2013. LOVE the mountains. France is cool too though? No? Hope you enjoy "visiting" Graemsay anyway :-)

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