You almost need a magnifying glass to find them on the map. The series of small islands are nestled between the North Sea and North Atlantic north of Scotland and west of Iceland. The largest town is Lerwick.
They have a delightful climate if you are ultra warm-natured like me. It is a place where otters and seals play in quiet coves. The air is full of sounds of wild birds among the jagged cliffs. The islands are bathed by cool air from the sea. Tornadoes are unheard of and there are no heat waves.
Several years ago I exchanged an e-mail with a newpaper editor and he sent me the text of their weather forecast. They have unique wording.
Here is the current forecast as printed in The Shetland News:
Temperatures rising to 11 to 13 degrees celsius by day (52 to 55F) and down to 5 or 6 degrees C overnight which translates to 41 to 43F. Confidence level medium to high. Rather cloudy at times with hill fog and misty conditions along the eastern coast and hills. There will be brighter periods with some sunny spells. Force 2 to 3 easterly winds. The outlook for Saturday: cloudy with outbreaks of rain.
I sure would like to visit that place, but it will never happen.
