The Unique Culture of the 60th Parallel

Where the Atlantic Ocean meets the North Sea and where Scandinavia meets Scotland, lies a wondrous group of Islands and one of my favorite places in the world, Shetland.

There are few places on the planet where you can get lost in millennia of human history, whilst snapping photos of the enigmatic puffin and tapping your toes to some of the finest fiddle frenzy folk music anywhere. Let us share this amazing archipelago with you and find out why we love it so much.

The Vikings took Shetland by storm some 1200 years ago, left their mark on the islands, and many traditions that still remain. They built houses, farmed, fished and even placed their parliament on Shetland’s big island. The locals, many with old Scandinavian names, will welcome you with open arms, share their culture, incredible music, famous cozy knitwear, delicious seafood, farm fresh produce and award-winning Shetland Lamb.

Shetland is renowned for its animal life where you can watch over 1 million birds nesting on dramatic sea-cliffs. Spot Red Throated Divers to Golden Plovers and the largest colony of Fulmars in Europe. Watch black guillemots diving for fish and the picture-perfect puffin bringing home dinner to the bairns (their young). Wander with the Shetland Ponies in their natural habitat. Capture moments with the abundant sea otters, and get your camera ready for an Orca sighting.

Two landmarks standout, in my mind, that are unparalleled in all my travels. Mousa Broch is a 2500 year old iron age round tower that houses the oldest staircase in all of Europe that you can climb and witness how they once lived in a land of awe. This structure even appears in the Norse Sagas. The best of them all has to be Jarlshof where you can visit a village that is 5000 years old and walk through the homes of the ancients of Shetland. Jarslhof is often described as the most remarkable archeological site ever excavated in Britain that was occupied and redeveloped over 4000 years.

Music, especially fiddle playing, is a mainstay throughout Shetland. In fact, the 7 year old daughter of my cousin, Hayley, competes in the young fiddler of the year competition. Lerwick, the capital of Shetland, has plenty of pubs putting on weekly sessions where local musicians ply their talent and visiting artists often join in. We annually attend my favorite music event, the Shetland Folk Festival, where we are entertained by musicians from across the globe as well as many stellar local players.

The festival prides itself in reaching out to the most far-flung parts of the archipelago, Europe, North America and beyond to find acts that are guaranteed to entertain all. In fact, visiting artists are regularly dumbfounded by the quantity and quality of local musicians that this remote part of the world has to offer.