Last Saturday we finally made it to Copinsay. It's was a bit like man's quest to the moon. You see it every day and you are desperate to go there, but it's not that easy. Fortunately it is much easier to get to Copinsay than to get to the moon. We were taken with the boat of a local man and he took us all around the Horse of Copinsay, Copinsay itself and the smaller islands around it. I especially loved the view of the Horse from the East. It's absolutely stunning and rough. He dropped us off at Corn Holm. Just before we were dropped off, we saw some Puffins fly by. We really hoped we'd see a few of them here. And there was one of them swimming right next to the boat. But when I tried to take a photo it just took off. What happened then seemed to be straight out of some surreal movie. For once we didn't look out of the boat on the right towards the shore but on the left and suddenly we saw dozens of Puffins swimming right next to the boat. An amazing experience. On the islands we also saw a lot of young birds and almost stepped on some on our way to Copinsay. One Fulmar started a sick attack on us, but luckily we were not close enough. We then walked over the Isle Rough to Copinsay just in time before the tide started going over. The weather was great and at times we wished for a bit of shade. We pick-nicked at the lighthouse (which of course included hot chocolate from the Kelly kettle). And then slowly made our way back along the cliffs. All in all one of the most memorable days here in Orkney. Photos of our trip left under 'Our Orkney Photos'.

Another memorable moment was the wedding the day before that we were so generously invited to by a friend. We especially loved the dancing and even took part in one of them even though it took me some time to figure out how to move around.

Monday was out farewell party with loads of friends and acquaintances. The weather was absolutely gorgeous, while it rained heavily in the rest of Orkney. We had delicious buffalo burgers and loads of cakes and breads of which we will be eating until we leave. The rest of the week is quite busy with packing and also visiting loads of people whom we have not visited before.

Also I have injured myself slightly. Yesterday there was a long jump competition at the Athletics and since I had not used my spikes I thought this would be the opportunity to get some Orkney sand on them. My Achilles tendon started acting up even before the first jump. I still managed a fair jump and then a huge one which went over 5.60m but was just slightly over the board. I called it a day after that and maybe I should bury my spikes now so I won't get tempted to do it again. Still I was quite amazed at how well it went (aside from injuring myself ...) without any training to speak of. It really seems like doing the long jump is like riding a bicycle, you never forget how to do it.

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