The Orcadian
Jul. 21st, 2005 11:28 pmI have two unusual habits, when it comes to travel. The first, which you may already be aware of, gentle reader, is obsessive planning and itinerary writing. The second, is the joy of the local newspaper. I grew up in a village where every Thursday we would receive 'The Maghull Advertiser', full of news of the parish council, The Rose Queen festival, the school fete. An innocent world, all those years ago.
So now, when I'm in a small Cumbrian village pub, for example, or at the general store on a tidal Northumbrian island, I like to pick up a copy of the local paper and read about tackling beach litter, a new slide in the park, or the anual parade.
Next month sees us off to Orkney - and one of the links I've come across in my exhaustive search for information is to The Orcadian. It is, quite simply, the best newspaper I have ever read. Where else can you find a paper that has a weekly column called Sky Notes - information on astronomical and related topics from Rousay astronomer John Vetterlein? Or Birdwatch - A regular update of monthly bird sightings in Orkney by local RSPB Officer Eric Meek? Where one of the front page headlines is uPVC windows aren't so bad, say councillors?
And it's got a 5 day weather forecast, weekly tide data and an events listing.
Bugger the BBC, this is *exactly* what I want from my online news.
So now, when I'm in a small Cumbrian village pub, for example, or at the general store on a tidal Northumbrian island, I like to pick up a copy of the local paper and read about tackling beach litter, a new slide in the park, or the anual parade.
Next month sees us off to Orkney - and one of the links I've come across in my exhaustive search for information is to The Orcadian. It is, quite simply, the best newspaper I have ever read. Where else can you find a paper that has a weekly column called Sky Notes - information on astronomical and related topics from Rousay astronomer John Vetterlein? Or Birdwatch - A regular update of monthly bird sightings in Orkney by local RSPB Officer Eric Meek? Where one of the front page headlines is uPVC windows aren't so bad, say councillors?
And it's got a 5 day weather forecast, weekly tide data and an events listing.
Bugger the BBC, this is *exactly* what I want from my online news.