Shopping trip to Moa

I was told earlier in the week, by 'she who tells me what to do', that we need to take a shopping trip to the Moa shopping centre, just outside Ålesund.
For once I actually agreed. Mainly because I wanted to buy some new work clothes from a shop there called Jula (pronounced Yula). Particularly I needed more socks, because hot metal finds its way into my boots and burns holes in them. The same happens with T shirts, to the stage when you pull of the shirt and think that, with the light shining through the holes, you're in a planetarium. But, I digress. I'm sure I could write a hundred blogs about the ill effects of molten metal, but back to today.

I had to work this morning, and wasn't too happy about that since it was a horribly difficult job, but as usual at my work there is always something to brighten the day. In this case one of the guys needed to do some work on his pick-up truck. No need to run it up on ramps, or go to a garage to use a lift, when all the lifting power required is available on site.

I only worked until 1230, I was knackered by then, and really wanted to go home and sleep, but the shopping trip loomed ominously so we set out.
It was a lovely day, and I snapped a nice picture on the way, a view across Storfjorden towards the entrance to Sykkylvsfjorden.

The Moa centre is about 55km from Vestnes, and along the way there are many such scenes, although the nearer to the coast you get, the smaller and less significant the mountains get.

After the shopping, which included yet another visit to a damned garden centre, (Oh Lord, why did I ever get the Peerie Trowie interested in gardening again?), we headed back for home.
Here's a nice scene from Valle, looking across the inner end of Ellingsøyfjorden.

Just over half way home, we passed through the little village of Sjøholt. The were having some sort of fair there today, and had a few stationary engines on display which always fascinate me. Here's a real beauty.

But it was completely overshadowed by this one.

Built in 1903, restored in 1991... BEAUTIFUL.

While we were in Sjøholt I took a few pictures, just since I think it's a lovely place.
Here's a view looking west through Storfjorden.

 And a view north across the beach past a row of Nausts (boat houses), and likely where the Shetland word 'Noost' came from.

One of the most beautiful buildings in Sjøholt, although sadly in need of restoration, is the beautiful old Sjøholt Hotel.

The original was built in 1882, but after being destroyed by fire, it was rebuilt in 1901.
It is a little bit grander than most of the hotels from that period, which tended to follow more of the style of this one.

Which is actually the St Magnus Bay Hotel in Hillswick, Shetland. The St Magnus Bay hotel was prefabricated in Norway, displayed at the Great Exhibition in Glasgow, in 1896, before being bought by the North of Scotland Steam Navigation Company, and relocated to Hillswick.
Some historians in Shetland have disputed these facts, well one actually, but we'll ignore him anyway. Although a very nice man called Erik managed to do the following alterations to an old picture of the St Magnus Bay Hotel, to make it look like it was designed by the Shetland  architect Thomas M Aitken. So hopefully this picture will end up in being 'archived' as what the architect intended.

Can't beat a few nice turrets... ;) Thanks EM. LOL

I'm completely off topic again, as usual. But never mind the journey was nearly over. We headed home over Ørskogfjellet and I took this picture of the south side of the mountains which we see from our kitchen window. The snow is receding fast now.

Well, if you've read this far, congratulations. I tend to ramble a bit sometimes.
But,

Yun's aa fir enoo.
;)