ELIZABETH ATIA ELIZABETH’S KITCHEN DIARY

Scotland’s most northern blogger Elizabeth has more than 40,000 followers across her website Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. She’s primarily a food blogger but says traffic has tripled since she started documenting lockdown life on Shetland, from the stunning scenery to the best places to spot otters and orca whales.

“To be honest, I haven’t posted much during lockdown. Well, certainly not much cookery. But traffic just skyrocketed, especially when I branched out to showing more of Shetland. “When everything shut down, I found myself spending more time outdoors on long walks or bike rides exploring.

“While living here, I’ve always posted little bits about life on Shetland, the wildlife, the culture and the scenery, and people seem to love it – but there’s been a definite spike in interest over the last few months. “Unfortunately, my ad revenue crashed so I didn’t make any money, but lockdown seemed to generate a lot of interest in my accounts.

“I came here from Nova Scotia in Canada 21 years ago, after watching the film Rob Roy, to do a bit of travelling and fell in love. I ended up staying, meeting my now ex-husband and having three children. And I love it so much I’ve never left. “My blog posts are my version of living here. It’s such a beautiful place and I think that really comes across.

“I’ve definitely noticed the island getting busier with tourists in recent weeks. We do get a lot of international tourists, but I think we are going to see a lot more Scots this year and in the years

to come.”