EVEN City's resourceful fans have found EB/Streymur one of the more difficult assignments on their recent itinerary.

By comparison the club's pre-season trip to Shanghai a couple of years ago was a piece of cake for travelling supporters.

The Blues have been given fewer than 500 tickets for the first qualifying round tie but it hasn't stopped the intrepid travelling army making their way to the archipelago of islands.

Some have ventured on the club's official trip from Manchester Airport with sponsor Thomas Cook but others have pursued more intrepid and circuitous routes.

Many set off yesterday to catch a regular flight from Stansted Airport that returns on Friday, and others have headed for the wilderness of Scrabster - a port 112 miles north of Inverness for a ferry trip that takes around 22 hours and only leaves and comes back on a Wednesday!

Other resourceful fans have been making their convoluted way by trains, planes and automobiles via Copenhagen.

When they finally arrive at their destination City followers will find the Faroes situated in the North Atlantic, halfway between Iceland and Norway.

The archipelago is composed of 18 islands covering an area 70 miles long and 47 miles wide, roughly in the shape of an arrowhead. The entire population of the Faro Islands, 48,290, could almost be accommodated in City's Eastlands stadium.

Feature

English is widely spoken and Danish considered a foreign language and visitors should never insult the locals by asking if they are part of Denmark.

Grass roofs will take the supporters' eye and these have been a feature of the islands since they were first settled.

During the Viking Age farmhouses were built with curved stone walls, the roof was supported by two rows of posts in a large common room with a longfire in the centre. Along the outer walls benches or seats were placed and a Faroese home today is still called a sethús, or seat house, after these seats. The only bridge over the Atlantic is situated in the islands. It spans the narrow channel of Sundini to connect Eysturoy with the larger island of Streymoy.

Spectacular eddies form at the base of the bridge when the current is running strong with the tide.

The tallest mountain in the Faroes is the Slættaratindur, but in the hills above Toftir is the football stadium, constructed especially for international football competitions, but which will play host to the Blues for the biggest club game the islands have seen.

Beyond the stadium further up in the hills is the beautiful lake, Toftavatn, surrounded by a unique heather area that the local tourist board urges people to visit. City fans might want to wrap up warm.

Winters are virtually sunless, and summer temperatures in the windy Faroes rarely rises above 14 degrees C (56F).

Fishing is the main industry on the islands, with cod the prized catch.

Those fans who like wildlife will also find many puffins and guillemots dotted around the islands and the Faroese horse is recognised as a unique breed.

Apart from pilot whale meat and puffins, the cuisine is not that far removed from our own with roast lamb with potatoes and gravy the traditional food served for a special occasion.

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