Wonderful Wednesday Personal Blog
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 (Note: Ceilidh is pronounced 'kay-lee' and means 'party')
After spending the morning at Skara Brae, we headed for a round of shopping in lovely Kirkwall. Of course, Thorfinn came along. The cathedral you see in the background of this photo is St. Magnus' Cathedral, and I have Thorfin-less photos for you below. Known also as the 'Light of the North', it was built in 1137 by Earl Rognvald in honor of his uncle, St. Magnus, and as a final resting place for his relics. It is made of both red and yellow sandstone which gives the building its unique coloring. We of course found lots of wonderful shops, and arrived back at the bus with various treasures, ready for a short trip to the Standing Stones of Stenness. Needless to say, none of us found any activity within the standing stones, though we were allowed to wander among them, and Susie was not left wondering what happened to any of the group. But we enjoyed ourselves just the same. We arrived back at our hotel in time for a delicious dinner followed by a fun evening of learning some traditional dances. Our musicians were the Orcadian band Kirkjuvagr, which is an old name for Kirkwall.
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 This is one of my favorite photos of Orkney. It's all hills and lochs and fertile lands--and hidden Pictish and Viking settlements and burial mounds. This day was cold but brilliant, giving us the very best view of this beautiful land. There are few trees here, and those we saw had been carefully planted and nurtured to withstand the wind and often severe weather. Archaeologically, there is evidence of trees, though it is buried deep beneath the peat.
How do I know this? Our guide for the two days we spent in Orkney was an Orcadian named Tom Muir, archaeologist and storyteller. Oh, how he could weave stories! He took us far, far back in time, and our first stop on Friday was the Maeshowe Chambered Cairn..  View from the ferry at harbor in Aberdeen Day 3; Evening
Our day was far from over. When we reached Aberdeen, we boarded a Northlink Ferry for the 6 hour trip to the Orkneys. The ship was huge! And perfect for surging across the unpredictable North Sea. We'd been warned the seas could provide a bit of a rough ride, but we were blessed with a smooth crossing. Other than the rumble of the engines beneath our feet and the gentle roll (which wasn't really noticeable until you decided to take a stroll), it was hard to remember you were aboard a ship. Except for the views. |
AuthorThis is where I talk about things in my life outside of writing. Mostly gardening and dogs. Archives
December 2019
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