After the fun of the RNA conference, it was time for the tourist part of this trip, which meant flying to the far north of the UK: Orkney and even farther north, Shetland. Fellow Wench Pat Rice and I flew to Orkney from Manchester with our husbands The Mayhem Consultant (mine) and The IT Guy (Pat's.)
The islands have been settled for at least 8500 years, first by various Neolithic groups, then by Norsemen in the 9th century CE. The Norwegian king pledged Orkney and Shetland as a temporary dowry for his daughter, Margaret of Denmark, but he never reclaimed it by paying the agreed upon dowry so the Scottish Parliament annexed the islands in 1472 and they've been part of Scotland ever since. (Map courtesy of Wikipedia Commons.)
Both island groups differ from the rest of Scotland because their roots are Norse, not Gaelic, and for centuries they spoke the now extinct Norn language. Gaelic became an overlay after the Scottish annexation, and later still, English. But even today, there is a local dialect with roots in Norn. One of the first things our wonderful guide, Lorna Brown, said was that she would speak to us in standard English, which isn't the way she spoke at home.
We spent three days in Orkney with Lorna and had fabulous sunny and mild weather. By the end, I was ready to move there. <G> Though I'm sure I'd feel differently in the very short days and long nights of a far northern winter!
I expected Orkney to be rugged, but in fact it's mostly rolling green hills covered with farms. The soil is very fertile and there are lots and lots of cows, both dairy and beef. As a farm girl myself, I mentioned to Lorna that the cows were very sleek and contented. She said that the "coos" weren't just happy but downright smug. <G>
Orkney has masses of history from the Iron Age on. Skara Brae is the most complete Iron Age village in northern Europe and was discovered when a ferocious storm blew the sand of one of the house on the sea shore property of a Victorian laird.
There are various standing stones--here's a picture of me by one of the Standing Stones of Stenness. Not far away is the Ring of Brodgar, and in between major excavations are taking place at a site called the Ness of Brodgar. Fascinating, and for ten pounds you can choose a meter square that will be excavated soon, and if anything interesting is found there, they'll email you a picture of it. <G>
In more recent history, the huge natural harbor of Scapa Flow was the site of the infamous sinking of the battleship Royal Oak after an attack by a German submarine on October 14th, 1939. The shock and horror on an attack that took over 800 lives and opened the gates of war was similar to the effect of Pearl Harbor in the United States.
In order to block some of the entrances to Scapa Flow to prevent more submarine attacks, the Churchill Barriers were built. These were four causeways that blocked submarines; now they are roads connecting several of the islands. Italian prisoners of war were brought in to do the work, and they settled in and among other things, used two Quonset huts to create a beautifully decorated Catholic Chapel. Here's Pat standing in front of the
church, and a shot of the interior.
Modern Orkney is a treasure trove of artists and craftsfolk. To mention just two: Leila Thomson and her daughter are both artists who work from nature. Leila's tapestries are superb and awe and way out of the range of most people, but she sells prints of her work that are pretty wonderful and much more affordable.
And Leila has a sister, Sheila Fleet, who makes stunning jewelry. She bought an adjacent decommissioned church and turned it into a marvelous shop and gallery, and also a fabulous café. Not to be missed if you visit Orkney!
I could go on and on. I haven't even touched on St. Magnus Cathedral, which was started in the 12th century, has an amazing history, and is owned by the people of Orkney rather than a particular church.
It's time to wrap this up, but I wonder. Have you been to Orkney? Has anything in the blog made you want to visit it? If so, I highly recommend the !
Mary Jo, born tourist