Orkney, April 2011

St. Magnus Cathedral

I went to Orkney with a friend of mine in late April, 2011.

The airport of Kirkwall was as small as on Shetland, however was located much closer to the town centre, where we stayed in a charming B & B. While having breakfast, we could see "Scapa Flow", a huge natural harbour with many shipwrecks lying on its bottom, dating back to WWI and WWII.

Kirkwall Harbour

Orkney was different to Shetland. There were some trees and bushes and lots of farmers with their tractors on the fields, and on the streets. I immediately smelt the scent of flowers and farming. Besides that, I noticed the well-maintained streets and gardens.

First, we visited Kirkwall, the sweet and small capital of Orkney with a huge diversity of nice little shops and cafés. I especially liked "St. Magnus Cathedral". All my travel books recommended its magnificent architecture and it was true - I felt overjoyed !

Moreover, I liked the harbour area, watching all the ferries come and go, connecting all the little islands of Orkney with each other.

Scara Brae

The next day we went to "Scara Brae", a neolithic village some 5000 years old, close to the sea. It was located in the North of Mainland. In 1999, it became a World Heritage Site as part of the "Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site".

After we had visited the whole area of the village, I decided to climb down the huge rocks behind "Scara Brae" until I reached the beach. The rocks looked amazing as they were formed by the sea and the wind kept pushing me around.



I think, it was this combination of the bright green and blue colours, thte continuing gale-force winds and the smell of the sea that left a huge impression on my heart.

Yesnaby

When we finished our lunch here, we went to see "Maeshowe", the finest chambered tomb in Northern Europe,dating around 5000 years ago.

On our way to "Maeshowe" we passed the massive rocks of Yesnaby that deeply impressed me so that I got totally carried away in the moment, and felt like I could have screamed out loud, although the wind would have swallowed my voice :)

Yesnaby

Shortly after having arrived at "Maeshowe", I felt the special atmosphere here. We took part in a guided tour and learnt a lot of its history. Our attention was drawn to the signs of the Norse inside the tomb, that told a story of the people who had once lived here.
The shop nearby offered great books and Celtic jewellery. Generally, Orkney is known for its special Celtic jewellery: I found two beautiful rings.

Standing Stones of Stennes

Later on, we headed to the "Standing Stones of Stennes", a small henge with 4 standing and 3 lying stones, and then to the "Ring of Brodgar", one of the largest of all Neolithic henges. The "Ring of Brodgar" was much bigger than I had thought and imagined. We remained silent while walking around the stone circle. I concentrated on the stones and took in the extraordinary atmosphere. In contrast to this huge construction, built between 4500 and 4000 years ago, I felt as small as I had felt at the Cliffs of Eshaness on Shetland. It showed me there's much more to life than our "daily trivia", there must be a bigger picure to life.

Ring of Brodgar

The next day we visited the "Broch of Gurness", another sample of a neolithic village, close to the sea in the North of Mainland. It was a very huge area with one huge broch in the middle and smaller oval houses around. As you can clearly see on the pictures, we were quite lucky with the weather.

Ring of Brodgar

In my eyes, the sun made the sea behind the broch look even bluer and the grass on the ground even greener.

Additionally after that, we decided to visit the "Tomb of the Eagle", a 5000 years old chambered tomb located on the island of South Ronaldsay. In order to reach there, we drove along the huge bay of "Scapa Flow" and passed through Churchill Barriers, concrete walls, which closed the canals between the eastern islands. You can still see the shipwrecks jutting out of the water, dated back to WWI and WWII. It was a strange, eerie atmosphere so that we couldn't stand to stay long.

"The Tomb of the Eagle" was much smaller than "Maeshowe" and on private grounds. The entrance to the tomb was so small  that  I really had to think whether I wanted to go in or not. However, I decided to do so. We also paid a visit to the little museum. It was really interesting to read about the history and the way the tomb was found.

Broch of Gurness

In the afternoon, we took part in a guided tour of the "Highland Park Distillery" and really enjoyed it because our tour guide entertained us with little stories about the distillery's history and the production of whisky. Besides that, the building looked very nice, especially because of the pagoda roofs.