The Orkney Islands

This morning we took a ferry across to the Orkney Islands.On the way out we passed this uninhabited island. At one time there were many small crofts here but the Scottish Government decided that they needed a new harbor. They hired the workers to build the harbor from the local population. Having gotten a taste of working for salary many of the crofters decided it was easier than subsistent farmers and sailed away from the new harbor never to return. Today they are all gone.

For lunch we stopped at Kirkwell, the capital and largest city. We visited the Cathedral there.

In the afternoon we visited the standing stones at the Ring of Brodgar. These predate the ones at Stonehenge.

Our last stop was at the Italian Chapel. This was built by Italian prisoners of war during World War II. These prisoners were building anti submarine barriers of concrete blocks so they had access to concrete. This is a quonset hut with a carved concrete façade.

Tom