Orkney Islands

The beautiful Orkney Islands are located 10 miles from the northern point of Scotland and we tendered in on another sunny day.  How lucky we have been on this trip!  This was another highlight point for us as we knew that the cruise ships may or may not be able to reach this port, depending on sea conditions.

We arrived in port and this was what greeted us:

For this port, we decided to go with Princess excursions, so we rode in a bus that seated perhaps 50 people.  We prefer private excursions but for this particular port, Princess was the way to go.

Did you know that a prehistoric society lived here, surrounded by seals, otters and other forms of sealife?  We made our way to the well known village of Skara Brae, one of the best Neolithic sites in Europe.  They have dated the houses back 5,000 years.  This site was discovered in 1850 after a fierce storm revealed what laid beneath the grass mounds.

Stones were used throughout the buildings because of the scarcity of wood.

Look closely to see the built in beds:

They even had built in bathroom facilities--amazing!

We saw beautiful seascapes as we explored this Island.  We thought Graham, our tour guide, would have a Scottish brogue but he surprised us with his very easy to understand English. 

We drove past the Ring Of Brodgar and Maes Howe.  The Ring of Brodgar is similar to Stonehenge as it is the third largest stonehenge in Northern Europe after Stonehenge and Avebury.

We eventually concluded our tour in the tiny town of Kirkwall, which was definitely overrun by tourists that day.  We left the crowded areas and found ourselves in a little store that served delicious locally made ice cream.



We were again so fortunate to have set foot in the Orkney Islands....so far north and not an area that many people have visited.