Back in Internet coverage area #2

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Overview of Orkney Islands portion of trip - from Perth, Scotland

Day 3 Shetlands, took ferry to Orkney Islands at 5.00pm-ish.

Arrived 11.00pm on Orkney Islands mainland, drove south to St Mary's (town) and parked up for the night.

Day 1 - awoke in the morning to see we were next to Barrier 1 (of the Churchill Barriers).

Drove south over the 4 barriers, and took pictures of the blockboats.

Went to the Italian Chapel, then had lunch at a pub, then went and saw the two Stone Age finds that were dug up in the late 20th century. One a burial place the other of unknown purpose. Stopped at fruit wine shop and tried some. Then drove north, then west past Kirkwall and parked up for the night in a layby on the water front.



The blockboats (boats sunk deliberately to block submarines) were put in place during WWI and early WWII. Unfortunately during WWII an enemy submarine got through and sunk a ship (loss of approx. 830 lives) and then maneuvoured out the way it came. So the Italian prisoners in the POW camp at the direction of Winston Churchill were used to build four Barriers between the mainland and the island south of it, plus the mini islands in between. These became causeways between the islands.

The Chapel was beautiful. It was built at the WWII prison camp by Italian prisons, made out of two portable huts combined, and then the artworks created over a period of around 24 months by the prisoners. They did one side first and then the other side. Unfortunately the prisoners were moved to another prison camp 6 months before it was finally completed, but the artist had approval to go back and finish it.

Day 2 - went into town, did laundry, had lunch (first time eating white pudding) walked around and looked at museum, bookshop, curiosity shop, home made soaps etc., went shopping for provisions then took off towards west on the way to the ring of brodgar. Stopped over night at the stones of stonness.

Day 3 - took photos of white swans in the ness beside the layby for stones of stromness.

Went to see Ring of Brodgar, where up to 60 stones used to stand, now there are just over a dozen. A magic spot. Also saw some burial mounds. The dogs loved the run around the outside and down to the loch. After two hours it was off to Stromness to catch the ferry back to Scottish mainland. Alighted at Scrabness. Drove south 120 miles to Inverness for overnight stop.



Why two blogs from Perth, Scotland you ask? Wait for the next blog to find out!!

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