A Mighty Wind

(Before I start, I want to remind you that I'm writing a post for each day and so sometimes my posts will show up before Anna's. It might look like there hasn't been a post when there has, I guess is what I'm saying. Remember to check the post list to the right, or scroll through them all... just so my hard work doesn't go to waste... or your cursings are in vain ;))

After a night of no sleep we boarded the ferry to the Orkney Islands around 11ish. There was a storm brewin' and the waves were choppy. Our captain decided the best coarse of action would be to ride straight through them, for dramatic effect I'm sure. I tried writing a bit in my journal while Anna snoozed on the bench next to me. Personally, I like a lot of movement on a ship, the rises and dips make me feel like I'm on a roller coaster, and I love those.

This ferry was a mini cruise ship with dining areas and cabins, though we weren't staying overnight on this crossing. After awhile, my stomach started talking, so I wandered into the dining area to see what they had. Fish and chips seemed a likely option, but they also have a great love for macaroni and cheese, so I was torn. I asked if I could have a bit of macaroni instead of fries and that appeared to stump him for a moment, but eventually he saw things my way.

He gave me a huge scoop of it though and then tried to pile my plate with a bunch of other stuff. The fish are already enormous and I'd just been wanting a -taste- of the macaroni. I tried to calm his enthusiasm for loading plates and escaped with only a large man's portion instead of the giant's ration he'd initially wanted to give me.

I walked, steadily I might add, to the register and the woman looked at me in surprise and said, "Two dinners!" and started to ring it up. The man said something to her about the macaroni in place of fries and she gave a dubious look, to which he shrugged. She rang me up for one, though to be fair, the plate held enough for 6 of those people who are supposed to be able to fit inside the elevators. (Which is to say, two regular people.)

Anna woke and staggered into the dining car, everyone was staggering at this time as the wind was having a heyday. I started walking toward her and suddenly, I was walking on air. It was the weirdest feeling ever! Followed by the feeling that the entire world's weight was on my back and I had a hard time straightening my legs. It was quite fabulous actually.

Anna went to get her meal and I realized that I hadn't gotten a drink, so I went to the register to pay for a drink. The girl that was there then tried ringing me up for a dinner as well and I told her I'd already paid for it. Her expression left no doubt in my mind that she thought I was lying and it kind of made me want to smack her. I refrained, fear not.

Conversely, when Anna stood at the register she couldn't get anyone to take her money. That girl (who will always be, "that girl") just walked away. I told Anna she should just sit down and start eating, they'd probably be all over her for money then, but she stayed up there. Finally, after at least 10 minutes, the guy who had served me came over and I said that Anna had been waiting to pay, but that girl just ignored her. Yes, I admit it, I wanted that girl to get a bit of a scolding. There, I said it!

The reason I am even retelling this is because this is the first time we've encountered anyone who wasn't just the soul of kind helpfulness. That girl wasn't Scottish, big surprise there, right? The crew was a little odd, but the rest of the journey went by without incident.

I looked out the window and saw what is pictured here and thought, "Why am I inside?? I need pictures! Our loyal readers will want to SEE THIS!" So out I went without coat or hat and stood on the pitching and tipping deck to take these beauties. I hadn't pulled my hair back so it was going wild and a guy came up to me laughing and said that my hair was in all his pictures. I felt bad about it so I tried to tie it in a knot for the rest of the time I was out there.

As always, the pictures just don't do it justice. After debarking and meeting up with our local guide, we headed to the site of Skara Brae. This sign seemed quite specific, as if there were many neolithic villages around and one needed to know this was the one where you could still see the original stone furniture. It made me chuckle, so I'm including it for you.

The storm hadn't abated, in fact it had gotten worse, but we brave souls, with you in mind, went out into the fierceness and came back wet and bedraggled, but victorious. I am shocked my pictures came out as well as they did as I could not see -anything- of which I was taking pictures. The wind and the rain made short work of my glasses and there was not a spot of dry clothing on me with which to dry them.

I literally just walked along the path I could barely make out and pointed and clicked. I had no clue what Skara Brae looked like until I downloaded my pictures from my camera that night. It doesn't even look like it was raining! It was the worst storm I'd ever been in. Jessie's (one of our tourmates) umbrella broke, right on the section that had the Lifetime Warranty tag. We had a good laugh about the irony there. I'm not sure my coat will ever dry, but at least I know its real wool... it smells of sheep strongly now...

After leaving a site of things I hadn't seen we ran about the island to see their standing stones and other local sites. None of which could be seen very well through the storm, but I did manage some pictures. I'll share those when I get home. We went into town to visit their cathedral, it was quite impressive. The stained glass windows are gorgeous, and surprise surprise, I took a picture of just about all of them. I'll include St. Christopher as he is the patron saint of safe travel.

We also ran into a Monty Python fellow with his Holy Hand Grenade, I think Anna said hers didn't turn out, so I'll post mine. The inside of this cathedral was quite spectacular. The flooring was tile with Celtic knots and symbols (yes, I took a picture of it :P), the walls were stone of course, and I've mentioned the windows.

I've often wondered what it would be like to actually go to services in a building like this. I went to one in Italy and it was interesting, but I definitely felt separate from the priest speaking. I imagined being a lowly farmer sitting in the back feeling small and insignificant, and I had a feeling that that was the point. Many of the buildings were built as a show of power, to let the locals know that they were insignificant and the leaders were awe inspiring and deserved total obedience and loyalty. Well... those were my thoughts anyway.

Our last stop was to an Italian style chapel built by prisoners of war. The paintings were magnificent and despite the weather and the age, everything was in wonderful condition. I have a few other pictures of the inside as well. It was small and seemed like it had just enough room for people to come in and kneel down, but what else do you really need, eh?