The title of todays blog is Peters last day. This is not meant to imply that I think that Peter has only a short while to live as I am not privy to that sort of information. It is more a reference to the fact that Peter is returning south on tonights ferry to Aberdeen.
As we hadn't been round Kirkwall since Peter arrived, I thought that we had better get down there today even though big cities are not my favourite places normally.
Yes it is a city, it has a cathedral, 4 roundabouts and all that city stuff. About 8000 people live there so it gets crowds and very few of the shopkeepers know you. Not at all like Seaview stores in Burray or the shops in St Margarets Hope.
Anyway, back to the plot. Peter wanted to see the cathedral and the museum so we vetured into town. Pam decided not to come which at least meant that we did not have to go window shopping or to the dreaded Tescos.
The cathedral is a beautiful building. It is over 850 years old and was started in 1137 AD by Kali Kolson, a norse earl of Orkney as a resting place for the bones of his uncle St Magnus. Kali Kolson later changed his name to Rognvald and was himself canonised and his bones are also in the cathedral.
The cathedral was built using different coloured sandstones from two quarries and it looks spectacular in the sunlight. It towers over everything in Kirkwall as they have had the sense not to surround it with tall buildings. Inside it is on a smaller scale than some cathedrals but it is none the worse for that.
The old gravestones in the cathedral have always fascinated me, none of that "dearly beloved" "passed away peacefully" sort of namby pamby stuff. They all have a skull and crossbones with the words " Remember Death" and sometimes a carving of a coffin and a timer.
It is also the only British cathedral to be owned by people of the town instead of the established church. It is also the only one to have its own jail.
We had a coffee at The Reel and went to have a look round the museum. The museum is very good and does not just concentrate on the neolithic and viking history although the neolithic and bronze age sections are obviously impressive.
We spent about about an hour and a half at the museum then headed back home for a very late lunch.
After lunch Peter and I took the dog down to the beach for a run and so managed to miss meeting the grandson of the man who built our house.
Pam was in the garden when a car pulled up and a man got out and said that he came from Caithness and had fetched his father with him to see the house. His father who was about 80 to 90 years old said that as a boy of 11 years old he used to come up here because it was his grandparents house. His grandfather who was a fisherman in the village had built the house. Pam invited them in but they could not stay as they had to catch the ferry.
The builders finally arrived today and got the foundations dug out and the concrete poured so we have at last got the extension started.
Peter and I saw a couple of hen harriers, or the same one twice but they are getting "old hat" for Peter now.
We ran Peter to Kirkwall to catch the Aberdeen ferry and they had a huge prototype tidal turbine on the dock waiting to be taken to the EMEC test site. There had been an article and photo of this turbine in "The Times" that Peter was reading on Saturday so he was very impressed to see it. If I can figure out how to get photos downloaded from my camera I may put one of the turbine up.
With that last taste of Orkney we saw Peter off and returned home.
Now that we were by ourselves again, Pam decided to make me feel guilty for not buying an anniversary present by presenting me with a beautiful original painting by Tim Wooton of a Peregrine Falcon. Not only that but while she was chatting to Tim he said that he would take me to see the nest next spring. I have always loved Tims paintings and this one was centre stage in his window the other day and I was admiring it. Fortunately for my peace of mind, I have forgotten the price on it.
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