Kirkjubøur Faroe Islands

Kirkjubøur was the episcopal centre of the island in medieval times. Today it's just a scattering of chalet-like wood-and-stone houses. St Olav's Church, built in 1111, was dedicated to the king who had formulated Norway's Christian code during the previous century; the ruins of Magnus Cathedral are hidden behind it. Roykstovan is a 900-year-old farmhouse with a turf roof, the timber for which came unintentionally from Norway. The ship that was carrying it to another destination sank, and its cargo was washed up at this natural collection point by the Gulf Stream. The building has been occupied by 18 generations of the same Faroese family, and the farmhouse museum is usually open daily in the summer.