September 10th to September 13th, 2015
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| My 21 month old granddaughter loves the birds in her mom's avairy! |
Norm and I flew from Orlando to Boston to visit our children and grandchildren. Unfortunately, Norm’s daughter and her family were all sick, so we were not able to see them but we were able to spend some extra quality time with my daughter, her husband, and my adorable 22 month old granddaughter!
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Norm and I went down to the nearby pond to watch
Elena play! |
They had just moved into their new house and were not quite ready for guests, so we got a lovely room at the Embassy Suites, in Marlborough, MA. The weather was in the 70’s, and just glorious! It was so wonderful to get away from that intense sunshine and to actually enjoy being outdoors.
September 14th to September 17th, 2015
Today is the “official” start of our new adventure! Iceland is a destination that was never really on our radar, but when I found a reasonably priced flight to Frankfurt with a free option to layover in Iceland, Norm and I just had to check it out! If it seems like a great place, perhaps we would come back in some other summer and stay awhile to escape the Florida heat and do some hiking, and maybe even get brave enough to ride one of those darling Icelandic ponies! I would love to get a picture of Norm on one of those! Perhaps if I felt really, really brave ( or suicidal ) I could try that hang-gliding off one of those huge cliffs!)
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| Alison being silly |
Iceland straddles the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates are pulling apart. Rising magma built the island and heats its vast reservoirs of water, creating a geothermal paradise.
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The Bridge across two Continents-
This symbolic bridge lies across a canyon that was formed due to the movements of the North American and the Eurasian tectonic plates which are continuously drifting apart at about 2 cm per year in the opposite direction.
Note: It was not the easiest thing to get this shot. It certainly tried Norm's patience! |
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We had a very pleasant flight on Icelandic Air departing Boston at 2:30PM and in a mere 5 hours, arrived in Keflavik, Iceland at 11:30PM. Customs was a non-issue if you had nothing to declare. Just walk right by.
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| The Harbor next to Hotel Berg in Keflavik, Iceland |
We decided to stay at Hotel Berg because of the rave reviews on TripAdvisor; all gushing over the incredible customer service provided there. Needless to say, we were quite surprised when we were picked up by a pretty sullen woman who marched up to us and another couple and grunted something or other, which I assumed, meant to follow her. She opened up the trunk of the car then she got in and waited for us to figure how we were going to get the entire huge sized luggage for 4 people into the small trunk! After we miraculously managed that task, we all crammed into the car and off we went - arriving at the hotel in about 15 minutes. She “threw” the room keys at us, and I assume, went back to bed (or perhaps returned to the rock she climbed out from under). I was chuckling half the night about it. I had never seen or experienced such a thing! It really too funny to be annoying.
The next day we enjoyed a lovely breakfast provided by the hotel (which really felt like a B & B), then rented a car through them (now the service was starting to shine) and with a little advice took off to see what we could see.
We headed outside and experienced our first arctic blast (the temperature was in the high 40’s, and the wind was blowing about the same). Luckily those large suitcases we struggled with last night held plenty of warm clothing, so we were quite comfortable.
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| Volcanic Rock as far as the eye can see! This area is rather bleak |
Iceland was created from a volcano, and what we saw during our first day confirmed that. Lava rock. Lots and lots of lava rock. A virtual moonscape. Different shapes and sizes - some were covered by lichen and moss which gave it a shimmery green sheen, and other areas were just plain black lava rock formed into anything from small mounds to large hills. No trees, flowers or grass anywhere (except on the several golf courses we spotted).Small cottage sized homes were down path driveways of crushed lava rock, with no landscaping at all. Talk about environmentally friendly! No watering or mowing.
The route Norm chose to take ended up being probably the least scenic. We climbed a very large hill to look out over the sea and nearly got blown into it! We were freezing!
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Blue Lagoon -
A large ( commercial but lovely )
geothermal hot spring which 100 degree
F waters come from 6500 feet below the surface.
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As we drove around we happened upon a turquoise vision in the black moonscape. The Blue Lagoon is a geothermal spa fed by seawater 6500 feet beneath the surface, where it reaches a searing 464 degrees Fahrenheit. Capturing silica and other minerals on its way to the surface, it emerges from the ground at a balmy 100 degrees Fahrenheit - just right for the busloads of tourists that came to soak in the warm, therapeutic waters.
Donning silica mud masks, patrons floated, napped and chatted away the hours. Depending on which “package” you paid dearly for, lockers were provided for changing into the mandatory bathing suits (in case you were wondering) and large white robes available for when you got out of the hot water and into the brisk air. Since Norm was in his “Amazing Race” mode, and I would not be caught dead in a bathing suit, we opted only for a lovely lunch at the elegant Lava restaurant there at Blue Lagoon. It was hysterical seeing people dressed in robes dining at tables adorned with fine crystal and linens sipping their champagne, and feasting on any of the many gourmet delicacies. Perhaps they were all on their honeymoons?
Norm and I might actually spend a few hours there getting pampered when we pass through Iceland on our way back to the States next month! Of course we might be either too fat and/or too broke by then to actually do it!
We enjoyed an incredible lunch ourselves, and then drove back for a much needed nap before heading out again to the capital city of Reykjavik for dinner.
The area where most of the nice restaurants were located had an awesome, almost “holiday” atmosphere. (Perhaps it was just the blustery winds and low temperatures that made me feel like it was Christmas.) The streets, lined with lovely boutique shops, were closed off to traffic but due to the late hour were, unfortunately, closed.
We had dinner at a French restaurant, and then headed back to the hotel, which was about a 45 minute drive.
Wednesday, September 16th, 2015
Stogafoss Waterfalls
63m ( about 90 feet ) high and
15m ( 45 feet ) wide. We climbed the 527 stairs to view it from the top ( then,
of course took them down )! Not an easy
feat for us old people from Florida where not only homes, but the land is flat!
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| Our reward at the top of the stairs and a short hike down a path! |
We have only one more day to visit Iceland, and we feel we have not yet seen “the tip of the iceberg” so to speak. Norm and I watched hours of videos about Iceland’s incredible features on the plane, and did not manage to see any of that yesterday. As we suspected, drive times are very long and one would need a couple of weeks or more to really take in all the natural and cultural wonders of this country.
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| We saw several groups of Icelandic Ponies grazing in fields |
I spoke with several other guests in the breakfast dining area and confirmed we really went to the wrong area yesterday! No more just “driving around” when we get somewhere. We need to find out exactly where things are and go there!
These guests had spoken with the young man at the front desk, and he told them exactly where to go, what order to do it in, as well as not only recommending a fabulous restaurant in Reykjavik, but making their reservations! He also put all the stops in their GPS for them! Where was he yesterday when we asked?
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These ponies were just too cute not to share!
My daughter had a pony named "Snack Pack " that looked just like this! |
Luckily he was on duty this morning, and did the same for us. He said it would take only 12 hours to see these unbelievable natural wonders, but since we felt 8 hours was more than enough due to the busy schedule we would be having (not to mention a 4am wakening), we had to unfortunately skip a couple of recommended stops.
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There were many geothermal areas in South Iceland. They all smelt strongly of sulfur.
These reminded us very much of Yellowstone National Park in the US. |
We had much more fun this second day. Norm stopped so I could take pictures often; there were farmlands and snow capped mountains and all kinds of interesting things which always make for a more scenic and enjoyable drive, and the end destinations were amazing waterfalls – all making for a nice full day.
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Notice the variations in the landscape. Rich fertile soil for farming, then rocky mountains that have very loose soil from
disintegrating lava rock ( and homes which seem to be always built at the bases of these mountains ) then rising up
behind them you see glaciers! Really beautiful! |
Unfortunately when we returned to the hotel to take a much needed shower we discovered there was no hot water. We learned the water is supplied by the city and there was a problem somehow. Florida’s ground is always so warm, so if you had to take a“cold” shower, the water is never really that cold. Here is Iceland, believe me, the cold water is really freezing, so it was not an option! Fortunately for those sitting next to us in the plane, we were able to take that lovely hot shower at 4am before we left.
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We drove along a pretty deserted road and saw a ton of racks with something hanging on them that was attracting
a huge flock of birds. Norm ignored all the "do not enter" "no trespassing" " cameras" ( and me ) to satisfy his
curiosity. We found a photographer in among these stinky fish bodies and heads. He said they are to be shipped to Africa
for some reason. Perhaps a delicacy? There won't be much left to them by the time the birds are done! Yuck! |
