The End of the World

I actually wrote this last night but am just getting a chance to upload it!

Hi everyone,

Well today was a long, fun and interesting day. After my last post we innoculated our samples. After the past week of feeling like an idiot, it felt great to watch the astrophysicists have no clue what was going on during the microbiology lecture and lab and have to ask us questions!!
After that we had lunch and headed back to the hotel to get our bags (they were very nice to let us leave one small thing each behind so they can enjoy my dirty socks!!) and loaded the bus. We drove up into the mountains and stopped after about an hour or so at one of the larger geysirs on the island. The biggest one hasn't gone off since 1968 so we went to the slightly smaller, but much more reliable one which goes off in small eruptions every 2 minutes and a large erruption every 8 minutes or so.
After that we headed inland and stopped at the big waterfall here. It honestly wasn't that impressive but the waterfall is fed by one of the glaciers on the island and it was clear enough that we could see it in the distance. It's one of those moments that I wish I had brought my other camera that has a higher zoom. It was beautiful and I was so excited to finally see a glacier before they all disappear. It turns out that later this week we're supposed to go see another one up close!
When we left there, we headed farther inland into the middle of nowhere. We passed the largest volcano that errupts every 2 years or so. It's due any day now and you know you're on a trip with geologists when half of us are hoping it blows while we're out here!! Unfortunately my seatmate was passed out so I couldn't get my camera in time to snap a picture as we drove by. It was massive and while you could see the snow top, the very tip was covered with clouds.
After driving forever we finally arrived at what we are now calling "the end of the world" or in other words, our new hotel. Primitive doesnt begin to cover it! There are actually 3 "hotels" within 2 miles of each other. The one I was put in initially was a 1/2 star simple twin beds next to each other...literally, you have to turn to the side to walk between them, one shelf and 3 toilets and 2 showers down the hall. There was a nice lounge, snack bar and great wi-fi though. Then there was the "not able to be rated" shed with the same setup, minus shelves and showers and no food or wi-fi. Finally, there is the 4 star, huge, comfy beds with big, flat screen tvs and chocolates on your pillow main hotel where the instructors are staying and where we have dinners and lectures.
So after being dropped off and unpacking, we headed towards the big hotel for dinner. It was then that we discovered the "10 minute, easy walk" was actually a 2 mile uphill walk and they wanted us to do that back and forth twice a day for the next 5 days! Half way there my ankle was killing me and by the time I got up to the top it was completely swollen up. Jen offered to switch rooms with me since she was in the shed and the manager was really nice and after dinner he brought us down with Jens luggage and me back up with mine. I can deal with having to walk to the other side of the building for the bathroom vs next door and I can go next door to shower if it means I can walk!!
Half of the group is down the hall having a 4th of July party and the walls are paper thin...umm, didn't we stop playing spoons by like sophmore year of college...so going to put my ipod on and hope it drowns out the sound!
Heading to bed now lectures all day tomorrow!

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Part of trip: Iceland

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