Blogs from Iceland, Europe - page 149

Day 52: Tuesday 27th. June 2006: Cloudy then clear on arrival: After a good flight we arrived in Iceland to a beautiful sunny cloudless day. The scenery is stunning. In a nice hostel, 4 bed dorm with own bathroom, kitchen neat and tidy overlooking camping ground. A walk to the shops for food as usual. Day 53: Sunny: After breakfast we were ready for the day. A walk through the Botanical Gardens and into town. In the afternoon we visited the Culture House - old old manuscrips including the Edda Sagas written by the Icelandic scholar Snorri Sturluson in 1220. To see this kind of thing in a country so isolated is the most amazing feeling and all the more impressive and interesting thanks to Mario for introducing me to these months before we left ... read more

Last Day—Monday, May 29, 2006—Temperature: I don’t know but it was cold on the boat! We started our day quite early…at least Kelly, Angela & Mary Beth. Gayle, having a tendency to become seasick, forewent our whale watching excursion. Even though we were well prepared in winter jackets, hats & gloves, we were none-the-less thankful for the crew’s forethought in providing additional blankets for the trip. The three of us huddled in the blankets, trying to stay warm as we rode on the deck of the ship out to sea. Below deck had a nice viewing area of which we partook on the way back. However we had to have the panoramic view of the mountains and diminishing Reykjavik during our departure. The view was worth it! We first made a 10-minute jaunt to Puffin Island. ... read more

We made it to Reyjavik, the city that literally never sleeps! The sun supposedly sets here around 11 pm, however it never really sets. The sky remains a dark, hazy blue and then the sun rises again around 3 am. So your body never really knows what time it is...this makes the nightlife - rather the time that should be night - infinite...but fun! Dinner last night was quite interesting and expensive! We had some of the island´s specialties. We ate part of Moby Dick...raw! It was like tuna tutaki except not as good and was dark meat. Gayle ate the mother of the horse she´s going to ride today...horse carpaccio....she claims though it was only his great aunt. We all had to try a bite but the rest of us felt a little guilty about ... read more

Day #1---Friday, May 26, 2006--Temperature, Hi 50°F and Lo 39°F. We arrived in Iceland at 6:25 am from Baltimore after a 5 hour and 40 minute flight and go through customs. We read in our guidebooks that to save money the locals drink at home first before they head out. We decide to adopt that custom and head straight to the duty free shop and stock up on wine for the weekend. We then hop in a cab with Jón (one of many we meet on the trip) and head to the guesthouse. We can’t check in until 12:00 pm so we store our luggage at the guesthouse and set out to eat and explore the city. We head to Café Paris to get some coffee and try out the “kleina” (Iceland’s doughnut).Café Paris is dead ... read more

While all of our other friends are preparing for a holiday weekend and lazy days on the beach, at the lake or by the pool, we are headed to Iceland. If you've checked weather.com lately, the highs are around 45 and sunny days appear rare. So are we crazy to sacrifice an extended beach vacation, obtaining that coveted golden tan while sipping margaritas? I think not. Hoping that Kelly finally got on the ball and completed her assignment (yes, Angela likes to hand out assignments for itineraried trips...a point I'll return to later) we should at least enjoy one lazy day lounging in the geothermally warmed waters of The Blue Lagoon. This man made body of water is in simpliest terms an over-sized hot tub with temperatures averaging around 104 degrees (F) in the swimmable areas. ... read more