Blog-azic

Early morning breakfast was waiting for me after a shower. What was it? Peanut butter and bread, coconut flakes, chocolate and dates, decaf coffee. Then, out the door, on the bus, to the Reykjavik domestic airport to pick up a rental car. It was cold, windy, wet, and grey. We took the car into the Golden Circle, passing through a gauntlet of roundabouts, then reaching the desolate, black ash and boulder hills. An hour more, and we reached Thingvellir, the traditional gathering place of Icelandic governing councils and the tectonic edge of North America. There a cliff rears up over a boggy plain. Crystal blue water runs through rock gashes, and the bottoms glitter with kronor coin. We stopped to sit at an old church and warm ourselves before we crossed the road to find (after a bit of searching) a trail out into the bald wilderness. It runs over hard, grooved stone, and thick moss carpets. It leaps over a tear in the earth’s crust. Stone pilings or cairns marked our progress.

Our City Cards activated at 9 am. We were in the bus by 10 headed to the culture museum where we learned about the thousand year history of the island, it’s remarkable peace, and its importance as a preserver of ancient texts. We went back the the apartment for lunch. Then, we planned a couple adventures in the northeast part of the city. We walked to the Sveinsson Sculpture museum, set amidst the Laugardalar neighborhood. With the sun and the cool air, we and strolled about the grounds and touched and photographed the organic, feminine sculptures: a suckling babe, the nude shapely female form, a broad shouldered person carrying water. The facade of the bounding was white plaster and ancient looking, like the pyramids, and domed in one part. Inside, marble floors and a broad foyer with coffee and a mock workshop. We were through the museum (with its paper weight models of Sun Voyager) and starting down the arching steps into the rotund hall when a short dark man interrupted us

Back in Reykjavik, we planned to see the downtown and museums. We waited for Adam to arrive and let him use the air BnB’s shower. The we drove downtown, meandered, and finally grabbed lunch. We walked afterwards, window shopped, picked up City Cards at City Hall, shopped, and decided that we’d save the museums for the morrow. I snapped pics of graffiti in-between ogling the wool products. We stopped for coffee and finally found some decaf with a free side of snobbery. We walked along the water before dinner, paying a rather solemn visit to the Sun Voyager sculpture. For dinner we decided to eat out at the Old Iceland restaurant. As Adam dropped us off, we exchanged dollars and kronor for a gas card, which we never used. That night I drank hot chocolate and fried my brain researching Icelandic wool.

We camped under the waterfalls in part because it was close to the ferry to Vestmannaeyjar. We planned a quick out-and-back trip. The main point of the ride was to bird watch. Adam brought his zoom lens camera. In all we stayed out there only long enough to walk a few blocks. Then, we returned to the mainland and parted ways with plans to meet again in the morrow. On the way back to Reykjavík, we returned to the hot river. First we bought bread and coffee at a roadside bakery. Then, ate lunch at a park in the city as rain drizzled. Then, parked down the road from the trail head and started the long, sulfurous hike into the hills, with flies swarming is in the beginning. A reddish German Sheppard walked in front of us, and it’s owner (who called to the dog in German) said, “He likes you.” Finally we reached the river and lay down in a pool created by a stone wall. It was luxuriously warm. We returned the van after a quick stop by the rental apartment, where we met the owner and to

Adam went West, back to the glacier, but we stayed behind, slept in, made breakfast (peanut butter, bread, dates, coconut). We had a slice for Adan when he returned. Caravan to Vik (back to Vik for us - but Adam was circumventing the island clockwise, so it was new for him). On the way, we stopped for pictures in the tumbled bouldered landscape. Susan found a path into the boulders. A carpet of soft moss, dead and brown from foot traffic. We were indulgent to walk the path. Vik got bread, groceries, lunch, and a beer (.8 percent!) at the Kronor then drove around the seaside cliff to a black sand beach. In fact, it wasn’t so much sand as it was tiny black pebbles, smoothed and soft. I spread out my old travel poncho and we ate on it. Susan spied puffins floating at sea. A crowd gathered down the beach at the basalt columns, and we walked down there too and imagined the gigantic lava flow that would have created them. We parted. Susan and I climbed Hellgafell, Holly Mountain

Bright, early sun. Groggy head, back to bed. We got up finally around 11. Peanut butter on bread with dates on top. Decaf coffee to wash it down. Throughout this trip, this combination (along with butter and sardines) was heaven on earth. Drove out of the campsite, but before leaving, read about the high-land hikes around Vik. Two in particular climbed opposite cliffs that stood on either side of the town. (The town is so tiny, the opposite ends are closer than a mile, as the crow flies.) One hike in particular caught my eye. It started at a ancient church and went up, pastorally, over wild fields. I wanted to see the mountain, but that would have to wait. We had a schedule and a friend to meet on the East side of the island. Across the street was a wool store and a grocery. We stopped for more bread and also took a cup of coffee at the cafe. On the way out of town, we stopped at one gas station (closed), then another, and struggled to figure out how to pay at the gas mach

Early arrival. Lost my blue ball cap on the plane. Hope it finds a hip head to wear. Keflavik airport, bleary eyes. To make everything OK, I bought us a tuna sandwich and full strength coffee. Flybus to Nord hotel. Rain walk to GoCamper. An introduction to Iceland weather. Then, introduction to the camper van. Around the corner, we found a Kronor grocery for bread, butter, peanut butter, dates, etc., and lunch (tuna again!). East on highway 1. The ground steamed as we crossed the great rift between continental plates. Furious geology. At Hot River, we stopped to dip in the river, but with most tired eyes, we slept instead. Later we awoke and couldn’t will ourselves out into the cool rain to reach the spring. So, we went on. Selfoss, Hella. Pasture land with sheep. Fresh cut fields. Then, black cliffs and sand. Sunshine in the evening. Left the rain in the West. Stopped at a couple waterfalls. Susan went behind the big one. Vik is nestled between great cliffs an