From the Observation Deck

This is Jonas’ Saga. Just kidding—Jonas was our tour guide for tour number three—day four in Iceland. I found Jonas’ group online—the Goecco Outdoor Adventure tours. What got us interested was that their promotional copy said they would take us to “secret places.” Now during the booking process, I noticed that Jonas was a pretty laid back guy and was worried at first that he wouldn’t show up or our tour would be cancelled for some random reason. No worries—although he is a self-described “hippy and conspiracy theorist” he’s also a very responsible businessman who is well attuned to delivering exceptional customer service and protecting his business.  

Jonas picks us up at 8 a.m. in a mini van that we will be sharing with a nice couple from New York. I get to sit in the front for a lot of trip and am entertained with Jonas’ view about the irresponsible spending of the Icelandic people and the lack of attention drawn to the economic disaster that they are in. Between politics and history he slips in the “we didn’t go to the moon” theory, but overall he was a fascinating character and we had a wonderful day.

Our trip was north east to the Snaefellsnes peninsula. At first—and still a bit today—we didn’t know how to pronounce it so we were calling it Snuffleupagus (you know the Sesame Street character). Anyhoo, the volcanic glacier of the same name is where Jules Verne’s characters in the Journey to the Center of the Earth actually enter the path to the center of the earth.

Our first stop was Borgarnes—a town just on the other side of the whale-fjord which we drove underneath saving us hours of time. A bit up the road we stopped off along a beautiful river flowing around a house where a few guys were fishing for our dinner that evening. With the Lupin dotting the foreground and the mountains providing the background, it was a lovely photo op and chance to take in some truly fresh air.

On to the drive through the lava fields toward the fire volcano. This was truly mouth dropping pretty. Despite my ski-boot wrapped ankle, I hiked up this red crater following my friends to get a better, then more better view of the sorrounding countryside. The lava fields had some kind of addicitive power. They were just a bunch of craggly rocks covered with moss but it was ever changing and everywhere. I coudn’t stop clicking away on my camera because each scene changed and presented something unique to look at. While standing on this red fire crater, we could see miles of the lava fields to the green and ice covered volcanoes that once spewed forth the lava before us. After getting our fill, we drove on through the lava field to one of the secret places.

Jonas began by telling us of a story about vikings killing outlaws around the year 1200. This was the place because there have been some ancient artifacts dug up in the area providing credence to the tale. And here, in the middle of nowhere was a nice naturally occuring hot spring. Amy, Jen and I (and the husband of the couple) changed behind the van (not all together at once mind you) and settled into the hot spring for a relaxing dip. Jonas served some rather decent wine (out of a box in plastic cups) and some shark. The shark did not smell good but I tried it anyway and it tasted like crab. Yummy. Some of the others did not think it was good. To each his own I guess. While we bathed, Jonas got out his metal detector to look for any ancient relics that might still be buried in the area.  The bugs were a plenty and Butter was wrapped up like Yenta and taking our pictures for us. So time to get out and head for the beach area where the seals hang out.

Jonas offered us some sandwich type snacks as we searched the rocks and saw a couple of seals off in the distance. The beach was interesting, full of colorful kelp like stuff. It was an okay stop and more lovely views to see.

For now that’s it. This was a very long day, so hang in there with me—some great things are coming. I’ll tell the rest of the Goecco day in the next post. Coming up: energy rocks, whale meat, and more.

Amy on our first stop where they were catching our fish for dinner.

Walking around the fire crater on the Snaefellsnes tour.

 

Beautiful Iceland

 

The secret hot spring in the middle of nowhere.

Moss covered lava field on the Snaefellsnes tour.

On our first full day in Iceland we toured the quaint and lovely city of Reykjavik (pronounced rake ee uh vik). It really seemed more like a town. Our apartment was only a few easy blocks away from the downtown area—close enough to walk, far enough not to hear the very late night partying. Before hopping on the hop on, hop off bus, we found to our amusement a U.S Coast Guard tall ship docked in the harbor. Okay, come thousands of miles to tour a Coast Guard ship that hails from Connecticut. But on to the local landmarks…

First stop, the Iceland National Museum. They have collections from waaaaay back when the Vikings landed and kicked the little Irish monks out. I was delighted to get some history lessons here as well as see the fascinating works of art they created. The Vikings called the monks, Papar.  Now I see where the words papist, pastor, father, etc. could possible have come from. There were cases full of weapons, jewelry, household goods, and more. But what really got me was the collection of horns. Some were drinking horns and others made to hold gunpowder. They were stunning—carved from wood and ivory in delicate, beautiful patterns. The Vikings also carved chests, door posts, chairs, and other items. There were also sections that covered how Christianity came to Iceland and seemingly spread fast and far. Some of that had to do to with the democratic society set up in ancient Iceland—but more of that later. In any event, the the Lutherans won out in the end. A great stop on our tour—the museum was two thumbs up!

So back to the hop on, hop off bus and our next stop, the Perlan. The Perlan is an observation deck, restaurant, and saga museum that of course—why not—sits on top of several very large water tanks high up on a hill with a view over the entire city. It was a sunny, perfect day to see the colors of the Lupin flowers (weed actually) laid out in front of the cityscape and ocean beyond. I dragged my fellow travelers into the saga museum which consisted of some interesting exhibits of various characters from real life Icelandic history as well as their epic sagas. Just in case you’re not sure what a saga is, it’s a fictional story about bigger-than-life characters from around the turn of the first millennium. These sagas were written about 700-800 years ago and are a chief source of pride for many Icelanders. I have read a few and while interesting, they aren’t quite as exciting as Harry Potter or the Lord of the Rings (or even Beowulf for that matter). The style of the story telling is unique but it does give you a sense of the mind of an ancient Icelandic author telling an old tale. The museum was interesting enough. Kind of like the sagas—not quite Disney World but worth a trip (in my opinion).

So after the museums and scanning the city from far above, we ran to catch the bus. The bus driver lady was a bit put out by having to wait an extra 20 seconds while I hobbled my way to the door in my big ol’ ski boot (see previous post about bum leg). We all agreed that we didn’t think she liked her job too much.

Oh well, time for lunch and a chance to sample the menu at the highly recommended Icelandic Fish and Chips restaurant. The food was very tasty and the customer service was good (they were helpful about my leg—unlike a certain bus driver). My fish was a bit watery for me but good nonetheless (the sauces that came with it were good) and lots of people love it.

Now off to the Hallgrims church. First we had to wait for a funeral to end, but then we got to go in to explore and rode up to the top where there was an observation deck that kind of reminded me of the one in the Washington Monument. The views were fantastic of course and the church itself was a wonder of modern architecture. I’ve actually never seen a church that had windows in the front. It also had a huge pipe organ. Quite pretty.

From there we walked on home. While walking down our street, several cats came out to say hello. I wasn’t sure if they were feral and looking for a treat or just friendly like their human counterparts. One night when Amy and I came home I swear we were being seduced by a little “hooker” cat. She was standing on the corner and when she saw us, came right over and meowed. I patted her but Amy (smartly so) said with a smile, “I’m not touching that thing.” Little miss prostitute cat then ran ahead of us and proceeded to lie down and roll around showing us all her pretty parts like she was displaying her wares. Yup. Hooker cat.

We spent a relaxing night at the apartment laughing and having a dinner that was a tasty mix of cheese and fruit from the store—too tired to go out! Next up…the “magic bus” and the Golden Circle Tour.

 

 

Amy emerging from the Icelandic Fish and Chips restaurant

 

 

Butter and Jen do the sailor impression. Lots of fishermen in Iceland!

The street we lived on. Quaint sitting places dotted the area.

 

Hallsgrim Church. Some reseblance to the basalt rock formations off the coast.

 

The Perlan

 

The observation deck of the Perlan. The windows reflect the pretty sky.

 

The good ol hop on hop off double decker bus.