Our breakfast was a selection of just about anything you could think of, European style. Breads, pastry, cheeses, vegetables, fruits, eggs, sausage, cereals, juice and coffee. Lots to pick from.
Our shutte Zservice picked us up at 9:00 for a ride to the main tour bus location. There were about two dozen of us tourists. Today we would be taking a tour of several scenic areas on a route the Icelanders call The Golden Circle.
This all day trip took us several miles across the barren landscape of Iceland. Years ago when the first Icelanders discovered this land, trees were abundant. They proceeded to cut them down to make houses, barns and for firewood. Because this country is usually cold, I’m sure they needed plenty of firewood in uninsulated homes upon which endless winds blew.
Today there are few trees because they did not grow back. The trees we saw on this tour were obviously planted by farmers along the road.
The distant mountain ranges were colored with snow and looked beautiful. Glacial snowmelt filled two or three rivers we crossed. One scenic area we stopped at was a raging waterfall and was beautiful to see and hear.
There is plenty of geothermal activity in Iceland. Most houses, businesses and towns enjoy the benefits of free hot thermal groundwater. In the Reykjavik area, a geothermal electrical plant provides cheap electricity to the residents.
Earthquakes are plentiful. The first day we were in a4.5 earthquake. The latest volcano has been silent for about two weeks. Most all of the mountains in this country were once volcanoes. One of our stops was a large crater where a volcano once existed. It spewed out all it’s magma and then fell in. Now a walking trail goes around it’s crater rim and bus loads of tourists come and go all day long. It has a pond of weather in the bottom much like my favorite hike in the Goat Rocks of Washington; Goat Lake. However, Goat Lake is much more scenic!
Nearby the crater, Geothermal activity has produced a wayside attraction of steam vents, boiling pools and a geyser that spouts off every 5 to 7 minutes. It shoots up into the air about 30 feet, thrilling onlookers with scalding water and much steam. If one stands on the downwind side of the surrounding pathway, one could get seriously burned. I’m wondering why someone needs to be reminded about that?
A fourth stop was where governing officials used to meet to discuss political business. It was located ona fault line between the North American Tektonic Plate and the European Tektonic Plate. The ground is filled with fissures of various widths and lengths. Ron and I walked down into one such fissure, a wide gap between the rock cliffs. It led down into the valley where our bus drove down and plucked us up at Parking Lot #2.
Just to our north was a large lake. The true fault line runs beneath this lake a few thousand feet underground. It is the lake that divides the two continents.We walked in North America with the other side being in Europe. So technically, Reykjavik , although not part of the European Union, is actually part of Europe!
Icelandic horses are unique in the world. They have long hair and are very short. They must cop an attitude because one was standing along the fence holding a sign that said, “I am a horse, NOT a miniature pony!”
Back in Reykjavik, we walked about 4 blocks to a place where several restaurants were located. We went into one building where a food court was bustling with many people having dinner. I enjoyed a typical Icelandic meal of Cod fish covered with cauliflower bisque , lemon sauce and grape sized potatoes with a crispy exterior. It was delicious! Debby had some Spanish food. Ron had chicken and Nancy had Spanish, as well.
We did not taste the Icelandic beer but did have some Gelato. Pretty tasty!
Back to the hotel to pack our things and get ready to vacate about 6 o’clock in the morning. Our speedy taxi will be picking us up! We fly out to London at 9:00.
Mike Thomas
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