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Showing posts from May, 2012

Camping at Greens Lake

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[click to enlarge] To celebrate having conquered Iceland, we went camping. Yep, we did. We spent all day Friday gathering camping supplies from family and friends. We were still jet lagged, our bags were only partially unpacked, and I carried our passports and international driver's license around for the next week. But we did manage to drive out to Greens Lake by the Red Canyon Lodge near the Wyoming border. We went with the H, the A, and the M families, and when we got our walkie-talkie, Will decided our handle was "Big Schnitzel". Molly the activist After a very VERY cold night. We probably would have done much better in our tent if we'd just realized how cold it was going to be. As it was we were much more prepared the second night and just wore everything we'd brought. Sarah, who managed to look fresh as a daisy despite a cold and long night. It was cold, there were kids running around late, then coughing, vomiting, and gagging while cleaning u

Happy 15th Anniversary

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I'd follow you to Iceland, Schatz. Love you!

Blue Lagoon

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On our last day in Iceland, we went to the Blue Lagoon on the way to the airport. It is one of the most popular attractions in Iceland. Also not bad on a layover, since it's 20 minutes from the airport and they have busses coming and going. It is geothermally heated seawater and also has silica and algae in it. It was very nice to soak in, especially when it was windy and rainy. We swam all around in that lake/pool. They give in-water massages in one section, and there are big wooden bins you can help yourself to scoops of silica-algae masque. There. Don't we look reinvigorated? There is the swim-up bar in the middle. This is the naturally occurring stuff right outside the spa. And a close up of the lava rock and the minerals and water. It was pretty dramatic. We made a two minute stop on the way to the airport to take a picture of this typical farm with the dikes and sod roof. Rob with his boiled brown bread and salmon -- two of the things he

All Toes In The City

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After our extreme road trip on Tuesday, Rob declared that he would not step a toe out of Reykjavik on Wednesday. So after our usual breakfast of bread, fruit and skyr (Icelandic yogurt and believe you me, it is the next big thing -- Martha Stewart already has it in her fridge) we wandered over to look in the cemetery by our house. It was not only historically interesting, but botanically as well -- it has some interesting microclimate going that allows them to grow bushes and shrubs there that don't survive elsewhere. We meandered back down to Lake Tjornin  Through the City Hall and the municipal buildings On our way to the city museum of Reyjavik. Rob's friend Werner had recommended it highly and we take him seriously because he works at the city museum of Vienna, which is a stunning museum. We were impressed here too -- you could walk through it at a fast pace and see everything, or you could sit at each station and watch videos, read books, pull out map

Dance Festival and the Last Day Of School!

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Friday morning we all went over to Wasatch to see the boys dance. Here is Sebi sitting with his class. I got to know them when I taught them about the community, economics and politics -- they are another bright and lively bunch! Another lovely mother took this video, but she did a pretty good job of getting Sebi dancing. Looks like I held him back a year or two, doesn't it? Will the graduate and his Auntie Betsy, Best Teacher In The Land. Sebi on safari. It sprinkled and drizzled through the program and cleared up as soon as the flag came down. And Will did the maypole dance again. Here he is with Julia, daughter of a guy that Rob has sung with and known since college. And one last one levitating with Emma. Huzzah! Hooray for summer!

Jökulsárlón

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On our own, Rob and I decided to drive across the entirety of the south side of Iceland, all so that we could see essentially a giant ice cube tray on the other side.  We stopped first here at the harbor closest to the Vestmannaeyjar Islands. This is where my grandmother's grandmother was born and it has a fascinating history which includes slavery, murders, and volcanoes. We looked into visiting, but the schedule didn't work out and I would have heaved most of my internal organs overboard on the ferry ride over. I'll just have to go back and see it on the next trip!  Next to that Rob wanted to stop and see this waterfall. It is called Seljalandsfoss and I found out that it was a waypoint during the first leg of the Amazing Race 6 (Wikipedia is just so informative!). You can crawl back behind it. So we did. Just beautiful scenery everywhere [click to enlarge] This shows more of the drive -- there was so much! Icelandic horses and lambs, lupines,