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Although the tour 
company we used had good tours, I wanted something special for us, even though it was a long 14 hours on a bus. Upon leaving town, we passed by some charming villages and farms that were effected by Eyjafjallajökull where last year’s eruptions took place. 
All the lands looked scorched as a thick layer of black ash ash had covered nearly everything in its wake. Our first stop was a farm that we got out to take pictures from I even recognized from the news since it was so dramatic how close the farms cling to these active volcanoes. The surrounding little waterfalls of the glacial melt from Eyjafjallajökull where cascading down from the high cliffs, but due to the high wind, they stream changed mid fall and was lost in the breeze as a spray of water.
A few minutes 
down the road we stopped at the Skógafoss waterfall which still had thick black sand choking the steam of water coming down off the high cliffs. Ben was able to walk right up to it and the mist encircled him. I wish I had had the camera since the white mist enveloped him, and a few minutes later he reappeared. Just as we were getting back on the bus the sun made a 30 second debut just to snap that one sunny photo.
Just before we reach the lagoon we pass 
Iceland’s biggest volcano, Öræfajökull glacier which has the highest peak of the island, Hvannadalshnjúkur (2110 m). The mist rolled off of it in such a haunting way with the weather changing constantly from rain, to hail, to cloudy, to a little tiny bit of sunshine and then back to rain. It took us nearly an hour to cross the moss clad Eldhraun lava field past Kirkjubæjarklaustur. The green moss had nearly obscured the sharp jagged edges of the black lava rock. It was nearly a metre thick in some places.
We crossed a mile long 
bridge that only had a trickle of water below it, since the glaciers move around so much, they can never truly predict where the water will runoff at. We pasted wreckage of a bridge that had once been there, but taken out in the ’96 eruption. It was a metal mangled mess. Their bridges are all very temporary looking since they are destroyed so often. The big stop for the day was at Jökulsárlón glacial lagoon, nearly on the other side of the country, that started to form in the early nineteen twenties and is getting bigger every year. Huge blocks of ice that had broken off Europe’s biggest glacier, Vatnajökull, would float out into the lagoon and then out to the ocean only a kilometer away. 
It was stunning to see the sun come out just as we arrived and shone brightly on the icebergs. Since it was unbelievably windy, most of the icebergs had already floated out, but there were a fair few. The wind was so gusty that Ben and I could lean into it at nearly a 45 degree angle and it would hold us up. I jumped into the wind and it blew me a few extra feet which was a bit unnerving, so I did not do that again. For anyone that has not seen a glacier or an iceberg floating past you, it is something that you have to add to your ‘Do before I Die’ list.
As we 
boarded the bus the sun disappeared, and started to rain, so once again, the sun may have been absent most of our trip, but it came out when we most needed it. With the tourist season not quite kicked off, and it being Easter Sunday, we were able to make a very cool unscheduled stop at Svínafellsjökul glacial snout where we climbed up the mountain side to get a better look. We may not have been able to walk on the glacier, but to be within a few metres was pretty cool.
Along the road back, we stopped in the coastal hamlet of Vík in Mýrdalur valley 
which is the southernmost village in Iceland with beautiful black sanded beaches. This was the first time either of us had been on black sand. We had a quick meal of their yummy Icelandic meat soup again so we could have time to wander the beaches. It is said to be bad luck to take anything from the island, so I made sure to not collect any rocks or shells. The waves coming in off the ocean were huge, and we really had to keep our eye on the waves coming in. The waves were thunderous as they crashed against Reynisdrangar, the basalt sea stacks at the base of the mountain Reynisfjall. The small church on the hill was the highest building in town, where the reckon when the next volcano goes, and the glaciers melt causing a large flood, everyone would be safe at the church, so they have eruption drills for the whole town to run up there.
As we headed back to Reykjavík we stopped in the centre of the lava field and built our cairn for good luck. I always like a bit of extra good luck. As the sun was setting we had one last stop at Skaftafell National Park. At the Seljalandsfoss waterfall, we could have walked behind it, but even with Ben covered head to toe in Gortex (a walking advertisement for Columbia) he decided not to get that wet since he was drenched just standing close to it. Plus it was getting dark, and it was a very narrow path, and I used my little bit of common sense and figured he should not walk on the wet, mossy path. With the sun setting so late and rising so early, our long tour was nearly all in daylight!
On our last and final day, we had another lazy morning, packed up, enjoyed our large breakkie and headed to the Blue Lagoon on the coach. It is a man-made oasis in the lava field that is the leftover water from their steam turbines. The salt would corrode the pipes if they were to store it for heat like they do with other magma heated water. An employee of the steam plant one day decided to bathe in the warm water that bubbled up into the lava fields, and eventually realized it was good for his psoriasis. 
Thus, the Blue Lagoon was born. The salt has coated the rock with a thick white crust, so most of it is quite smooth, but there were a few rough patches our feeties would find. The mineral-rich water and silica mud mask left my skin feeling like a million bucks. With the constant new streams of water coming in, you had to move around to find the warm patches, and I found some hot ones. I love it when the water is nearly warm enough to scald my skin off. After a few hours of soaking in the water, it was time to finally head to the airport where we were bumped up to first class. May not have gotten the first class treatment, but the roomyness and comfort were a once in a lifetime experience as well!
This was our
one lazy sort of day. So after stuffing ourselves at breakfast we took a walk down into the old town to go to Reykjavík 871±2 , an exhibition of an archaeological excavation of a Viking age longhouse, from about 930 AD. After our strange run in with Swedish Museums, we wanting GOOD viking information, or at least, logical and unstrange information. We also ventured over to the harbour to get a few pics and then popped inot the strangest flea market, ever. Words cannot truely paint a picture of how weird this place was. You just have to see it for yourself. We had been told that the national food, and their best food, was the hotdog. We stopped at mall hotdog stand, Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur, in central Reykjavík to fule up for our horse ride!
Ben grew up on a farm, therefore he does not like anything farm-like. I grew up in the city, 
therefore, the farm fascinates me. It was very important to me to see and ride Icelandic Horses (my horse bit me when I called it a pony). The barn supplied all our riding gear which was very waterproof and wind proof, and we needed it. The weather was still not very nice. What makes these horses so special is that on top of being able to survive in this harsh climate, they can do 5 gaits. The fourth gait is a four-beat lateral ambling gait known as the tölt. We were able to sit it, even Ben was able to do it with no experience. The Pace is the fifth gait, which is for racing and is very hard for a person to sit on top of a horse while they do it, so needless to say, we did not do that gait. Our ride started into beautiful Heidmork with its numerous caves and canyons. The moss on the lava fields was breathtaking. 
It even started snowing a bit, which made the moon like landscape even more unique and interesting. My horse really wanted to go, so I was at the very head of the queue and we rode fast. It was great to get my confidence back on, and after fighting for dominance, my horse conceded and the second half of the ride was very enjoyable. No more of the horse trying to brush me off into their scraggly “trees” and no more biting. I even caught Ben smiling a few times, so I know it was not all painful for him.
After being dropped back off at our hotel, 
we took a hike up the mountain near us to go up to Perlan or The Pearl, a glass dome resting over five hot water tanks. We were hoping to get a wax figure museum tour of the Nordic Saga, but like everything else in the town, due to Easter, it was closed as well. It had great vistas over the city and it was actually clear enough to get views of their tabletop type mountains and sprawling cityscape. This is where we encountered our friendly bunny and the sunken troll living areas. You would have to see it to believe it.
Waffles do not exist in Ireland. No where. That is just a travesty! 
Travesty I tell you! Find me waffles, good waffles, and I will be a happy camper! Anyone up for the challege of finding me a place?
Our trip started out good getting the emergency row for the extra leg room even though it was a short flight and since it was the first day of summer we got some free icecream onboard. 
The coaches were at the airport, waiting for us in the blistering wind and lashing rain, ready to take us into Reykjavik. Our hotel was just on the edge of town by the domestic airport. We first wandering into the newer part of time to see Hallgrímskirkja, the largest church in Iceland, which is shaped like a rocket ship. The inside was very stark, yet well done. There were a group of children inside singing ‘Day-O’, the Jamaican song, which was just strange, yet beautiful. We wandered down into the old town were we found some fantastic Belgian type waffles. I love waffles. With a bit of warmth in our bellies since it was no where near warm, we walked down to their main pond in city centre, Tjörnin.
Right on the pond was a well-designed building which was their city hall, Ráðhús Reykjavíkur. It had a living wall along the water, which is great to see growies on a building. City hall was right next to A
lþingishúsið, the Icelandic parliament which was not such a fantastic building, but was important to them historically since their parliament is the longest running in the world. As we pottered back to the hotel we caught sight of their ample wildlife in the city, Bunnies and Geese. Their sidewalks were paved with Geese poo galore. I had a great little book that could lead me to all the free things to do since with the Easter Holdiay weekend, nothing was open. I my little book, I did find a local’s favourite restaurant where we had an amazing meal of yummy wild bird, otherwise known as Puffin, and their Minke whale. I feel ethically ok with it since they have been sustainable hunting these animals for a thousand years, use everything from the animal and do not overhunt since they have done extensive studies on their population and they are not near extinction like most other whales. Ben had been so exhausted from working crazy long hours, we were in bed and asleep long before the sun went down, even with sunset at nearly 11:00. The next morning we headed out on our bus to the national park Þingvellir 
to view the Hellisheidi plateau which is one of the most historic site on the island. We stopped right at the Lake Þingvallavtn, the largest lake which is known for the scuba diving. The canyon that runs through the park is where the continental drift between the Eurasian and American tectonic plates are pulling away from each other about 10cm a year. It is the only place in the world where you can view this since the others are under water or heavily vegetated over. The waterfall there is normally very small, but with all of their rain is was a gushing torrent of water, where in historical times they drowned the adulteress women. The old clans used to meet at this area where the first parliament or Alþingi was established in 930 and remained there until 1789 when it moved to ReykjavikNext stop was the geothermally active valley of Haukadalur, 
which contains the geysers Geysir and Strokkur. The work geyser comes from the geyser Geysir. Even though this one is still bubbling, it is dormant so we got to see Strokkur erupt every 7 minutes, and it even had another eruption just seconds after the first one, although it was much smaller. The smaller pools around there were nowhere near as stinky as the Yellowstone ones with the sulphur. One lady was even stupid enough to put her finger into one of the boiling pools. Some people have no common sense. We left there to head to the
Hvítá river which the Gullfoss waterfall is located, which is one of the most impressive waterfalls in Europe. We had our yummy meat soup that was much more appetizing than it sounds, before bearing the rain that pelted us as we walked up to the waterfall. The mist was hauntingly beautiful and also froze along the walls of the canyon. The roar of the waterwall was amazing. We were able to walk right out to it and get some great views down the canyon, although we got quiet wet. Next stop 
was the Skálholt Cathedral (Skálholtdómkirkja). It was a very modest church, located on ancient catholic ruins. The stained glass and Jesus paiting were very modern. The last stop of the day was an a lake within a crater, Kerið. 
It is nowhere near as impressive as Crater Lake in Oregon, but it was still beautiful none the less. Bjork even held a concert in the crater with everyone on little rafts. Now that would have been a great concert since the acoustics were great.
The Big English wedding. 
Kate and Prince William got married and as the rest of the world got excited (my mother taped it since the wedding was going on while she slept); here they all denied wanting to watch it, and yet, they all did! And they got giddy when they had their romantic balcony kiss, twice! They were all in denial in being interested in anything going on across the Irish Sea, but deep down I knew the girls were. We enjoyed watching it a work, and had our own cake, and ate it too, while watching the wedding!
company we used had good tours, I wanted something special for us, even though it was a long 14 hours on a bus. Upon leaving town, we passed by some charming villages and farms that were effected by Eyjafjallajökull where last year’s eruptions took place. 
All the lands looked scorched as a thick layer of black ash ash had covered nearly everything in its wake. Our first stop was a farm that we got out to take pictures from I even recognized from the news since it was so dramatic how close the farms cling to these active volcanoes. The surrounding little waterfalls of the glacial melt from Eyjafjallajökull where cascading down from the high cliffs, but due to the high wind, they stream changed mid fall and was lost in the breeze as a spray of water.
down the road we stopped at the Skógafoss waterfall which still had thick black sand choking the steam of water coming down off the high cliffs. Ben was able to walk right up to it and the mist encircled him. I wish I had had the camera since the white mist enveloped him, and a few minutes later he reappeared. Just as we were getting back on the bus the sun made a 30 second debut just to snap that one sunny photo. 
Iceland’s biggest volcano, Öræfajökull glacier which has the highest peak of the island, Hvannadalshnjúkur (2110 m). The mist rolled off of it in such a haunting way with the weather changing constantly from rain, to hail, to cloudy, to a little tiny bit of sunshine and then back to rain. It took us nearly an hour to cross the moss clad Eldhraun lava field past Kirkjubæjarklaustur. The green moss had nearly obscured the sharp jagged edges of the black lava rock. It was nearly a metre thick in some places.
bridge that only had a trickle of water below it, since the glaciers move around so much, they can never truly predict where the water will runoff at. We pasted wreckage of a bridge that had once been there, but taken out in the ’96 eruption. It was a metal mangled mess. Their bridges are all very temporary looking since they are destroyed so often. The big stop for the day was at Jökulsárlón glacial lagoon, nearly on the other side of the country, that started to form in the early nineteen twenties and is getting bigger every year. Huge blocks of ice that had broken off Europe’s biggest glacier, Vatnajökull, would float out into the lagoon and then out to the ocean only a kilometer away. 
It was stunning to see the sun come out just as we arrived and shone brightly on the icebergs. Since it was unbelievably windy, most of the icebergs had already floated out, but there were a fair few. The wind was so gusty that Ben and I could lean into it at nearly a 45 degree angle and it would hold us up. I jumped into the wind and it blew me a few extra feet which was a bit unnerving, so I did not do that again. For anyone that has not seen a glacier or an iceberg floating past you, it is something that you have to add to your ‘Do before I Die’ list.
boarded the bus the sun disappeared, and started to rain, so once again, the sun may have been absent most of our trip, but it came out when we most needed it. With the tourist season not quite kicked off, and it being Easter Sunday, we were able to make a very cool unscheduled stop at Svínafellsjökul glacial snout where we climbed up the mountain side to get a better look. We may not have been able to walk on the glacier, but to be within a few metres was pretty cool. 
which is the southernmost village in Iceland with beautiful black sanded beaches. This was the first time either of us had been on black sand. We had a quick meal of their yummy Icelandic meat soup again so we could have time to wander the beaches. It is said to be bad luck to take anything from the island, so I made sure to not collect any rocks or shells. The waves coming in off the ocean were huge, and we really had to keep our eye on the waves coming in. The waves were thunderous as they crashed against Reynisdrangar, the basalt sea stacks at the base of the mountain Reynisfjall. The small church on the hill was the highest building in town, where the reckon when the next volcano goes, and the glaciers melt causing a large flood, everyone would be safe at the church, so they have eruption drills for the whole town to run up there.
As we headed back to Reykjavík we stopped in the centre of the lava field and built our cairn for good luck. I always like a bit of extra good luck. As the sun was setting we had one last stop at Skaftafell National Park. At the Seljalandsfoss waterfall, we could have walked behind it, but even with Ben covered head to toe in Gortex (a walking advertisement for Columbia) he decided not to get that wet since he was drenched just standing close to it. Plus it was getting dark, and it was a very narrow path, and I used my little bit of common sense and figured he should not walk on the wet, mossy path. With the sun setting so late and rising so early, our long tour was nearly all in daylight!
Thus, the Blue Lagoon was born. The salt has coated the rock with a thick white crust, so most of it is quite smooth, but there were a few rough patches our feeties would find. The mineral-rich water and silica mud mask left my skin feeling like a million bucks. With the constant new streams of water coming in, you had to move around to find the warm patches, and I found some hot ones. I love it when the water is nearly warm enough to scald my skin off. After a few hours of soaking in the water, it was time to finally head to the airport where we were bumped up to first class. May not have gotten the first class treatment, but the roomyness and comfort were a once in a lifetime experience as well!
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