The Blue Lagoon: December 1, 2017

In a magnificent black lava field, the milky-teal Blue Lagoon Spa is fed water from from the futuristic Svartsengi geothermal plant.  The super-heated water (70% sea water, 30% fresh water) is a perfect 38 degrees Celcius (100.4 degrees Fahrenheit) and rich in blue-green algae, mineral salts, and fine silica mud.  The spa facilities are around the bend in the trail.

Papa Tom amidst the black lava on the trail around the lagoon.

Oddly, there was ice on the water surface.  I just had to put my hand in the water which was, in fact, as warm as bath water.

Perlan in Reykjavik: December 1, 2017

The mirrored dome of Perlan covers huge geothermal water tanks on a hill about 2 km from city center.  The wraparound viewing deck offers a tremendous 360 degree view of Reykjavik and the mountains.

A restaurant and coffee shop are inside the dome.  Below is a museum.  The featured attraction was the recreation of an ice cave.  We could have visited a real ice cave out at Jokulsarlon (the glacier lagoon).  Too cold and too many other places to see before sunset that day.

Through the mist, you can barely see the Hallgrimskirkja (see my Downtown Reykjavik post).  Note the fire escape is a ladder next to the glass.

Downtown Reykjavik: December 1, 2017

Why does the guy on the right have no head???

Icelanders are very serious about good coffee. Was wonderful to hang out in this warm coffee shop on the drizzly, cold morning.

Statue of Leif Eiricsson (Icelandic spelling), who explored the coastline of northeast America in 1000 A.D., naming the new country Vinland (Wineland).  Permanent settlement was thwarted by the skraelings (Native Americans), who were anything but welcoming.  INTERESTING SIDE NOTE:  Icelandic tradition credits the Norse settlement of Iceland to tyrannical Harold Fairhair, a Norwegian king who won a significant naval victory over other chieftains at Hafrsfjord in Stavanger in 890.  The deposed chieftains fled to Iceland.  My family lived in Stavanger on Hafrsfjord from about 1973-1975 when my Dad worked for ODECO, an offshore oil drilling and exploration company, that was involved in the North Sea oil boom.

Iceland's first parliament, the Alpingi (there's an Icelandic letter that I don't have on my laptop), was created in 930 A.D.  After losing its independence in the 13th century, the country gradually won back its independence and the Alpingi moved to its current building in Reykjavik in 1881.  (See the Law Rock photos from November 29; that's where the Alpingi met before moving to Reykjavik).

Hallgrimskirkja, the white concrete church built between 1945-1986, is visible from up to 20 km away.  You can view the city by taking an elevator up the 74.5 meter high tower. (We didn't because it was so foggy out).  The most eye-catching feature inside is the 5,275-pipe organ.

 I was surprised visitors could walk right up to the boats in the harbor.

Thank goodness for international symbols!

Reynisfjara: November 30, 2017

The black sand beach at Reynisfjara is surrounded by cliffs that are nesting grounds for puffins in the Spring.  Do you see the people on the right side of the photo?

Columns of basalt (solidified lava) behind Papa Tom.

"Sneaker waves," eh?  We didn't stand very close to the water.

Papa Tom inside one of the caves that pockmark the cliffs.

Basalt stacks on the beach.

Twisted bridge due to glacial flood: November 30, 2017

Bridge parts twisted by a glacial flood caused by a volcanic eruption in 1996.  Also the Icelandic version of Amarillo's Cadillac Ranch.  Do you see Papa Tom on the far left of the photo?

Some of Iceland's volcanoes are under glaciers.  When the volcano erupts, the glacier melts and can send a tidal wave across the land.

My shadow at "solar noon," about 1:16 p.m. on November 30.

Jokulsarlon (Glacier Lagoon): November 30, 2017

Ice calved from the glacier pushing to the North Atlantic drifts in the lagoon for up to 5 years before reaching the sea.  The lagoon is only 80 years old; until the 1930s, the glacier reached the nearby highway.  The glacier is now retreating at the rate of about 500 meters per year, causing the lagoon to grow.

Volcanic eruptions are memorialized in strata of ash visible in the ice.

Ice is pushed along by the glacier.

Not even tempted.

Almost there: under the bridge and to the North Atlantic.

Pingvellir National Park: November 29, 2017

The national park is where the Vikings established the world's first democratic parliament in 930 A.D.  The meetings were conducted outside in the Spring in this immense, fissured rift valley, where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates meet.

Information regarding the annual meeting of the Icelandic Vikings.

The Vikings' Law Rock, where 1/3 of the law was recited annually, is at the site of the parliament.  What would be harder?  Reciting the law or listening to the recitation?

The Law Rock is behind me.  Hard to imagine gatherings here more than 1,000 years ago.  Learned that some of the Game of Thrones episodes were filmed in this valley.  Probably in the summer???

Looking across the valley.  See the people on the bridge?

Good idea to stay on the marked paths!

Gulfoss: November 29, 2017

Note the people in the upper left.  The two-tier falls were almost completely frozen.  So was my face!  Brrr!

At the top of the falls.

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Nose as red as my jacket!

The Great Geysir and Strokkur: November 29, 2017

Surrounding the geyser called the Great Geysir and a second geyser called Strokkur are bubbling hot springs.  The two geysers are among the approximately 1,000 geysers on Earth.  Many vent holes surround the geysers.

The water temperature ranges from 176 degrees to 212 degrees Fahrenheit.  A sign at the site warns you not to put your hands in the water, noting that the nearest hospital is 62 kilometers (about 36 miles) away.

Strokkur spouts every 5-10 minutes.  Note the size of the geyser compared to the people in the background.

The Great Geysir didn't erupt when we were there.  It used to regularly blow to about 240 feet high.  Earthquakes have altered the pressure inside and now it irregularly blows.

Icelandic horses

The Icelandic horses have a smooth gait unlike any other horse in the world.  We saw a rider holding a glass of beer that wasn't sloshing as he rode!  

The Icelandic horse is a breed of horse developed in Iceland. Although the horses are small, at times pony-sized, most registries for the Icelandic refer to it as a horse. Icelandic horses are long-lived and hardy. In their native country they have few diseases; Icelandic law prevents horses from being imported into the country and exported animals are not allowed to return. The Icelandic displays two gaits in addition to the typical walk, trot, and canter/gallop commonly displayed by other breeds. The only breed of horse in Iceland, they are also popular internationally, and sizable populations exist in Europe and North America. The breed is still used for traditional sheepherding work in its native country, as well as for leisure, showing, and racing.

Developed from ponies taken to Iceland by Norse settlers in the 9th and 10th centuries, the breed is mentioned in literature and historical records throughout Icelandic history; the first reference to a named horse appears in the 12th century. Horses were venerated in Norse mythology, a custom brought to Iceland by the country's earliest settlers. Selective breeding over the centuries has developed the breed into its current form. Natural selection has also played a role, as the harsh Icelandic climate eliminated many horses through cold and starvation. In the 1780s, much of the breed was wiped out in the aftermath of a volcanic eruption at Laki. 

Stocky, sturdy.  I love the bangs in their eyes!

First day in Iceland: Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Sunrise, from our fifth floor apartment.  Sunrise at 10:37 a.m.; sunset at 3:53 p.m.  By the end of our trip, on December 3, the times were 10:51 a.m. and 3:43 p.m.  

Much of Iceland's fresh produce is grown in geothermal greenhouses.  Behind Papa Tom, you can see PVC pipes through which naturally hot water is piped, keeping the greenhouse at a comfortable 73 degrees or so.  We partook of fresh tomato soup made on the premises.  You could pick fresh basil leaves to add to your soup from a plant on your table. Talk about locally grown!

Too full after delicious tomato soup made with caraway seeds and hot artisan bread and butter to try the tomato ice cream, tomato cheesecake, or green tomato/apple pie.

Pressure gauges for the geothermal water, pumped from a hot spring on the property.  Bumblebees live in the greenhouse and pollinate the plants.

Tools of the tomato pickers' trade.  This greenhouse ships one ton of tomatoes per day to the rest of Iceland.

Merry Christmas from Iceland!

Back to the snowy reality outside!