Reykjavik, Iceland

Monday, September 22, 2008
Reykjavik, Iceland

09/21/2008 Yesterday was a tough day at sea; fifteen foot swells that produced a bang like a base drum as the bow of the ship slammed to the water. The bang echoed through the cabins and the rest of the ship all day. The bow heaved up and the stern thrust down then reversed motions. Ron and Avie are in the front of the ship, Nita and I in the middle. We didn’t see Avie all day; she was in her cab dealing with sea sickness. This morning we landed in Reykjavik (Smoky Bay), Iceland the capital of Iceland, a city of 200,000. It’s a windy and rainy Sunday (43 degrees), and everything is closed in downtown Reykjavick. It didn’t look that great anyway so Nita and I caught a bus out to the Blue Lagoon. Ron and Avie are going on their own, Ron said at breakfast that Avie was feeling better but he wasn’t sure what they were going to do today. It turned out that Avie had regained her sea legs and they caught a disappointing afternoon ship excursion. Our 45 minute ride out to the Lagoon gave us a different look at Iceland; it’s a rugged land, mostly black volcanic rock covered in green moss and a pounding sea (no trees). If someone tells you they’re from Iceland they have to be hardy souls. The Blue Lagoon is an extensive series of baby blue salt water ponds that are fed by one of the many geothermal salt water streams that heat the homes in Reykjavick and generate their electricity. It is a contrasting sight; steaming blue pools amongst the black volcanic rock covered in green moss with about one thousand tourists from around the world soaking in the 104+ degree therapeutic waters. As I soaked in the geothermal waters I had a conversation with several Germans, Brits, and a group from China. I covered my face with a white paste that was guaranteed to take fifteen years off my face; I am looking much younger this evening, I also seem to be losing weight….RIGHT. While having an Icelandic Hot Dog for lunch Nita and I met a member of the Faroe Islands Parliament who was on his way to NYC for a two week meeting at the United Nations. We now have a place to stay the next time we’re in the Faroe Islands. The word on the ship is that the waters in front of us are rougher then those that we experienced yesterday, if so the cruise lines will be saving a lot of money on unconsumed food.