Here We Go! Days 19-26 (...Jiggety-Jog)

Spent a few days at the family home in Three Rivers, Michigan. Good relaxing with the parents as we planned dinners for the upcoming reunion, enjoyed some nice quiet time, did some reading on one of my favorite couches in the world.

The siblings began to arrive, along with the geschwisterkinder, and quiet time was over.

Hey, that's my reading couch!

Seriously, get off my couch!

Hey, those aren't your shoes!

Milady does the Aunt Rani thing pretty well.

The focus of the weekend was my father's 70th birthday, and we siblings were having a little trouble coming up with an appropriate theme for this momentous occasion. Luckily, he fell out of a tree this past year and gave us much fodder for jokes, gifts, and cake.

Father, mother, sister, and the newest edition.

My brother captured a video of my dad, fueled by powerful narcotics, relating the story of his accident, which I transcribed into a poem.

The niblings present the old man with his birthday throne.

Mother adorns the birthday boy with his cloak (the shirt that was cut off of him at the hospital).

SO MUCH FOOD!

The eldest pontificates.

Don't be bashful! Check out this ridiculously hilarious cake my brother made!

And now we don't have to climb ladders to trim trees anymore, right Dad?

I'm impressed by this man's resilience (already training for a marathon again) and energy (which is amplified whenever his grandchildren are around). Happy birthday, Dad!

Then it was a big pack-up for the move to Lakeside Melodies, where Rani and I had our big party two years ago. Still beautiful as ever. Swim, cook, eat, repeat.

Here We Go! Days 15-18 (Oh, America!)

When I get back to the States after a long time away, I'm often struck with all kinds of conflicting emotions. My first visit to a grocery store always overwhelms me, the bountiful variety making me feel borderline guilty, claustrophobic, disgusted. Somehow, I always end up in a mall, where I'm inundated with consumerism and fed up with the monotonous assortment of the same unnecessary stuff in different packages. There's the guy who went on a ridiculously profane and aggressive rant when employees told him he couldn't ride his bike through T.J. Maxx. There's the weird same-ness of neighborhoods as you drive around anywhere.
Then I'm having a drink and great conversation with friends and family at the Dirty Goose in the U-Street Corridor, followed by a decent Ethiopian meal at Dukem. I'm playing board games with adults and cooking food we got down the street, without once going through a guarded gate.  I'm getting an eye exam from a friendly older couple. I haven't seen an automatic weapon since I've been here. And last night I end up at Wolf Trap's beautiful Filene Center watching an all male ballet troupe satirize Swan Lake sitting with a tarp full of people I can't easily categorize talking about internationally-themed dinner parties and I feel a welling-up of something that's not patriotism but is probably as close as I ever get to it. It's nice to be home.

Here We Go! Days 13-14 (Transitions)

Settled into our little apartment in Reykjavik after a mostly-uneventful road trip, got rid of the rental car, and went out for a night on the town! How nice to be in a city after all of that countryside!
The next day we were blessed with nice weather and sun, so we spent most of the morning/afternoon just walking the streets.

Most memorable sight was probably Hallgrímskirkja (Lutheran Church), where I tried to poke Leifur Eiríksson in the butt, earning me disappointed looks from the locals (and my wife).

Went inside and were surprised by an impromptu organ performance! Cool pipes!

Stopped for some ice cream in the cold.

Watched the world cup in the park with the neighborhood.

This is definitely one of those cities that might just be too hip for its own good.

Wendy set up a BEER TASTING where they paired six beers with a tasting menu of food. Highlight: whiskey beer float with vanilla ice cream.

A nice last day in Iceland.

The next day was cold and rainy, and we mostly just killed time until our flight. I was randomly selected for TSA screening in Iceland, then for a super heavy-duty customs interview in DC. Sheesh, welcome back!
Luckily, friends were there to pick us up, feed us, and give us a place to stay.

My first American sunrise in about a year!

Here We Go! Days 10-12 (Remember the North!)

We've been out in the sticks for the last few days with no internet, so here goes our northern adventure:

Left Flateyri, drove through Anardalshamar tunnel, just drilled through a little bit of mountain.

Stopped at Litlibær farm for coffee and waffles.

In and out on fjords, back and forth, through the north territories.

To our little cottage past Akureyri.

Next day: Whale watching in Husavik, where we got to wear these sweet outfits (in which milady looks super cute).

Saw some mf'n WHALES! Humpbacks and perhaps a minke or two. Got to see some tail lobbing with a pair of whales, and some very close encounters.

Took a dip in this thermal lake. Lukewarm water, very shallow, but it was nice. There are supposedly goldfish living in this lake, but I didn't see any. Best-smelling place I've ever been, with spruce trees and a bunch of wild flowers.

AWW SNAP! DID SOMEBODY SAY FLOWERS??!!

Goðafoss, where the king threw all of the old gods when he decreed the switch to Christianity. Super cool rock formations and layers.

And, praise Thor, a sunny afternoon!

Next day: another whale watching tour. This time, went by Puffin Island, where we sailed through hundreds of thousands of puffins. Seriously, blow this picture up, all the black dots are puffins. 

Stopped for a sweet treat!

Jökulsárgljúfur / Vatnajökull National Park. A little hiking and bird-watching in the place where the tectonic plates meet.

OMG DETIFOSS!!!

This is the waterfall I've been waiting for all my life. Totally METAL, so powerful, not giving a fuck, just ruling all other waterfalls. Might look familiar to those of you who have seen the opening scene in Prometheus.

Another long drive through crazy landscape, around Mývatn lake, dinner at Vogafjós Cowshed Cafe, then bedded down for our long drive to Reykjavik the next day.

Here We Go! Days 8-9 (Flateyri will get you nowhere)

Flateyri is a tiny town with about 180 inhabitants where we spent the last two days. It's got an interesting history: apparently a center of shark fishing at one time; devastating avalanche in the 1990s. We took the last couple of days to regroup here.

A shopping trip to the nearest town took us through the Breiðadals- and Botnsheiði tunnel(s). Over 9 km long, some of it one-lane, and an INTERSECTION- like, another tunnel comes and intersects this one!

Visited The Westfjords Heritage Museum in Isafjördur for some history of the fishing industry in the area. Delicious lunch at Tjöruhúsið (lots of fish). Then back to our Flateyri for a visit to the local swimming pool, cards at the apartment.

Next day took a hike on Holt Beach through hundreds of birds. Walked around Flateyri a bit.

Took a run up this path along the fjord. Recharged for another big journey tomorrow.

Here We Go! Day 7 (A Dynjandi Day in the Westfjords)

Began the day by cleaning up the cabin and saying goodbye to Snaefellsnes. Took the ferry from Stykkishólmur to Brjánslækur, gray day, so not much to see on the 3 hour ride.  

Trundled down some dicey mountain roads through barren landscapes to Látrabjarg bird cliffs, where we saw lots of birds! And an arctic fox!

Don't go too fast!

Dynjandi waterfall on the way to our new home.

Arrival in Flateyri, a cute little town jutting out into the water. Dinner of local fish soup at Vagninn restaurant.

Our tough little Duster, living up to its name, and our intrepid driver, getting us through a pretty grueling journey today.

Through ever-changing landscapes, clouds, varying levels of pavement.

Your daily dose of flowers.

Here We Go! Day 6 (Snaefell-upagus II)

Hearty breakfast on the grill.

Stopped in Arnarstapi: This is that half-troll Bárður I was talking about yesterday. What a grumpus!

Gatklettur: super cold wind!

Milady on the stone bridge.

Pissed off these seagulls.

More flowers!

On to Saxhóll volcanic crater.

387 steps up, 387 steps down.

Kirkjufellsfoss (how many gorgeous waterfalls can one country have? Probably a whole lot.)

Kirkjufell Mountain

Soaked in Lýsuhólslaug hot spring pool (with healing minerals and algae), and headed back to the cabin to plan the next leg: on to the Westfjords tomorrow!