We got up at our usual ungodly hour of 5am. Nothing much to see except a very modern looking church on a hill behind our hotel. We did make the effort to walk there and take a few photos. It was overcast but no rain so far. They do say if you don’t like the weather, just wait five minutes.
Just a few words about Eirikurtore (Eric) our guide. He is very knowledgeable about Icelandic mythology and culture. Every time we enter a new town or area, he seems to have a story about a famous historical Icelandic person. Most of his tales have a dark side and usually tell about some violent happening. Although the sagas are interesting, it is often hard to understand them because of his heavy accent. I don’t always get the point or understand the endings. well. He is a nice person but a little disappointing as far as managing the group – which I think is partly caused by his accent and by his people skills. The other disappointment is that this is suppose to be a photography tour and he is not a professional photographer.
This morning we headed north through the Skagafjordur region which is renowned for horse breeding. We stopped at a horse farm to see a horse show and learn about the Icelandic horses. Where ever you go you can see groups of grazing horses. Many horses are exported to the states and Europe. The horse farm we went to is also a hotel and that is where we had our lunch as well. The horse show was very interesting and it was fun to watch and take photos. When the show was over, we were invited to meet and greet the horses in the stables and take more photos.
We had a very nice lunch buffet. Everywhere we have eaten, the bread and most of the food has been delicious. This buffet had many salad items, seafood and several kinds of breads and pestos. It is nice to have choices. When the meals are set, I have the vegetarian option. Often it has been a deep fired vegetable patty with mystery ingredients. I am the only vegetarian. Most of the desserts have been ice cream and fruit cocktail (out of the can). So they are not much for desserts. They have a very sweet yogurt – it may be made with cream.
After lunch, we were on our way again. We made two scenic stops. One place we stopped at was a very modern looking church. It was very interesting and fun to photograph. I took tons of photos but will only show one to give you an idea of what it was like.
The next stop was at an historical farm which showed the turf growing on the roof and sides of the houses. The church next to it was very old and had a small cemetery. I will include an information board that I photographed.
We had a very long drive to Akureyri, the capital of the north. We made a stop in the city of Akureyri and enjoyed about 40 minutes in the main shopping street. Shawn and I looked in several souvenir shops and I think we both bought something. One funny thing is that the red lights are red hearts. I didn’t get a chance to take a picture. We arrived on time at the bus only to have to wait for two ladies who were about 20 minutes late. It seems to be the same people who are always late and that is very inconsiderate! It was a 20 minute drive outside of the city. We stayed in a family-run country hotel called Hotel Natur. We arrived after 6pm and ate dinner at 7pm so not much time to ourselves. That was the place I couldn’t get on the internet. We had another buffet and it was very good with lots of different kinds of cooked fish and a variety of potatoes and vegetables. Beer and wine are very expensive but Shawn and I have been enjoying our one glass of beer and wine with our dinners.
Well, I will say good by for now and hope you have been enjoying the blog. The days are starting to run together but I am helped by the photos I have taken.
diannestraveladventures.me 