Anniversary Cruise--Iceland

After great stops in Bergen, Geiranger, the Shetlands, and the Faroe Islands, it was time for the final stop on our cruise, Iceland! We were docked overnight in Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland, leaving lots of time to explore!

We had decided to book a Golden Circle tour through IG Tours, which took you on a 300 km loop into central Iceland and back, stopping at some beautiful sites along the way!

Riley was ready for our mini-bus tour!

Riley took this picture for us. Pretty good!

The scenery was very interesting...not like anything we had seen before.

Our first stop was a small waterfall.

It was very, very windy but Lyla loved it!

Then we got to our first major stop at Gullfoss, Iceland's most famous waterfall, which translated literally means "Golden Falls."

It was cold and windy by the falls and our camera got wet from the mist!

Simply gorgeous

Another photo courtesy of Riley

So pretty

Our other photos were from down where those people are on the left

After we reboarded the bus and warmed up a bit, it was off to the Haukadalur valley to Geysir, the oldest known geyser and the origin of the term geyser (the Engish translation). If it's been awhile since you took earth science and you've forgotten exactly how geysers work, you can read about them here. Geysir used to frequently erupt to heights of 230 feet but no longer erupts regularly. It is predicted that it may become active again soon based on earthquake activity in the region. About 50 meters south of Geysir, is Strokkur, a smaller geyser that erupts regularly (every 5-15 minutes) at heights of 80-110 feet. We were lucky enough to watch Strokkur erupt while we visited. I somehow missed the photo opportunity but Riley captured it!

The original geysir

Riley prepared for the big eruption

Lyla and Daddy huddled for warmth

I did not manage to get a good pic of Strokkur erupting but luckily Riley got this one!

Little Geysir...the girls liked looking in at the bubbling water

Then it was time for a lunch break to warm up and refuel!

Finally it was off to Thingvellir National Park to see Þingvellir, or Parliament Plains, where Icelandic Parliament was established in 930 and remained until 1798. In addition to being culturally significant, the National Park is geologically amazing. It is the site of Mid Atlantic Ridge, which separates the Eurasian Plate and the North American Plate. This website explains things better than I ever could: http://epod.usra.edu/blog/2010/08/mid-atlantic-ridge-in-iceland.html. While most of the ridge is underwater, Thingvellir National Park is one of the few sites where the ridge rises above the Earth's surface creating beautiful scenery that is definitely worth a visit! Riley (and Wayne) are very excited to say that we've walked from Europe to North America!

You guessed it...still windy!

Beautiful scenery

Quick family photo opp. On the left is where North America starts.

The path between the continents. That bridge leads over the valley and to Europe.

This is the valley between North American and Europe

Oh no! They're falling in between the continents! ( :

Finally, it was time to load two tired girls and two tired parents back onto the minivan for one last stop in Reykjavik, which Lyla slept through!

Riley and I headed up to the top of a building for some great views of Reykjavik!

Statue of Leif Erikson, the first European to land in North America!

Hallgrímskirkja, an amazing Lutheran church 

And then it was time to reboard the ship!  The girls were excited to go the Kids Club for the evening, while Wayne and I decided to take advantage of our overnight docking and took a taxi downtown for some exploring! We wandered around the shops and stopped in a few bars to sample Icelandic beer before stopping at Bæjarins beztu, a famous hot dog stand which was voted Best Hot Dog Stand in Europe and has been visited by Bill Clinton and Metallica. 

Needed to take a pic for the girls

The best hot dog in Europe!

Wayne loved the hot dog with the "works": ketchup, sweet mustard, friend onion, raw onion and remoulade, a mayonnaise-based sauce with sweet relish

Then it was back to the ship for a late-night Ice Party onboard. Riley had fun dancing with friends, while poor Lyla fell asleep in Wayne's arms. We didn't make it to the Blue Lagoon this trip....I guess we'll just have to come back! Want to join us?