Sunday July 10, 2016

Sunday

July 10, 2016

Iceland is a place that is defined by its geology - earth quakes, volcanos and glaciers are alive here and transforming the face of this island country. Today, we visited spectacular cliffs and the shoreline around Vik, considered a hub because it has a gas station, grocery store, a few restaurants and a couple of hotels. Directly behind the town sits a glacier and a volcano. On the other side is the Atlantic with stunning cliffs, layers of geometric basalt columns and black sandy pebble beaches. Lying just offshore are twisted spiky rock formations recognized by Alex and Adrian for their three second cameo in Game of Thrones. We hiked for a couple hours to the top of one of the cliffs in search of puffins. Iceland is famous as a habitat for these cute birds. We did not find any but we really enjoyed the walk and the views. 

   We picnicked in the car and headed out to see if we could catch the ferry to Vestmannaeyjar (the Westman Islands) where we had a hotel reservation. We arrived just in time, purchased our tickets and jumped on, leaving our car and suitcases in the parking lot, with just overnight bags for our island off the island adventure. The Westman Islands are known for puffins so we are hoping to see them here. The 30 minute trip was I uneventful until we disembarked and walked into our hotel. The place, Hotel Vestmannaeyjar is clean and sleek and ten steps up from last night's guesthouse. However the power unexpectedly went out. Did you know that hotel electronic keys work on batteries? :)  no problem getting into the room. Reminder: it never gets dark in Iceland in the summer so who needs lights? No power = no problem. Temperature has been steady 48 - 55. No need for ac or heat so far. We dumped our bags and went to dinner at an incredible restaurant called Slipperinn. Sue had a dish she considers one of the best she has ever had - fresh off the boat (50 feet away) cod prepared with an incredible sauce and fresh herbs. I had fresh cod as well made simply and was excellent. Alex and Adrian enjoyed a selection of vegetarian appetizers. With Alex topping it off with chocolate mousse with chevrill granita and skyr. Great find! Back at the hotel the power was on. Nice room. Great Iceland day. Tomorrow we see the island!