Entry 4
Day 22 It’s Independence Day

Today is Iceland’s Independence Day, the day they celebrate their independence from Denmark, and to take part of the celebrations we were going to go to Reykholt in the afternoon. Looking forward to this, I worked on outlining my paper due Sunday on the women we have read about in the Icelandic history and literature so I would have that out of the way and then headed down to lunch. There was a sort of tomato vegetable soup with bread and butter and then it was off to Reykholt. There were several speeches made in the small gymnasium, one by a recent school graduate, presentations of awards like the teacher of the year, and several songs performed by some young girls. My favorite part was watching the little children go completely wild during the presentations as they danced, played with balloons like those you would buy at a theme park, and even climbed the wall of the gym behind the podium. Icelanders surely must love their children because it was quite unlike anything you would see in the United States. If there is one child misbehaving there people usually shoot the parents dirty looks until they get him under control but here they were all playing and nobody seemed to mind. They were certainly adorable and it was quite entertaining to watch some of them run away from their parents multiple times in a row.

After this we went to watch the go cart races and I was really excited. They had to slalom through these traffic cones and we stood at the bottom of the hill so we could watch them as they came through the course. The first little boy to try in his go cart completely wiped out but nobody seemed to chicken out afterwards. Some of the carts were really high tech, with padded seats, two handles for the person in back to push, and while some had hand steering devices others were set up to steer with their feet. There was one rider that was extremely tiny and my favorite picture of the celebration was of him coming down the slope with huge eyes. I was really craving some of that amazing hot chocolate I had gotten the other day with Dagmar and so when we went to the small café up the road I ordered some more and it was just as excellent as it was previously. I went to the wool store next door and looked around before going to the convenience store where I saw the cutest little dog that resembled a furry basset hound. He was adorable and wanted some of my soft serve and chocolate sauce that I bought before getting back on Sleipnir.

Back at Skalholt I realized that the horses were really close to the gate and so I decided to go walk out there with Hallie and Carolyn. The horses were really antsy today and I saw the stallion charging after two mares that were separated from the group and making them join the rest of the herd. The mare right ahead of him was not very happy with this arrangement and I captured a great video of her fighting back. The highlight of my horse adventure was seeing the beautiful baby foal. The palomino horse had a little buckskin foal and they were two of my favorite color horses so I was extremely happy. I loved sitting in the middle of all the babies and their moms before I went back up to Oddstofa so I could go to the church for vespers at six.

These Swedish organists were having a convention so they were going to sing and it was beautiful. To make it even better, when they were finished the priest at Skalholt, Christian, gave us a tour of the church. Since we were there he gave it in English (he knows twenty-one different languages fluently!) and so I could actually understand everything he was saying which was great. The left side of the church had blue stained glass windows because Mary was connected with blue and the right side had more red in the stained glass windows because red was connected with Peter. I immediately connected this with how in weddings the bride’s side is the left side of the church and the groom’s side is the right and then he said that that was the only time people sat like that in churches there in Iceland. The stone on the floor was imported from Norway as was the wood in the roof that was made to resemble a Viking ship since the church was the vessel of Christ. The stone and the wood made for great acoustics in the church which is why in July there are five concerts there every weekend for five weeks. I thought it was funny when he was talking about the granite baptism fount and said that five Icelandic craftsmen could move it but it would take twenty two organists. Supper was simply divine and there was lamb, vegetables, apples with yogurt, and coffee skyr with graham cracker for dessert. We’re watching Burlesque tonight so I’m going to finish getting ahead on some work so I can watch the movie with the girls while editing pictures.

Day 23 Horses, Horses, Horses!

I did not sleep in this Saturday morning but woke up and ate breakfast so I would be prepared to have class. It wasn’t that difficult because I knew that tomorrow would be the last class we would have until Friday and then we would be done with coursework. Also, instead of sitting in the classroom, we had class in the sunroom and so I sat in one of the really comfy chairs and brought my blanket along. We were discussing the fairytales that we had all read and then we were each going to present the fairytale we read individually to the rest of the group. I was one of the few who remembered the plot elements of the group fairytales and Dr. Novak said I was the “star of the show” today. That made me happy to know that I had participated quite a bit and I really enjoyed listening to all of the Icelandic fairytales. Mine was called the “Wizards of the Westman Islands” and described how wizards had fled from mainland Iceland to these islands to escape the black plague and how one went back to check and see if it was safe to return. In the end the brave one who returned married the young girl who had stayed and survived and it was kind of like a roundabout Adam and Eve story, showing the people that no matter how bad something gets there is hope that someone will survive.

After class I worked on finishing my outline of the paper that is due tomorrow evening and actually managed to type up a couple of paragraphs since I had picked out all the quotes I wanted to use last night. It is so beautiful outside today because it is not really that windy and it’s comfortable in just jeans and a t-shirt. Lunch was wonderful, having both lamb and rice soup and this beef and vegetable soup, bread and butter, pasta with chicken and bacon, and apples and yogurt. Magga was showing her horse today not far from Skalholt as was her nephew Baldor. Dr. Novak and Dr. Grathwohl were going to take Sleipnir there and said anyone who wanted to go could come. Of course I wanted to go and I ended up being the only one setting out on the adventure because everyone else wanted to nap or work on their papers. I managed to take my computer and type the first three pages of my four page paper on the way there so I was ready to enjoy the show when I arrived.
Magga told me her chestnut horse was named Klaatus, which meant rock in Icelandic because he was her rock that she leaned on. I thought that was adorable and he was the sweetest horse. She let me hold him while she helped her nephew with his horse and I had a blast checking him out. She discussed with me her view on Quarter Horses, which were not Icelandic horses as she put it nicely, and I decided it was excused because she had not grown up with them. I will admit their way of training is amazing and all of their horses are very well behaved. I think this is because they do not start training them to ride until they are about five instead of starting them at two or three years, and so they have more time to mature as a horse. Also, they live in herds instead of in separate pastures so their whole way of life is more natural. Klaatus had bell boots on to make him lift his front legs higher but they did not have weights in them so they were not harsh. I was excited to see the competition because it was going to be equitation, where they judge on how well the horse listens to the rider and how they work together. I remembered all of my horse judging standards and had a lot of fun judging the classes as they worked through their gaits, helping Dr. Novak with the lingo. Baldor did really well with the horse he had got for his confirmation and it was his first show so it was exciting to see them beginning to work together. Dagmar was there and she proceeded to tell us about the horses that I had picked out as the bottom of the class, stating that they were the ones with the harsh Icelandic bits that come in three pieces, and that is why they held their heads so stiffly and seemed to hate showing. When it was Magga’s turn in her class she rode beautifully and Klaatus strutted his stuff for everyone to see. I thoroughly enjoyed the show and afterward when they were presenting the awards she won first in her class! I was so proud of her and took lots of pictures. She gets the trophy for one year and then it will be passed on to the winner of the show next year but will still have Magga’s name on it. This trophy has been won every year since 1999 except for last year because the horses in the country were sick from infected tack. They are not immune to many horse diseases because horses are not allowed in from other countries so this disease really affected them last year. Magga invited us to their family barbecue but we had to get back to Skalholt. Fortunately, she did say that I could come riding with her before I leave. I am so excited! I thought it was really interesting how they ride with eastern saddles and no saddle blankets and how after the show they put all their horses in this barn loose, with no stalls. Magga and her mother Holmfritthur were going to ride back to their homes later and the horses that had been ridden were going to be taken back in the trailer by her Magga’s dad Baldvin. It was definitely a great experience and I was quite happy.

When I made it back to Skalholt I quickly finished my paper and enjoyed my free time before supper. Supper was great as usual: fish sticks, French fries, and lemon cake for dessert. Now it’s still early in the day and since I’ve been editing horse pictures and videos I think I will go see the horses since I have nothing pressing to do at the moment. I’m so glad to be done with class work for a while! Tomorrow Magga is going to come look at the pictures I took of her and Dagmar is going to lend me some horse films. Wednesday I am going horseback riding around Helgafell and crossing a river, Thursday I am going with the Meredith girls, and sometime I am going with Magga. Talk about some horse days.

The horses were amazing. They were on the path to the left of the path we normally take, so left of the hot spring and I got some great pictures with that background. The stallion moved them three times while I was outside. I was out for about two hours so the girls called me, worried about where I was. Of course I was fine and I headed back soon, got to love those Meredith girls making sure I am ok.

Day 24 Favorite Day of the Week: Sunday

While eating breakfast this morning I turned in my paper and was excited to have the whole day to do whatever I wanted. I finished my presentation that I would present at 7:30 this evening and went outside to sit amongst the yellow buttercups in the field and read the novel we have to finish by Friday. The morning was very relaxing and I walked around Oddstofa, skyped dad for father’s day, and enjoyed being done with my work. Lunch was great: Mexican soup with sour cream and cheese, bread and butter, and vegetables with beef. Around three we had a meeting up at the secret garden and Hannah and I had our smack down about Gudrun, debating whether she was a good or bad person overall. The professors said they had never had a group to delve that deep into her character and it was really fun debating with her outside. I decided to go see the horses before supper and it was definitely the best time I have had with them this month. They were all the way to the hot spring and when I got there the stallion was not moody like he has been the last couple of days so I actually got to go up to the foals and get some great pictures. The most adventurous foal that always gets really close before his mom calls him back was especially brave today and he came all the way up to me! I got this great video of him exploring me, from eating my jeans and smelling my hand to actually kicking me a little with his hoof. He was so cute! I love my little buddy. When I was walking back to Oddstofa there was even a cloud shaped like a horse and it was just the perfect ending and it made me think about how excited I am to go horseback riding around Iceland on Wednesday.

Supper consisted of vegetables and beef in a red sauce which I put over my rice and for dessert there was coffee skyr cake. Magga came and showed us her trophy and Dagmar gave me the films on Icelandic horses that I can’t wait to watch when I get back from independent travel. Magga told the girls they had missed out and said I could go riding with her on Friday so that means I will be going three days in a row! Wednesday with a tour group, Thursday with the Meredith girls, and Friday with her and her mom Holmfritthur! I am definitely hyper about that and was very happy all the way back to my room. The presentations were really well done by everyone and I was happy that I made it through mine without faltering. Afterward I watched Betsy, Hallie, and Hannah play chubby bunny with marshmallows which was hilarious and relaxed some before making my list to make sure I didn’t forget to pack anything. Soon it was time to head out to see the sun. It is really close to the solstice so it is not heading down too far and I got some really pretty pictures. It’s off to Reykjavik tomorrow so I better catch some sleep. Independent travel here I come!

Day 25 Independent Travel Begins!

We woke up at seven this morning in order to be off by 7:45 and there was a rush of making sure everything was packed and nothing was forgotten. We had to be in Selfoss by 9:00 because that was when our three hikers were leaving on their bus to go to Thorvellir. Our bus to Reykjavik does not leave until 10:40 so we are sitting in the bus station, an N1, at the bar. I grabbed a powder donut that was filled with strawberry jam so now I am really happy even though we have a long time to wait. My book bag is so big it looks like I am leaving for a week but I packed sheets and a towel also to use in the hostel. It’s not long and our independent travel will be even more underway.

We just checked into the Salvation Army and it worked out that we filled a three person room so we paid the cheap price of staying in a group room but actually got our own private room that locks. Yay! It’s really nice and actually like a hotel except you have to go to the shower in the hall, but they are private showers also and not one room with a bunch of stalls. It was much better than expected and after we settled in we went to explore Reykjavik. We found an ATM and then headed to the culture house museum which was amazing because we had just finished reading Laxdaela Saga and watching Gisli’s Saga so we could recognize a lot of the characters in the manuscripts and pictures that were around the museum. We found out that we were not supposed to take photographs but we had all ready taken some because we accidentally went in the reverse way through the museum. I really enjoyed the museum and was excited that we got the student rate and that they had such a cool gift shop.

We were starving after our little jaunt so we stopped at this ice cream shack that was close to the hostel and I got a chocolate milkshake. It’s crazy how that’s the one food that I miss the most and I get it every chance I can. Katie really loves the chocolate dipped cones and I will have to take her to Arnold’s some this summer to get one. Hannah got this amazing sundae with every type of chocolate candy imaginable, plus hot fudge and chocolate syrup. I might have to get that before we leave.

Soon it was time to head off to blue lagoon and the van came right to our hostel to take us to the bus that would take us there. It was a long drive and I thoroughly enjoyed chatting with Hannah and Katie about some quite interesting subjects until we arrived. They gave us these bracelets that we had to scan to let us in and we could also charge on them. I thought this was too cool and was already excited before we got into the shower area. This was kind of freaking me out because you were supposed to shower before you got in the spa and people were actually walking around naked. Thankfully I was able to change in the restroom and then I grabbed a shower that had an actual door to it before I headed to the spa. Unfortunately I saw some sights in the female changing area from which I probably will never recover. The water was amazingly hot and steamy, with this mist that rose from everywhere, and we enjoyed just lounging around in the huge pool with its rocky bottom. It was really shallow but deep enough you could completely emerge your body. There was also a cave we went through in the water and a waterfall of hot water that acted like a massage. One of my favorite parts was the silica mud mask that you could put on your face. We all slapped it on each other’s faces and laughed as it dried before we could wash it back off. It was supposed to be really good for your skin so that is an added bonus to being able to put white mud on your face in a lagoon. We charged slushies called Krap to our bracelets and swam around a little more before it was time to head back on the bus. The buses here are awesome, with really nice seats like Greyhound buses and curtains so you can sleep in the reclining chairs since it is always sunlight outside.

After our return to Reykjavik we met Betsy and Hallie, who are directly below us, and went to this great Italian restaurant for dinner. We figured we would splurge on dinner since we wouldn’t be eating anything fancy tomorrow, and we were served bread and butter when we first arrived as is the usual here in Iceland. Hannah and I split this cheese tortellini that had ham and mushrooms in it and it came with garlic bread and I got a bake potato. She had escargot and I actually tried a snail! It wasn’t really that bad, rather chewy but not with a bad taste. We stayed in the restaurant for over two hours eating and talking. Here in Europe they don’t rush you off and the tip is included in your meal so it was a really nice experience and we became even closer.

Day 26 Independent Travel Day 2

I love these Gifflar cinnamon rolls they have in Iceland. I had brought a bag from Reykholt that I had bought earlier and that is what I ate for breakfast this morning. Delicious! We packed up our gear, lots of warm clothing for the adventure today, and headed downstairs where we would be picked up for our tour, by Iceland excursions, called Black and Blue. They took us to Pingvellir National Park where the Althingi used to meet and stopped at the little information center so we could get a sandwich to eat (chicken, bacon, and cheese please!) There was this cool little model of the park and our guides Joe and Ricky told us the history of the place, from how the Althingi met there from the early nine hundreds until about two hundred years ago and how there was a divergent boundary there concerning the Eurasian plate and North America. I found it really interesting that they have lots of earthquakes there every day but you can’t feel them because they are so low on the scale.

They took us to the entrance of a cave close by and told us how 9,000 years ago magma ran through it and so we were climbing on top of magma. I was really excited and made sure I could work the light on top of my helmet (which it was a good thing I had on because I hit my head twice on the low ceilings in some parts of the cave) so I could see all the amazing sights. It was really funny when he said they find lots of the caves near the roads because Icelandic people love their cars and so when they are driving they will not go too far away from the road to explore. The caves were really cool inside, with lots of rocks so you had to balance on the wall and walk very carefully, varying heights of the ceiling, and water dripping down here and there. There was even ice in some spots so I had to make sure not to slip in that. Halfway through we sat down and turned off the lights on our helmets to listen to ghost stories. Joe told us that when people used to wake up from hypothermia there would be someone waiting with them to beat them with a club if they woke up because they thought it was a ghost. Scary! We turned on our lights and then I led for a little while, calling back to Katie and Hannah when a rock was loose or when the ceiling got low, so that was fun. I loved when we could see the light at the end and crawled out, knowing I had made it all the way through a cave without falling. Looking from the surface it didn’t seem like it was that far away, but it had seemed pretty long underground.

We ate lunch and talked some more to all the nice people who were on the tour with us. There were people from Canada, Germany, Sweden, and the States so it was really awesome meeting people from all over the world. I saved the sandwich for later but ate the great chocolate cookie that was still moist and soft in the middle and the triple fruit juice before we headed off from the black and into the blue world. We were going snorkeling and the water was going to be two degrees Celsius so we kept on our thermals and fleece and proceeded to put on a “bunny” suit or a “teddy bear” suit which would keep us warm, a dry suit which was supposed to be waterproof, gloves, a hat, goggles, a tube to breathe, and flippers. Of course I had to be exceptional and the neck of my suit was too big so they proceeded to tie it (or so I thought) to make it tighter. Snorkeling was amazing because the water was so pretty and blue, crystal clear and you could even drink it if you want, and there were so many rocks and plants down below. I had a hard time learning to maneuver but it was really fun once I got the hang of it. I lost a flipper halfway through the lagoon so it was really interesting trying to finish my way through the water with one flipper and one boot. When we got back to land we did my favorite thing of the tour: a cliff dive. We dove off the rocks and into the freezing cold water and it was so exhilarating. It was still a lot of fun but I was very glad that I was back on dry land and had my seaweed rock for a souvenir that I had survived the black and blue!

We headed back to Reykjavik and I loved having nowhere to be and just being able to walk around with the girls. We finished some shopping we needed to do and ended up back at the church where we ate our sandwiches. I grabbed an elf ice cream cone at my favorite ice cream place here, the one we went to yesterday, and then it was off to the harbor to look at the ships and I was excited to see that they had an outside museum that featured all of the islands, a train, and plaques that talked about the cod wars. We decided to take a self guided tour, called the City Statue tour, and as Hannah found them on the map I read the descriptions and acted like the tour guide. It was a lot of fun and very relaxing looking at the art, reading the history, and enjoying the landscapes and each other. Dad, I met someone from home. I don’t know them, but they are from Charlotte so that was great to find someone from North Carolina. Before we went back to the hostel we stopped by the cemetery which had people buried in it that were born in the seventeen hundreds so it was really cool and we listened to Hannah’s ghost story as we toured it.

Today is the Summer Solstice so instead of a couple hours of darkness there will be none at all so that is really amazing and made me think about how magical Iceland really is. I love it here and am sad at thinking that tomorrow is our last day on independent travel. Reykjavik is definitely never boring and I feel like I have learned so much just walking around. Of course I have definitely enjoyed also not having any homework due or having to go to class. Tomorrow I am going to go horseback riding around Helgafell, the holy mountain, and cross a river on horseback. I am definitely excited and looking forward to it. Better get some sleep so I will be energized for the ride!

Day 27 Independent Travel Day 3

Today was individual adventure day as I deemed it so I actually had to go figure things out for myself. Katie and Hannah were picked up at the hostel for their adventure at 8 so I headed to the 1919 Hotel where I would get picked up to go to Is.Hestar for my horse riding. It was only three minutes away as I had checked out the day before so I was confident in finding it. Once I arrived (45 minutes before pickup started) I called to make sure I was at the right place and proceeded to people watch while eating my strawberry skyr. There were all of these people in suits and the women were all dressed up too, going to work this morning. Pick up was supposed to last between 8:45 and 9:15 so when it was about nine I realized I was at the back side of the hotel so I could only see the back and the side. I rushed to the front which faced the harbor and the parking lot we always park Sleipnir in and hoped they hadn’t missed me. The woman on the phone had assured me that the driver knew I was there and would look for me but I was still kind of nervous as 9:15 rolled around. I started planning how I would call to get my money refunded and my daily activities in the city when thankfully he drove up in a van.
I sat behind these two guys from California, a bio-analyst traveling with his friend who was a senior studying radiology. I thought it was funny how they thought I was graduating in December, how about 2014. I always love asking why people came to Iceland and after that I went through the agenda of everything they had to see before they left and taught them a few Icelandic terms they should use while they are here. On the way we passed a Taco Bell which is what I have been craving the most besides macaroni and cheese, but unfortunately it was too far a walk from Reykjavik so I couldn’t have gone when I returned later. When we pulled up to the barn after about half an hour I was really excited to go riding and loved looking around. The inside of the building housed a reception center where I signed my safety waiver and got my lunch ticket and televisions where they showed a safety video. Then I went into the changing room to get a helmet and some rubber boots before heading out into the arena.

My first horse was named Hoppae and he was a smaller brown Icelandic horse. I anxiously got up in this tiny English saddle but after the first ten minutes of walking out of the paddock I got used to it and we changed between jogging and walking enough that I became completely comfortable and looked forward to the jogging. Hoppae was very competitive and easy to get going. I could barely cluck and he would go faster to keep up with the horse in front of him, actually he kept his face right in the horse’s rump usually and we essentially passed a few horses because he was so eager. I had to carry a crop with him because he would like to eat and pull grass while we rode but I never had to use it, he just knew I had it and would behave if I picked it up. They hold their reins differently here, with the little finger towards the horse’s head and you hold them tight like bicycle handles, always with two hands. The center of balance is further back than with larger horses and you sit the trot because they are not as bouncy. Actually they said this, but it was just as bouncy, especially on my second horse Mouny.
Poor Mouny was the exact opposite of Hoppae, a large chestnut who never really wanted to keep up and I had to strongly urge him to even keep the pace. He had an extremely bouncy jog but by the end I was sitting proudly, having finally figured out how to keep the pressure off of my ankles and squeeze with my thigh, sitting way back in the saddle to stop bouncing around like an energizer bunny. Before I had switched mounts we had had lunch: some kind of small hamburgers, potatoes, and salad. The morning group had left and an afternoon group came in so while I was waiting for the switch I read some of the Under the Glacier that we have to finish before Friday and watched the horses in the paddock. Curiously I asked how fast the fast group in the afternoon tour was going to go and when she said galloping the whole time I decided to stay with the slow group so I could actually focus on Iceland around me and not just staying on for dear life. I really wanted to know how this was intermediate. To me this would have qualified for advanced or expert, so I really want to know what those tours consist of.

The lava tour in the afternoon was on a different route than in the morning and I really enjoyed riding Mouny closer to Helgafell, the Holy Mountain, and through lava fields, lupin fields, and down little dusty paths. I was a very confident rider by the end but I could tell it had been a long time since I had ridden. Not only had I forgotten how amazing it was but I could also feel how long it had been in everything in my lower half of my body to even my abs and shoulders. Oh well, it was definitely worth it. I got back on the van to take me back to the 1919 and when I arrived back in Reykjavik I decided to tour the photography museum. Some of my favorites were cartoons drawn by local kids and of course I took pictures of these pictures.

I did some last minute shopping and then called Betsy and Hallie to see if they were back from rafting. They were sitting in front of the Althing, in this big field of grass where lots of people were enjoying the beautiful day so after I got a chocolate bomb to reward me for my ride I went over there and we shared our stories together. After about an hour Hannah and Katie were back and we continued to sit and talk until it was 7:00 when Dr. Grathwohl was picking us up in the parking lot. It was a lot of fun finding our way home while sharing some tidbits of our adventures with her. Before we reached Skalholt we stopped in Selfoss to pick up our hikers, Carolyn, Chelsea, and Jaimee, and continued on to Oddstofa.

When we arrived, Dr. Novak was waiting inside the door and he came out to greet us. We all sat around the couch in the sitting room where we normally do our homework and each of us shared our stories by passing the earth ball Hallie had bought. Everyone laughed when it was my turn as I told my dramatic snorkeling story and sat on a pillow to keep from being sore after my ride. I’m glad they thoroughly enjoyed it because I enjoyed listening to everyone else, especially Hallie because the poor thing had bit her tongue rafting and talked really funny the whole time. I loved independent travel because not only did I get to spend time with the girls doing things by ourselves but I also got to do something completely on my own and felt very accomplished after I had returned back from my riding tour and knew my way around the city. The whole trip was just unbelievable.

Day 28 Aeðislegur

This morning was wonderful because even though we were tired from returning from our independent travel the professors came to make us breakfast and so I enjoyed scrambled eggs with cheese, toast with jelly, and a grilled cheese sandwich. They wanted to make sure we were full because at ten o’clock we were leaving to go…riding! We headed to Hestaleigan Sydra-Langholti and the barn was amazing. Everything was organized and in its proper place, the horses lined up in their stalls and the helmets in their own separate room with rain jackets. I helped the farmer round up some of the horses and watched as they saddled them up after we had gotten our helmets on. I was to ride a large chestnut horse, named Mouny like my chestnut horse yesterday, and I confidently climbed up in the saddle. It was so much fun helping Hannah, Katie, and the other girls fix their reins and sit in the saddle correctly so they would feel better about riding.

We headed off and I rode in between Katie and Han so I could help them out with tips and of course I got the horse that jogged right off the bat since I was already a little sore. Soon he wasn’t as bouncy but we still weren’t walking, and I realized I was doing the tolt, the gait specific only to Icelandic horses. I loved it and looked around at the pastures, lakes, and other horses that were in the big field we were riding through. Our guide kept the horses going pretty fast so there wasn’t much time to walk but all the girls were doing really well and looking like they had always rode. Soon my favorite part came. As I became more adjusted to Mouny I let him have a looser rein and instead of pulling him in when he transitioned into the trot I let him go and we cantered up a hill. It was amazing and I made sure that we slowed down a little from the group so that I could keep cantering in order to catch back up. There was this adorable chocolate lab puppy that ran beside us the whole time and poor Hannah’s little white horse was being incredibly spunky behind me, slowing down and then running faster to keep up even though this was against her will. I was so happy and loved sharing this riding experience with my Meredith girls.

We came back to a wonderful lunch of hot soup, ham and cheese sandwiches, and bread and butter and finished off the meal with wild berry hot tea because I was chilly from riding in the rain. There was time to skype mom and read a little of the novel before it was off for family visits. I was going with Hallie and Chelsea to a farm that had an automated milking machine for their dairy cows so I was really excited and when we got there the man was extremely nice. His name was Ottir and he had three children there, a fifteen year old son named Thorstein, a twelve year old named Elizabeth, and an eleven year old named Thorir. We had bread and butter, chocolate cake, cookies, sandwiches, and fresh milk and cheese from their cows before we headed outside to see the farm. They had two border collies named Trigurd and Snotti and Trigurd ran around with us as we explored.

It was so much fun because we were able to go in the dairy and see all of the calves and the milking machine. There was a calf born about an hour before we arrived so we saw him go find it since it had escaped and were able to watch the mother get milked for the first time since they couldn’t milk her before. Her milk went to the calves because they couldn’t sell it for three days. I found it really interesting that the machine not only attached itself to them to milk them, but it would measure the color and amount of salt in the milk to see if it was ok to drink, weighed the cow to see if they needed to adjust the amount of food it would get to eat while being milked, and recognized the cow by the microchip it wore around its neck. The milk from each cow was separated so bad milk wouldn’t mess up a whole tank of good milk and the good milk went outside in this huge tank that was picked up Monday, Wednesday, and Friday by a company that was owned by all the farmers. I loved how the farm was run not only by his family but by his parents and his siblings lived on the land too so it reminded me of home.

We were able to take a drive around the farm and saw many interesting things that I enjoyed. First we saw these little lumps that would show farmers in bad weather how to get to the side house where they used to keep the sheep. He pointed out this deep hole which they left open because the previous owners said if you filled it in your animals would die. They had filled it in anyway and that night a cow had escaped and died in the hole so they uncovered it some more and have left it there ever since. On the way to look at other things we saw these French people in a car that ran off their path and onto the grass by the river. Ottir did not like this and drove after them honking to tell them to stay on the path. The joke for the rest of the day was “Excuse moi” and how the little French we did know was Frere Jacques, which Elizabeth also knew in Icelandic. We went to see this awesome stone wall which had a great story behind it. A farmer had a daughter and one of the slaves that worked on his farm fell in love with her and in order to win her hand in marriage he had to build a stone wall in three days. He did it with the help of two other slaves but they were so tired afterward that they fell asleep. The farmer had been spying and rolled this huge boulder on top of it and you could see the foot and handprint in the boulder beside the fence. We then went to see the bulls that were beef cattle and picked up a cow that was there in lifter to bring her back to the dairy barn.

I thought it was interesting that he had some American cows, Angus, which he was breeding because they were bigger. His cows had a lot more milk than I thought they would, producing five kilos a day and he said they had so much milk that the three days between Friday and Monday pick up was too long and he would have to buy another milk tank. We went back inside to have another snack and it was really fun when Thorstein, Elizabeth, and Thorir helped me learn some more Icelandic. I had been able to help them with a few English words all day that they didn’t know but the Icelandic ones I didn’t know were not as easy for me to pick up. I did learn how to say awesome and finally nailed how to say you’re welcome. It was sad when we had to leave but Elizabeth gave me a hug and I got their email so I can keep in touch.

Entry 3

Day 13 Hallo Reykjavik

Dressed in my Icelandic sweater I am ready to go to the big city again, this time to get a tour of their Parliament, the Althingi. I’m excited that we might get to see the Perlan this time, the museum where they have actual life-like figures of characters from the myths we have been reading. We shall see what today holds!

When we first got to Reykjavik we went to the Althingi and met our tour guide. It was special today because they were actually in session and not taking a recess, so we would get to see them in action! When you first get inside you have to put your head against the wall and through this whole you can hear little pieces of the prophecy. It was pretty cool. We got to see the paintings of where Parliament used to meet and one showing Jon Sigurdsson, the father of Iceland. We were able to talk to the minister of the fishing industry and the minister of foreign affairs before the session started. They were discussing whether or not Iceland was going to support NATO and whether they should join the European union. The woman we were going to meet with later, Gudfridur Lilja Gretarsdottir came to the stand and when she did it became pretty heated in there. At the end they actually rang the bell four times before she took her seat. Afterward she took us into an office where members of Parliament sat and we were able to talk and eat lunch with her there. She told us about her views on environmental issues, health care, and foreign affairs and was very inspiring. Her two pieces of advice before we had to go were: never give up and remember every step towards progress is tiny. As we were leaving Parliament it had started to snow a little bit; the weather here is crazy!

On we went to the University of Iceland where we met Gunnar Karlsson who signed our History of Iceland books of which he was the author. I found it really interesting that his favorite saga was the one we are currently reading, the Laxadaela Saga. He used to be a history teacher and I loved meeting someone else who thought teaching was important after hearing Lilja say earlier that she wanted to be one when she left politics. We hurried to the webcam in the square after this to wave to our families at home who were watching and I liked dancing and performing the Scottish Highland dance with Hannah that we had learned last semester. I know the locals enjoyed the show, especially the one old man who was laughing at us as we ran away dramatically.

My favorite part of the day was the Perlan Saga Museum. You received a headset and each of the seventeen exhibits would automatically start playing information through your headphones as you went around. There were silicone figures presenting the history of Iceland from the first settlers through the black death and even beyond. Two of my favorites were Snorri Sturluson who moved because he had written down poems and history, and the nun Katrin who was being burned at the stake (because her name was closest to Katie and I had been Katrin the minister of industry earlier at lunch). I enjoyed not only examining the figures but acting like one myself as pictures were being taken in the museum. Not to disappoint, the wonderful Skalholt staff had dinner set out with candles and grapes on the table when we returned and the food was amazing. We had chicken with barbecue sauce, rice, and potatoes, and for dessert there was skyr with caramel sauce and raspberries. Day two in Reykjavik was a success! Góða nótt.

Day 14 Heimavinna

I slept in this morning and got up in just enough time to get ready and head to breakfast. It turns out that Reykjavik must have really exhausted people because Hannah and I were the only two to make through the cold wind to eat besides Dr. Novak. After breakfast we went to class and managed to delve deeper into the saga and applied the history we have been reading to the characters in the book. There was a lot of work to do but the book has been really interesting so I have enjoyed reading a book that was fun for once and not just more articles and essays. Lunch was great because they had what seemed like a meatball lasagna and the best bread and butter that they’ve had since we have been here, and there has been some awesome bread.

When we came back to the rooms after lunch it wasn’t long before we were visited by Erlingur, a history professor at a local college near Selfoss who came to talk to us about the Vikings. It was interesting hearing about the differences in the Vikings that we have been learning about and the stereotypical ones that everyone thinks of when you hear the name. He was pretty funny and I liked being able to hear about what it was like to teach in Iceland. What I found the most exciting was that he had taught English on Heimaey Island after the volcanic eruption there in the 1970’s. It had destroyed so many buildings and there were no books so everything that he used to teach the students with was made by him and there was no printing press. He went right after school before he went on to university and lived in a nursing home while he was there so he said his friends picked on him for having to go to a nursing home at such a young age. I also enjoyed hearing about how women in all the different countries are used to represent liberty and how in Iceland she is called the lady of the mountain.

After that it was time for work and I managed to finish all of my work for one of my classes except for my reflection which I just finished. We were off to supper and it was what seemed like a fish casserole with boiled potatoes and for dessert an interesting thing I had never had before: rhubarb pie with whipped cream. I haven’t decided if it was definitely a hit or not but it was not that bad for the first time. Katie, Hannah, and I came back to my room where we formulated our final plan for independent travel. It looks like the last week we are here is going to go like this: Monday is going to be our cultural day where we all are going to go visit different museums and parks in Reykjavik, Tuesday is going to be our group adventure day where we want to go caving and snorkeling, and Wednesday is going to be our individual adventure day where I am going to go horseback riding on the Viking tour which will take be past Mt. Helgafell, the holy mountain in Iceland. I’m pretty excited and am happy that we have it all written down on paper, now it’s just time to call the tours and the place we are going to stay tomorrow and get it all finalized. I finished all my homework besides reading some more of my saga so I can stay ahead so I am going to go see the horses before I get cleaned up for bed. I’m excited that tomorrow is Friday!

Day 15 Home Run

Today I woke up thoroughly relieved that I had turned in the night before the big chunk of homework due today at 5:00. I was then able to go ahead and finish reading the saga for tomorrow and have free time throughout the day for two walks. After a breakfast where only half of us went, it was decided that we would try and have breakfast back at Oddstofa, which I am happy about realizing that I can now sleep an hour later without having to get ready in time to walk down and back. Class today was summarizing more of the saga and I was happy to present Gudrun’s dreams where she dreams that she has a headdress, a silver ring, a gold ring, and then a helmet, all of which she loses. The feelings she has when she loses each of these items represent her four marriages (people marry a ton in this saga). Then it was off to lunch and afterward I managed to walk all the way down to the river by the hot spring where we boiled our eggs the first day here and back. It is so much hotter here today; I couldn’t wait to take off my coats when I returned from my walk.

I finished reading the saga and while Hannah and I were starving we decided to call and see if there was going to be tea time today down at the cafeteria. Success! There was and we hurriedly went down to get some chocolate granola pie and chamomile tea, packing some crackers for later. I worked some more on planning my paper that is due Sunday and on my debate that I am going to have against Hannah tomorrow. I am prosecuting Gudrun and Hannah is defending her so it should be interesting and probably a lot of fun pretending to argue about this character. It seems today has revolved a lot around food and work because soon it was dinner which was amazing. They had made the best pizza and french fries which I welcomed because I was starving once again and chocolate cake with chocolate frosting on the top and in the middle.

Then it was time for a walk out to see the horses with Dr. Novak and I was amazed as always to see the sun start rising higher into the sky for a little while when the clock turned to 8:30 in the evening. It’s still bright outside and I don’t even need to turn on the light in my room to do my last minute editing on this debate for tomorrow. The ash from the volcano was filing the sky and the views of the surrounding mountains were a little hazier than usual but the horses didn’t seem to mind. I managed to get right in the middle of the herd of six babies and was blissfully happy. I was also informed by Dr. Novak that I had made the USA South Academic All-Conference Team this year because I was a college athlete with a high enough g.p.a. so that was another bonus for the day. I have completed all of my tasks and when I finish presenting this debate tomorrow all I have left is the paper due Sunday afternoon and I will have a little break before classes resume Wednesday when we get back from the puffin island Monday and Tuesday. So excited to get some sleep right now!

Day 16 Busy Bees

Saturday morning came bright and early but thankfully we had breakfast here in Oddstofa so I did not make it out for my morning walk and could stay inside from the wind. We had class to make up for going to Reykjavik on Wednesday but it was fun because we finished wrapping up the saga we had been reading this week and prepared for the debates we would have after lunch. We had more pizza for lunch today as well as rolls with butter (I eat so much bread and butter here) so I was excited and managed to get some snack to take back with us so we would be able to still have “coffee time” even though we were doing debates. I really enjoyed the debates because we were able to listen to the accuser and the defender of several different characters and then it was a free for all for whoever wanted to pick a position on the characters. I can’t wait until I get to accuse Gudrun. It should be interesting because Hannah is going to defend her so that means the debate will definitely be fun. After the debate and cookies it was time to work on the essay that is due tomorrow, now at 9 instead of 5 but I’m still going to shoot for 5 so I can be done before dinner. I managed to get my whole outline done, which takes the longest, and just had to write later on. This is a big deal because it marks the end of the second week of a bunch of work. From here on out we are going downhill and will have less assignments because they design this course so you have the most the first two weeks and less the last two weeks to enjoy independent travel and the country before you have to go back home.

Around 5:00 I decided to go check out the church and grabbed Hannah to go on an adventure. When we reached it we were reminded that there was going to be a wedding at 6:00 so we looked at the map that shows different places around Skalholt you can walk to and left. I was excited about going to see number five on the map, which was the fort. Interesting enough it was only about ten feet away from the church and was this small little hill, just big enough that if you were walking up to the cafeteria from Oddstofa you couldn’t see us lying there. Hannah and I stayed there a while and just relaxed from our long week, looking up at the sky. It’s so blue here and there are always lots of clouds. We were exhausted from all the late nights of homework and our conversation got pretty silly, especially when she once again remarked on how slow the birds are here and tried to figure out how the wind was blowing north-west. Love you roomie : ) We continued on our journey and managed to find a way through the fence to go down a little horse path to see a different view of the church I had never seen before. It is our goal to see the rest of the spots on the map before we leave, probably after Wednesday when we return from puffin island.

By the time we reached the church again it was almost time for supper so we stood in the door of the cafeteria and watched the bridal party taking pictures in front of the church. It was such a Meredith moment when all the rest of the girls came up to eat and we watched through the windows of the cafeteria as the bride got out of the car and walked into the church. Poor Dr. Novak didn’t understand why it was so exciting. Dinner was pretty amazing, consisting of what seemed like pork chops, corn, baked potatoes, and chocolate chip muffins for dessert. After a dinner conversation about crook hunts and Cornhuskin’ the teachers announced we were taking a trip to the local Reykholt convenience store to get ice cream and I climbed aboard the van to go have a break from the week. I grabbed a bag of cinnamon rolls for late night munchies and had a vanilla soft serve with chocolate syrup, yay ice cream! When we returned I finished up the rough draft of my paper and watched some glee music videos with the girls. I can’t wait for tomorrow’s celebration after the papers are turned in. It looks like it’s going to be a hot tub/movie/snack party and I’m definitely excited!

Day 17 Wonderful Sunday

After sleeping in this morning I realized I had forgotten what it felt like to be completely rested and feel ready for the day. We lounged around the house and after I ate breakfast I showed my paper to the professors during their office hours so I could turn it in before lunch and have the rest of the day free of stress. I had a list of activities purely fun that I wanted to achieve and I was looking forward to them. Lunch was amazing because we had those pork chops that we ate last night and potatoes together in a soup as well as the usual bread and butter. Afterward I was able to get a tour of the church courteous of Magga and found out a lot about its history. The stained windows were made to represent each one of the different bishops of Skalholt and she explained the different duties of the bishops and the wise bishops. She also talked about how she had grown up in this church, from getting christened here to getting confirmed and she also wanted to get married there. Soon it was time for the confirmation, two fourteen year old boys were getting confirmed today, and it was really exciting because a Norwegian choir was there and they were amazing. Of course the whole mass was in Icelandic but it was really pretty and made me think about how awesome it was that Christianity could be spread all over the world in so many different languages so the message was still heard. I loved when the priest said a special message to us girls (in English) and said how glad he was that we were there and able to share this special event with them. Not only was the singing glorious and the church beautiful but there were so many adorable little children in the church! There was this one little boy especially who was too cute and not only had on a little lid like my Grandpa used to wear but had suspenders on too. His whole family looked like they came straight out of a magazine and us girls were just thrilled.

It was perfect timing when the confirmation was over because that meant it was time for tea! They had these great waffle cookies in the shapes of hearts where you could put whipped cream and chocolate on top so I was very happy. I returned to Oddstofa and it was so warm today (60 degrees!) that I went out to get some sun in the grass with Hannah. It was so nice being able to lie in the sun and even skype outside barefooted and without a jacket. I played the piano and enjoyed having a free day until it was time for supper. Of course the food was once again great, consisting of turkey and gravy, sweet potatoes, and this amazing frozen fruit salad which only had my favorites in it: apples, oranges, bananas, and strawberries. After we ate Betsy, Hallie and I decided to go see the horses. Baby SEVEN was out there with his momma, all by themselves so I think he must have been born today. This theory was only proven more by the way he could barely move around and was still trying to figure out how to eat. Poor Hallie got a face full of momma horse when the foal got a little too close and she cut him off quite quickly from getting any closer to us. We tried to find the others but they were way too close to the water on the far side of the pasture and when we tried to go all the way out to see them we ran into the bog. I was thinking this area was just that way when it was rainy but no, it was worse when it was rainy, but still bad when it was hot and dry. It was hilarious trying to climb all the way back across the clumps and I definitely bonded with Hallie and Betsy even more throughout the episodes we had walking, and just sitting, in the jungle of a pasture. I finally made it back to Oddstofa and we celebrated with preparing to watch a movie as a group in the classroom, Pirates! It’s amazing how putting the comforter on three chairs can make it almost like a couch for one person. It’s Heimaey tomorrow and so I am going to get some shut eye before our big day ; )

Day 18 Puffin Island!

I didn’t know what to expect this morning when we left but I was really excited this morning when we arrived at the ferry. The wind was blowing and it was extremely cold so I was glad that I had brought many layers as well as all the extras like gloves and toboggans that I could think of. We had already gotten our tickets so we sat on the picnic tables outside and enjoyed our packed sandwiches we had brought from our temporary Icelandic home and prepared to board. Entertaining ourselves with looking at the cute little Icelandic children that seemed to be everywhere, it didn’t take long until we were able to get on the ferry. The ferry itself was really nice, as I have found most things to be here, and the first thing I spotted when I walked on was a movie theater showing Friends in English with Icelandic subtitles. Until it started moving I enjoyed watching that with Hannah and Katie and then I went on to explore. There was a cafeteria selling food and vending machines with Icelandic candies. I had bought cinnamon rolls, a special kind in Iceland that I just love, at the gas store on the way here so I didn’t buy any but I was tempted. The rooms inside were spacious and we managed to get two rows of five facing each other so if people wanted to sit inside (of course I didn’t but I did drop my bag off there) they could stay warm. It was only a thirty minute ride and I changed from clinging to the rail on the bottom of the ferry to going to the front and looking out by the flag and climbing the steps to see the upper deck. When we neared the islands we could see tons of bird nests on the rugged cliffs and I had to video us landing near Heimaey. I couldn’t believe it but at the very top of one cliff there was a small bunch of sheep. They were intrepid just like us girls!

Soon it was time to depart and we walked through the small town of Heimaey. I loved how brightly colored the houses were and everyone had used the lava that had fallen from volcanoes and turned the rocks into works of arts for their gardens. It wasn’t far to Hotel Thor’s Hammer and we were staying in the hostel right behind it. In front of the hotel there was this column of ash to show how high it had piled up during the last volcanic eruption and it was insane looking at this 140 cm tall column and knowing that was once how much black ash filled this place. Katie, Hannah, and I were sharing a room in the first floor of the hostel, right beside the five other girls and after we settled in we headed to the volcano show. For a moment I was worried that there was not going to be a show today because there was nobody else there but soon a lady came in and she had an Icelandic sheepdog with her. She was so cute and I loved playing with her before the show started. The show was very informative, showing pictures of the destruction of the volcanic eruption from 1973 and then shooting ahead to the 1990’s where people were resettling and building Heimaey back up to its former glory after recovering and researching the island. After the show the nice lady and her dog showed us to her house where she had kept a puffin that had not flown away last summer. He was so cute and still young enough that his beak hadn’t turned orange yet.

From there we left for the local church and the priest showed us around. It was beautiful inside and I really didn’t want to leave. I loved hearing how the priest had held service in the older church in a different location the day of the eruption and there were rescue people inside waiting to help evacuate the people when they needed to before it was destroyed by lava. This new church was being built at the same time and I loved looking at the blue ceiling and stars that were supposed to represent the sky. The people hadn’t even taken the bible and the valuables like the candlesticks out of this new church during the eruption because they had faith that it would not be destroyed and thankfully it was not. The churchyard was our next destination and after we stopped and looked at a statue that looked like a woman symbolizing the sea with people at her feet we walked through the gates and looked into the cemetery. I was excited to see a tombstone that was marked with Kjartan Olafsson because that was a character in our saga that we had been reading. Icelandic names end with dottir if it is a girl or son if it is a boy and their last names are always those of their fathers so Kjartan was Olaf’s son. I still think this is interesting, as is the fact that in their phonebook you look up people by their last names and not their first names. I was starving and happy that we were headed to eat supper. Café Maria was really expensive so we went to a local pizza shop, Pizza 67, where I got this amazing sub sandwich (number 67) with bacon, cheese, chicken, ham, mushrooms, French fries and Applesin to drink. Applesin is like this kind of orange lemonade and is very fizzy.

We stopped by Café Maria for ice cream and I got an orange sorbet to go since we were going to go bundle up and head out to climb the nearest volcano. I climbed all the way to the top of Eldfell, laughing at Dr. Grathwohl along the way as she ferociously collected rocks for her geologist brother. Climbing up is much easier than coming down but I made it back and Dr. Novak used his lunar bar power to crack rocks into pieces like Thor so we could all have lava rocks to bring back home. Finally it was time to head back to the hostel and right when we were getting ready for bed we heard some other college students who were studying abroad from University of Miami say they knew somebody from Meredith. It turns out that Lara’s cousin Dan was across the hall and so of course I had to tell him that I ran cross country with her. It was so cool to come all the way over here and meet somebody who knows someone from back home. What a small world!

Day 19 Returning from Heimaey

After waking up this morning we headed to the bakery across the street where I proceeded to get the biggest cinnamon roll I had ever seen and it was covered in pink strawberry frosting. Now not only did I have half a sandwich for later but also half of a donut for snack. Score! We all went for a walk down the cliffs and it was beautiful watching the waves crash against the rocks on the bottom. I spotted some puffins swimming out in the ocean and was very excited even though they were so far away that I had to use binoculars to get a really good look at them. When we finally reached this one spot you could actually see them nesting on the rocks really close and so I decided to just sit there and watch them while some of the other girls continued their walk. When they returned I couldn’t believe that I had sat them for almost an hour with Chelsea, Hannah, and Dr. Novak. It was so peaceful just sitting there and watching the islands and the looking down from the cliff, the time had just flown by. While they rested I decided to follow Dr. Novak and we blazed a trail over the hill with Hannah on a mission to see the harbor. I was so excited to climb to the top and find a wide expanse of lupin and dandelions and I kept climbing every little rock formation I could find since I was so rested from sitting on the cliff. We kept going through the town and on our way to find our hostel we walked through the other side of town. One of my favorite spots was when these two streets intersected each other and they both happened to have the same name.

It was about lunch time and Hannah and I walked with Chelsea and Katie to the little bakery we had gotten breakfast at so that they could buy something else while I enjoyed my sandwich from last night. We decided to leave on the 2:30 ferry instead of the 5:30 one because the previous night the ferry had broken down (that is why those boys were still there so we got to meet Lara’s cousin). While waiting to board the ferry I saw that cute little Icelandic sheepdog again and said goodbye before getting on to ride back to the mainland. It was windy and raining but I bundled up and watched the island as we sailed away and managed to be the last person off the ferry.

Our adventures were not yet over though as we headed to walk on ice. We drove through rocky paths to reach Solheimar, which means sun home, a glacier that we were going to walk on. It was amazing getting to walk on the ice and stand near the little caves that had formed. It was not as slick as I had imagined because of the ash that had spewed on it from the volcano but it was still freezing. It was sad that you could see piles of rock sticking up from the glacier showing how high it used to be before it started melting and I had to video it melting away. The poor glacier couldn’t stand up to the climate change. We soon left the glacier and headed to a little museum where we were going to look at the settlement houses. It was a bunch of houses built by one family as they started to get more money. They started in the sod house, went to a wooden house when they were more prosperous, then to a bigger one, etc. As they grew out of their houses they started using the smaller ones for livestock and such and you could tell a big difference from the small one room shed to the big house with different rooms and actual spaces between the beds. I really enjoyed the church, schoolhouse, and the little model houses that were for the hidden people. The houses even still had old saddles, cookware, and books, photo albums, and newspapers in them so they were amazing to explore.

Our day couldn’t be finished yet because we headed to a huge waterfall, wider than any we had seen this trip and we had seen a lot of waterfalls. It was almost deafeningly loud and I rushed up to the edge of the rock base with Katie and Hannah before running back, having been sprayed thoroughly with its mist. I thought that that waterfall couldn’t be topped and when we parked at the next site to go to the next one Dr. Grathwohl said lets be back in thirty minutes and us girls thought definitely, at the maximum. We quickly found out what she meant when she said it was mesmerizing because when we got behind the falls it was unbelievable. I saw the backside of a waterfall! That was not daredevil enough though and I climbed up one side of a hill up these foot-hole like steps in the mud with a few of the other girls until we were almost right beside it the top of it. Coming down was even more fun because it was basically a mudslide and if you didn’t grope onto the plants then you would slip all the way down to the bottom.

We all made it back safely and it was time to go eat supper. We had three options: the cafeteria at the settlement house that was serving meat soup (mysterious…), a quick stop at a gas station convenience store, or a local restaurant. Dr. Novak chose option three and stopped to look at a local café and we were very glad he did. For food there was lamb, boiled potatoes, and salad and it was delicious. To make it even better we got the last of the food so we were excited we hadn’t missed it, the lady who owns the store sang “Cry Me a River” and another blues song, and there was a little store in the restaurant where you could go buy pottery that her husband made and she glazed. It was amazing and her thirteen year old son entertained us with his explanation of why he didn’t like Justin Bieber but Led Zeppelin was the best and told us that we would like songs even better once his mother sang them. How sweet! The perfect ending of the day came when we were riding in Sleipnir on the way home and Dr. Novak played the harmonica. It seemed unreal like in a movie and I enjoyed listening to everything from O Susanna! to a few folk tunes. Heimaey adventures = success!

Day 20 Iceland: Chaos to Sustainability

I woke up bright and early this morning before my alarm, my body telling me I needed to get a jump start on the reading assignments we had to finish before class. I managed to read all of the sections and do the study questions for my assigned part that I was to do with Carolyn and then had time to catch up on my blog from where I had no internet at Heimaey. It was pretty interesting reading about the history of Iceland’s political and environmental disasters. The settlers came over from Norway and basically treated it like Norway and didn’t realize that the soil was very different so the trees wouldn’t replenish as fast and neither would the soil that they used to plant crops. The growing season was also shorter because they were at a more northern latitude. Unfortunately, they also brought over the same livestock and pigs and goats, who are rooters, would destroy the roots of the trees and that led to even more destruction. Iceland was far gone on the path to environmental chaos when they finally realized things were different and they needed to change. They did get rid of the goats and pigs and kept only sheep, horses, and minimal cows. To help fix the problem they made the highlands common grazing grounds for sheep and had quotas for how many of the livestock each farmer could have. Now Iceland is replanting trees and trying to keep its environment stable.

Class on these subjects was after a wonderful lunch of soup and bread and butter. Then there was a little time where we could work on whatever we needed to before supper and I organized my pictures and tried to get a head start on some of the work due Friday afternoon. Dinner was amazing because it was lamb and vegetable stew, pretzel rolls and butter, and for dessert skyr cake! Skyr, cream, and graham cracker crust make it my favorite dessert so far and I am always very happy when it comes out of the kitchen. After dinner Derfena, a girl who worked at Skalholt the previous summers, came up to visit and I really enjoyed getting to talk to her. Her house was so close that we could see it from the window of the sun room and she told me that she used to go on riding tours across the country with her aunt Holmfrithur when she was younger. She was part of the Icelandic singing tour when she was younger and now she works in the small craft shop in Reykholt where they sell these wool blankets with horses on them that I really want. She told us that she was working there all she could so she could go on a tour of Asia for two months this winter with her boyfriend and it sounded really exciting. It’s so different here in Iceland because they end school at sixteen instead of eighteen and so at twenty-one she has all ready been out of high school and her parents’ house for so long. I couldn’t even imagine leaving the country for two months without a school group or something, but it sure does sound adventurous. We ended with s’mores that Betsy had purchased at Selfoss and we toasted the marshmallows on the gas stove and melted the Icelandic chocolate bars on cookies instead of graham crackers. I went on a walk after that out into the horse pasture and although they were out of sight I really enjoyed just walking in the cool air and seeing the sun as it is so bright right now even though it’s late. I love Iceland : )

Day 21 Eg er vinur Solheima!

This morning after breakfast we headed to Solheimar, which means sun home in Icelandic. It was the first time the professors had taken a group there so it continued the many firsts we had had on this trip. This is an ecologically friendly community where the able change their lives to help the disabled instead of the traditional view that disabled people should conform to the “normal” way of life. It originally started out as a children’s home founded by Sesselja Sigmundsdottir who was controversial in her society for letting disabled children play with non-disabled children and for letting them all eat vegetables which were thought to be just for animals. Now it is comprised of about one hundred adults with forty-three being disabled and they all live together in this area. Foreign interns and volunteers also come to work and help out at the community and some live on site. There are six main workshops: candle making, weaving, art, ceramics, soap making, and wood working. Rudolf Steiner’s ideas had a great impact on this community and so they focus on the possibilities and not the limitations of their community members. Solheimar produces organic vegetables, has many herbs and trees, some guesthouses, and a local shop and café. There is even a church, gym and swimming pool, and Sesseljuhus, a completely sustainable house which is known as the first sustainable house in Iceland.

After a historical presentation by Axel, he led us around to the different workshops and then we were able to get eat lunch in the cafeteria with the residents. It was a really cool experience because there was no table set aside just for us so we intermingled with them. After fish, potatoes, rice, and fruit, we were introduced to Paulo who was going to show us the different herbs growing at Solheimar. We were able to help him pick horsetail, angelica, and birch leaves and he told us the different things they were used to treat in teas and how to tell them apart from some of the poisonous varieties. I really enjoyed this and was excited because after this we were going to the greenhouse to meet the man who had walked the Ring Road around Iceland (over nine hundred miles!) When we met him he was this muscular little old man wearing only his swim trunks and his capacity for knowledge was huge. I could easily see him walking the long miles in a month because he was so energetic. When we met him he introduced himself with rhymes and then we covered the topics of the universes, the different American state flags, theology, women, and probably some more I didn’t catch all in a brief amount of time. It was definitely an experience I won’t forget soon. It was time to visit the gift shop and see all the wonderful things the residents here had made. After some shopping and a Magnum chocolate and hazelnut ice cream bar it was time to head back to Skalholt and I was going to look for Holmfrithur to discuss independent travel plans.

Unfortunately, she was not there, but I did get to talk to Dagmar which is always exciting. She discussed horse riding with me and said I could watch three of her horse films on Sunday so I am looking forward to that. Magga told me how she had less confidence with horses now that she was older because she was less stupid than when she was younger and I liked talking with them about their different horses. Supper was amazing: chicken, corn, french fries, cheese bread, skyr cake, and lemon cake, and after we gathered around to listen to Hallie read aloud the fairy tales we had to read. It was a great day and tomorrow is Iceland’s independence day, celebrating their independence from Denmark so it should be another interesting time!

Entry 5: June 8, 2011

Day 5 Catching Up to Charge Ahead
June 1st

I started off today knowing we were going to have a bunch of classes but I was not sure just how interesting they would be. I really enjoyed the history class we started with because the whole time we were learning about Norway and Denmark I kept thinking “we are so close. I can’t believe I’m in Iceland!” We discussed how tribes of people would have to rely on one another because they were isolated from other groups and it made me think of my little Icelandic family I have made here at Skalholt. These angels are truly amazing and we have become so close so fast. When we talked about how they solved disputes among themselves I was the warrior leader who would keep my position of power because I single-handedly killed fifty enemies in my last battle. In agreement of me staying the leader everyone would brandish their spears and if they would disagree they would murmur. It was pretty interesting but I think the class ended with me staying in command.

After history class we headed up to lunch, today’s soup was cream of leak and they also had vegetable casserole and as usual bread and fruit. I love how healthy everything is here and it fills you up without making you feel like you can’t walk all the way back to your room. Of course before I left I had to pick up another apple. I currently have two in my room so when I get hungry I can eat one of those and keep the core to give to the horses on my next trek to the pasture. Upon our return we went to Reykholt, the little convenience store not too far away from our home here. Besides some basic needed supplies I delved into the snack area and came out with some strawberry skyr, the best Icelandic yogurt which resembles a creamy pudding, and a bag of little chocolate candy balls called kropp. Hannah picked up some cool Icelandic gummy bears which were chewier than ours and looked more like Mickey Mouses with their big ears. On the way back we also stopped at this awesome little wool store that had everything hand made out of Icelandic wool from sweaters and toboggans to blankets and little figures. I’m going to have a hard time deciding what I am going to bring back with me!

Back at Skalholt it was time for some serious studying and preparation because our next class was going to be on Icelandic myths and we needed to read them before our discussions. I was extremely excited when I came upon The Building of Asgard’s Wall which involves a magical stallion named Svadilfari as he is used by a giant in disguise to trick the gods into giving him one of their goddesses, the sun, and the moon. My favorite part was when Svadilfari fathered a grey colt named Sleipnir who had eight legs to enhance his speed and saw that “no horse will ever be able to keep up with him.” Our van is named after this amazing colt and it has managed to keep us traveling around Iceland in style with our Meredith angel magnets showing everyone who we are as we go from place to place. This myth just made me so much more excited about the fact that we are going to be riding Icelandic horses soon!

Dinner consisted of lamb stew, potatoes, salad, garlic bread, and more skyr cake! I was so excited about that; it completed my meal perfectly. Afterward Betsy and I prepared for our presentation of a myth tomorrow, featuring dwarves, giants, gods in disguise, and an interesting kind of mead. I’m looking forward to hearing everyone else present tomorrow and learning more about this mythology. Today has been very busy with lots of work but I’m glad everything for tomorrow is done now and I can just look out my window where it has just finished raining. I’m looking forward to getting a large chunk of my homework that is due Friday done tomorrow and going to see the horses again.

Day 6 Shopping in Selfoss
June 2nd
Today was an awesome day overall. Breakfast was as usual and afterwards we had another class on Icelandic mythology. Betsy and I presented our myth fabulously and it was really interesting getting to hear about everyone else’s. Our group of Icelandic angels is a very musical, outgoing group and we love to sing. On the way to lunch we burst into several Sound of Music songs which fit the landscape here perfectly including My Favorite Things and the actual Sounds of Music. I love how close we all are : )

After lunch we went to Selfoss, a town nearby that had lots of shops and I was very excited to go buy some Icelandic souvenirs. I ended up finding a lot of great children’s books which were what I was looking for, although I still want to find one that has both the Icelandic and the English together, preferably an actual Icelandic tale. I did come out with two Disney fairytales that were in Icelandic but I figured I would know the story enough to tell it with just the pictures, a Richard Scarry My First 1000 Words book which I am very excited about because it has the English, Dutch, and Icelandic word besides each picture and features some of my favorite characters from when I was little, and an awesome puzzle showing all the places we have gone so far and animals that live near them. After we left that store we went on to get one of the famous hot dogs which completely surpassed my expectations. My teachers said they were great but how different could a hot dog be? Very different actually. The bun was toasted, the meat itself even seemed sweeter, and the ketchup was different too. That and a glass Coca-Cola, the first soda I have had since I have been here, made for a great experience standing in the little shop area waiting for the rain to stop. I was glad that the girl at the counter could speak English because in a totally Icelandic menu I was worried I would have to resort to pointing in order to get a hot dog that was not covered in some odd sort of topping.

When we reached Skalholt it was about five o’clock so Betsy, Hallie, and I decided we had time to go see the horses before dinner. They were so beautiful and this time instead of being in the field or near the water on the right side they were all the way near the river and the hot springs where we had been the first day. I was so excited to get pictures with that in the background. I took tons of pictures, especially of the baby, when all of a sudden we see…another BABY! This one was separate with his mom down by the river instead of up the slope where they had come to meet us when they saw us coming. We climbed down to see them and the other horses started nickering at them to come join. I watched in absolute glee as the mare started trotting towards the rest of the herd, her little baby following behind, and of course I had to get it on video. It really made my day to know there was already two foals, this was really young because it had to be born yesterday or today since it was no there the previous day, and we were only six days into our program.

Supper of course was amazing, battered fish with vegetables, salad, rice with curry, and for dessert the thing we had all been craving and missing most, chocolate! And it was chocolate cake to make it even better, with a dark chocolate frosting, some kind of banana cream in the middle, and lots of cool whip. We had a great time laughing like usual and discussed how we might be the craziest group that Dr. Novak and Dr. Grathwohl had ever taken to Iceland. I believe it. I called our group Iceland: The Musical and that pretty much describes our crazy antics, loads of laughs, and how we turn every little word into an excuse to burst into song. After that dinner it was time to crack down on some homework and I managed to finish everything that is due for Friday for one course, as well as the homework due for my English class tomorrow. During that time there was a solar eclipse and I trekked out on the hill to look at how the sun shone through the little hole we made in a piece of cardboard onto a piece of paper. It was really cool how the partial solar eclipse was making a shadow on the once perfectly whole circle. Just a great day and now I have to go make a list of things I still want to get from Iceland before I leave!

Day 7 Most Intrepid
June 3rd
Class was awesome because we all had to present the myths that we had individually read. I had The Lay of Thrym and managed to keep everyone laughing as I told the story of how the strong god Thor disguised himself as a bride in order to win back his hammer from the king of the giants, Thrym. I was very excited for lunch because we were going to meet the famous Icelandic online journalist Eyglo and her mother. I couldn’t believe she could fluently speak four languages and had lived in so many countries. We had chicken for lunch, something they don’t have much of here, and of course it was awesome just like everything else they cook. Then we headed back and bundled up to go on an adventure with Eyglo and her mother Etta.

First we stopped at Stong, a farm settlement that was covered with ash when Mt. Hekla blew and they decided to make a recreation of it in 1974. It was made largely out of wood so you could tell that it was built when Iceland still had a lot of trees. We also visited the remains of the original building and you could still see where the main room, women’s sitting room, lavatory, and entryway were even though the walls were not up to divide the rooms and ferns were growing inside. We decided to go see the waterfalls and after getting held up for a little while, earning us the group name of Most Intrepid, we hiked over to see the second largest waterfall in Iceland. It was pretty amazing even though we weren’t allowed to get too close for fear of falling off the edge of the cliff. Then we headed off to see Hjalparfoss, which means “Rescue Falls” in English. This was one of my favorite waterfalls because it was really two of them right beside each other and we were able to get right down next to it and get pictures up close. Near the waterfall was this little cave I climbed up with Hannah and Katie so we could look for trolls. We were quite excited after the little picnic we had eaten earlier for supper, consisting of more chicken, muffins, cinnamon donut-like pastries, and hot cocoa, and the hiking was exhilarating. We all climbed back in Sleipnir, our van named after the wonderful eight legged horse, and headed back to Skalholt where we would say goodbye to our guests.

It had definitely been an interesting and busy day and I was ready to crash but there were still a little homework left to do before I could think about what was coming tomorrow. I think there might be a Viking festival so I shall see what that entails soon!

Day 8 Eyes Only for Horses
 June 4th
Class was moved from 9:30 to 2:00 so we had a free morning and while everyone was taking naps or doing homework I had already finished I decided I was going to see the horses after breakfast. I had plunged halfway across the wild things (grassy clumps that are like sponges and resemble the monsters from that book) when the horse trail stopped and I was left on my own. They were twice as far out as the last time they were in this part of the field, all the way by the river on the right today, but I was determined I was going to see them. I kept trekking across the field and they stood there watching me. I bet they were thinking "she's not going to make it; whoever wins this bet gets the apple today." I made it all the way to the little lake that was in between the horses and I when the ground became boggy and I sunk, literally. My whole boot went under and saw how waterproof only helps you if you are not submerged, although they did dry very quickly. Not to be finished that quickly I headed towards the hot spring. I knew there were two foals with the band of horses and they couldn’t have made it through that marsh, so I looked for dry land near the river. Sure enough there were hoof prints leading away towards them and I quickly followed them. Of course it couldn’t be that easy and the land started breaking up into these little marshy islands separated by small rivers feeding into the big one. Some of these would have been easy enough to jump over if it hadn’t been for the steam that was rising from them and the muddy bank that I would have had to land on. I settled for sitting on the overhang that was by the hot spring and working on my paper while looking for the horses from afar, knowing I had the whole day to come back and see them. I was headed back to Oddstofa, my temporary home, when I saw a dark figure ahead crossing the path. I thought it was someone coming to see the horses and so I rushed up to tell them that they were too far out in the mud when I realized it was a mare. Can someone say BABY? I couldn’t believe it but it was definitely a new one, and the foal was so tiny I knew it had to have been born last night. She rushed across the path to the opposite side away from the horses and her foal tried its best to hurry up, untangling its long legs that it hadn’t yet learned to fully control. This was the third foal since we had been here. The bay had had a foal recently before we had arrived, the brown mare had foaled Tuesday or Wednesday, and this sorrel had foaled last night. They hid in the wild things on the other side of the field and I knew the baby was so new that I didn’t try to go after them but kept it in mind for later.

I skyped my mom with Miss Katie Fair, went off to a wonderful lunch, and then it was free time before class. I played Disney songs on the piano for the girls and learned a couple new songs by ear that I want to have finished before I go home. The grand piano in the classroom is gorgeous and there are such great acoustics. Hannah played Heart and Soul for me and I taught Hallie the bass part for A Thousand Miles so that was really fun before we had our class on the “end of the world” myths. It was very interesting and only lasted until about 3:30 when we left to go to tea. Tea was extremely amazing and was more like a meal than a snack. They had cinnamon apple pie with chocolate on top, some kind of chocolate chip chewy bar like pie, and chocolate cake. There were also the great cookies and crackers that I always eat and I even tried some hot tea, mango peach to be exact. I think next time I probably need to put less water in it but I’m learning. It poured down rain until supper and there was a double rainbow stretching from the bridge to the church that was beautiful and made it all worth it.

The dinner was especially fancy tonight because the guests were there so we had tablecloths, folded napkins, and the chef wore his tall hat. It was lamb, potatoes, and salad, and a chocolate dessert with graham cracker pudding that had the same exact crème that I loved so much from the skyr cake. Absolute success. I thought that was the high point of my day but I as well as Dr. Novak, Hannah, and Chelsea were headed out to see the horses. They were much closer, only halfway through the wild things this time, and eager as usual to approach us when they saw us coming. I saw the first baby that was born and was really excited when I realized the newest foal was out there too. The second one was unable to be found but I was still enjoying feeding the apples to the other mares and taking loads of pictures. Imagine my excitement when the mare that had just foaled started walking all the way up to me to get some food! It had started to rain and I only noticed because my camera was fogging up. I walked up closer to the mares and their foals while Dr. Novak called me the horse whisperer and when I saw the last mare and her foal that I hadn’t seen earlier walk right up to me I did the happy dance Hannah was predicting. She knows me well. I was in horse heaven, surrounded by three mares and their foals as well as countless other mares about to foal soon. I couldn’t believe how beautiful and amazing they were and kept holding my hand over my camera so the rain wouldn’t get into the lens. I fairly danced back to where the others were petting a pregnant mare when I had taken at least a hundred shots.

Day 9 In the Big City
 June 5th
 Today we went to Reykjavik, the big city here in Iceland. Our goals were to see the cultural sights and to find souvenirs for our families and friends. It is about an hour from Skalholt so we left right after breakfast, packing our sandwiches so we could eat lunch there. Upon arriving we manage to score a great parking spot and made everyone around us ill because their little cars missed it. The first spot we went to was the 871 +/- 2 Museum, named for the year the longhouse inside had to be evacuated because of the volcano eruption. It was a pretty cool exhibit because as you walked around the outside there were little screens where people popped up and did the things that the information cards were talking about. On the inside of the museum there was the actual walls of the longhouse as well as a maze where you could build it yourself and lots of touch screen interactive games. Afterward we ate lunch on the bus, which was hilarious because everyone thought we were leaving and kept trying to get our parking spot, and then went to the Icelandic Flea Market. I bought a sweater handmade by the woman at one stand from sheep wool and it’s extremely warm. Katie and Hannah also bought pretty ones and Dr. Novak purchased some “stinking shark” that we are going to try tomorrow. It should be an experience.

After the flea market we headed to Hallgrimskirkja, the church in Reykjavik that was so tall you could see forever once you climbed to the top of it (or took the elevator). Outside there was a statue of Leifur Eriksson that made Hannah extremely happy and inside they were setting up for a music concert so that was interesting. The inside was shaped like a boat and the tall windows cast light everywhere. There was even a more Nordic looking statue of Jesus with flowers near his feet. Us three girls went to the top to view Reykjavik and the wind seemed like it would have blown us away if it hadn’t been for the bars on the windows. It was time for souvenir shopping and I managed to get most of the things for my family purchased as well as a few extras. They had every kind of shop imaginable and when we had gotten what we needed we headed to get to try what was supposed to be the best hot dogs in Iceland. I had tried the ones in Selfoss and I have to admit this one tasted the same to me so I must not be a hot dog connoisseur. What tasted better than that was the gelato I got at the Perlan, a building with a giant glass dome that houses the Saga Museum. We didn’t get to go the museum today but we might get a chance to go Wednesday when we go see Parliament so I’m excited. Dr. Novak also surprised me with a horse poster that shows pictures of all the different colors of Icelandic horses or hestar in Icelandic. It’s perfect, thank you so much!

When we returned to Skalholt I headed out with my apple to see the horses and like always they were amazing. This one light dapple palomino stood over me and ate right beside me the whole time. She’s been my favorite all along and I think she has claimed me, seeing as how I practically lied down underneath her and she followed me around until my camera ran out of memory and I headed back to my room. It was amazing how close the foals came up to me today; I think they are getting used to me just like their mothers and the rest of the herd. I’m going to have so many pictures of them I will have to make them their own separate book.

Day 10 Sukkulaoi: Chocolate
 June 6th
Bright and early this morning I started finishing my paper that was due at 5:00 on the Norse myths we have been reading in class. I made my way up to breakfast by myself because everyone was sleeping soundly and then returned to finish the paper beside Miss Katie Fair. After that we all went up to lunch and discussed whether or not we were going the Viking festival nearby. Hannah and I were definitely up for it and Dr. Grathwohl said that if four or fewer wanted to go we would all go with Dogmar, who works at Skalholt, in her car. Everyone sounded confident that they wanted to go so it seemed like we would go in the bus instead. I finished my lasagna and rolls and headed back to enjoy a lazy Sunday afternoon, skyping my mom and Hannah's parents and reading the assignment that was due tomorrow evening. Soon it was 3:30 and it was time to meet up at the church to go to the festival. It turned out that nobody was ready to go except Hannah, Chelsea, and I so we headed up to church alone. I was excited because this meant that we got to ride with Dogmar, a funny woman with bright red curly hair. When we got there she told us she had never went to the festival but she was excited to go and if it was not entertaining enough we would at least get the best chocolate in the world, because that is found in Iceland. This was sounding better all the time to me.

I rode shotgun and it was definitely an experience I will never forget. She was hilarious and was very open about answering all my questions and helping me learn new Icelandic words. She told us about her life before she came to Iceland and how she lives now and shortly we were nearing the festival. We walked around to the back where it looked like they were all huddled in a group and of course they were speaking Icelandic so we couldn't understand what they were saying. Dogmar kept making up things about them (she is an author so she is very creative) and said that they were dividing up for a war, "you be a goodie and I'll be a baddie." Finally after picking sides they marched to the open field in front of their tents where they proceeded to speak and then fight. And when I say fight I mean seriously hitting each other. You could see the force as they lunged at each other with spears and swords, banging into each other’s shields and dying one by one. When they first started fighting this little black Pomeranian started yapping and then an Icelandic sheepdog, which looks like what we would call a chow back home, walked up to it and started barking back. Then at the end of one fight these little children, who belonged to one woman left fighting, started cheering for their “mothir.” Then their mother fought their father and when she won she cheered “konur” which meant women! At the end they lined up to charge the crowd and one came right up in Hannah’s face screaming so of course she screamed back. The festival was small, as Dogmar said everything is in Iceland, but a humorous occasion and a great success.

To finish off the outing we went to get hot chocolate at a little café we had passed on the way there. This, however, was not ordinary hot chocolate but the most divine creation I have ever tried. Instead of putting hot water or even milk in the cup, the chef literally melted these dark chocolate chips and then added a little whipped crème to the top. It was like eating a melted candy bar, liquid enough to drink but creamy enough you could eat it with a spoon. He also set out a plate of chocolate candies and a little cup of the chocolate chips so we could see what they tasted like. I was so excited that I could fill my chocolate meter filling up over and over and I was catching up on the chocolate that I had not had so much of lately. While we ate Dogmar taught us more Icelandic like the phrase very good, “mjög góð” which is prounouced muer-got. The hot chocolate was definitely mjög góð.

After that lovely experience Hannah and I went to see the horses that were further up near the road and so much closer than usual. The white one actually got her muzzle in my pocket today but found that there was no more apple because she had already eaten it. The foals were all resting in the grass beside their mothers and they did not like the wind at all, keeping their heads down low and snorting when it blew too hard. It was time for supper and not only did the fish, rice, and salad taste amazing but they had that chocolate pudding confection that I loved so much the other day. I cannot complain about the amount of chocolate I have had today, it has definitely had me bouncing off the walls. It was a relaxing yet fun day and I am glad that I had time to catch up and just spend time with the girls. I taught Hannah how to play Beauty and the Beast and we are going to work on some more songs this month. I love teaching music to people; maybe I’ll think about doing lessons on the side…

Day 11 Adventuring Angels
June 7th
Today the calendar for the afternoon read “adventure” and on the way up to breakfast we discussed the different possibilities that could entail. There was a heated swimming pool up towards Selfoss that we could visit or we could go see caves. Not surprisingly, there was a unanimous vote for caves and so after class and lunch we prepared ourselves for our adventure out in the cold. Today was especially cold because the wind was blowing really hard and we had been being tossed around on the way up to meals all day. We piled in trust Sleipnir, our bus named after the Norse mythical eight-legged horse, and headed on to see Laugarvatnshellar. When we arrived at the caves little sheep running around here and there and they were adorable. We walked past the skittering animals and made our way to the sign to see the historical information about these caves. It turns out that people lived in the caves in 1910 and 1918. The first couple built a kitchen, living room/bedroom, and bathroom in the caves and the second couple had two of their three children in there. We climbed up get in there and I couldn’t imagine living there day in and day out. After the first cave we decided to climb up to see another one and carefully walked and climbed up the rocks, trying not to slip on ones that were not packed tight together. We finally reached as far as we could go and couldn’t quite reach the other cave safely but we were not going to be disappointed. Instead we made our way to the first cave again and proceeded to climb on top of it, sitting in little grooves that looked like slides. Hallie was especially amazing because she was scared of heights and still did it with the rest of us, so proud of her!

We left Laugarvatnshellar and headed to this “galleri” where the lady made everything out of sheep wool. There were some amazing things and I know she must take such a long time to create them. I was so excited when I saw a little horse and I had to get it. Then when Katie was looking for something else I spotted the perfect match…a little riding girl complete with a saddle and bridle. It’s just the cutest pair and I’m so excited about bringing them home along with my other souvenirs. It was almost time for supper when we returned and we cleaned up to get ready to eat. Like usual I was starving and after braving the wind I was even more anxious for food. Not to disappoint, Skalholt provided trout, potatoes, carrots, bread and butter, and skyr pudding for dessert which was made even fancier with the chocolate and caramel drizzled across the plate. Afterward we headed down to a little sitting room to have a meeting about our MAXSA assignment, a kind of journal assignment we do to help us deal with things like leaving the country and culture shock, and I thoroughly enjoyed sharing and listening to everyone else share about how they’re dealing with being in Iceland. We all look out for each other so much here and I always feel so close to these girls, they’re amazing. Hannah and I proceeded to go swing on the children’s set outside of the main building after our meeting and I even slid down the slide a couple of times. I believe you never get to old for playgrounds. I just finished my history and literature assignment and instead of getting ahead on homework due Friday I believe I am going to catch up on some much needed sleep. Góða nótt!

Day 12 Exploring Skalholt
June 8th
I actually went to bed before midnight last night, first time since the first day we got here and I had forgotten what it felt like to have more than six hours sleep…amazing! After breakfast we had class on the first part of the Laxdaela Saga that we are reading. I found it really interesting when the slave girl Melkorka turned out to be a princess because she was the daughter of an Irish king, who had been captured and enslaved when she was only fifteen years old. I kept thinking, this is like Princess Jasmine disguising herself as a peasant to get away from the palace for a day! When we were done with class and lunch we were visited by Mjoll Snaesdottir, an archeologist who had helped with the excavation of ruins right outside the church at Skalholt. She took us through the ruins of the building and showed us all the different rooms that were once there. I loved how there was a schoolroom and right beside it was a bedroom that housed thirty to forty boys. Back then they didn’t have grades but would just go to school long enough to get their education, so if they were smarter they could get out in as little as three years. I also found it interesting how most of the boys there turned out to be either priests or lawyers. The bishop’s room was as far away from the dormitory as possible and we thought that either he was not fond of the rowdy boys or did not get along with the schoolmaster who taught there. They had to cover up the deep cellar with gravel so tourists would not fall in but I wish I could have seen it since it was over a meter deep and was intact when they found it. She also told us that they had found a number of buttons when they were discovering this place because there were drains along the floors and buttons must have popped off the boys’ clothing when they were getting dressed in a hurry.

Then we headed out of the ruins and into the tunnel that would have led straight into the church back then but now heads into a little museum and then into the modern church. The tunnel was much wider than I was expecting and was made with turf and stone on the walls and stones on the walkway. Inside the museum was the sarcophagus of bishop Pall Jonsson. It had cracks in the stone cover in several places and when the discoverers had opened it up Iceland had the biggest downpour it had seen in a while. Kind of a bad sign don’t you think? Also in the museum were some really cool tombstones that were engraved and written upon and Mjoll seemed to know about every single one. We then headed up the stairs to the church and walked outside where she showed us the replica of the old church that had been destroyed years ago. She told us she wished they had built a replica somewhere else because when you build it on top of remains then you can never see the remains again. I had never thought about it before and enjoyed hearing an expert’s opinion on the issue. Afterward we headed into the cafeteria for tea, which is always my favorite meal because it is basically just desserts. We had amazing chocolate cake with banana cream in the middle and that cinnamon apple pie with chocolate topping on top again. I was so full I couldn’t believe that dinner was going to be soon. I headed back to the house to research some independent travel and decided that right now I have a plan with Hannah and Katie. We have three days and we are thinking about doing small cultural things one day like museums, some kind of adventure like caving the next day, and then the third day we want to do individual things and I want to take a horseback riding tour around some landmarks that we have been reading about in our saga like Helgafell, the holy mountain. Soon it was time for supper and I was so excited because it was…spaghetti and meatballs with garlic bread! To make it even better we had individual deserts again, by which I mean they separate it out on plates for us and decorate them. We had a joke that they did that because we eat so much and they didn’t want us demolishing their food (it probably was true). They were crepes with chocolate sauce on top and cream in the middle and they were delicious.

Mjoll is staying here tonight and so she decided to watch the movie with us that we watched, Gisli’s Saga. It was a really interesting movie because they were dealing with blood feuds so every time one murder occurred someone would have to take vengeance and it just kept going on and on. One of my favorite scenes was when a woman was told to have her worst temper in order to scare away men looking for someone they were hiding and so she kept nagging at them until finally one of the searchers asked her husband “is that what she’s like when she says good morning?” Another great scene was when the wife of the last man to be killed, Gisli, who they were looking for half the movie, stones a man who was trying to kill him. Of course to this he replies, “I always knew I had a good wife.” The music was really great and I thought it was hilarious, especially when his wife and daughter threw goat milk at his attackers and he seemed to always be standing in the open staring at them coming, as if he wanted them to come kill him. Although we stayed here today I really enjoyed myself and I’m excited to see what tomorrow will bring.
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Entry 4: 31st May 2011

Day 4 Charging Ahead

I started off today knowing we were going to have a bunch of classes but I was not sure just how interesting they would be. I really enjoyed the history class we started with because the whole time we were learning about Norway and Denmark I kept thinking “we are so close. I can’t believe I’m in Iceland!” We discussed how tribes of people would have to rely on one another because they were isolated from other groups and it made me think of my little Icelandic family I have made here at Skalholt. These angels are truly amazing and we have become so close so fast. When we talked about how they solved disputes among themselves I was the warrior leader who would keep my position of power because I single-handedly killed fifty enemies in my last battle. In agreement of me staying the leader everyone would brandish their spears and if they would disagree they would murmur. It was pretty interesting but I think the class ended with me staying in command.

After history class we headed up to lunch, today’s soup was cream of leak and they also had vegetable casserole and as usual bread and fruit. I love how healthy everything is here and it fills you up without making you feel like you can’t walk all the way back to your room. Of course before I left I had to pick up another apple. I currently have two in my room so when I get hungry I can eat one of those and keep the core to give to the horses on my next trek to the pasture. Upon our return we went to Reykholt, the little convenience store not too far away from our home here. Besides some basic needed supplies I delved into the snack area and came out with some strawberry skyr, the best Icelandic yogurt which resembles a creamy pudding, and a bag of little chocolate candy balls called kropp. Hannah picked up some cool Icelandic gummy bears which were chewier than ours and looked more like Mickey Mouses with their big ears. On the way back we also stopped at this awesome little wool store that had everything hand made out of Icelandic wool from sweaters and toboggans to blankets and little figures. I’m going to have a hard time deciding what I am going to bring back with me!

Back at Skalholt it was time for some serious studying and preparation because our next class was going to be on Icelandic myths and we needed to read them before our discussions. I was extremely excited when I came upon The Building of Asgard’s Wall which involves a magical stallion named Svadilfari as he is used by a giant in disguise to trick the gods into giving him one of their goddesses, the sun, and the moon. My favorite part was when Svadilfari fathered a grey colt named Sleipnir who had eight legs to enhance his speed and saw that “no horse will ever be able to keep up with him.” Our van is named after this amazing colt and it has managed to keep us traveling around Iceland in style with our Meredith angel magnets showing everyone who we are as we go from place to place. This myth just made me so much more excited about the fact that we are going to be riding Icelandic horses soon!
Dinner consisted of lamb stew, potatoes, salad, garlic bread, and more skyr cake! I was so excited about that; it completed my meal perfectly. Afterward Betsy and I prepared for our presentation of a myth tomorrow, featuring dwarves, giants, gods in disguise, and an interesting kind of mead. I’m looking forward to hearing everyone else present tomorrow and learning more about this mythology. Today has been very busy with lots of work but I’m glad everything for tomorrow is done now and I can just look out my window where it has just finished raining. I’m looking forward to getting a large chunk of my homework that is due Friday done tomorrow and going to see the horses again.

Entry 3: 30th May 2011

Day 3 Fall-ing in Love with Iceland

Today was the first day of class and somehow having class in your socks makes it so much better; I don’t know why we don’t do it that way at home. After going over a schedule of the week we watched a video and learned that if you are certain you are right you will never be open to learn anything. Our topic for discussion was geographic orientation and I learned that during the summer Iceland has twenty hours of sunlight and the sun is lower than it is at home as it makes its way around. This is truly my kind of country because as it is set up here we had breakfast, half of class time, then a snack, another half of snack time, and then lunch! Snack was great because there were Icelandic cookies that were kind of like square vanilla Oreos and then more of that amazing cheese and crackers. After the rest of class we headed to lunch which consisted of this great cauliflower soup and more bread and cheese. We ate with an Icelander named Axel who was really funny (he said he was the new girl when one of the cooks came out to introduce themselves) and told us about a lot of Icelandic customs, like when they bathe in the water on the night of the solstice when it is supposed to be mystical.

After lunch we piled in the van and headed on to Gullfoss. It was truly amazing. I bundled up in all my rain gear and was prepared to see the waterfall behind ropes but had no idea how close we could get to it. When I first saw it I was blown away and then I saw the rainbow, wait, make that rainbows!!! They were everywhere and in one place I even saw the end of one. The mist kept blowing in our faces and it was incredible. We headed down the path to where we could get on a rock that stuck out into the river and saw the waterfall closer up, along the way taking plenty of pictures of all the rainbows that kept popping up. I actually stood on an outcropping and touched the freezing water of the waterfall, while my friends watched closely behind me to spot me if I would slip.

Thanks girls! Then we headed up the steps to see the waterfall up high before going to the gift shop. They had so many Icelandic souvenirs I had a hard time deciding what to get. I thought that was going to be the highlight of my day but I had forgotten we were going to see an Icelandic geyser named Strokkur that goes off about every five minutes. When we got there we saw this amazing pool that was bluer than anything I had ever seen. Soon Strokkur blew and we hurried over there to see it for ourselves. We got the best picture of all of us girls with our backs to it so you can really see our expression when it surprised us. I’ve never seen anything like it! On the way back we passed even more of the Icelandic horses and sheep that fill the fields on each side of the Ring Road, the road that goes all the way around the outskirts of this country, and I took even more pictures. The girls said if I was at a meeting for something in my life being out of control I would say, “Hi, I’m Katie Riggs and I’m addicted to taking pictures.” I have to admit I did take over four hundred today alone but I want to make sure I have a shot that is amazing and there is just too much to look at and capture! We headed back to make it in time for dinner, which of course was amazing. We had lamb with gravy, roasted vegetables, apples in yogurt, and to top it all off this spice cake with caramel and whipped cream. I’m definitely never going to miss a meal here if I can help it. Afterward, Katie and I decided to go see…the horses again! Big surprise for me to agree to that, right? It was really pretty walking with the sun lower in the sky making this incredible light for photos. I took so many pictures, the horses were gorgeous and the sun behind them made it even better. They were so sweet and I couldn’t believe how gentle they are. I fed one an apple and petted five or six. I was thinking life couldn’t get better than this when God proves me wrong because I see, guess what, a BABY! I carefully marched my way over to see the adorable little foal with his mother and was so happy when he started walking my way. He didn’t get all the way to me before his mother called but I did get some great pictures. We headed back and now I’m sitting in my room with my favorite angels looking out the window at the sky which resembles twilight.

Entry 2: 29th May 2011

Day 2 Góðan Daginn Iceland

Good day Iceland! Day one ended while I was on the plane and it still seems like I have been awake forever, which I guess I kind of have since I have been awake since Saturday morning and it is now almost Sunday lunch here in Iceland. We are four hours ahead of my American friends and I am still getting used to the time change. The flight to Iceland was amazing! I sat in the thirteenth row by the window and stayed awake the whole time, watching the sky turn from blue to these amazing reds and pinks and they stayed that way for a long time because where we were headed the sun will not set since it is summer. It was just like heaven and I took a bazillion pictures. I really enjoyed learning about Iceland on the touch screens they had on the back of their seat rests and it even let you see how far away you were from your destination in miles, time, and all sorts of other flight related stuff. I watched an episode of Raising Hope in Icelandic and counted down the minutes until we were finally there. It was really interesting getting to see Greenland as we headed around the bottom of it and reached the tiny airport that was our destination. Once there I could hardly believe that after these long days we were finally in Iceland! I still can’t really believe it and I’m settled into my room here at Skalholt. At the airport we retrieved our checked luggage and headed to a tram where we all packed together and held on to go across the lot. Then we went up to get free information (I have tons of brochures) and postcards and stamps. We also stopped for breakfast at a coffee shop and I had raspberry and peach skyr, which is an Icelandic yogurt that is really rich, almost like pudding, and it was amazing. We observed the sculptures that surrounded the airport, one resembling a bird cracking out of its egg to symbolize flight and the other a rainbow statue because we were at the end of the rainbow. Then we piled into the van and sang songs while looking at the amazing landscapes. There were actually a lot more American restaurants than I would have thought, like KFC, TGIF, and stores like IKEA. Once we got past the modern houses that surrounded the area near the airport and the troll statues placed around there we got into areas that used to be lava and the rocks had stayed in bubbly looking formations. We saw Icelandic horses everywhere!!! And there were sheep and swans too, but the Icelandic horses were of course the highlight of my trip. We also passed these rocks that had little houses painted on them for the elves and managed to see the glacier we will get to walk on. Soon we arrived at Skalholt and saw how close the horses were to our rooms! Us girls are all staying in one little house and our teachers are staying in two houses close by. I’m all settled into my room with the double beds, fixing to go sit in with Hannah or Katie, and we’re just waiting until they come get us so we can go to lunch and meet our hosts. I’m really excited to go explore after we eat. I’m on the right side of our building so I have a great view with lots of light and the rooms are really nice and cozy. I’m glad all of us are so close already from having to stay together in that airport because we are all getting along great and there is no awkwardness at all. I will post pictures later when I am back in the room, I’m off to go see Iceland!

Lunch was awesome. They had fruit, salad, soup, rolls and butter, and these pasta and rice dishes. I had an apple for dessert because we were going to go see the Icelandic horses! Highlight of my whole trip so far! We entered the gate like the ones for the pastures back home and then walked about a mile on the worn path in the field until they reached the horses and…they came up to us! I fed one an apple and they were all so friendly and letting us pet them and take lots of pictures. It was amazing and I can’t wait to go actually ride sweethearts like these. After we left the horses we went further down to the river to a hot spring where the water was boiling so we boiled eggs. They were really good and the rocks around the water were warm so we sat on those to warm ourselves up before standing in the steam from it and heading back to our rooms. This day just keeps getting better.

Dinner was amazing! A sort of lasagna and French fries and salad and then to make it all even better…strawberry skyr cake made with skyr, some sort of whipped cream, and a graham cracker crust. On the way back to the rooms we stopped in the church and I can’t wait to go look at that some more. It’s even more beautiful inside with the stained glass windows and the mosaic on the wall that has more than 31,000 pieces. We had a little orientation meeting to go over any pressing questions and decided that since we lost a day we are going to go see the waterfall tomorrow while it is sunny and do the more in class work Tuesday when it is supposed to be raining. Needless to say I’m looking forward to that, but right now I’m probably going to go to sleep. It’s been a long time since I have slept and we all almost fell asleep during the meeting. Unlike some of my classmates who could sleep in the airports or on the plane, I was way too hyper and now is my chance to catch up. Until tomorrow!

Entry 1: 28th May 2011

Day 1 And We’re Off

Just checked in and made it through security again. It’s 9:45 and now we’re at C1, fixing to head to Atlanta where we have a layover until we can get on the plane to go to Boston. I get to sit beside my roomie Hannah on both flights so I’m excited. I hope we get to board soon because I really want to get on a plane and we are going to leave at 11. I’m so excited that by early morning we will be out of the country in Iceland! The weather is bright and sunny so I’m hopeful that everything will go without a hitch.

I love airplanes! Once in the air it was only a fifty-four minute flight from Raleigh to Atlanta and I found many interesting things in the Sky magazine they provided. Do you know what is even better than airplane peanuts? Airplane cookies! Delta had these great cookies that were a blend of teddy grams and animal crackers and I had two of those and a coca cola. Now I am at gate B13 waiting to board the plane to Boston in about fifty minutes. I’m really quite excited about getting on this plane to Boston because it will be the second leg of this three part flight and then the next one will take us out of the country!

I’m in the air flying from Atlanta to Boston and I just saw that we are above the clouds! This is so amazing; I couldn’t believe what they were at first. I’m so excited! This plane is humongous, and there are even controls on the armrests so that you can control the volume of the radio that is playing. There are TVs along the ceiling in between the rows and the safety precautions that the flight attendants always tell us were played on there! We’re passing over a field of clouds and I have to go take more pictures. It’s 3:28 and we’ll be in Boston in less than two hours.

We are in Boston!!! Once we found how to get to the international terminal via this nice guide man we had to walk on at least seven moving sidewalks. There are huge windows so this place is really bright and I saw Massachusetts painted cows that were really cool. We’re hanging out here until about 9:00 where we will start boarding to get onto the plane for Iceland. Needless to say, I am so excited!!!!! This time we will be going on Iceland Air and I will be in the middle of the plane instead of on the last row or next to last row. I will be with Dr. Novak again so it is bound to be interesting. This time I will be in the air for four hours and he told me they have screens on the back of their seats so you can play games, watch movies, or see where the plane is. We just ate at the Earl of Sandwich and Hannah and I have huge cupcakes waiting for us when we get hungry again. In a little more than an hour it will be goodbye America!