When we woke in our cabins as our ship entered the waters of Iceland near Djupivogur, the ship was rocking and we could hear the wind outside through our balcony doors. When I managed to pull open our balcony door, I was met by a very strong cold wind and immediately shut it, with some difficulty. The captain then came on the speaker to announce that due to very high winds, it was judged not safe to make port and our landing was canceled. Our group had arranged no excursions for that day but had looked forward to walking in the area and were of course disappointed but as I had been there 3 years ago it was an easier change for me. I enjoyed our relaxing day on the ship, catching up on my blogs in the beautiful library and listening to a newly added lecture. I was glad we were safe and not outside in the howling wind.
The next morning we arrived in beautiful sunshine into Akureyri, the second largest urban settlement in Iceland with 20,000 people where Marge, Rae and I disembarked to walk around the town before our afternoon planned excursion. Everyone else was on an all day tour of the natural highlights of the area.
Our first destination was the botanic gardens which I had remembered from my last visit here 3 years ago but this time it was even more beautiful — as every flower and bud was in full bloom and the air was filled with the buzzing of bees also happy to enjoying the clear warm air. Judy, who also visited, later remarked that there were plants and flowers from every season, all of which were open.
Further down the hill, we went into the modern art museum and its cafe and discovered as this was our first landing in Iceland how very expensive everything is here. We had a brief warning about this when in the botanic gardens we went to use the WC and discovered a turnstile and requirement of a $2.40 payment for its use! The museum itself had two very interesting exhibits, one centered on the work of one artist about the now-extinct great awk, once common and considered a local holy bird, to bring attention to endangered species. And the other was a number of very interesting metal and glass constructions that moved in various mechanical ways. We walked downhill, past the very modern church which dominates the town landscape, into the tourist shops and walled back to the ship for lunch.
We wanted to experience one of Iceland’s famous hot springs lagoons so in the afternoon we traveled on a full bus excursion to the great Godafoss Waterfall and then to Earth Lagoon hot springs where steam vents heat the water, located by Lake Myvatn.
The baths were both a stressful and relaxing experience as the locker and shower rooms had slippery floors and we saw a woman slip and fall. Once changed into our bathing sits, washed and showered, and carefully walking into the large outdoor mixed group soaking area, it was warm and wonderful, with soft sand under the feet and a beautiful vistas of rock and bright turquoise water around us.
Each evening our wonderful group have been enjoying eating together in various groupings with some of us attending the nightly trivia game on board. The food continues to be excellent and there are too many good choices at every meal. I discovered the Aquamar healthy cafe where plant based foods are prepared together with other healthier choices than the rich meats and sauces in the restaurants. But I am eating too much.
Although the weather is beautiful today and expected to continue tomorrow, the forecast is still very poor for our eclipse viewing in a few days.