I wake to a beautiful pink sunrise — this is really almost the land of the midnight sun as the sun rises around 4:30 and sets at about 10 pm. Our excursion for 6 of us today was to the small traditional town of Sudureyri inside one of the many narrow fjords channelling inland from the Greenland sea in the north of Iceland. We were fortunate as our guide was an older man who was born and raised in this isolated place and he told us about life before the tunnel through the mountain connected them to the outside world. Before the tunnel, it required sailing around a large fjord or walking over a formidable steep mountain to make outside contact.
He told us many stories about the avalanches that have periodically come down the steed sides of the mountains and buried people and houses. Before the tunnel was completed about 1970 they had a small medical center and pharmacy that was staffed once a week – that option is now gone and residents need to drive through to Isafjordur for any medical needs or to buy special goods. With only a population of 200, everyone knows everyone and is related to everyone else with church as the main community center.
Fishing is what established this part of Iceland and it still remains the principal product and export. Our guide treated us to a piece of dried catfish, a staple food for people here, and also later we sampled gravalox (smoked salmon) on dark pumpernickel. Our guide’s 2 children live in Denmark; this is interesting as our Faroe Island guide’s two children live in Iceland! The grass is always greener elsewhere.
As we wandered around this small village, we saw two young entrepreneurs selling coffee and painted rocks with the Iceland flag on them — at $10/rock. Our earlier guide in Akureyri yesterday told us that when children are about 12 they are put to work and will continue to hold jobs through their teenage years. This develops a work ethic which was undoubtedly essential to survival in the earlier generations on this harsh land.
Our second stop for the day was through beautiful valleys to the Dynjandi Waterfall, which forcefully pours out of the mountain and down through several several gorges of outcropping rocks.
Marge and I walked almost to the top viewing platform but it was slippery and rocky and we decided it was not worth the risk and were glad we made it down to the bottom without incident. Our guide provided us with snacks of Skyr and Icelandic doughnuts before we started back to the ship, tired but satisfied with the day.
a little time to spare before the ship left the dock, Ginny and I went to the local Museum where there were exhibits of life in the old days complete with furnishihngs and pieces of life — and Ginny and I could not help explaining that we remembered much of what was exhibited as ancient history: electric mixers, telephones, dolls, radios, clothing. We are not part of the past to many, artifacts with memories of another time.
We finished the day with another delicious dinner and Trivia. We almost came in third place – but who knows the longest play of Shakespeare? Or who won the first World Cup in 1937? The sky is darkening and we are not optimistic about tomorrow’s eclipse.