Iceland

Andrea Blumberg

20. Iceland Saga (July '05)

I spent two and a half weeks in Iceland with my folks, and intended to write a short summary of what we saw and did. And, just for kicks, I decided to write it in the form of one of the Icelandic Sagas, which were the medieval high-art/novel/historical/fictional/factual/mythical storytelling form. And then, just like an authentic saga, it got to be long. Very long. And myself and my parents got relegated to the position of mere plot devices. But such is life. Er, rather, "fiction."

And here are some pictures from the trip to Iceland.

Turf houses

Now that's "green" architecture!

Boiling mudpot

Anyone want a pore-cleansing mud facial?

Puffins

These crazy birds nest in deep burrows in the cliff. How do they keep their tuxes so clean?

Breadbaking ovens

Using the underground thermal heat to bake bread. Like a microwave oven...but just the opposite.

Snorri's hottub

Snorri Sturluson was a politician and a poet in Iceland in the 12th/13th centuries. He had this bath built with separate inflows from a hot spring and a cold stream so that he could get the temperature just right.

Troll

Some people think it's to honor the local Spirit of the Glacier -- Bardur Snaefellsnes -- but if you read my saga you'll see who it really is.

Black sand beach

Do not adjust your tv sets. That's really what it looks like. The sand is black because it's made up of tiny particles of basalt.

Svartifoss

Basalt in columnar formation, along with one of Iceland's many waterfalls.

Gullfoss

One of the more spectacular waterfalls.

Jews in a jaw

At the Whale Museum in Husavik.

1am

The sun dips below the horizon temporarily, looking for some change that it dropped.