It was riding 4 wheelers thru lava fields on the beach and a few hours in the Blue Lagoon.

Great fun and nice way to end our stay in the country of Fire and Ice.

Tomorrow morning 9 of us are going to Greenland.

It was not raining, partly sunny, and a calm ocean. We saw lots of whales , caught a few fish and even got to eat them after we returned.

On the way to Akureyri we stopped at a horse farm. Icelandic horses are unique. They have five distinct gates and are all rather small, 14 hands for you horse people. One of the gaits is a unique Icelandic gait. They can trot with out spilling a drop from a glass of beer! To keep the breed unchanged….the horses can not leave Iceland and return, no non Icelandic horses can come to Iceland.

waterfalls and farms… wish it would stop raining so we could see the glaciers in the mountainsbeautiful scenery… however the weather so far has been raining or about to rain!

Turn volume up, we wandered around the hills looking for puffins. The sheep have a symbiotic relationship with puffins. Puffins need short grass for building their nests, the sheep do a good job of that. I was able to call this little guy pretty close

We hiked in high winds, rain and sleet looking for puffins

We walked on the 1973 volcanic ash, lupine, buttercups, dandelions and grass. They grow well and help stabilize the new ground.

Locals catching trout or small Atlantic Salmon. Fast large river with glacial run off coloring the water.

35 minute ferry boat ride on a rough sea in the North Atlantic Ocean. Patty wasn’t feeling great, especially after watching a lady throw up.Our group enjoys a lamb chop dinner.

Now it’s time for some interesting facts and figures….

Iceland is a very new country, geologically speaking. The main part of the island is 17 to 18 million years old. The two peninsulas are 7 to 8 million years old. We are now in the Westman Islands and they had a volcanic eruption in 1973 that destroyed 1/3 of the houses but added land to the harbor which made the harbor better, more protected from the wind and waves.

More sheep than people in Iceland. The lamb chops were delicious last night.

Kindergarten is for 2 to 6 year olds. Obligatory schooling from 6 to 16 years old.

1980… first female president in the world.

No military in Iceland. They have coast guard with 3 boats. Mainly do rescue work and patrol 200 mile fishing limit.

Cod liver oil is big business. Most Icelanders drink a shot every morning at breakfast. I tried it once , that’s enough for me!

It was easy and fast to get thru customs, pick up our bags and find the Flybus that would take us to town. Then it was a quick nap and shower and a cab ride to town. We walked around and then found a place where we got a pizza and a few local beers.

We’re currently sitting in the Detroit airport waiting to board our flight to Minneapolis and then a nonstop red eye flight to Reykjavík, Iceland