Saturday, January 31, 2009

Weekend, January ends


















hi,

I am adding some photos here, some from a while back. The first group are from a protest in town, protesting the government. I had mentioned that there were weekly protests against the government.

There are pictures from the mommumorgun as well....

Then there are some pics from being at the dagmamma, Zelia loves Aron!!!! The little car is a hit.

Finally, we went with Katri and Pyry to the playground for the first time. Zelia was all bundled up in her snow suite and boots and we headed out.
I walked to their house and from there we went to the playground by the church. We headed right to the swings and Zelia had her first swinging time. At first, she seemed to not know what to think and would watch Pyry laugh, but eventually she relaxed and smiled and did her silent laugh. After that she got down on all fours and explored for a bit. Once back in the stroller she was having a sweet nap outside until a dog ran by and barked...oh well.

Jacob just walked in after skiing this morning. He said it was fabulous, put the skins on his skis, climbed and telemarked down, not bad exercise!

Yesterday was a great day for Zelia. We spent the 4 hours with Inga, where she took a short nap and ate a ton of grapes and some ham. Then Jacob took her swimming which was great and then headed asleep to Icelandic class.

Afterward, we were invited to Lisbet's house for ponnukokur which was a lot of fun. It's a beautiful little red and white house, one of the older houses in town. We all sat in a small kitchen hanging around the table eating pancakes with jam and whipped cream. There were 8-10 adults and several kids all just hanging out, playing with balloons and musical instruments. A Fabulous evening.

She fell fast asleep on the way home and we had a nice dinner with Tanja - she slept well after such a day!

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

more videos...

long awaited videos!!!!

sun, glorious sun

On Tuesday we saw the sun and it was glorious. There was a blue sky and to see the sun light the side of the mountain made us all smile. On the way to swimming we saw Jukka and Pyry and Jukka said, "I got a direct hit!"

Z's new fun toy is a balloon and we just played for a while with it in the bath. She couldn't stop giggling, especially when she would hug it to herself and it would burst out from her arms, full belly laughter. Jacob has seen her nurse it too:)

Monday, January 26, 2009

Government Collapse

I have received several emails today about the government collapse today. First things in Isafjordur are very quiet and it seems that mostly people are happy to not be in the thick of things. there have been large protests all through last week, paint thrown on the parliamentary buildings, etc. It is being called the kitchen revolution because people are banging on their pots and pans. We were also told today that the majority of the people protesting are those who are not working for various reasons (but not those who lost their jobs recently due to the crisis...) Our Icelandic teacher said, 'we are happy to watch it on TV." Here there have been quiet protests weekly in the town square and last night there was a music concert at the church either in protest or solidarity with folks in Reykjavik.

They had called for elections in May yesterday, but that wasn't soon enough for the people. Now it is unclear what will happen, whether the government will try and rebuild a coalition or maybe have new elections. The Minister of Commerce stepped down today so we'll see if more follow. Also the Foreign minister and Prime Minister have cancer so things are not going well for them.

Aside from this, some people in Reykjavik have also found time to protest Israel and Iceland refused a visit from Israel to explain the Israeli side of the story. I wrote in response to a newspaper article in an English online paper to support Israel, for whatever it is worth.

Ponnukokkur

January 25th is when the sun hits the first settlement in Isafjordur for the first time after two months and as a tradition ponnukokkur, pancakes are eaten. They aren't the American thick pancakes, but much more like a crepe made in a pan just for them. We are going to buy one.

Today at work and also school for Jacob we were served these pancakes, which on this day at least are served with whipped cream and jam. Otherwise they are delicious with just a little bit of sugar and rolled up. We ate our share. But in the homes each house will make them when the sun hits their specific house. I think this is one of the nicest traditions I have heard of. We must try and do it as well:)

Jacob took Zelia to her dagmamma, Inga, and it went well. She seemed to be unphased by our cloth diapers and no sugar request and pretty happy to hear how well she eats. Zelia played for a while and Jacob sat in the next room. he did say that she would crawl into that room every so often to check that he was there:) Tomorrow morning I will take her. Jacob also said tat taking the bus was a breeze!

It is 5:30 and there is still light in the sky!!!!

Icelandic class was great today. I asked about going through the alphabet which was very helpful. For instance there is no C in this language and we had not noticed. the funniest thing though is that when the teacher began singing it, like in English (same tune) she sang with the C!!!

Happy Chinese New Year

Well, we had our second performance of BAK with a bigger audience and great feedback. It's always so weird when it is all over. Katri and I were wondering how much time will pass before we feel like we need to work again. We are guessing two weeks:) Of course, we will have to keep this concert in our bodies if we end up taking it anywhere. It was a great weekend, a very tiring week, but we broke down the theater and left incredibly satisfied.

Jacob left right away and to finish cooking his Chinese bbq pork to take to Tanja's. I made it home in time to try a few nibbles, hang out with Zelia and watch a little TV - can you believe it? Dagbjort had been with Zelia and apparently she cried much of the time. Poor girls, both of them. She wrote to me today though saying that she likes to be with her so it's ok is she cries sometimes. She is so sweet.

Anyway, we headed to Tanja's and there was a feast cooking. She had clearly been working VERY hard. there were plates coming out of homemade dumplings/potstickers, egg drop soup (made by Danielle), cucumber salad, a whole fish, a green salad, another sort of Italian empanada like thing stuffed with potatoes (brought by Christian, and Italian:) For dessert there was battered and pan fried rice cake, so delicious and red beans with coconut milk an sugar, yummmy. Zelia ate almost everything which was so nice to see. As the youngest one there she was given the cheek of the fish, the best meat, and of course she gobbled it up!!!! It was a really nice gathering of people and we had a great time.

This morning, Jacob has gone to swim and I am up getting ready for work. In a minute I will need to wake Zelia. Her schedule will need to change to an earlier wake up and bedtime but then again a lot is changing this week. Jacob will be taking Zelia to Inga to the dagmamma (in home day care) to be with her there for a few hours. hopefully it will go well, plus he'll get a feel for the place and let her know what's what with Zelia. Then when I am done working I'll take her and he'll go to class. Tomorrow I will take her.

We will update you on how it all goes.

Sunday, January 25, 2009

BAK Premier and more

Well, last night we opened BAK and it was great! We are so happy with the performance, the flow of the evening and the feedback was VERY positive. Actually the head of the theater was so moved that she wants to send the show to Reykjavik - wow, wouldn't that be amazing????

This afternoon we have another performance and we hope we get more people than last night, maybe the word got around. the performance begins outside of the theater, so I began in that place last night and Katri inside, today we switch roles. An added perk is that across from the theater is a cafe/bar and someone from in there saw something happening and then came to watch the rest:)

It has been a really busy week for all of us which is always a bit stressful but that's what happens leading up to a show.

The weather here has been dramatic, lots of wind mostly and we have had some power outages. the generator has helped but people actually have to go up into the mountains in this weather and fix the lines, ugh. Not an easy job. Yesterday we were having rolling black outs and Margret (the head of the theater) put in a request that they not roll the theater until well after the show. We had power the whole evening:) Not many planes have come and gone either, but today three planes are arriving, one will bring the next Professor for Jacob's program. One plane came in on Friday as well and we got our meat - yay.

I have been working more and more and they are finding plenty for me to do. On Friday I went to work earlier, from 8-12, and at 9:45 I was told there was a coffee. Always at that hour, the "house" provides coffee, tea, cheese, crackers some cookies for the staff and everyone sits together and enjoys. I was really busy and didn't go right away and then when I walked by it was too intimidating to walk in - next time. Actually I do know that some offices have bought this time back from the workers, but there has been quite a down side, a lot of work communication used to happen during this time and they realized that without it a lot of information was not being disseminated as before. Interesting.

Yesterday, before I headed to the theater, Jacob, Zelia and I went to Stephan's firs birthday party. It was great to see Sunna, it has been a while and it was just really nice to be there. I wish we didn't need to go so quickly as it would have been nice to meet and talk with more new people. Although, we have a birthday party of our own to think about:)

Another thing I learned about is called, "Þorrablót". Which is a celebration for the tenth graders. They eat traditional Icelandic food and the parents put on a show for their kids and they have a dance together. isn't that nice???

Ok, I have to cut this short, I am off to the theater.

Happy Chinese New Year!!!! We are celebrating tonight at Tanja's house.

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Longer Days and a blue sky

Yesterday, Zelia and I walked out of the house a little before 1pm, and it was beautiful outside. The sky was a white-ish blue with some clouds and the sun is beginning to creep down the mountain. In one week the sun will hit us directly again and we are ready to welcome it. It was calm out and the water glassy. After rehearsal with Fridrik, Jacob and I walked to borrow Jukka and Katri's car, it was 3:30 and there was still full light. It's amazing how quickly it all changes!!!

Right now it is Sunday morning 9:50am and there is light in the sky already. Jacob and Zelia are in the living room listening to "Little Liza Jane." Today Jacob is working on drift nets and I have rehearsal at 1. This evening we are heading to Gisli and Gerdur's for a student dinner.

So, I thought it was probably time for a Zelia update - she will be 11 months on Tuesday. We also begin swimming that day! she remains pretty uninterested in toys, although shafan, Ug and her buba (The one MamaZ got her) make her smile. she pulls them close and says "ooo" when she hugs them and sometimes gives them a good bite! A ball can interest her for about 30 seconds, but better are the rings that stack. She likes to crawl around with them in her hands. In the bathroom she pulls up on the tub and pushes anything on the edge right inside and when she can't reach something she gets on her tippy toes and grunts/screams.

Last night was a rough night. She began coughing and eventually it made her throw up - luckily I had just washed the sheets:) They are in the wash again...

She loves grapes right now and still loves roasted broccoli and cauliflower. She will almost never refuse bread and enjoys pieces of meat here and there. For breakfast - eggs, hers and ours!

She weighs about 22 pounds.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Birthday #33 - no one got in or out all weekend - including my present!!!

So, life is a bit busier at the moment as I have begun a new job at the University Centre and have a concert to prepare for. I will find time today to try tp update the blog:)

Last Friday, January 9th was my birthday. It was a nice day and in the evening we had many of the students over and also Katri and family. I asked Jacob to make this meat soup I really like, Danielle made a salad and Gerdur made her delicious sweet potatoes. I also made hallah and chocolate cake - perfect!

It was a pretty early night although we all enjoyed a drink or two. Everyone brought some alcohol back with them and Jacob made a real daiquiri, run, sugar and lime juice, yummmmmm. At some point it began to snow and it made us very happy.

On Saturday I went to the studio to get in white body paint for the 3rd day with Katri for Jukka's film. Jacob and Zelia hung out. After the filming Tanja came by and took more photos to get a poster together. We came up with a great idea and you can see it here. Things here tend to go pretty last minute which makes Katri and I a little uncomfortable but we are doing what we can with it. Hopefully the posters are printed now and I will be able to pick them up before meeting Katri. As to our duet, it keeps evolving and becoming more clear which is a great thing. The music has been chosen and now then end keeps developing and getting richer, ahhh, it is SO satisfying.

On Sunday morning we woke to even more wind and snow although we couldn't tell where it was all going. It had been snowing for 3 days but with almost on accumulation. The wind was blowing it around SO much. Jacob and I woke at 9ish and Zelia just kept sleeping and sleeping. At 10:30 we thought to go in and gently wake her, which we did, but in the process we laid down and felt sleepy. So then for the next hour and a half Jacob slept, I was in and out and Zelia was on the bed sticking her fingers in Jacob's ears and nose:) We all got up at noon!!!! After some breakfast we headed out with the gang. They were all going to go and ski and we walked to Bonus of course! We bundled up as it was -4 (Celsius) and I laughed, we were dressed as if it had been -4F - far from it!!!! The walk was alright and Traian joined us for the way. Zelia slept the entire time and woke at some point while we were shopping. On the way back the weather had gotten considerably worse and it was hard work. here we were pushing a stroller heavy with Zelia and the groceries through snow drifts in wind and icy snow that made us look down the entire time. Thankfully Zelia fell back asleep and wasn't screaming! We made it home with some good exercise:)

Since Friday night, we had been waiting, with anticipation for my birthday/Jacob's Hannukah gift from Baki and Angie. Something was coming, by plane, from Reykjavik!!!!!!

But it didn't arrive on Monday....

We did have our first Icelandic class though. We mostly worked on the computers doing vocabulary games which felt great to be exposed to LOTS of new words and just begin to think again about the language. Then that evening I went to knitting, where I had to take out what I had done for Zelia's dress, ugh, and was able to practice speaking some more.

then it was Tuesday and the present didn't arrive....

but we rehearsed and worked on the posters furiously, back and forth all day and evening on email, trying to find a printer and fix the formatting. As we were heading out for a night time walk, we thought to see if Gisli and Gerdur wanted to join us. As we were walking to their house we saw them returning from the store and Gerdur did join us for a short little walk.

Then Wednesday, still no package, alert Baki, Baki gets to work on it

We rehearsed early and then I went to mommumorgun and got to see Sunna and others which was really nice. I let everyone know about the concert and the pilates teaching will begins next week, this time in the afternoons! The last touches were being made on the poster and a printer was found.

Thursday, I picked up the posters and post cards and they looked great, headed to rehearsal and then to teach yoga at school. While there Baki texts - GO TO AIRPORT TO GET PACKAGE TIME SENSITIVE!!!! I leave yoga, borrow Jukka's car and drive in Iceland for the first time to the airport to get the package - wow an adventure.

I pick it up and on the package it says Gallery kjot - MEAT!!!!!!! Wow, real red meat, a box full of beautiful cuts of meat, unbelievable. I get it home and stick a thermometer in and they are not quite cool anymore, uhoh. emails and phone calls and a little research...RESULTS: A whole new box will arrive next week, they will call the cell phone to tell us which flight it will be on. We cook the meat to well done (the warmth does not make the meat dangerous, just lowers the quality, huh, who knew!!!) Last night, with Baki speaking with us through the computer we enjoyed an amazing piece of fillet, well done, but SO tender, even Zelia could work through her small pieces. and by the way, she couldn't get enough!!! Wow. Now that was GOOD.

THANK YOU BAKI AND ANGIE. You guys do amazing things:)

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

Boston and Puerto Rico

















Once in Swampscott we got to give Jacob A LOT of love and tell him how much we missed him. Zelia was getting used to her new surroundings but still enjoying long naps outside in her stroller. We had a great time seeing our family, celebrating Hanukkah at Adam's and having a LONG party at Ima and Aba's to see almost everyone! But it was tiring and hectic.

We were SO excited to get on the plane to Puerto Rico on Christmas day. Aba took us for the early flight and we met Dennis in the airport. We all enjoyed a delicious breakfast of breakfast sandwiches and lattes from Starbucks and got on the plane. The trip down was pretty easy, Zelia didn't sleep much and really cried during the landing - that was a new behavior. When we got the the air was fabulous, thick, a bit humid, I felt hugged by it:) Jacob and Dennis think I am crazy:) We waited a bit for our bags and then for the shuttle to get the rental car but we got there. As we drove out of the thrifty we saw Bebo's BBQ and pulled in immediately. It has a line and looked delicious. We joined the line and ate chicken, pernil, platanos, yuca, rice and guandules, drank malta and some beer and Zelia ate is up!!! Back in the car and to the hotel.

It was great that we were staying at a place outside of San Juan. It was a HUGE complex with the hotel and condos and a golf course. we drove in and it felt like we left Puerto Rico and were in Florida or something. the Island is interesting in that was, all the American infrastructure and stores, but yet distinctively Latin and great for that. The trees were lush and green and the ocean was beautiful. Luckily Dennis had Thursday and Friday free and we could all play. On Thursday night Dennis noticed that Zelia was holding her ear a lot and she woke Friday morning with a fever. We headed to a clinic where they let Dennis borrow the scope to look in her ears. Then the doctor wrote her a prescription and we went and had it filled. Nothing like traveling with your own doctor:)

On Friday we got in the car and headed to old San Juan. We got out and just began wandering the streets. We found that it was full of fancy US shopping which wasn't too interesting, but the old building were beautiful. We walked down along the fort and then heard two blasts and realized that one of the tires in Zelia's stroller had blown - crazy!!!! I guess the heat did it. We chatted with a cop for a while to see if there was a bike store anywhere. Nothing too local, we would need to drive. Jacob and Dennis took turns roiling the stroller back to the car, we wrapped Zelia up and headed to sit outside to eat lunch. after lunch we were given 2 recommendations for eating the next time we were in town.

It wasn't long before Zelia and I were asleep in the car and Dennis and Jacob drive from place to place trying to find a replacement tube for the stroller. There was success at....Walmart, the Super Walmart at that - it is so weird to see.

The next day Dennis was busy in his meetings and the three of us were on our own. We hung out, went to the pool and just relaxed a lot.

Before we left for Puerto Rico I was looking around on Chowhound and found out about a produce market that also has delicious batidas and hot sauce. Jacob tried to find directions to it from the concierge, but it took a while for them to understand what we were looking for. It is not really a tourist destination. La Placida Santurce was where we wanted to go. So we had some sort of directions and we got in the car. We drove around for a while but no luck. Finally I asked someone on the street and he told me to get on the autopista - where's that I asked. He said, follow me! wow, what generosity, he got us on and waved to tell us where to get off. Once we did that we still had to get more specific directions. We asked in the gas station, then the quality Inn, but were sent the wrong way. Finally, at another gas station we were given very specific directions from a man who knew!!!! YAY. Thankfully Zelia was sleeping the whole time. Poor girl was still not feeling well and sleeping a lot. Anyway, we got out of the car, wrapped her up and got to the market.....which was closed!!!!! Closes at noon on Sundays. BUT, the door was open a little and some older people were sitting in front, they said we could come in and look around and that they would be open all day during the week. When we were leaving we asked them about a good place to eat and they sent us behind the market to Pescadores. It was full! People were in their church clothes, drinking wine and enjoying the delicious food. So we sat and ate a ceviche like dish, calamari and bacalao croquettes - amazing! If you go to PR go to these two places for sure. That night we had dinner at another great restaurant Pasion del Fogon (we were told that fogon is a way to cook with wood). It was a very pretty restaurant but we were a big party (all the Harrisons' folk) and the dinner was long. The food was delicious. I had a whole fried snapper - one of my favorite fish and preparations. Jacob had a garlic shrimp in a potato birds' nest. But the best was the fried queso blanco appetizer, wow! The evening, unfortunately was pretty rough, Zelia cried practically the entire time:(

On Monday Jacob headed out with Dennis during his break to get more medicines and then Dennis went to get Marie at the airport. We were walking around and hanging out with Zelia, but went to cocktail hour with everyone at Harrisons.

On Tuesday Dennis had the day off and so around 11 we all piled in the car and headed out to old San Juan. First we returned to Santurce Market, where we walked around and enjoyed looking at the fruit, had some yummy fruit batidas, found the hot sauce and had a great time. We had a great time walking around the streets, but it was SO crowded. No joke there were 6 cruise boats docked and each one is bigger then Isafjordur!!!! Hard to believe. We had a delicious lunch at El Jibarito - also highly recommended. It is a great place, a good amount of tables, all PR food and very friendly. We had passion fruit juice, garlic shrimp, fried plantain, and bistec - excellent! After lunch we stopped in at the Panama Hat store and got quite an education. Dennis got a very smart looking hat, Jacob got Dennis' hat from the day before and I got a beautiful gift of a hat of my own. It must have been pretty funny when we all walked down the street!

We still had not made any plans for New Years so we decided to walk to Marmalade and see what we could get there. Luckily they couldn't get us in because we decided not to come to Old San Juan anyway! Also it would have been almost impossible to get into town we heard later. We got back to the room a bit late and decided to order pizza and salads while Zelia crawled around and got more comfortable:)

Oh, we met up with the Rothbards while in PR, I taught their twin boys at Hillel. Anyway, while in Old San Juan they invited Jacob fishing with them on the 31st. So, after a nice morning together and watching iguanas Jacob left and Zelia and I were on our own. We actually had a great lunch together. We had discovered a delicious Seabreeze salad in the hotel that had papaya and fresh grouper. As you may know Zelia LOVES fish and she got to eating the entire fillet at lunch. Mostly she crawled all around the restaurant (it was an outside place) flirting with all the tables. It was great to see how far she would go without looking back. It was also funny to see the faces of people around as they saw this baby crawl around. After a bit of a nap we dressed for New years, met up with Marie and headed to the cocktail hour for a little bit before walking to the steak restaurant. Jacob was to meet us there after fishing.

We got there and got a call from Jacob that he was going to be about an hour late. We hung out, had some drinks and were being thoroughly entertained by Zelia who was in a GREAT mood. She was talking up a storm, booyah, booyah and wutawutawat, and playing in the mirror. While we were in Boston she learned to say uh-oh and wow so was pulling those out from time to time. When Jacob arrived we had a nice dinner together.

On New Years Day Marie and I had our treat day at the spa, wow. I had a Thai massage and she had an aromatherapy hot stone massage. This HAD to be better then the last time we tried this. (In WY we took Zelia and she screamed). this time, Jacob had Zelia and we enjoyed:) Afterward we had a great lunch, Seabreeze salad again. Zelia had already had lunch with Jacob and Dennis and apparently ate their fish, now she was on to mine, whew.

Since the meeting was ending early we had the last Harrison's dinner that night at Palio's the Italian restaurant in the hotel. It was a really nice evening and Zelia slept through most of dinner which was very enjoyable. It was hard to believe that we only had one more full day left!!!

We rented a cabana on the beach, had breakfast together and went to hang out there. This was the perfect day. It was beautiful out, Zelia was happy playing in the shade, the four of us sat and read and chatted and just were together. there was a cooler with drinks, some snacks and fresh fruit. Then while Zelia slept Jacob and I took a surfing lesson. I was pretty nervous, but it was a blast!!!! You can see some pics, but remember they were taken at the beginning of the lesson not at the end:) It was tiring but just so much fun. After an hour in the ocean we jumped into the pool to wash off:) That day Zelia had her own fillet and ate the entire thing!!!!! She slept well during that nap:) At 5pm we all went to shower and to head to our best meal yet...

We got in the car and headed down Rt 3 to La Parilla. We were excited and Jacob and I were going to eat steak:) Zelia was sleeping so we pulled the car up on the sidewalk right by where we sat to eat. We started with some beer and appetizers, more friend queso with Guava dipping sauce (fried but not in a batter), croquettes filled with a black bean and meat paste (amazing) and patacones (green friend plantains) filled with lobster and crab. Dennis and Marie shared a whole red snapper filled with crab meat and cooked with lime and herbs in a pouch (delicious) Jacob and I shared a rib eye steak with a fabulous red wine and caper reduction. Over dinner we also enjoyed some yummy sangria. The service was out of this world, everyone who worked there clearly felt responsible for the diners and without being intrusive they were lovely and knowledgeable and helpful. Lastly we had 2 vanilla flan, 1 coconut flan and 1 cheesecake flan with a guava topping. Very good!!! What a day!

On Saturday morning we all ate breakfast and finished packing and headed to the airport. It was an easy flight on a grey rainy day, but after such a perfect vacation anything would have been fine.

Terri picked us up at the airport and Jack was SO handsome all bathed and soft. We headed to Ima and Aba's house where we ate from Gourmet Garden (we love those chicken lettuce wraps) and headed to bed exhausted. Sunday was a great day, Jacob made a delicious breakfast of yogurt pancakes and Jeanie, Haley, Laura, Rebecca and Noa were all there. After that we finished packing and ran to Target. We had a great dinner of steak tips and were off to the airport. Wow, what a trip.

We love you all and miss you but are truly happy to be home:)

Reykjavik
















The flight to Reykjavik was spectacular. the sky was clear and seeing the fjords was beautiful. There were times when we could see the sun off in the distance. When we first took off it was really nice to see Isafjordur below and to fly over the tops of the flat mountains. Everything was covered in snow and you could see the partially frozen streams below. Unfortunately we lost the pictures that we took of this. It's hard to describe, especially now with the time since the flight. When we flew over areas of small islands it was great looking with each piece of land seemingly frozen into place. Once we landed we had the sun in our eyes for the first time in over a month. We smelled the sulfur right away. We got all our bags into the taxi and headed to Edda's apartment. Now, Edda is Ylfa's mom and Ylafa and I were best friends when we were little in Swampscott, when we were in the 2/3 grade! Her mom moved back to Iceland a year ago and we have all connected on facebook. She too was getting ready to head to Boston on Sunday and was out doing errands but she left us a key. We found ourselves in a great apartment with many delicious bakery items left for us on the counter. We had a bite to eat and then headed out to find the main shopping street and to explore.

We both really liked Reykjavik full with beautiful clothing shops. The main shopping street whose name I forget at the moment was packed!!!!! there were people everywhere. We walked in and out of some stores and asked whether it was okay to leave Zelia outside.

We made it down to the big intersection and noticed some hippies gathering. There was a Food not bombs protest and delicious food being served up. Then across the street there was another protest going on against the Icelandic government. Pictures of children were plastered all over a wall and they were gluing 'price tags' on each - the amount each Icelandic child now owes in taxes after what happened here with the economic crisis. again, we heard a lot about how 30 men did all of this. The flier says "Admission price to Capitalism"

We got an emphatic yes! yippee, even in he big city:) As we began our walk back up the other side of the street we heard someone say our names all of a sudden. We looked and saw a women who went to school with Jacob at Bates. She is married to a man from Iceland and they recently moved to Reykjavik. We had already been in touch on FB but it was great to bump into each other. We made plans to meet for breakfast the next morning. Back at Edda's we relaxed, visited a bit and caught up on the last 20 odd years. Then we all ate together and it was yummy. Plotfiskur, which is a fish stew (we bought some yesterday to have in the house).

On Sunday morning we woke and headed back into town for breakfast which was a great time. then we went to find the flee market we had heard so much about. It was basically just a flee market not too exciting. We did find some great wool blankets that were new. Jacob also found a booth of a fishing shop that had closed so he had a good chat with the man there.

We were planning on meeting Sigridor (Academic director of Jacob's program) at two so we were neither her nor there. We decided to walk back to the house to get our bathing suites and then walk back to meet her and her family. On the walk back to Edda's we bumped into the family so made a plan to meet. We got back to town with our things and Danielle was already with them having a bite to eat. We hopped on the bus and headed to their place and to the big pool. This place was pretty awesome. There were two huge pools, one inside and one out. Then there was also a kids' pool inside and several hot pots outside, each with a different temperature posted. there was also a steam room. We had a great time hanging out and swimming. I love how all the dressing rooms are equipped for babies with these chairs! After swimming we headed to their house for a delicious smoked salmon and pasta dinner. We took the bus back to Edda's. She had already left for Boston and we were leaving the following day.

We arranged for the bus to pick us up at the apartment and to take us to the Blue Lagoon for two hours before taking us to the airport. We were so excited for the Lagoon. It was about a 40 minute drive through lava rock fields. everything was so jagged looking and stark. The mountains seemed so far away after being in Isafjordur. We got off the bus, left our things and followed the path to the main building. even as the bus drove up we could see the steam coming out of the ground and this magical milky blue water flowing.

We paid for our towels and headed into the changing rooms, which were beautiful. The accommodations were really great. There were several Americans and Europeans who were there for a long weekend. Apparently there were really great deals on airfare and hotels. We got changed and met Jacob outside. I don't know ow to explain this, but it was spectacular! Much like the first time someone goes to the Dead Sea I imagine. It was a large lagoon filled with this water and steam coming off the top. It was pretty cold out and we were surrounded by mountains. I quickly ran across and into the water with Zelia in my arms and a wool hat on her head. It felt SOOOOOO good. The lagoon varied in depth from about mid-thighs to chest. We wandered around and found the warmer spots. Then we noticed that many people had this quite stuff on their faces and we wondered if we were supposed to put the moisturizer on our faces for some reason. but after wandering around a bit more we notices these stations of wood that had a silica mud mask inside - so we slathered it on as well. Everyone was mesmerized with Zelia in the water:) Then a bit later a hail storm started and it really hurt so Jacob took Zelia and put his back to the wind and we eventually for her out.

We got dressed, had a bite to eat (we made sandwiches at Edda's) and headed back to the bus and to the airport. The flight to Boston was uneventful, Zelia hardly slept, and Aba was there to meet us:)

We had a great dinner with Ima, Aba, Dennis and Marie and went to bed!!!

Back at Home and catching up






















Well, we are back after our vacation and are so happy. It was wonderful to get to see everyone, to play in the sun and now we are all TIRED!

Anyway, I am going to work from when we left and begin writing and posting - it has been a long while!

The last week of class Jacob had a field trip to two fish factories. What several places are doing is drying out the entire fish carcass and shipping them to Nigeria where they are used for soups, etc. It's a great use for something that used to just be tossed - the downside??? The smell!!! It is horrendous to walk by one of these places. Jacob and other said they thought they would vomit in some of those drying rooms, ich. Here are some pics:)

The night before we left Isafjordur we had a REALLY nice meal with Gisli and Gerdur. Danielle came with, Jacob made a BIG pot of delicious turkey soup and when we arrived there were more people there. Zelia had a blast climbing the stairs and watching the older children. We had one of the most delicious chocolate cakes ever!!!

We came back and finished packing. Zelia had fun in the suite case:) Anyway, We woke on Saturday morning, finished packing and got on the road. Actually Jacob had to make 2 trips to the hotel with our bags since we had so many and then we went to the bakery and had some to chocolate and some goodies:) the weather was calm and we were ready to fly to Reykjavik.