Fun in the Fjords...

The thing about West Iceland is that it has fjords. Gorgeous, lovely, stomach curdling winding roads curve in and around said fjords. Offering photo opportunities like this one:



Nice, huh? Tucked into one end of Hvalfjörður, we stumbled across this remnant of a Icelandic home.



Your own personal waterfall next to the fjord...a nice place to live, eh? And of course, sheep.



Everywhere you go, there are sheep.

We only spent two days in West Iceland, and we spent the second day exploring the area around Borgarnes. There is a really well done museum documenting the Viking era there called the Settlement Center. The top half of the building is dedicated to the history of the settlement of Iceland. It's superbly done, and educational without being dry. The kids particularly liked the room with the simulated ride on a Viking ship. Me, my stomach and my easily triggered motion sickness did...not. On the second level of the building, there's a wonderful telling of Egil's Saga, using sculpture, paintings, dioramas, and sound effects. Sounds like it belongs in a carnival, but it was also very good. Creepy as hell, but good.

The day was ended with more beikon and a dip in the hot pot. (If you keep reading these blog entries, you'll see that this holiday was mostly spent eating. And there's a reason that I and my ever exanding waistline stay behind the camera most of the time.) :P

The next day, we drove across the country to the next cottage. It's the same one that we stayed in last time, in the Þjórsárdalur valley. Since we were driving over the main highway, we decided to retrace part of the "Golden Circle" on our way there. Geyser, Gullfoss and Thingvellir - all of the greatest hits of Iceland tourism. See last years photos...they're pretty much the same as the ones from this year.

However. One difference.

We had to drive along the way to Kjosarskard in order to get to Thingvellir...and it's probably the most astonishing topography that we saw during our entire time in Iceland. Soaring mountains with almost sheer cliffsides, waterfalls roaring into crevasses, moss covered rocks jutting out everywhere. I think that for sheer drama, this was one of my favourite drives through the country. The awful thing is...I was too busy gaping at all of the amazing scenery to take many photos.

Fail.

*sigh*

Going to have to go back and take photos. In a few years, though. Need time to figure out how I can smuggle an Icelandic sheep home in my luggage first.