Iceland's Eastfjords from Egilsstaðir to Höfn

 

First of all, HAPPY NEW YEAR!  

Though this is a year for which we're both looking ahead (as in Astrid and me both having cataract surgeries a week apart on January 25 and February 2!), I'm starting off the year here by going back to Iceland from last May, not wanting it to drop off the radar into a Black Hole.

This 7th day of our trip on May 12 (see overview here) is a good smattering of Iceland, if that's all you see, showing both the highlands and the fjords, with both mountains and valleys.

[credit:  Capture the Atlas]

We started the day at Egilsstaðir (upper red arrow) and drove south to Höfn (lower arrow).

This was the collage on Facebook that started off that day, which I will now flesh out.

We had just gone through our only day of snow the day before,
still lingering on the ground as we started this day, on May 12th!

As you can see, we're still in the highlands.

It feels sacrilegious to say this became almost monotonous.  Maybe hypnotic is a better word.

We spent hours driving through terrain like this throughout Iceland. 

But soon we descended to the eastern fjords and found signs of life.

Can you imagine living in that kind of "solitude?"

We had been so excited about seeing Icelandic harbors

but had no idea they would also look isolated and barren like this.

Another look at the fjord area, with the valleys...

...all the while, looking back up at the mountains, from the valleys below.

And yes, all those formations are of volcanic ash over the years.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

This was my next Facebook collage from that day,

when we stopped at a sheep farm by the side of the road.

It was totally unexpected but when they saw us, the father-son duo (this being the son)

invited us into their barn to check it all out:  500 sheep in total.

And, according to the father, he (the father) knew the names of them all!

There were two lambs that had just been born that morning, already standing up and walking.

I wished I had asked what their names were!

We really got our education that day, especially about why some horns have to be cut.

If they aren't cut, they can bore into the jaw, making it impossible for the sheep to eat.

If they can't eat, of course, they die.

All that blood--did you know??--but apparently the pain lasts only 10 minutes.

[video credit:  Astrid Wijdekop]

As you can imagine, this was the highlight of our day.

Did you notice (hear!) the road in the video?

How ingenious that the sheep can walk under it to the pasture beyond!

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

After the sheep, we headed to our destination town for our overnight in Höfn,

the second largest fishing port of SE Iceland, population ca. 2500.

By then it was late afternoon, after the catch of the day.

Believe it or not, these were the remains still caught in that flat net all spread out.

Overlooking that harbor was this Íshúsið Pizzeria, with lobster pizza as their specialty.

Their lobster is actually langoustine, or Norway lobster, smaller than our American lobster.

Hands down, it was the absolute best pizza I have ever eaten.  OMG.

What a way to end that incredible day!

Our Second 2022 Trip to America: Atlanta

 

Yes, so soon after we were there in September for our Maine and New York trip, we went back again for our annual visit with the kids in Atlanta.  Barring an unforeseen emergency, we don't expect that to happen again, especially at our age!  But we're happy it was possible.

This trip was a 3-week stint in 3 stages:  first with Amy at her home, then the cabin, followed by with Mark at his home.  And if all you read is this, it was one of our best trips ever, if not THE best!

1.  At Amy's in Roswell, GA, November 11-17:

Of course, first we waited at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam before flying on Friday, November 11.

The Dutch don't celebrate Thanksgiving, so it was Christmas already.

Amy treated us to lunch that Saturday at her favorite Saturday hangout.

Happy Campers!

The next day, Sunday, Nicholas (and Mark) joined us for lunch at a Mexican restaurant.

And thus started an almost endless time of Five-Crowns playing the rest of our visit.  HA!

Astrid and I both love walking Amy's neighborhood, which we did several times.

[Astrid's collage]

The flowers always surprise me at this time of the year, which was colder than usual.

We even met up for lunch with Glenna (who goes back to 1987 for me) and her partner.

Lots of water under the bridge since then!

And Astrid brought her new fisherman's sweater to work on in down-times.

2.  The Cabin in the North Georgia Mountains, November 17-22:

Even though it's still Autumn, we were there a month later than usual, so not as much color.

[Astrid's collage]

But it was still wonderful!

Just the 5 of us again:  Amy, Nicholas, Mark, Astrid and moi, picking up from last year,

even though at a new cabin we tried out, giving Mark his own bedroom.

Football, of course, with a MICHIGAN win for me...always a highlight!

Our traditional s'mores!

Plus the jigsaw puzzle Amy always brings for us.

This year it was the LinkedIn photo Mercedes-Benz chose for their June's Pride Month,

which Amy made into a puzzle.  Very sweet of her.

[Astrid's collage]

As usual, Astrid walked more than I did, so she has more photos.

[Astrid's collage]

[Astrid's photos]

Now you see why they're also called the Blue Ridge Mountains!

[Astrid's collage]

At the end of our cabin time, we always drive down the mountain to Waffle House,

one of our favorite traditions of them all!

3.  At Mark's in Flowery Branch, November 22-December 1:

I LOVED seeing Mark reconnect with his Piper after those 5 days away.

He took the entire time off from work for 15 days (which included the cabin)!

So, besides everything else, we played this new game as well as lots of Five Crowns, which he loved.

The day before Thanksgiving, he drove us to his alma mater, University of Georgia,

to walk the campus there in Athens, from which he graduated in 1997.

[Mark's photos]

It was as though it were my first time there for me.  I loved seeing it again.

On Thanksgiving, November 24th, we drove back to Amy's to spend the day there.

You have no idea how awed I was to sit and watch my kids prepare that meal,

including Nicholas mashing the potatoes and helping Astrid clean up.

All I did, besides eat, was clean up the turkey carcass!

That next Saturday we watched MICHIGAN win their game against Ohio State,

giving them 1st place in the Big Ten.  YAY.

And then on Sunday we watched one of Mark's Dungeons & Dragons campaigns,

meeting at his house, with a potluck meal beforehand.
Talk about educational!  A first for Astrid and me.

That next week, Mark and I both voted early in the Georgia Run-off Election for our US Senate seat.

Officer Lee (top-left) was the one who called all those over 75 to join him in another line,

which reduced our wait from 3 hours to only 1.5 hours.  Hard to ever forget that!

[And just this past Tuesday, our choice, Warnock, beat Walker.  My vote counted!]

[Astrid's collage]

Several walks, of course, in Mark's neighborhood!

One last hurrah before returning home was our drive to Old Car City USA in White, GA.

OMG!  Talk about a photographer's paradise, which is a separate post altogether.

[Astrid's collage]

Though cooler than our normal October visits,

it couldn't have been better weather for all our adventures.

Like I said, most of the leaves and color were gone, except for the stragglers.

But when you come down to it, it's the food we all share together that thrills us the most.

In this case, it's Amy's...who LOVES to cook.

And Mark's, which usually centers around what he cooks on his pellet grill.

Are we the Lucky Ones or what!

Three weeks packed full of Family Fun and Fellowship!

It'll last for a long time...at least until next year.  :)