Land of Wool and Lava

English is spoken well here - even half the graffiti is in English. And every hostess, desk clerk and citizen knows to use our native tongue when engaging these Americans in conversation. How, I wonder, do we not appear to be natives of this land? It is Winter, so we are bundled in coats, gloves, hats and such - this is the way everyone is dressed. And most carry a small backpack just like I do. Perhaps, these days, there are more tourists in Reykjavik than locals and so, it's simply the safest verbal opening to offer...

The foreigner count is so high, we believe, due to the extensive deals offered from Iceland Air via the Groupon-like online emailer, TravelZoo. In our wanderings, those whom we met had purchased a similar $700/pp deal to spend 3 nights in Iceland, airfaire & hotel included, with several excursion packages too. Twas only an extended weekend and our travel time alone was more than twice the 7-hour flight from Denver. So, 30 hours of airplanes, TSA gauntlets and traffic in exchange for 80 hours of vacation! But it certainly is worth the effort.

It is always a gentle surprise to select an airline that respects their customers and does not treat the non-business traveler with disdain as do the big US domestic carriers. Still no free meals, but a pleasant welcome and a iceberg-shaped bottle of genuine glacier water imported for us from our destination. The drink-of-the-day on this polar route was the hand-crafted Champagne Shower Sour Power, a mix of sweet Vermouth, Vodka, apple vinegar and... pop-rocks! For $12, our flight attendant blended ingredients and shook vigorously for a full minute; all worth the show and taste. Yup, long days with short nights leads to crazy inventiveness!

If you touch down before sunrise on a Saturday, be prepared to roam the streets with fellow arrivals until the kaffitar (coffee shops) open. At that time, quickly grab a seat and order a $5 better-than-Starbucks warm beverage in a cup and a chocolate croissant side. Ah, just the first $20 for food of much more yet to be spent...

Since our hotel, the Center Skjaldbreid in old downtown, would not have a room for us until the afternoon, we began our shopping! We found a Christmas shop and passed on the $80 stuffed white moose in favor of a simple ornament, to become another annual memory of travels long past. Every fourth storefront sells wool goods including the traditional lopapeysa (sweater), which is mandatory attire for all tour guides.

Next stop is the tallest landmark in the city, Hallgrímskirkja, a 244' towering space-shuttle shaped church built in concrete to resemble the hexagonal basaltic lava columns. In classic Gothic style, yet with minimal decoration, the lines and open spaces dominate. For 700 krona each ($6.20), we lift up to the observation deck with wide views across the town sloping down to the waterfront; now, we've seen it all...

With even more time still available, we choose to hit a local hot pot. This term refers to the geothermal spas and pools, which are prevalent across the land, even in the smallest hamlets. We are directed to the oldest one in the city, where only the locals are found; indeed, we are the lone tourists and enjoy a soak in some large hot tubs on the rooftop. Ahhhhh....

Next, a stop at Prikið, one of the oldest eateries in town for lunch: a hamburger for her and fried codfish for him with my first beer, a Viking. Just 25 years ago (in 1989), Iceland ended the final part of their alcohol prohibition to permit the sale of beer; that day is March 1st, so I celebrated the local culture as best I could...

We were certainly blessed to see majestic Northern Lights, the bucket-list objective that launched this voyage overseas. On our first evening, we set sail into the harbor to pull away from the city lights with 100+ passengers; within minutes, we were told to go up on deck (in the chilly air and strong winds) to see the lights! On this initial opportunity, as all were huddled together, we were filled with a combination of gladness to see them tempered with disappointment at how boring they actually were...

"Is that faint grey cloud really the phenom that has brought us here?" "Yes, that's it alright" we are told. In the next 15 minutes, however, that cloud exploded into emerald curtains pulsating with waves across the entire horizon. They move rather quickly changing brightness and drawing shapes ranging from dragons to flowers. Photographs saturate the color and show it much brighter, but the live action is wonderful and awe inspiring. And, then we saw them again the next night (at 1am) from the beach!

Upon our return to terra firma, it is time for a grand arctic tradition - a pylsa (with sweet relish remoulaude) from the internationally famous Bæjarins Bestu (awarded Best in Europe, 2006). We stand in line for a few minutes to get a pair of extremely tasty $3 hotdogs; yummmm!

This is truly a party-town with constant activity through the weekend nights; our hotel provides perfect access to hear it all, like that or not. The next day, we are greeted with the sounds from a local marching brass band playing New Orleans tunes in honor of upcoming Mardis Gras. Then, they added some Bear Necessities from Disney...

On our final evening, we enjoyed a pleasant Italian dinner at Caruso's, a well-received establishment with fine dishes; it is expensive at ~$60/pp but since a simple hamburger can run $25, one must keep perspective on the value received.  

The chamber of commerce has created the Golden Circle, which defines a countryside excursion route taking 6 hours to see the wonders of this volcanic landscape: we crossed the tectonic rift between the North American and European plates, viewed a mountain glacier, watched the original Geysir from which the common name is derived, saw grazing Icelandic horses, and braved two frozen waterfall vistas.

The final excursion was to the Blue Lagoon, a converted effluent pit from the electric utility that is more dull green than blue. The waters range from warm to hot (!) and crowds swarm to bathe and absorb the sulfurous liquid. Ah, mother nature at her utmost; it was rather soothing ;-)

The home turf of Leifur Ericson holds wonders, tastes, and vistas that amaze and inspire; a perfect place for a long weekend away...

See more photos here.

Fording America in a Chrysler

In early June of 2011, we set off on a round-trip drive from Texas to New York so that we (that is, Cheryl) would have her own car for her 6-week long summer vacation (while I promptly returned by plane to the coal mines of Dallas). The drive up north was a quick dash in two days to cover the 1500 miles in about 24 hours of "road time" (quick stops included).

I planned this trip just as our grand-parents did road trips - just start driving! I made no reservations in advance... no checking carefully for internet ratings, best prices, and such... "we'll just go til we get tired and find a road-side h/motel for the evening" thought I. Well, my thoughts were in need of some rehabilitation - we drove around for some time (in the rain) looking for an available room in the Louisville area - only after several stops did we find a vacancy. Fortunately, a decent one - I am a "luckier-than-average bear"...

As a reward for the accelerated no-frills first half (and to make up just a tad for my having not properly planned our single night's need for restful accommodation), I made our return in July a lil more interesting...

Cedar Point

Our nephew, Thor, is working his first post-college summer as a seat-checker (aka fat-tourist-stuffer) on the Raptor roller-coaster at the Great Amusement Park in Sandusky, Ohio. He is working for below-minimum-wage in order to learn about hard work, commitment, and to further the fun-level of America's Touring Tourists. As a minor side benefit, his girlfriend, Paige, just happens to work 500 feet away at the Disaster Transport attraction ;-)

In a day-and-a-half, we experienced plenty of thrills in the summer heat near Lake Erie - we rode in the front row of every ride, including the 310' Golden Ticket "number 1 rated" steel coaster for 2010, Millennium Force! There are many coasters here and a rather good Wooden one - the Mean Streak - which is highly rated, very smooth (at least down the first drop) and quite long.

Some great rides, good air time, plenty of G's and a successful smart-phone launch at 90+ MPH from Cheryl's purse! Both Thor and Paige (in row #2) had the optimal viewing angle to see the 3-day-old Android escape heavenward in sloooow mooootion into a lovely Blue Sky on a unplanned voyage to a seemingly doomed meeting with Planet Earth... After a (clandestine?) search, it was recovered and is operational having only lost the back panel - now that story should beat the abuse dished out by Swayze and Mongo in the old Timex adverts hands-down!

BTW, when booking a hotel room, read the online reviews and check carefully but remember that sometimes it just isn't possible to know in advance that your River View room looks out over a brown stream towards a large grain mill and a cement factory! Still, we stumbled upon Wing Night next door and indulged a 'plenty!

@Thor & Paige: Thanks for a fun adventure!

From Saints to Sinners

The following day began with a 280-mile dash across Ohio to reach the beauty of Kentucky! And not only the lovely hills there, but to reach sanctuary at St. Mary's Basilica just over the border from Cincinnati. It can make you wanna be Catholic for this is like being in Europe in the cathedrals from centuries past - this church was built by local Irish and German families over two decades and has the World's Largest church stained glass window (67' x 24') which is worth seeing for itself alone; however, there are many more fantastic windows (see pic at left), carvings, and murals - plus, the huge organ and the Gothic architecture of the building itself. A blessed beginning to our day...

...was derailed in no time by a stop at the Jim Beam distillery. Yup, its easy to tour every one of the Bourbon manufacturers in the state and learn the ways of moonshinin' and sip as much white lightning as you like. We did only the one factory since JB is the largest of them all. Our tour guide was a young Kentucky belle who is a family descendent of the dynasty. She showed us a miniature working still (see pic) and taught us how to make a proper corn-mash, double distill, burn our barrels, and wait 9 years for the results - makes cheese-making seem like its done in a microwave! That is a long time to hope no one breaks into the warehouse with an awl and a straw... and (to my unrefined palate) the final hooch is harsh (129-proof)!

I learned that the secret to finding an authentic Mountain Dew Still in the woods is to look for black bark on the trees - really - the distillation releases (happy) gas that encourages (very noticeable) mold growth on nearby forests - this is how those darn revenuers caught pappy back in the day! So, after a few sips of the devil's drink....

...we spent a night in jail! After arriving in the state's second oldest city of Bardstown, we passed the luxurious Wickland estate where three Governors have lived so that we could sleep in the haunted county prison, the Jailer's Inn. Yup, it has now been converted to a B&B, but the building still has 30" of limestone for the exterior walls, large timbers for the ceilings, remnants of shackles on the floors and walls, and several un-restored cells for viewing. This was a harsh lock-up where justice was swift - and slightly capricious at the whim of the presiding sheriff or traveling judge.

The innkeeper, Dixie, is an ex-Texan grandmother who is escaping the drudgery of daily childcare for her offspring's children by living in a spooky prison cell in a jail only closed down in 1987 after a century (and a half) of housing plenty of ne'er-do-wells like Jesse James - apparently (says she), his cousin was married to the local sheriff so he and his gang stayed there at the jail as a true guest where the state law would not think to look for him! Must admit tho, that is a good hideout and a fine story...

"Don't look inside the cellar!" says Dixie as she nods her head up and down to encourage our misdeed - I still wonder what was down there? Neither of us, for the record, were bound over for trial (I have a good attorney).

Oh, and when YOU drive through there, remember to stop by at Hadorn's Bakery and get a YumYum (or two) - it's worth the drive!

The War Years

Kentucky could have kept Lincoln if only they didn't have so many land-deed disputes that drove his family away to Illinois. Our Great President was born in a small log cabin on our nation's frontier while his father was unable to return home due to a winter storm. He was not so poor as one might think, as his father made out well in due time (according to the tax rolls), but his home was far from luxury even for that day.

A Federal Memorial marks the exact spot of his birth (coincidentally, on President's Day), verified by archeological evidence. It is a neo-classical design (by John Russell Pope who also did the Jefferson Memorial) with an ornate and symbolic presence at the top of a small hill in the deep green woodland. In contrast, the small cabin is placed inside and alone to accentuate the rags-to-riches story of this man who, many say, was the one to truly create the American Dream in a land where it was not yet present in fact.
So, from his childhood years at the dawn of the 1800's, we head south into the war zone near his final years in the 1860's. As a Californian, I learned too little about the War of Northern Aggression, but as a Texan-in-Training, I try to catch up. Shiloh ("Place of Peace") was a small Methodist church, housed in a modest log cabin in the Tennessee hills, but here in April of '62, Yankees and Rebels clashed in our nation's bloodiest fighting (up to that day) in a key battle for two days, then moving south to Corinth (MS) where the southern forces were defeated. Future US Presidents, Grant and Garfield, fought here as well. This was just the beginning of our tragic war for greater carnage would follow - and at this hour, our nation learned just how much suffering was ahead.

For the true student of The War, markers are placed in hundreds of locations at which one can stand where cannon were placed, attacks mounted, retreats taken, and a general fell dead (from a stray shot they say). Skittering among the remnants and remembrance are forest animals being cute - really - we watched baby raccoons dig for food and several baby deer jumping in the woods....

Redemption

After drinking and driving, prison and war, one seeks relief... so why not at America's Greatest Mansion on the Mississippi, Graceland? There are plenty of memorabillia for sale and customers there to buy it all - mostly with Australia/NewZealand/British accents indicating to me that we have successfully exported our highest values of democracy to the world at large.

Speaking of value - the Heartbreak Hotel is a Memphis bargain right next to Elvis World USA and HE is on EVERY channel on EVERY TV in the place! In the lobby is a hotline phone - pick it up to get a PINK LIMO ride over to Marlowe's (as featured on Food Network) for BBQ - we did just that with no regrets...

From Tupelo to Tennessee, the story of Elvis is another "anyone can grow up to be..." epic that we honor so often. Frankly, the tour is properly kitchy, but it is still quite interesting to see how a young man turned suddenly (and significantly) famous has to balance personal & private life and how his abundance of money was spent.

He did indulge himself quite a bit... with cars, airplanes, bikes, technology (like big color televisions and a microwave) - essentially classic man-toys of that era. However, he also gave money away to many worthy causes... and friends & family of course. His home was a man-cave with carpeted ceilings, expensive furnishings, plenty of "look at me" styles. Not that it wouldn't have been fun to be a 3-day house guest during the 60's!

He passed away at 42, a short life of marriage & divorce, birth (of Lisa Marie) & death (of his mother), poverty & wealth, fame & isolation, talent & ignorance, good choices & bad...

And, now I finally know - for certain - that MY swimming pool is BIGGER than his...

PS. No surprise that I have even more photos and blather online!

Bon Voyage

The excitement is palpable (whatever that means) as the departure nears for the women in our lives to set out on a road n' sea trip...


Has the world yet heard the exciting news
'Bout the ladies’ imminent ocean cruise?
There will be no men -
Only estrogen!
Might the ship flounder with all those shoes?

Y'all cheer, “Let’s go! Be rid of the guys!”
As you sail on toward azure blue skies
Old Salts have a ball
At each port of call
With plastic in hand for cheap Mexican buys

Vodka tonics, Margaritas and rum
Will assure there’s no end to the fun
Stewards kept busy
Keepin’ gals dizzy
‘Tween ports while at sea, you’ll always be numb

Diets forgotten at endless buffet -
Soaking up sun before evening Soiree!
Ogling teen pool boys...
Viewin’ men as toys...
Raising a toast to the “American Way”!

Hurricanes, Grasshoppers, Mojitos -
Ease burdens and lighten those sorrows
But don't shed that dress
If you drink to excess
Just what surprise might you likely expose?

Then, off to the beach for a surfside splash
Draining ev’ry purse of any last cash
Your wild cougar pack
Just need not look back
Despite scalding burns from each Hot Flash

Then back upon land you'll return
Drained by liquor, the sea and sunburn
Captured memories...
Dozens of stories...
And perhaps next year, it’s the guys’ turn!