Islands and waterways

I’m officially in love with Stockholm.  I’ve yet to find one part of it I don’t like, in fact.  Even wandering to the farthest reaches today to see a clown perform in a bordering park (I know, I’m desperate to see free theatre), I encountered charming buildings, interesting looking restaurants, and fun shops.  It seems like a very healthy, exciting city, enhanced by the amazing park Djurgarden (there are sheep!  And owls!  And it is huge!), and the fact that it is marvelously walkable.

Today I walked down to Junibaken (after the clown), to see the world of Astrid Lindgren (the creator of Pippi Longstocking).  It was really fantastic learning about her other stories on this surprisingly engaging “story train”, and watching the kids go nuts in the play areas was great.  Then I went to the Vasa museum and explored Djurgarden some more (this is my second day there now…yesterday was Skansen and the “aquarium”), before I rented a kayak for a spin around in the canals.

Then tonight I took a walk with a couple other girls from the hostel (the boys just wanted to watch the Euro cup) and we got hot chocolate in the Gamla Stan square.  Yum.

Also, in the “aquarium” I mentioned? (they call it that, but it contains some fish, lots of reptiles, and a bunch of monkeys and things that are almost monkeys).  There is a room there full of lemurs – and people can just walk right in! You get to hang out with the lemurs!  You’re not supposed to touch them yourself, but they will walk right up and check you out and nibble on your shirt.  I was not expecting anything like this – it would never happen in the US!  I’m just glad I had my Stockholm card, so the aquarium was free…otherwise I would have just skipped it entirely, missing my chance to hang with lemurs!

Tomorrow I will (try) to tackle the weaving museum, the famous chocolate store, the dance/theatre museum, and a visit to Vaxholm or Grinda on the archipeligo.  Now with my cold (almost) gone though, I feel much more energetic and ready for action!  We’ll see how it goes…  Hej da for now.

Stockholm wanderings

This morning (early this morning) I flew into Stockholm from Reykjavik.  I was sad to leave it behind, and even after a short time there I find myself having to adjust to the setting sun (albeit still late – at 10pm or so) and not having to boil cold water for food (because the hot water had too much sulfur in it to drink/eat).  Stockholm is beautiful and expansive and very much a city!

I got lost in the Gamla Stan (Old Town) today, stopping to chat with a traveling gallery owner who told me stories of her backpacking days and an ice cream seller previously from Texas (she married a Swede and never wants to leave).  I stopped to listen to a Swedish storyteller in a large square, who made me laugh even though I couldn’t understand the story at all.  There was a bench there with a little cushion for you bum…which was helpful for my sore legs left over from horse-riding yesterday.

I was sad too to say goodbye to Anna, a woman I met at the hostel who was a Swede herself.  She was about to begin her summer job at a Viking exhibit close to Reykjavik, dressing like a Viking and teaching people about their life.  She speaks excellent English, and we sat up late last night joking and laughing and comparing our lives and countries.  I loved how she would translate directly from Swedish when she didn’t know an English word.  “Pick-Pocket” became “Pocket Thief” and “sore” became “training-hurt.”  It was very cute.  She also tried to teach me words in Swedish, but I was pretty hopeless and all it did was provide both of us with a good laugh.

Tomorrow I think I’ll tackle the park island (Stockholm is essentially a bunch of connected islands) and the modern art museum…maybe even try to take a boat out to one of the islands in the archipeligo, if I’m really feeling ambitious. 

Takk Iceland, and Tack, Sweden!

Puffins!! and surprises and Iceland families and PUFFINS!

Puffins! Puffins!  Have you ever seen a puffin fly?  I have!  I´ve seen hundreds of puffins fly!  (and nest and fish and swim…)  If you haven´t guessed, I went out on a cruise to see the island where all the puffins nest today, and never have I seen so many puffins in my life.  When they fly, it´s rather frantic – they never glide, and are always quickly flapping – and often they would take off in groups and circle the island.  This blew my mind, because even though of course I knew puffins could fly, who has ever seen a puffin flock outside of the zoo? 

I also got to chat with Magnus, the grandson of the man who captained the boat.  He was helping out that day, and very excited about it (he was about 9 years old, I think).  His English was very good, and he had a great since of humor.  I think he was happy to practice his English on me too.  I love learned about Iceland from the people here – they´re all very proud of their country, and know alot about it.  Iceland is only about the size of Kentucky, and only 300,000 people live here, and most of the population is somehow related (even if you have to trace them back to the Vikings), so it´s more like a gigantic family community than a country like the US.

Also, I like Reykjavik very much.  It seems a new surprise awaits me every time I head over there to wander.  New hidden allies and churches and outdoor concerts and spontaneous art happenings…it´s a very vibrant city.  I will be sad to leave it, although Stockholm is next!

Tomorrow I ride an Icelandic horse and try out the Blue Lagoon (outdoor thermal lagoon!), then the next morning it´s time to catch the 5am bus for the airport! See you soon, Stockholm.

PS – Did you know Viggo Mortenson (or whatever…of Lord of the Rings fame) is also a ´photographer´?  And a mediochre poet? He is!  In Reykjavik there´s a whole photography display of his:  it´s all pictures of trees.  Apparently, it´s his ´gift to Iceland´, as Iceland has almost no trees (there´s not enough light during the year for them to grow well, and Iceland is very volcanic).  Thank you, Viggo.  There´s also plenty of his bad poetry all over the walls of the exhibit.  Apparently, he´s a really deep thinker.

The best thing about Iceland…

Is a sunny day seeing the sights followed by a sunny night at the oudoor public pool/jacuzzi.  Ahhhhhh.  A hot chocolate to finish out the day?  I think so.

sicky sick sick

So I entirely underestimated my response to the cold, and managed to saddle myself with a massive head cold.  I was planning on really attacking Reyjkavik today, taking the walking tour and all, but instead I took the bus to Hlemmur, walked up the main shopping street, and began comparing prices of warm clothing in the various secondhand shops (located right next to the high-end boutiques, oddly enough).  I managed to find a hand-knit Iceland sweater for 2500 ISK (2000 ISK = about $25), which is not bad considering that new, they run up to 15000 ISK and the other secondhand shop had them for 5000 ISK.  It kept me cosy as I walked to Bonus (so much cheaper than the other grocery store!) and then caught the number 5 bus at Hlemmur for Viðey island. The bus driver was the first Icelander I encountered who didn´t speak English, so I had to guess at the stop, but I made it off alright.

I caught the ferry to Viðey then, which was GORGEOUS but WINDY.  Seriously, between yesterday and today, Iceland is the windiest place I´ve ever been.  I only stayed on the island for an hour, as the ferry back only left once an hour, and with my cold, I didn´t want to get trapped up there for another hour.  The birds were the best part though – apparently, one breed, with this little red head and long bill, was in mating season, and the calls they made sounded like dog´s squeaky toys!  They were everywhere, and kept flying all around me, and doing that odd flying-in-one-place thing I´ve seen birds do here, using the wind. 

Tomorrow, the Golden Circle!  I have a feeling I´m in for more wind, and my sweater will definitely come in handy.

Landmannalaugar

My belly filled with sub-par food (because everything else is so expensive it would break the bank), I´m cold and weary but in love with what I saw of this country today.  I piled in a jeep this morning with two Russians, a German, a frenchwoman, a danish woman, and our Icelandic tour guide for a trip to Landmannalaugar (which I can now pronouce at least half the time).  Here is where the mountains are all different colors due to volcanic activity, and theres a spring that a hotspring runs into, making it a natural bathing place.

I watched as enthusiasitic Swedes and Icelanders stripped down to their bathingsuits in the cold wind and waded in to the point where the hotsprings made the water warmest.  I joined them, and found that natural hotsprings are a tricky business.  The water is often scalding hot on the top, quite chilly on the bottom, and if you sit wrong on the pebbles on the bottom, you´ll burn yourself on an unexpected hot rock.  I slowly got the hang of it, finding the warm spots and then shifting to a new place as people came and went, shifting the currents.  I then changed back into my warm clothes at the dock, using a towel to sheild myself as the other bathers were doing.  It felt delicious to be fully warm again.

I also saw an Icelandic geothermal power plant, where steam rolled like a bullet train out of its spout, and i was blown away by the sheer power this sulfur-filled water possessed.

Hello, Iceland!

I just arrived in Iceland this morning, to begin the first leg of my trip.  The plane ride over was really rough and turbulent, but I was immediately comforted by all the kind, friendly faces I’ve encountered here.  All the people I’ve met seem endlessly cheerful, and it’s sunny and relatively warm outside.  The scenery is very alien, and small complexes and towns seem to pop out of nowhere in this beautiful barreness.  The youth hostel here is clean and equally sunny, and I had no problem at all crashing on a couch in the common room before the official check-in time of 2pm.  Now I’m rested, refreshed, and excited to start exploring Reykjavik.