Yes, I'm in Iceland. It was R's birthday on Wednesday last week and as a treat I thought I'd take us somewhere a little different for a long weekend rather than doing the usual present and nice restaurant. So I booked flights to leave London on Wednesday evening and back on Sunday evening. I even managed to keep the whole thing a secret and only told R where we were off to on the train to the airport on Wednesday evening. The special treat of the holiday was the hotel I had booked for 3 nights from Thursday. Hotel Ranga advertises itself as a luxury hotel in the south of Iceland overlooking a salmon river and a volcano.
Yes you've guessed it the volcano the hotel over looks was the Eyjafjallajokull Volcano which has been spewing ash across Europe since Wednesday morning and closed airspace since Thursday morning. Thankfully the hotel is NE of the volcano so we werent evaculated or covered in ash.
We had an amazing volcano, and I simply cant convey the how strange it was to be enjoying the out door hot tub watching this powerful mountain erupt. Fascinating really.
Here is one of my shots of the volcano, surreal really to be right there and then to see the news reports of the chaos.
Unfortunately the volcano watching is now over and we are back in Reykjavik waiting for a flight home. Anyone who has been here will know that whilst this is a lovely city, there isnt too much to do. So I was very excited to discover some rather fabulous yarn and fabric shops right on the equivalent of London's Oxford St / Manhattan's 5th Ave.
Look how beautifully their goods are displayed...I simply dont see this range of colours, textures and patterns at home....I felt like a kid in a sweet shop
I havent quite got to grips with the exchange rate just yet (185KR = 1GBP is a tricky calculation) but I've worked out enough to understand that the beautifully displayed yarn is quite pricey so I'm hoping to get home before I spend any more time and money in the lovely shops. Fingers crossed for a flight tomorrow
That is kind of amazing that you were right there in the thick of it! I seriously considered studying to be a vulcanologist so to actually be right there when a volcano exploded would be extremely interesting to me. What a moment to remember!!
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad to hear you're alright. I've had friends who visited Iceland and have told me how pricey it is. I hope you manage to get home safely very soon.
A Lot of Loves
Oh my, ...of all the gin joints in all the world.....How spectacular though! I have friends stuck in America who are getting quite restless and have been told 5th of May return at earliest!! Hope you get your flight sorted soon. But in the meantime.....haberdashery joy!! Amazing pics by the way!
ReplyDeleteoh Becca how ironic! I had a trip to NYC planned, was due to fly on Sat so didn't make it. I don't know which way it's worst to be stranded, at home or abroad, probably abroad I guess!
ReplyDeleteAmazing volcano picture I agree. Hope you get home safe!