arrival in the land of vikings and faeries...

Ok so we've arrived in Iceland and although I cant send this yet because I'm out of internet reach, it'll go out when im back in Reykjavik.    But I wanted to keep you all current ...I know it'll be a lot of info all at once but, for me, writing as I go is a meditative way to reflect on events.  So... the entry into the country couldn't have been smoother...we had no particular place to stay upon arrival...and it was about 1 AM when we got here.  But of course, everything works out...we met a delightful woman on the plane who had a hotel room all booked and she invited us to join her.  The room also included breakfast and hot spring passes and she was fun to hang out with so we also spent the next day with her until our bus took us to the forest of  Thorsmorck where we were to spend the next two weeks.  Now for the  bus ride out there....definitely one of the wildest rides I've ever taken...like  a ride at Disney.  I knew we were going to be surrounded by three glaciers and have to ford rivers to get to the camp but I never imagined that the reality would be quite as extreme.  We had to take this high-water bus for the last two hours of a 4 hr ride, because it's got to be able to handle the crossings.  So we enter this wide, lava filled valley, braided with some serious rivers with steep sided volcanic mountains on either side.   A very far out landscape....have never seen anything quite so dramatic.  And the rivers of course, have no bridges..we simply drive through them.  At places they are 3 to 4 feet deep!!  I'm not exaggerating either.  And they're flowing strongly...lots of current...I was pretty impressed with the whole project...and at times holding my breath and creating an - escape from the bus in case it tips - plan.  And the bus driver is seriously indulging in snuff perhaps to keep his senses keen?  And then we arrive at camp....expecting some dusty old cabins with mattresses on the floor....maybe some mutton stew for dinner.  But there's this salmon dinner with fresh greens and tasty red tomatoes in a salad!!  It was SAVED JUST FOR US!   Just about brought me to tears.  And those dusty old cabins were hardly so....ok  there was a mattress on the floor but it was all quite cozy and pleasant.  Met our work group....people from all over the world...we're the only Americans.  The group is from Japan, Belgiuim, France, Italy, Switzerland, Portugal, the UK, Greece, Czech Republic and Russia.  Lucky for us, English is the official language of the camp...some people speak it better than others...but all are welcoming and sweet and friendly.  Look forward to hanging out with them.  Go to sleep hearing the wind whipping down through the valley..its got nothing to stop it except our cabin....

on our way to JFK....

Ok this is my first on-the-road entry....had a little trouble loading the photos.  Maybe its because its about 2 AM  and I'm not really fluid with this thing anyway.  But at least you can get an idea of what it all looks like out here....more will follow...

sipping coffee in Reykjavik

weaving our way through the waters...

the water gets deeper...

waterfalls and rainbows all over...

the glacier close up...

on the way to camp..

and here's one of the rainbows...

heres the camp through the field of rubble...