Snow snow go away!

Well here it is.  May 3, 2014 and it looks like Christmas.  It makes me chuckle because it was sunny and warm when we got back from Iceland.  I wore shorts and sandals on Thursday!
We spent 4 days in Iceland - Joe found a good deal on the net for a 4 day excursion.  It was only $200 more to fly to Iceland, have 3 nights in a hotel and a day long sightseeing tour, than to fly to Ottawa to visit our granddaughter!  How could we resist?
Iceland is a fascinating place.  It was chilly as it is almost always windy, and the wind comes off the North Atlantic and glaciers.  It is a country of contrasts.  Mountains, flat areas, geysers, glaciers and fjords (we didn't get to the fjords as they are in the North - maybe next time).  We saved money getting there and staying there but it was expensive otherwise.  Food is pricey as much of it is imported and Iceland is in the middle of the ocean.  Even fish is expensive as they export most of it.  We didn't buy many gifts either.  I planned to get my granddaughter an Icelandic sweater but even short sleeved ones were well over $100.  So we got her a pair of Icelandic wool socks for $24.
The geysers reminded me a little of Yellowstone.  There are areas where the water is bubbling out of the ground.  There is one geyser that is not as high as Old Faithful but it erupts with more frequency.  The upside is that they use thermal energy for everything.  On our trip we passed aluminum factories which are totally run by it.  Hot water is not a problem there.  Farmers take advantage of the thermal energy - they have it on their property.  You can see steam rising out of the fields.
We visited a couple of thermal pools.  They smell a bit of sulphur but are very relaxing.  They are reputed to have healing properties.  The blue lagoon is huge.  You could spend a whole day there as they have restaurants, saunas, massage etc.  They even have an area where you can give yourself a silica sand facial!  It was fun seeing everyone swimming around with white faces.
Since Iceland is a lava island, a lot of the terrain is very rugged.  In fact it was quite dismal on the way from the airport in to Reykjavik. No vegetation except moss on the lava rock.
Lisa was in Iceland with us.  Noisy birds - we were stopped to see the farm that was shown around the world in 2008 when there was a huge volcano.  The farm was covered in 6 inches of ash.  In fact flights were grounded in Europe because of the ash.  Some birds were across the road.  They chirped and chirped.  I couldn't figure out where the noise was coming from.  They were on the ground.  Joe took photos of them.  Apparently they are called oyster catchers.  Lisa has a way of attracting attention!
So that was my week.  We got back home on Thursday and I had a meeting that night.  Yesterday, I felt sick from jet lag and being overtired.  This week promises to be busy again.  We are supposed to do a spring clean up on our hill tomorrow.  I truly hope it is postponed - with all the snow right now, we won't be able to find the rubbish!
I hope all are having a great weekend.
Lisa, Thanks for showing up in Iceland.  You know I miss you always and love you forever.  Mummy