Tuesday, March 15, 2016

My Magical Trip to Iceland and the Arctic Circle

A troll on top of parking sign in Reykjavik

The largest lake in Iceland

Vista from Thingvellir National Park with geysers in distance

An iced plant next to a frozen stream

In front of the old Thingvellir Church

A dip in the hot springs and hot lake in below zero temperatures

The Icelandic equivalent of the "Old Faithful" geysir

Small horses with thick fur everywhere in the frozen landscape

One of three intact ancient Viking ships in Oslo, Norway

A steady Arctic diet of different herring and other fish

The only place on earth where two tectonic plates (North American and Eurasian) meet above ground and sacred original meeting place of the Viking parliament

Hallgrímskirkja church in Reykjavik with a statue of Leif Erikson, son of the Viking Icelandic founder Erik the Red

Hundreds of ducks, geese and swans battle for food in a Reykjavik lake

Dog mushing over 12 km of Norwegian Arctic landscape

Me as newly expert dog musher with a 5-dog team of huskies

Two nights in an ice hotel in Norway on an ice bed covered with reindeer skins

Our Sami tribal guides

                                              An extraordinary late afternoon Arctic sky


An fjord in the Arctic Circle at sunset

Me with a beautiful white reindeer

Green Northern Lights at midnight in the Arctic Circle

Hitching up the sleigh for a midnight reindeer ride


An iced cocktail of curacao and vodka in an ice glass at the ice bar

The delicately carved sculptures and lights in the ice hotel