Prins Christian Sund

I first went through this area on the Grand Princess in 2007. I love fjords anyway and have been in most of the Norwegian fjords. This one is very majestic, narrow (as fjords usually are), deep, fascinating, etc. But, the really big surprise for us was when we rounded a curve in the fjord and found a whole host of friendly Greenlanders waiting for us in their smallboats. The Grand Princess sounded it's massive horn, slowed down, and came to a complete stop. The smallboats completely circled the big ship, and the occupants shouted greetings of welcome to us. It was a most wonderful several minutes. Then the horn sounded again, and the boats scurried away, back to the small village. The population of the village, Aappilattoq, has been dwindling over the years. I believe the latest count is approximately 132, and most of them were there to greet us. Now, when we enter Prins Christian Sund, I eagerly anticipate arriving at Aappilattoq.(**) (Click on the map to increase the size.)

 

Prince Christian Sund, continued

This is an area where the glaciers emerging from Greenland (which has approximately 90% permanent ice cover), calve icebergs. The scenery is quite spectacular. The iceberg you see below is the first of many we saw in the Greenland area. (Click on the photo twice to get a closer view.)

 

 

 

 

Prince Christian Sund

Prince Christian Sund is always one of our favorite parts of this North Atlantic crossing. We would be traveling from east to west. Danish helicopters preceeded us, so that we would have last minute information about iceberg activity. The ship cannot always transverse this area, but we were once again fortunate and headed into the sound.

 

Iceland -- Final Views (for a few days)

As we were preparing to leave southern Iceland, we weren't too sad, since we knew we would be returning in a few days.

 

Seaside home.

 

Viking Ship Sculpture (I love the clouds!) Note the Ocean Princess in the distance.

Blue Lagoon, Keflavik, Iceland

For years, I have been sending clients to the Blue Lagoon Spa but had never had the opportunity of visiting the spa myself. It is located about 22 km from the airport, and many people visit the spa, if they have sufficient time between flight connections. In addition to the spa facilities, it is also a Psoriasis treatment center.

 

One walks through dense lava flows to get to the main entrance.

 

The complex is rather large. For those who are allergic to sulphur, I would check with the spa concerning feasibility of swimming in the waters.

 

 

The long walk out of the spa. No vehicular access.

Hot Springs, Southwestern Iceland

The geothermal activity is more than sufficient to provide economical heating for homes in Iceland. We visited an area where the hot, sulphurus water was visible. We were told that the water was heated to a temperature in excess of 200 C. I observed a young local woman standing on the crust of the bubbling area, holding a net which contained 5 eggs in the water. She explained that it was a fertility ritual, and as her 5 friends observed, she hard-boiled the eggs, then ate them, in hopes of bearing 5 healthy children. Thank goodness, the edge of the bubbling pond didn't collapse, taking her into the hot water.

 

 

 

The coastline--I love the cloud formations.

West of Reykjavik

Since we had explored the city of Reykjavik on a previous trip, we decided to visit the countryside to the west.

 

Fish drying on racks.

 

Moss-covered volcanic flows. It takes considerable time to build up the moss formations.

 

This is the point where the American tectonic plate meets with the European tectonic plate. The latest volcanic activity was just north of here.

 

Popular lake.