Tenerife Lady-Trip: Golf Lesson & Resting
[Photos taken 01-02 December 2021, posted online 02 April 2022. Spring is making moves towards dominance, the snow is finally gone, and temperatures have moved upwards a smidgeon. Went to see a comedy show last night in a packed auditorium, was fun!]
Us ladies got tempted by all the golf-bags that tumbled off the luggage conveyor in the airport, and booked a golf lesson at a nearby golf-course. We biked there, and then spent an hour whacking at a small ball with varying degrees of success.
The following day was spent resting and relaxing (except our energizer bunny went out on a jog, because that’s what energizer bunnies do!) (65-ish images total)
Wednesday 01 December 2021
Tenerife Lady-Trip: Lounging & e-Biking
[Photos taken 29 – 30 November 2021, posted online 20 March 2022. Have just returned from a one-night date-stay at a hotel out in the wilderness. Had awful weather yesterday, but very pretty today. Oh well!]
On our third day in Tenerife we mostly just lounged, and planned things to do. On the fourth day we procured bikes, and biked about. As (mixed) luck would have it, one of the bikes had a broken computer, so they bike-renters had to go get a new one, and due to the delay we got the bikes for an extra day for free! (30-ish images total)
Monday 29 November 2021
Tenerife Lady-Trip: Arrival & Walk-Abouts
[Photos taken 27 – 28 November 2021, posted online 19 March 2022. There’s been So. Much. Snow. and So. Many. Storms. since February… and it’s still going. Also, covid has now claimed us all, and Bjarki probably spent a week battling the flu.]
In late 2019, my friend Adda asked if I wanted to join her on a ladies-only trip to Tenerife in March 2020. I was all sanctimonious, couldn’t imagine going without the rest of the family, yadda-yadda, and said no.
She then found a more willing travel partner, but as Iceland’s first Covid-19 case was discovered in late February 2020, that travel partner had to cancel, so Adda and her hubby ended up going instead.
Fast-forward to mid-November 2021, and Adda telling me that ooops, she won’t be going to that concert with me in early December as planned, because the original travel partner and her had made a last-minute decision to finally go to Tenerife. Being absolutely fed up with being stuck in Iceland for so long, I immediately asked if I could join them, and thankfully they said yes!
Thus it happened that in late November, three ladies boarded a direct 4.5 hour flight to Tenerife, where we spent an absolutely marvelous week! (60-ish images)
Saturday 27 November 2021
Parental Vacation: Víðgelmir, Húsafell & Krauma
[Photos taken 19 – 20 July 2021, posted online 30 October 2021. Pumpkins appear to be sold out in Iceland, might have to carve out watermelons this year!]
Our good friends, Adda and Halli, had a treasure trove of gift cards that were either expired or about to expire (but all still magically valid because of Covid-19) that all centered around the area of Húsafell. They asked if we’d be their (adults only) travel partners, and, after securing a sleepover for Emma, we said yes!
That Monday I hitched a ride with them to Húsafell, where we met Finnur, who’d packed up house #2. We drove over to the cave site of Víðgelmir, went on a cave walk, drove back to Húsafell, checked into the hotel proper, enjoyed the ridiculously good weather playing Rummikub on the patio, before eating dinner at the hotel restaurant.
Afterwards, I was so stuffed I desperately needed to move, so I went on an evening walk around the area in the gorgeous evening sun, while the others chatted and chilled.
The next day we drove towards the hot tub spa of Krauma, stopping on the way by the pretty lava-side waterfalls (Hraunfossar/Barnafossar). At Krauma we hung out in the hot tubs, and then ate a late lunch before driving back to civilization and parental responsibilities. (70-ish images total)
Monday 19 July 2021
Akureyri Ski Trip
[Photos taken 18 – 22 February 2021, posted online 19 June 2021. These are super social days according to the hair salon ladies and news from the liquor store, they’re both super busy!! First it was the remnants of the confirmations, this weekend marks the end of the graduations, and then we’re moving on to weddings.]
One of the sewing club ladies had the organizational foresight in October 2020 to suggest the club go skiing in the north during the February winter school break. The club was up for it, and lodging was booked with the assumption that Covid-19 would be under control, and before we knew it it was time to go! This was essentially a repeat of the ski-trip we took with the club in 2014, we stayed a the same place, Lamb-Inn.
Covid-19 restrictions meant that the number of available passes was limited, and the ski area split the day into two slots. The demand for passes broke the booking system, but we got what we needed in the end. All in all, a good time was had by all, although it was super weird to be among so many people at the same time! (50-ish images total)
Thursday 18 February 2021
Liverpool Trip & Tim Minchin
[Photos from 01 November 2019, posted online 13 May 2020. The weather has switched to full-on spring (chilly though) and Covid cases are declining rapidly, but one or two are still popping every now and then.]
Many moons and what feels like several life-times ago, I bought tickets to see Tim Minchin perform live in Liverpool. (Yes, it was an excellent fall show-wise for the nerd in me!) The grand plan was to go see his show on a Friday, then attend an Everton home football game on the Saturday (my first!), and fly back home to the kiddos on Sunday morning.
As luck would have it, the game got moved to Sunday, so the plan got changed. I would still go home Sunday morning (and miss the game), but Finnur would attend the game with a few other Icelanders, and then travel to London to work at the London office for three days, with a cozy room and board at my dad’s and Shirley’s house.
Friday 01 November 2019
Finnur in Japan, We Chill
[Photos taken 08-16 September 2019, posted online 09 April 2020. Covid-19 might be peaking, time will tell if it’s a local maxima or not. Spring and winter have begun their battle over the weather.]
The first week of September was so blah that no photos will be shown. But on the second week Finnur took off on a worktrip to Japan, to meet up with distant colleagues. The rest of us plodded along as usual, managing to stay mostly sane.
The highlight was probably a quick trip to house #2, to take down the trampoline for the winter. Oh, and Bjarki finally got an electric guitar, after much begging. (90-ish images total)
Sunday 08 September 2019
Waterfall Trolls & Glacier Trip
[Photos taken 23 – 24 July 2019, posted online 08 March 2020. Very chilly but gorgeous day outside.]
Our second set of house #2 visitors, aka Adda, Halli and kids, were in an adventurous mood, as this summer was a stay-cation for us all, after we’d spent 10 days in Florida together in February.
We therefore used the time we had with them to check out nearby tourist traps and go snowmobiling on a glacier (!!!), as well as just trying to relax and enjoy a few days away from life as usual. (50-ish photos total)
Tuesday 23 July 2019
UK Easter Break
[Photos from 18 – 22 April 2019, posted online 07 October 2019. Hey, it’s a brand new week!]
Early on a Thursday morning I made my way to Keflavik airport, and flew to London, arriving early enough that I could take the kids to a trampoline park in the afternoon!
The following days, Anna and I went shopping, and the two of us also journeyed to London where we met Pétur & Signý for lunch, and saw Hamilton!
On Easter Day, the kids got huge chocolate eggs, we ate fantastic food, and also took the younger kids on a walk, and to two playgrounds. Anna claimed she was too old for those outings!!
On the Monday after Easter Day, we hugged our hosts goodbye, and flew on home to Iceland, where happily the weather had turned for the better. (80-ish photos total!)
Thursday 18 April 2019
Florida Day #11: Goodbye!
[Photos taken on 02-03 March 2019, posted online 24 August 2019. The leaves are starting to change color, and every now and then fall is in the air.]
Too quickly, our last day in Florida dawned. We had to clear the airbnb house by 10 am, but happily didn’t have to actually clean it. Ever since The-Very-Sweaty-Very-Stressful-Exit-Cleaning-of-the-Airbnb-house-in-Lyon, I’ve tried to rent tidy-only properties.
We piled all our stuff into the two cars, and then went to do a bit of shopping as we moved in hops closer to the airport. Our flight didn’t leave until close to dinner-time, so we had plenty of time to kill.
We arrived in Iceland on the Sunday morning, and spent the day recovering, and making cream-puffs! (40-ish photos total)
Saturday 02 March 2019
