From the Land of 10,000 Lakes to 66˚ North

Amy: It’s October 2 and I’m sitting in a pub in a quaint English village called Thaxted. Thought I’d write a bit while Jon is out at the barber. As our journey really started in Minnesota, here are a few highlights from our time there up to the short time we spent in Iceland.

Jon and I enjoying late summer in beautiful Northern Minnesota

Spending three weeks preparing for our travels and enjoying family and friends was just what we needed. We celebrated Jon’s 39^th birthday with his family and, best of all, in the company of our very cute 10-month old nephew, Michael Patrick. We spent a week up at Majestic Lake (where I grew up) and played on the water…rain or shine. Luckily the weather was pretty shiny! An overnight trip to Ely, MN gave us time with some of Jon’s former Outward Bound colleagues and a late night ride to seek out the Northern Lights. I enjoyed hours of hiking through Duluth and wading in Lake Superior on perfect September day with my dear friend, Dina. We played lots of games with our families and just enjoyed some beautiful down time with friends.

Northern Lights photo courtesy of Shay Ruggles in Ely, MN

We also planned, planned, planned. There are many logistics with totally changing your life. Over the past couple of months we had lists and lists of things to address. Where does the mail go? Do we renew our license tabs in Colorado? What shoes and clothes do we take in our 46L bags? What insurance do we need? Do we need water purification tabs? Do we take phones or computer with us? How do we get Wi-Fi while travelling? What do we book ahead of time and what do we just let emerge as we travel? And so on. It was a bit overwhelming. Luckily, I enjoy the planning and Jon is a master of thinking of the little details. That is where our dual Type-A personalities are a benefit.

Then the REAL travel started! Last Saturday we took an overnight flight to Iceland for a quick stop, just two nights at the Guesthouse Andrea near downtown Reykjavik. The room was basic, but I kinda love minimal and small anyway. Here is what our short time in Iceland taught me: 1) the weather in Iceland is temperamental, bring some warm clothes and a raincoat 2) Iceland has a lot of sheep and waterfalls 3) dried fish is tough to eat and Jon found out that fermented shark tastes like ammonia 4) the Gullfloss waterfall is huge and the best part of the Golden Circle (even though it was very cold there when we visited). We ate at Café Loki both nights as they had a great view of Hallgrimskirkja (a striking church near our guesthouse) and traditional Icelandic food. The food was let’s say…interesting and a bit expensive, but it was worth it.

Waterfalls all to ourselves on a drive north of Reykjavik

Gullfloss Waterfall on the Golden Circle Drive (rainy and cold, but pretty)

Traditional Icelandic Plate (mashed fish, smoked lamb, cubed shark, dried fish) with my tasty Pale Ale called Gaegingur

Although our time in Iceland was brief, I feel like we got a nice taste of the country before we took an early flight for our next stop in England. Jon will share more on our fun in the UK soon.

(Dates: MN- September 3-26 and Iceland- September 27-29)