Caffeinated, skyr-ed and ready to go, Lynn, Garmin and myself set out. We had a busy itnerary and not very far to go, so it was a very stress free day. The fact the sun doesnt even begin setting until about 10 or 1030pm here really helps with the whole getting-to-you-destination-before-dark thing and our first stop melted away any pre existing stress made it that much more enjoyable.
We chugged along route 1 which is called The Ring Road (it is the road we will be following for the majority of our time in Iceland) til we hit route 87 near a gorgeous lake called Myvatn. Easy driving, made in the shade. As we drove down the gravel road, weaving through what Lynn has come to call chocolate crumble fields (Willy Wonka would love this place!) we couldnt help but marvel at the abstract beauty of the lava fields, but they would have to wait until later, we were on to more relaxing activities.
As we rounded a corner we could see clouds of steam rising from small crevasses in the earth: the sulphur springs, more on them later. A quick right and another right and we were at our destination: the nature baths. They are pools (as in water that is contained in a rocky, sandy, natural structure; not a lined swimming pool) of geothermally heated water, so there are hot spots and cooler though never cold spots circulating through the pool. There were also giant showers you could meander under while in the pool - one had a wide spray, the other a single spout of water that just hammered your neck and back. No physio for Matt tonight!! Oh and as with everything in Iceland the view was ridiculous. I completely lost track of time, but not temperature as it was screaming out from a large digital display: 9.5C!! Once we hopped out Lynn immediately dashed to her towel and into the changing room while I stood there shivering and waffling between changing or going into this long narrow hot-tub. It seemed to be the popular choice so i hopped in, put my head back, stretched out my legs, closed my eyes and reeeeeeeeeeelaxed. Meditation for the day - check!
The hot tub was pretty neat as well as it was, much the same as the pools, heated geothermically and did not have jets or anything. As relaxed as humanly possible, I hopped out of the hot tub and stared at the railing which is where everyone ties their towels prior to bathing. A great number more seemed to accumulate while I was blissfully taking my time in the hot tub. I stood shivering, staring and perhaps always swearing until I grabbed mine and started towelling off, until I realized it was not mine. Mine was blue, not pink. Whooooops. So I grabbed my BLUE towel and away I went. If you are reading this pink towelled person I am so sorry!
After that we headed to some lava fields (or chocolate crumble fields), Myvatn Lake then on to the airbnb. The airbnb was a little different this time as we were staying with someone deep in the country on their farm. As we rolled up we saw the farmers' son walking across the field in coveralls with purpose in his stride. As soon as we stepped out of the car we were greeted by a dog whom I took to calling Shadow, as I had no idea how to pronounce her real name. We were soon greeted by Ari (the farmer)'s wife who was very friendly and immediately showed us to our room and encouraged us to make ourselves at home and to join her in the kitchen once she returned from picking up a volunteer farmhand. We opted to first observe Ari and his son milk the cows. It was all done by machine with him first washing the teats then hooking up the machines, sucking out the milk, lubing the teats up presumably so they dont dry out, then sending the cows on their way. After two rounds of milking and far too many questions from myself he encouraged us to join his son for feeding the calves, which pretty much consisted of the son tossing a bucket of milk in an elevated trough that had a number of spouts affixed to an artifical teat. Some pictures and romping around in a barn later we returned to the house.
After obligatory Instagramming and Facebooking we made our way to the kitchen table where she was sitting with the newly acquired help from Germany. We sat and talked with Ari, his wife and Phillip the farm helper for a couple of hours. They told us stories about how they came to be farmers (Ari was raised on a farm, his wife married into the farm life and was getting used to it bit by bit) and answered any questions we had about Iceland, complete with anecdotes about asian guests who thought the Northern Lights were a sign of fertility, so as soon as they saw them they dashed inside and (it was assumed) they started humping like bunnies. Then there were the guest swho paid $120 to take a tour to see the Northern Lights, all the while Ari telling them they were stunning over his farm. Turns out, surprise surprise, he was right. We were also treated to a story about the biggest day of the year - the day the sheep are herded off the mountain and shepherded back to their respected farms.
Perfect way to end the night. Buona notte!
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