After a hasty breakfast, we motored west through more impressive scenery. This day, however, we did not stop to take in the views. It seemed that, now that we have embarked on our second week, we are determined to make our evening's landfall earlier and secure lodging quickly. That proved to be a good strategy today as we made it to Hvammstangi around noon and secured a pleasant guest house right away. This allowed us to spend the afternoon searching for seals.
We drove up the the west side of the Vastnses Peninsula on a gravel road. We enjoyed t
he endless vistas of rocky land sweeping down past isolated farms to craggy cliffs and then a huge expanse of fjord to the cliffs of the far shore of the far-away peninsula to the west. Stunning ! But we began to dismay as time and distance sped by with the only animals in our view being the sheep and horses that are ever-present. The weather matched our moods also: cloudy, grey, cool and windswept. We thought a couple of dirt tracks would lead to seals, but only a fleeting view was our measly reward. But then a long trail which we hiked lead us to about a dozen fat grey seals languishing on rocks and four to six playing tag in the water at fairly close range. Often, the playful ones would poke their heads above the surface to peer at us with intelligent and quizzical looks. We began to wonder who was studying whom.
he endless vistas of rocky land sweeping down past isolated farms to craggy cliffs and then a huge expanse of fjord to the cliffs of the far shore of the far-away peninsula to the west. Stunning ! But we began to dismay as time and distance sped by with the only animals in our view being the sheep and horses that are ever-present. The weather matched our moods also: cloudy, grey, cool and windswept. We thought a couple of dirt tracks would lead to seals, but only a fleeting view was our measly reward. But then a long trail which we hiked lead us to about a dozen fat grey seals languishing on rocks and four to six playing tag in the water at fairly close range. Often, the playful ones would poke their heads above the surface to peer at us with intelligent and quizzical looks. We began to wonder who was studying whom.A local legend calls the seals the "sea folk". The tale goes that when Pharaoh and the Egyptians were chasing Moses and the Isrealites into the Red Sea and were drowned when the sea collapsed on them, Pharaoh and his men were re-incarnated as seals. That explains that, while seals live in the sea, they have the eyes and internal organs of men. Well, it's a cute legend, and it does account for the fact that they are mammals, but I don't get the eye thing: they're not human at all. Their eyes are large, round and black, with no whites: they look other-worldly. So the legend has its contradictions, as does everything in Iceland.
We enjoyed a lovely coffee-lunch in a delightful old farmhouse near the seals. Icelanders love their coffee and, generally, make it good, strong and rich. We enjoyed how the coffee warmed us up and lifted our spirits as the wind howled and the rain sprayed. But we have also come to love Icelandic pastries: crumpet-like pancakes with smoked salmon or poached egg, spice cakes and, best of all, wafer-thin sugar crepes which complemented the coffee perfectly.
As we continued around the peninsula, the weather improved radically and dramatically. The sun broke through and the external temperature climbed to a high for the trip of 1 6 degrees celsius. We saw many more seals basking on a sand bar and spit of land, but were not able to get close. We befriended more horses in a nearby field. We have grown very fond of these sturdy and gentle creatures, and will miss them when we leave.
As we returned to our guesthouse, we decided to try something a little different. We bought sandwiches and soup for our dinner at the guesthouse. This is because Hvammstangi on a Sunday nigh
t makes Vik look like Las Vegas. And, we need rest. Our trip is certainly taxing our strength and stamina. To be fair, we are coping extremely well, but we are in our mid fifties now, and have been driving to a new place and new lodgings every night. On past trips, we have often deliberately planned to remain in a place for a few days in order to unpack, get used to a bed for a while, and stay out of a car, train etc. This trip is different: it's a true road trip and our only multiple day stop-over was at the start. Now, it's an eleven day race around the island: we're halfway through and we're getting tired and sick. Also, an in-house meal is less expensive than some of the restaurants we've been visiting.
t makes Vik look like Las Vegas. And, we need rest. Our trip is certainly taxing our strength and stamina. To be fair, we are coping extremely well, but we are in our mid fifties now, and have been driving to a new place and new lodgings every night. On past trips, we have often deliberately planned to remain in a place for a few days in order to unpack, get used to a bed for a while, and stay out of a car, train etc. This trip is different: it's a true road trip and our only multiple day stop-over was at the start. Now, it's an eleven day race around the island: we're halfway through and we're getting tired and sick. Also, an in-house meal is less expensive than some of the restaurants we've been visiting.A final note: we met our first gregarious Icelander today. The young woman who sold us our sandwiches spoke excellent English and actually kibbitzed with us about the weather and breakfast. As always, Iceland will throw a curve when you're expecting a fastball.
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