First Day in Akureyri

So it's finally time for a major update. And luckily I can access my blog here, so no more relying on Jeff to get things posted. Though he did do a fabulous job.

Yesterday the drive from Reykjavik to Akureyri took pretty much all day. We made several stops along the way. One of the stops we got to meet Caitlin's husband and son, who is about 2 and adorable. Caitlin is our "TA" for the remaining two weeks, though she isn't really a TA. During the summers she takes college groups around Iceland, which is what she is going to do with us since we have a lot of traveling ahead of us.

One of the better stops on our way north was a natural geothermal pool. Right on the coast of a fjord, a farmer made two pools with rock walls and a rock floor. The water was wonderfully warm and it was so cool to think that it was all natural. Plus we got to jump in the ocean. Well, some people jumped in. I stuck my feet in and it was freezing, so I quickly got out. But at least I can say I got in the ocean. And maybe it was the Arctic Ocean, I'm not totally sure, but I'd like to pretend it was the Arctic Ocean.

Then we got to meet our family. I feel so lucky with who I'll be living with. I still haven't met the older son, but the two children I have met at Gunnar and Karilina. They're both adorable and so full of energy. We had a family dinner of burritos. Not really Icelandic at all, but it was still tasty. They have a house rule where no one is allowed to leave the dinner table until everyone is done eating. I'm definitely a fan of this rule.

After dinner, Marty and I met with most of our group downtown and got some ice cream. Gunnar said the place we went was the best ice cream in all of Iceland. Not sure if I totally agree, though it was good. And I finally got my chocolate ice cream, but it wasn't totally chocolaty. I should have stuck with the vanilla soft serve.

Once we got back to the house, I met Karilina since she had been at a friend's house all day. Then the father got home with pizza. He was testing some of those cases that keep pizzas warm during delivery. He drove over an hour and the pizzas were still the perfect temperature. I'd say it was a success. And the pizza I tried was onion and corn. Weird but I enjoyed it. Finally we watched the movie Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. Very cute and I highly recommend it.

That's all for now. Right now Marty, Jose (our professor), Caitlin, and I are chilling at a cafe downtown. I love this place and I can't wait to explore more today. I'll attempt to post photos later this afternoon/evening.