On the road again...

Iceland was AMAZING! I still have more pics to post, but teaching and finals and grad week took all of my brains and time. In the meantime, I have been to Colorado and back, and am traveling again!
Tonight I am in Utah, just a little south of Provo. Tomorrow we head to Casper, Wyoming. I am driving across country with my very good friend Margaret, her two boys, and KeeBee the dog. The destination is Pittsburgh, PA by the 4th of July. This is not just recreational travel, though. Clan Douglass is departing their native soil for Qatar...so I am assisting in the delivery of dog and vehicle to "the big blue house". After all...driving is one of my "best things"!
More from the road and pics tomorrow...

More from the beach with the really cool rocks...

The beach with the really cool rocks...

The lighthouse...

There are two kinds of light houses in Iceland. The first kind is the tall type that we expect to see when we hear "lighthouse". The second type looks more like an outhouse. The tall type is called Witthus and the short one is called...wait for it.....Halfwitt!

Public art meets endless hot water...

This foot tub is out by the lighthouse. It was carved from a single stone and is filled by geothermal water and flows endlessly out the other side.

So cool...I love it here!

I saw a sign that made me laugh because it said "WC". I asked what it meant in Icelandic and was told "Wash Closet". I cracked up! I couldn't believe that the WC was the WC...then Heidi explained...there are no public restrooms in Reykjavik. Some businesses have facilities for customers, but many do not. So here is the WC...

This one is on the sidewalk in front of the bus station...and they're not free! It's strictly "pay as you go"!

I'm here!

I arrived in Keflavik this morning at about 0430. It was a very interesting experience since this is my first time having to do the whole passport thing. There is a security screening to get out of the airport just like our screening to get in. The only difference is that you can leave your shoes on.
I made it through security out to Keflavik easier than I made it in through security at McCarran...that story was lost in cyberspace at JFK, though.
Anyway, I'm off to the "hotpots"...the geothermally heated hot tubs on the roof!
More later...

Packing, packing, repacking...

I have my passport, my e-ticket, and a suitcase big enough to nap in. This is absolutely the strangest list of items I have ever packed. Long underwear, bathing suit, flip-flops. Thermal shirts, Levis, taco sauce. Hiking boots, tortillas, wool socks. A pound of chocolate, down parka, cheese puffs. It goes on and on like this. More than half of my suitcase is filled with gifts...and on the way home I am sure it will be the same!
So...finish packing. Sleep until 3:00am and then be at the airport by 4:00 am for a 6:00am flight.
I have never been so excited to get so little sleep!

Waiting...but not patiently!

Today is the day that my passport arrives. According to tracking at FedEx it's on the truck and on the way to my house. Hubby is at home waiting to sign for it. Once it arrives I will breathe a little sigh of relief!
After school today, when all the spring cleaning is done, I need to shop for the last few essentials for the trip. I still need hiking socks, another pair of leggings, and...chocolate! The socks are for the new boots, the leggings are for insulation under the jeans, and the chocolate is for breakfast!
The high today in Reykjavik is 46F with 81% humidity. Maybe I need two pairs of leggings....

One day closer...

Today I dropped my passport application, two ugly pictures, and my birth certificate into a fed-ex envelope and sent them away to the expediter. I learned a couple of things...
1). Don't have your passport pics done at Walgreen's. The background is supposed to be white...painfully stark, plain, white. Walgreen's digital crew "warmed" up the photo and as a result, the background was beige. So I had to have them done again...at the post office...by a non-photographer...after a very long day...with faded make-up...and pens sticking out of my frazzled hair. Not pretty. "Does this look like you?" asked the chipper little postal clerk. "Unfortunately..." I sighed.
2). Carry a comb, brush, or other hair taming device if there is even the tiniest chance of having your picture made for posterity.
3). The folks at the Post Office really know their stuff...when it comes to passports. Photography? Not so much....

So now I get to wait. It should be here Thursday or Friday...but I paid for Saturday delivery just in case. Now I just need to start checking things off of the shopping list...

...and did I mention...I'm going to ICELAND!

I am so ridiculously excited! I have spent most of my life in the desert southwest. I took day trips to Mexico as a child, and a family trip into Canada as an adult, but I have never been outside of North America. So Spring Break 2009 is the first big trip!
Yesterday I acquired new hiking boots...which I will wear all week to school to break them in a bit. Today I am on a mission to find a new pair of Levis, boot socks, and silk long underwear. I hate shopping in general, but for this...I'll deal with it!