This morning, when we woke up, the sun was shining. Later, it clouded up, and we experienced showers. After eating breakfast, we drove into Vik to get gas. I like to start the day by getting gas. That way, I don’t have to worry about which will happen first: running out of gas or finding a gas station. We stopped at a gas station and mini mart. I do not have a chip-and-pin credit card like they use in Europe, so I went inside to ask about paying with cash. The clerk told me that I could not pay with cash and that I had to either use a chip-and-pin credit card or buy a prepaid gas card and use it at the pump. I bought the prepaid card and went back outside. I looked all over the pump and did not see where you put the card in. Jay then noticed that the credit card machine was located between the two gas pumps. You put the card in and enter the pump number. It then spits your card back out, and you pump your gas. To get a receipt, you put the card back in, and it prints out the receipt.
OK, we got gas and headed to Jökulsárlón. Along the way, I noticed dirt mounds on the side of the road. I wondered what was on the other side. I then caught a glimpse of something, but I was not sure what it was. Up ahead was a small parking area. I pulled off the road, and Jay and I got out of the car and followed a marked trail over the dirt mounds. On the other side was the Glacier Lagoon, and it was filled with icebergs of all sizes. It was truly a beautiful sight. Jay took a lot of pictures. We then got back in the car. Just a short distance ahead was our destination. We were going to take a boat ride on the glacier lake.
I bundled up against the cold. Even though it was not that cold today, I knew it would be colder on the water. I had on a long-sleeve shirt, a pullover sweater, a fleece jacket, a lightweight parka, and my leather coat. I also wore a scarf, gloves, and a knit cap. I could hardly move, but I was not going to be cold. When we got on the boat, they had us all put on life jackets.
The icebergs were very beautiful. They were over 1,000 years old. The black in the icebergs was volcanic ash that had gotten mixed in and compressed into the ice. The lake we were sailing on was only about 80 years old. The sea had reached the glacier, and the salt in the ocean water had melted the glacier and formed the lake. The icebergs had broken off from the glacier. We were given a piece of ice to taste. It tasted like pure water.
After the boat ride, we headed to Höfn, where we were staying for the night. We had heard about a good restaurant where you could get lobster, so we decided to eat there. Jay had a lobster pizza, and I had the lobster tails. Jay decided he wanted dessert, which he hardly ever gets. He ordered the crème brûlée and said he enjoyed it.
We then headed back to our hotel. There is no one sitting at the front desk. You use a key to let yourself into the hotel. If you need anything, you pick up the phone next to the desk, and someone answers and asks what you need. I don’t think anyone else is staying here tonight because the parking lot is empty. The room is pretty big, with two twin beds. The bathroom, as usual, just has a shower.
