Last Night

I'll be home in less than 24 hours (knock on wood). I have the oddest feeling of being homesick for Toronto, and a sadness that I am leaving Iceland--a place that felt so much like home. I came for the geography and the animals, and I grew to love the people. They are what truly makes Iceland a beautiful place. As a whole, Icelanders are very straight-forward, sincere, kind, friendly, open-minded, non-judgemental and positive (while having a lovely black humour about the negative aspects of life). I hope to come back and explore the Northern parts of Iceland in the summer, when it is more accesible, and things are less icy.

Yesterday I went to the National Gallery; if you like 60's modern art (using ample amounts of dirty 40 year old laundry), then it's your thing! However, there were several amazing metal sculptures by Jon Gunna Arnason, who did the sculpture of Solfas, The Sun Voyager (of which I've taken a whole new series of photos of).

I also visited the National Museum--not bad, but again: heavy emphasis on the influence of Christianity in Iceland. (And somewhat biased in my opinion). Neither institution allowed photos.

Today I tried to go shopping for souveniers. Sorry, I couldn't seem to part with another 4500 kronurs+ for a t-shirt, or 2500+ for a mug. (That's $46+cdn, and 26+ cdn). Things can still be shockingly expensive here...

Although, I did get to experience Icelandic Halloween. Kids seem to get out of school early to dress up in costumes (under their parkas), and sing Euro-pop songs to shop-keepers who give them candy. It was cute, but sorry--I didn't have my camera.

I had a nap (still not used to the time difference, and I haven't slept too well), then I went to the harbourfront to take pictures of The Sun Voyager. I really like the sculpture; it reminds me of the Viking Longboat it represents, but I also see a Geiger-esque bug creature too. I have a new set of pictures of it on flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/smadventure/sets/72157614364942997/

Then, I grabbed a quick bite at a very expensive Icelandic Fast Food joint, and rushed to the Tour Office to see if they were having a Nothern Lights Tour; they were! Again, they wouldn't let me pay for the tour. (Incredible service-- http://www.icelandexcursions.is/ )

We set off around 8pm, and arrived at our first and only location around 10pm. The sky was so clear, I couldn't see the constellations through the stars. It was bitter cold (a cold front from the north arrived last night, clearing away weeks of cloudy and rainy weather from the southern Gulf Stream). I was glad to have the clear skies, even if it meant a cold north wind. After about an hour, the Guide told us;"Hurry! The lights are starting!" Hurray! Success after 4 tries!!! The Aurora Borealis started out dim and soft, with no discernable colour. It was a convex curve, starting just off true north, curving over due west. Lights slowly shot up, off the horizontal curve of light. Some claimed to see a faint green light, but I couldn't see any colour. The curve of light would undulate, convering the bright stars, then break apart into several smaller curves, only to join in one long line again. After about 45 minutes the Northern Lights got quite bright, but still no noticeable colours. Then, after about an hour, they faded again, but not before I thought I could see some pink colouring. We were all happy to see the lights (as this was the first sighting in over 3 weeks), and I'm sure some got great photos, but unfortunately, my camera could not capture any images of the light show.

I was very happy to see the Northern Lights on my last night here. I met some amazing people, both Icelanders and travellers. I had many amazing and beautiful experiences. I took a lot of great photos, and hopefully, I will carry the memories in my heart, mind and soul.