Hallgrímskirkja, Reykjavik, Iceland

And we're back to Iceland...

This is the Hallgrímskirkja, which was very close to our guesthouse. We've actually used this as our guide in driving and exploring the city. You can't miss this church because of its interesting architecture, and it's one of the not-to-miss icons in Reykjavik.

In the cold evenings, Kepi and I would walk around the church just observing and studying its architecture.

According to Wikipedia, the Hallgrímskirkja (church of Hallgrímur) is a Lutheran parish church in Reykjavík, Iceland.  At 244 ft, it is the largest church in Iceland and the sixth tallest architectural structure in the country. The church is named after the Icelandic poet and clergyman Hallgrímur Pétursson (1614 to 1674), author of the Passion Hymns. State Architect Guðjón Samúelsson's design of the church was commissioned in 1937.  He is said to have designed it to resemble the basalt lava flows of Iceland's landscape.  It took 38 years to build the church. Construction work began in 1945 and ended in 1986, the landmark tower being completed long before the church's actual completion.

The church is also used as an observation tower. An observer can take a lift up to the viewing deck and view Reykjavík and the surrounding mountains. The statue of explorer Leif Eriksson (1929–32) by Alexander Stirling Calder in front of the church predates its construction. It was a gift from the United States in honor of the 1930 Alþingi Millennial Festival, commemorating the 1000th anniversary of Iceland's parliament at Þingvellir in 930 AD. More info is available here.

REFERENCE:  Italicized words are from Wikipedia.

Hot Summer Days

Mid-Atlantic summers can be brutal. 

Since summer started, we haven't had a break from the humidity and 90+ temperatures. I've avoided the sun as much as I can and I've been packing lunch every day to avoid going out at all. At home, the AC has been working every single day, and goodness knows how expensive the electric bill will be this month and the coming hot months. In spite of not liking the blistering temperatures of summer, I welcome the absence of textbooks and semester papers; a few months off from grad school is a welcome respite from the busy school months ahead.

There hasn't been anything big going on, on my side of the woods, but here's an update in bullets if you're interested to know:

• Kepi and I spent this weekend at Strasburg, VA. It's a town located up in the Shenandoah Mountains, and it's a sleepy little town. It's a great place to just unwind and get away from our everyday life. We explored a winery, soak our feet on the serene Shenandoah River and waited for nightfall at our hotel's deck.
• My shop has been keeping me busy. It's a wonderful surprise to see my shop doing fairly well. For a five month old shop, I'm happy to report that I have made over 200 sales already. In the next few days, I will be opening a second shop. Please look forward to this announcement, as I'll be doing a blog giveaway. I'm still lining up the prizes.
• Wedding preparations are going well. There are still a few more things to do, but I thank Kepi for being proactive in helping prepare for our wedding. In fact, he does a better job keeping up with the to-do list.
• On the health side, my White Blood Cells are normal for the first time in six years, but my Red Blood Cells and Platelets are still lagging behind. I am thankful that I am no longer neutropenic, but how I wish everything is now normal. Somehow, I don't feel complete with the other two lagging behind. Sometimes, my wish to be "normal" seems so faraway, but I have to keep fighting.

That's just a short update from me.

Today, I am hoping for a good soaking rain to wash away the humidity and 90 degree temperature. I am already wishing for the coolness of Fall.

The Okras, Tomatoes, Green Beans and a Potted Parsley

The past few posts have been about travel. I've been avoiding talking about home as my bout with Aplastic Anemia is not getting easier; it's still an unpredictable roller coaster ride. It is easier for me to reminisce about faraway places than deal with the battles I wage at the health front. I thank God for my family and their unyielding support. Home is still a wonderful place, it's just connected to something I don't like.

In my effort to recognize home as a great place. Today, I'll talk about home. Well, about my backyard garden. Every time spring arrives, starting the vegetable plot is something that I look forward to. Every weekend, I'd ask Kepi if the ground is safe from frost or is it okay to start the vegetable garden yet. For me, having my hands dirty and planting seeds that will soon sprout into plants keeps me close to reality. That from smalls seeds, these lovely life-giving plants would grow. It also makes me realize that all I need is one small seed of hope in order to survive the unbearable heat and the turbulent storms of the future.

The backyard garden is thriving, and it looks like it's a world of its own. I can't wait when it's time to harvest and share them with friends, neighbors and coworkers.

  The Okras are really thriving this year. In fact, my small vegetable garden is thriving.

On the herb side, I have a potted Parsley, and I intend to plant more potted herbs and bring them inside the house during the winter.

Baby tomatoes.

I'm hoping these should be ready for harvest in a couple of weeks.

Here's my small vegetable garden L to R: Tomatoes, Green Beans (front row), Yellow Peppers and Eggplants (Back Row) and Okras.

A baby Okra.

Not a lot for the first picking but I wanted to get these before they get too hard and inedible. I also got one Eggplant the other day which we've drizzled with Olive oil, a little salt and baked in the oven.

HOME is truly a BEAUTIFUL PLACE.

The Faces of Kleifarvatn, Iceland

The heat has been unbearable the past two weeks.  Last night, we finally had a thunderstorm, and although it was loud and scary, it was a welcome relief from the triple digits heat index and the brick-like humidity.  It seems that this year's summer will be best spent indoors or some place near the beach.

The summer heat is making me wish I was back in Iceland and the still, cool waters of Kleifarvatn.

During our stay in Iceland, we rented a car to explore the Reykjanes Peninsula. Driving in Iceland is very easy because there's only one major highway that loops around the island.  Also, we found the roads wide open except for the slow traffic concentrated within Reykjavik. One of our stops was to explore Kleifarvatn.

Kleifarvatn is the largest lake on the Reykjanes Peninsula. The water level of this lake has always been very sensitive to climate changes and has been used as a local rain gauge.  Since June 17, 2000, the water level in Kleifarvatn has been lowering at an average rate of 1.3 cm/day. Spawn from trouts were released into the lake in the sixties and have thrived quiet well.

Below are the different faces of the lake:

The road going to the lake is darkened with volcanic ash and gravel.

There were still ice caps on the mountains far ahead. The clouds came down to kiss the earth.

This part of the lake looks perfect to pitch a tent and spend the night.

The water was calm and quiet. You could hear a pin drop in this area.

I could sit here all day - just me and my thoughts.

This photo was taken at around 10 PM. It's amazing because it felt and looked like early morning.

Blue Lagoon, Iceland

When we were still planning our trip to Iceland, the Blue Lagoon was at the top of my list. I've heard the healing power of the Blue Lagoon's geothermal seawater with its active ingredients: minerals, silica and algae, known to be good for the skin. Due to the treatment I'm undergoing, my skin has been a challenge to manage; regretfully, my facial skin is not what it used to.

The Blue Lagoon is a 40-minute drive from Reykjavik, so we decided to visit this place before our flight home. The Blue Lagoon is about 20 minutes to the airport, so it's the perfect stop before our flight home. We planned to stay there for a couple of hours, but the place felt magical and how we wished we can stay there longer. The place is beautiful and the sight of lava rocks cradling lagoons of blue water is a calming experience.

I was in awe when I caught this sight.

This photo was taken outside of the spa center.

Entering the Blue Lagoon. Standard use (includes towel) of the spa center costs 40 Euros.

Calming, isn't it?

Here's the Blue Lagoon inside the spa center. The rectangular booth is a place to buy drinks, so you can enjoy a drink or two while wading through the Lagoon. It's warm in the Lagoon, but once you get out of the water, the cold wind can be a shock to your system.

There are different temperatures within the Lagoon, so you need to wade around and find the right temperature your body can tolerate. I also applied silica on my face, which is readily available in wooden boxes on the side of the Lagoon. BUT make sure you don't get silica on your hair or you'd have a bad hair for a couple of weeks. I've heard stories how their hair felt like wire for weeks. One remedy is to use a lot of conditioner on your hair before you get into the Lagoon, then use conditioner again when you rinse afterwards.

Next time, I'd plan to stay here the whole day.

Chocolates

Brought to you by your friends at serenatachocolates.com.

Just the word chocolate makes me long for the taste of sweet and creamy indulgence. Since I was a kid, I have always loved chocolate. No wonder I grew up to be a chocoholic and I think this is one indulgence I will never give up. I'm not picky about chocolates, but I love those that come in pretty boxes just like the ones from serenatachocolates.com. There's a difference in getting those lovely boxes because they never fail to bring the recipient a smile. Although there are days you just want to chomp on a good chocolate bar to pick up a bad day at work.

The ones at serenatachocolates.com look absolutely enticing and they look delicious as well. I am ogling their Belgian gift box right now, and I hope someone would order that for me for my birthday. Isn't it amazing that you can have chocolate delivery by Serenata to anyone you'd like? It's the perfect place to buy gifts for birthdays, anniversaries, well wishes and even on those days you just feel like making someone happy. In addition to chocolates, this place also offers hampers, wines, flowers, plants and experiences. This is absolutely THE place to get your gift shopping done. THE place to sweeten life.

Cats Of Reykjavik

Wherever I visit, cats seem to roam the streets or just appear from nowhere.  Here are some photos of the cats we met in Reykjavik:

What a day!

"Go away!," says the black cat with piercing eyes.

This is my house.

Purr...let me sleep.

What's that?

Sshhh...quiet.

Here's one aloof cat we met. He just gave us that mean look saying, "What do you want?"

This cat loves to sleep at our guest house's living room couch. I later found out that he was featured in a book about interesting facts in Reykjavik. If I remember it right, his name is Borgata. I could be wrong, but he's a sweet cat and I did took a photo of him with his book, but then, I really don't post my face here on my blog.

What was amazing was these cats were so furry, heavy and large. I think that they do need a larger body and lots of fur to keep them warm throughout the year. Most of all, these Icelandic cats were beautiful and super soft.

Jokulsarlon Glacier Lagoon

When I think of Iceland, I think of glaciers and volcanoes; that's exactly what I saw when we visited Jokulsarlon glacier lagoon.

Jokulsarlon glacier lagoon is one of Iceland's most spectacular sights, located about 60 km east of Skaftafell National Park and almost 400 km from Reykjavik. Jokulsarlon borders south and east part Iceland, at the roots of Europe's largest glacier Vatnajokull.  Breidamerkurjokull, an outlet glacier of the great glacier Vatnajokull, crumbles down the steep mountainside of the glacier and big icebergs break off into the lagoon where they float around before melting. This is a very popular sightseeing attraction, widely regarded as the most picturesque scenery in all of south Iceland. (Source here.)

Jökulsárlón has been a setting for four Hollywood movies -- A View to a Kill, Die Another Day, Tomb Raider and Batman Begins -- in addition to the reality-TV series Amazing Race.

 For me, this is absolutely one of Iceland's most spectacular sights and a must see for any traveler.

We took a tour boat to have a closer look at the floating icebergs and gaze at the Vatnajökull ice cap.

It's quite hypnotic watching the icebergs float and the scenery is constantly changing because the icebergs are constantly moving.

Even in a country well known for its astounding natural beauty, Jökulsárlón stands out. The combination of majestic floating icebergs, the giant icy blue lagoon, the contrasting black of the sandy shore and the soaring dome of the nearby Vatnajökull ice cap is so breathtaking, it hardly seems real.

It’s no wonder this amazing lagoon is one of Iceland's most popular natural wonders. Jökulsárlón's hypnotic beauty draws tourists, photographers and film crews alike to its shores. It has been featured in advertisements, movies, and even on a postage stamp – not to mention, of course, countless computer wallpapers across the world.
(Yohani Kamarudin)

The black dirt on the icebergs were known to be from a volcanic eruption thousand of years ago. An iceberg is a history book - every single ash and every single trapped insect is a page waiting to be read.

My troubles ceased as I gazed at this staggering beauty. This is most definitely one of the most beautiful places I've ever been.

Our boat guide clutching a piece of ice that chipped from on of the icebergs. We tasted a piece of that ice and it tasted sweet. A perfect way to cool off as we were already freezing in negative temperatures. If I remember it right it was -15 degrees when we were there.

Out of this world scenery.

Nature at its best.

Skógafoss Waterfall, Iceland

The flight from Dulles to Keflavik was about five hours. This is the second time we've taken Iceland Air, and I am still not impressed with their in-flight services.  For an international flight, there's no meal given except for drinks.  If you're hungry, meal is available for purchase. Since we'd rather spend our money on "proper" food when we landed in Iceland, we spent the duration of our flight watching movies; they did have a good selection of movies and TV shows including "The Descendants," which I'd love to see again.  Quite a moving and powerful movie I'd say.

When we got to Keflavik, we took the FlyBus to Reykjavik (1800 ISK per person).  I slept the entirety of the bus ride, as I sat beside a German tourist who kept nudging me with his elbow because he couldn't stop yapping and taking photos inside the bus. I was too tired and sleepy to protest so I let him be. I think he was just too excited to be in Iceland. I was too, but at that point in time, sleep is more important.

After a 45-minute bus ride, we finally arrived at our guesthouse, which was a small house smack in the middle of Reykjavik.  The house was cozy and warm; it was more than we needed as we crept to the living room's sofa to sleep some more.  Our host, Bedda, was so welcoming and friendly.  We slept mostly on our first day in Iceland.  We managed to walk around Reykjavik that night, since it doesn't really get dark until 1 AM.  I will talk about Reykjavik in a different post but today, I want to show you Skógafoss Waterfall.

Skógafoss Waterfall is about an hour and a half drive from Reykjavik. This waterfall is 60 meters high and counted among the most beautiful of the country; I think Gulfoss is prettier.  There are at least 20 more waterfalls that cascade down the mountain slopes above the Skogafoss and it is easy to walk along the river to see them; there are paths and steps available for hikers in the area as well.

My interpretation of Skógafoss Waterfall.

A rainbow appeared as we walked around the area. Here's two tourist taking a photo with the rainbow.

Spectacular landscape.

Trying to find the rainbow's end.

At the other side of this river is a sheep farm.

It would be awesome to sit there and listen to the powerful voice of nature.

And while the Skógafoss Waterfall roars from a few steps, sheep graze and nap on the green, quiet grass.

Blog In A Book

When Philip White e-mailed me inquiring about my photographs from my trip to Potsdam, Germany posted here (Potsdam's Cecilienhof Palace), the idea of having my photograph included in a book was exciting especially that it's a historical one. After all, I was a History major in college.

The book was published a couple of months ago, but it's only now that I found the time to post about it.

This will be included in my summer reading list.

"Kayni's Corner Cafe" made it on page 1.