Saturday 25th March did not dawn bright and early.  We though were up and driving down to Gatwick to catch the 5.50 am flight to Iceland.  Yes, we were doing a day trip to Iceland.  The schedule was tight.  A visit to the Blue Lagoon for a swim in the hot springs.  Yes, it is called the Blue Lagoon because the water looks vivid blue.  Back on to the bus to see the Great Geysir look and view some spouting water.  It was icy cold here.  Snow on the ground and a biting wind, wish I had worn a few more clothes and a hat.  Oh well, we are English.  Back onto the bus to see some magnificent waterfalls at Gulfoss.  Not as big as the big falls of the world, but they were indeed pretty impressive.

Back to the bus, journey back to Reykjavik seemed much shorter than the outward journey, probably something to do with the heavy eyelids.  A quick tour around the town, and then a visit to the water tanks above the town.  Here they were preparing for the Miss Iceland show,  All these guys and dolls kitted out in evening dress and us 300 plus Brits roaming around.  Finally back to the airport at and landing at Gatwick.  Back home by 2.00 am almost 24 hours.

Laughs of the day.  The tour guide.  He would stop talking in mid sentence for 10 seconds, and then continue speaking as if he had never stopped.  The whole bus went quiet waiting for his next word.

Impressions, what were all those ponies kept for?  How bleak the landscape looked.  There was not much snow, but it looked bleak and cold, although the temperature was meant to be pretty moderate because of the gulf stream.  The blondes. The newer volcanic areas around the airport were very little grew..  The number of jacked-up, enlarged wheel 4 wheel drive utility vehicles.

Downsides.  A bit too much bus travel.  Too shorter time at Reykjavik, it would have been nice to have been able to get out and visit a couple of shops.  The flight had been delayed, with the result that some things were condensed a bit,

This trip was provided by Superlative Travel (Since disappeared)

Blue Lagoon

Access to the to Blue Lagoon was by path.  Block pavement through a lava field. The changing rooms were all computer operated with an identity tag.  Very complex

Rosemary and I went swimming in the Blue lagoon.  The water was warm.  In the distance, near the metre high wall, is where the hot water entered the lagoon.  Near here it was very hot.  If you stood there you could be caught by unbearably hot swirls of water on the surface.  The pool was shallow, no more than four feet deep.

Geysir

 Geysir, an area of hot springs.  The large geyser, Strokkur is the operational Geyser.  It erupted irregularly.  Doing a number of spouts with a few seconds between left, and then waiting for 8 minutes before erupting again,

Gullfoss

 Gullfoss, a wonderful falls very near Geysir.  It was bitterly cold here with the wind blowing from the interior of Iceland across the frozen glaciers.

This fall was saved from being made into a Hydro-Electric scheme many years ago by a local farmers daughter who threatens to throw her self into the falls.

 The stone was in memory of her.

Tank

This is a Water Tank containing the hot water to warm Reykyavik.  Actually, I believe the tank was underground.  This was a building from where you could view the city.  While we were there they were putting on the Miss Iceland beauty contest. It is now a fine dining room restaurant (2021) called the Perlan.