The sky needs some lotion 'cause it's so ashy

Posted by Anne , Monday, May 31, 2010 12:46 PM



(The church service in Skalholt)

So Sunday started out pretty exciting. I didn't end up going to breakfast because I woke up later then I thought but I did get ready for church. We went just up over the hill to the white church and we were some of the few people that were there for the service. For Iceland, the summer months are harvest/farming months and many people don't go to church so that they can spend more time getting things ready for the winter months ahead. So...it was the group of 10 Meredith Maulers, our two Professors, an older Icelandic couple, the priest's wife and son, and two other American tourists. It was pretty low-key they sang a couple songs in Icelandic and even said some of the service in English and sang a song in English so that we would feel included. Afterwards as we were ushering out we found out that the two women were from Indiana and it was a daughter and her 86 year-old mother, Laurita. Laurita was a hoot and a half and she even said that her daughter wanted her to visit Iceland "before she died". After church there was lunch which was lamb, salad, pepper soup, and homemade bread (a staple here). See below!

After that we went on an adventure to see Gulfoss (Goal-foss)(One of Iceland's massive waterfalls, kind of like Niagra Falls but bigger...ish) and after that they Geysir (Gay-sir) which is a pretty regular geyser that occurs every three minutes. Gulfoss was beautiful and so massive that it was hard to take it all in because everything that kept happening was new and different.


(me and amanda at gulfoss)

((the falls (gulfoss) itself))

The geysir was also really really amazing and i'll have to put up some moving picture videos that I made of it once I figure out how to do that because I don't have any of those individual pictures edited i'll have to do it later. BUT we did see the 'eye of iceland' which is a BEAUTIFUL color of blue,piping hot hot spring. See beloooow!

And that image was pretty much unedited and it was THAT BLUE. Which was awesome. After that we headed back to Skalholt and ate dinner which consisted of a mango/pineapple/coconut soup with whipped cream, a salad with chicken and coconut dressing, and THE MOST DELICIOUS chocolate cake with chocolate ganache and chocolate mousse with cherry sauce and whipped cream. Which our friend Steinunn made and she's awesome and so sweet and speaks surprisingly good English! see below.

(jealous? 'cause you should be)

After that we pretty much spent the night in and discussed what was going on this week and planning a trip to Reykjavik this weekend which should be really really exciting and we'll get a real chance to see Icelanders in their environment/capital city.

Not much else has happened though we did have class today (monday) and most of this stuff happened yesterday (sunday) but anyways, i'll update again soon!

hope you guys are having an awesome time at home :)
-Anne.

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Everything here is ICELANDIC

Posted by Anne , Saturday, May 29, 2010 5:20 PM


(first view of Iceland from Icelandair)

So I'm now totally and officially in Iceland and I'd have to say it's pretty fantastic. What's interesting is the whole place smells kind of like the faire because there's pretty much a constant promenade of wild icelandic horses moseying about, it also smells strongly of sulfur because of the everpresent geothermal water sources that pop up everywhere.

I suppose I should begin with how the day started,etc and give the leading up to "Officially Considered to be in Iceland". I left friday morning probably around 7:45 and I was pretty much spazzing that I was going to be late and that I wouldn't make the plan and then i'd never go to Iceland and then the world would end and it would be a disaster. Obviously that didn't happen. I got there with plenty of time to spare with a twinge of apprehension realizing that i'm going to be stuck with ten other girls that I barely know their names, let alone their personalities. Luck of the draw I later learned that these girls are great and hilarious and soooooo much fun. Anyways, back to the diatribe, in case some of you didn't know, I've never been on a plane and i've never been out of the country. So realistically I was nervous but not in the i'm-going-to-barf kind of way but more the I-have-no-idea-what-to-expect kind of way.

Anyways, we get everything straight and head through security (or for some suh-curr-ity) and proceeded to drop my college ring into my bag and go about my business relatively unscathed. However, things were to change as when I finally got seated near my boarding section I realized that my ring was no where to be found and if I didn't find it it'd be my head and around $600 dollars (which I did not have). I start mildly panicking but went back with Reagan (another girl on the trip) to check security and see if maybe i'd missed it or what have you. After rummaging through some bins they come up with nothing and hand me a note with the number for lost and found. I had a sinking feeling but...I had a warranty on the ring so if something really went wrong, I could fix it...kind of. Luck changed once again as about an hour before boarding my name was called over the intercom for me to go to security (I was kind of nervous because previously they had called an Anne Road so I didn't know if they were confused,etc) regardless a trip back to the security section proved fortuitous as I got my beloved onyx back, safe and sound on my hand. A surprisingly good omen for the trip seeing as I lost something and then found it again.



We boarded the plane and I know that it wasn't a long flight and that there wouldn't be a huge amount of people but the small size of the plane really took me off guard. There was one row of two person seats and another of one person seats. In other words, it was a dinky plane. I was sitting next to Julia Sasser who has now been renamed Julbecca, seeing as it is her cage fighting name. Ah, the cage fighting. When we arrived at the Boston airport from Raleigh an airport guard asked us if we were "football,soccer,baseball?" (as if a group of girls would be football?) to which we replied that yes we were a team...called the Meredith Maulers. and from there the idea of cage-fighters sprung from Dr.Novak's noggin. Julia 2 was renamed Gunter, the Iron Grip. Other's names have yet to be determined. Regardless, we took a bus over to the international terminal and lo-and-behold THE COOLEST AIRPORT EVER. (at the time)


Logan airport is one of the nicest looking airports i've been in, obviously that hasn't been a lot, buuuut it was so streamline and lovely. We arrived there around 1:30-2:00 and had to wait until about 5:00 before we were even allowed to enter the main part of the airport. We sat around and talked and B and I played Bananagrams and Rummy (good times) and soon enough it was 5:00 and we were being ushered through to the next security point (where I DID NOT take off my ring). That lead to another 3-4 hours of waiting around til our plane for Iceland boarded at 9:30 pm. Me and a couple girls got chinese and went into the airport Border's to find some reading material for the flight. I got Sgt. Malarky's novel/biography of his point of view during WWII (which so far has been a worthwhile purchase) and pretty much waited out the lulling crowds until it was time to board.


If Logan airport is the coolest airport then Icelandair is the coolest plane ever. It was suuuuper big (compared to the dink plane) and had cool headrests that told you Icelandic phrases,etc. Only down side is that while everyone around me had monitors on the back of their seats...I had one, that was defected and no matter how many times it was reset it proceeded to do nothing. So my idle dreams of spending the next 4.75 hours watching a film were nixed and so sleep was the only other option. Cramped and crooked I slept on and off four the next couple hours until I noticed it starting to get light outside the window again which meant us getting to Iceland was closer than ever. Watching through the window for any glimpse of Icelandic land was exciting and I kept mistaking ocean sand bars for potential shores.



Regardless, we made it to the airport safe and sound and checked through with little to no difficulty. Btw, Iceland's airport in Reykajvik is baaaaalllaaaaaa and super modern with a lot of eco-friendly touches and good looking folks abound. We sat down at a cafeteria near by and went in groups to get and/or exchange money for kronur. With the money we got, nearly everyone got skyr (pronounced skee-er) which is suuuper creamy and delicious yogurt/type stuff. I got mango and raspberry and it was super taaasty. When then left after breakfast and go in our totally awesome Mercedes Benz driving van, which had several Icelandic Caddies coming over to hypothesize whether or not we could fit all our luggage in and wonder about the going rate of such a vehicle. Everything got squished in and we set out (after getting some air) to Skalholt, our destination and home of the Church of Iceland. We got a little lost along the way and found out that Icelanders LOVE ROUNDABOUTS, pretty much every five minutes there was another roundabout to somewhere. During this time Michelle also acquired a new ghetto name which is Zuh-shell, shortened to Zizi. Great fun was had by all even though on the way to skalholt pretty much all of us passed out with our mouths open :D sexy tiiiiiimes.


In the community center by the Church we had lunch (this was to be where we take most of our meals) which was a DELICIOUS califlower soup that was hardy and good, with a side salad of local mixed greens. I was super stoked because if this was a signifier as to what was to come nutritionally I WAS READY. After lunch we headed to the dormitory/hostel to choose rooms and unpack a bit before heading out on a hike around the area. Our rooms are kinda small for two but a good size for one and we all get one room to ourselves so everyone has plenty of space. My room has a blue theme and a drawing/etching of early settlers coming to Iceland.

After everyone had pretty much stowed away their things for the evening and gotten changed, we headed out to experience the Icelandic horses and hopefully get pretty close! which we diiiiiiiiiiid!!! There was one stallion in the whole bunch and about 5 pregnant mares who were fat with babies and their bodies were so swollen with their tiny legs = SO CUTE. Example below.


Following the horses we went down to some of the geothermal springs where we proceeded to stand in boiling water and be pleasantly heated through our waterproof shoes and really get the full smell of sulfur straight up our noses. example of steaming water below.



After the hike we headed back for a bit of down-time before heading back over to the community center for dinner (pictures will come later) which consisted of delicious lasagna, mushroom pasta, a mixed green salad and fresh bread (baked that day!!!). Though I was pretty stuffed I managed to also eat the desert which was homemade spice cake with a caramel glaze (yes katie, caramel.) and whipped cream which was PRETTY TASTY. Also forgot to mention that we had a 'tea' which consisted of doddlehoppers(not their real name) which are very similar to fresh nonglazed donuts and sweet raisin bread and some kind of cracker assortment with a vegetable/cheese spread. I'm pretty happy with the knowledge that whatever food i'm eating is going to be sweated off with the various adventures that the Doctors have planned for us.

On the way out from dinner we stopped by the church which we will be attending Sunday morning and were greeted by two Icelandic shepherds which are like... a cross between a chow and a Pomeranian. They're super fiesty and LOVED herding us and they were so cute! ( i'll have to upload their photos later also)

all in all it was a very successful first day that seemed incredibly long. Over the course of the day I took 455 photographs which I have no widdled down and will eventually put on facebook for further viewing.

anyways, i'll update tomorrow with whatever shenanigans we're up to.
thanks for reading!
-Anne.


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Holy Crap Holy Crap Holy Crap Holy Crap

Posted by Anne , Thursday, May 27, 2010 7:22 PM


(skalholt! where we'll be living!)

So it's finally started to seep in, I'm going to be in a foreign country this time tomorrow. Am I nervous? yes. Am I excited? Hell to the yaaa! It's weird, I suppose the feeling would be kind of like the night before Christmas, you know something awesome is waiting in the morning but you're not quite sure what it is but you know it should be good. I have a combination of mixed apprehension and anxiousness. Mostly I'm concerned with not being late to the airport and meeting up with my group without getting too stressed about plane things. Seeing as I haven't been on an airplane before, I don't know certain protocols on the whole checking in process but the actual plane ride doesn't make me as nervous as checking in. I feel good that I packed everything I could think of and I'm around 41.5 lbs for the checked luggage and around 25 lbs for carry-on luggage.

In total I have packed : 12 short sleeve shirts, 5 long sleeved shirts, two thermals, one zip-up sweatshirt, one pull-over sweatshirt, one rain slicker, one pair of black flats, three pairs of jeans, one black pair of jeans, two sets of yoga pants (one long and one short), jogging shorts, two sweaters, two scarves, 12 pairs of underwear (not that you needed to know), 4 bras, 8 pairs of socks (6 cotton, 2 woolen), one pair of hiking shoes, and other sundry items. I now consider myself a master-packer :D

Anyways, this blog will be pretty short mostly because I still have a bit left to do in preparation. In short, I will be waking up tomorrow at 7:00 and double checking everything before leaving the house around 8:00 arriving at the airport before 9:30 so that I have plenty of time to check-in and meet up with the group before 9:30 when everyone needs to have met up by.

so wish me luck and keep me in your prayers (if you pray) and thoughts

thanks
-Anne.

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Two Days

Posted by Anne , Wednesday, May 26, 2010 7:53 PM



(Jonsi has the most angelic voice)

So, the trip is coming up swift and sure and whether or not I like it I feel vaguely unprepared. I'm ready and excited but I keep running through a couple of checklists I've made in my mind and making sure I have everything. I have a fear that I'll get there and then be missing all my underwear or something...I almost forgot to pack soap, though I'm sure I could get some Icelandic soup no worries. Good news is that my main bag is underweight so far so I only have a few more things to do tomorrow like triple check my lists, make copies of important documents, call the bank and let them know I'm leaving the country, eat brunch with erin terry and clean my mess of room(s).

I've started daydreaming a bit about Iceland and all I can ever think about is clean air and how good it will smell. Not that Raleigh is overwrought with smog or anything but there's something about cool, clean air that makes me miss fall and rosy cheeks. I've made sure I have my faux moleskins so that I may document anything that comes to mind on the way over and during my stay.

Oh! and call battery plus. that's another thing I need to do. Just remembered that. I need to get an extra camera battery for my cannon so that if my first one tuckers out the other can pick up the slack.

I'm looking forward to cooler weather also, even though my heart resides in the south I can't help but love cold temperatures. Jonsi's voice reminds me of sweet birds, like the kinds in old cartoons that would help tell stories like each song is a narrative.

I want to take pigment photographs.

that's all tonight.
2 days left...though closer to 1 day.
-Anne.

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I did this instead of blogging

Posted by Anne , 1:37 PM


I did this instead of blogging. I hope that's acceptable haha :D

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Dens evaginatus

Posted by Anne , Monday, May 24, 2010 8:54 PM


(a close up of my teeth, it's the middle one on the right side)

So, I didn't post yesterday. I thought about it but I didn't go through with it but hey, at least I remembered! Anyways, more stimulating news ahead I promise.

1. I turned in my completed panels and brochure for Meredith's NCMA Exhibition, I don't when the exhibition is or where it is but it's probably going to be going on while i'm in Iceland which is both awesome and not.

2. I found out I have a TALON CUSP and/or Dens Evaginatus and/or Eagle's talon. It's basically like a calcium deposit on the back of one of my teeth that apparently occurs in around 1-6% of the population.period. so that makes me feel allll kinds of special haha and it has either Native American or Asian roots and is commonly linked to Mongoloid traits. I've done vague research as to ascertain more information but there's a relatively small amount about it. But it is said to have possible links to heredity which explains why my Dad has two and I have one. I can't remember if my siblings have them or not though.

3. I have a suitcase! it's red :) just like all my luggage. Red is my favorite color hands down. Anyways, it's super awesome and i'm pretty stoked about packing things away. Downside is that the suitcase is already 10 lbs and the max weight requirement is 50 lbs...hopefully everything will fit because I don't want to have to pay extra just because airlines are INSANE.

4. Got hiking boots, despite my previous post I found some with my parent's at Dick's which means that probably a couple of the other girls will probably have the same shoe. I'm thinking about getting red laces to differentiate. Either way, they were Merrell's which are all kinds of fancy but I usually wear a size 7.5-8 and I HAD TO GET A SIZE 9! Makes me feel like i've got small aircraft carriers at the bottoms of my legs.

5. Got a rain slicker - first ever official rainslicker. I mostly rely on umbrellas to ward of precipitation but a coat will do just fine I suppose. It's green. that's my second favorite color.

I haven't been up to much else other than being unusually exasperated. Though that's not really that unusual. Oh, my car has about a quarter tank left and i'm hoping it'll last me 'til friday. I don't have much driving to do but still I don't want to fill up before I leave, i'd rather save that money for things in Iceland.
HOLY CRAP I'M GOING TO ICELAND. LAND OF ICE. Wowzers. still not used to it and probably won't be until I'm on the plane.

that's all for tonight.
4 more days
-Anne.

also I really need to do the homework for iceland. don't want to start off on a bad foot.

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Hiking Shoes

Posted by Anne , Saturday, May 22, 2010 8:28 PM


(this is what came up in google when I typed in "stupid hiking shoes" and while I don't count crocs as being hiking shoes...they sure are stupid)


Never in my life would I have thought it would be so difficult to find hiking/waterproof shoes for under $100. I mean, hiking's pretty common right? Typical outdoorsy thing to do so you'd think that some cheap-o company would get in there and swoop in with deals. However, this is clearly not the case seeing as I've spent the past three hours scouting out various REI-esque stores online and coming up with zilch on the scale of afforable/waterproof/non-sperry shoes. It'd be great if I could just wear my normal shoes and just rubber band a plastic bag around 'em and not slip-slide all around but noooooo that'd be a wee bit on the impractical side. So I am left to try and come up with as many combinations as possible using the words "waterproof", "hiking" and "shoes".

Other than that i'm about two shakes from passing out so this blog will be painfully short as my eyes are becoming bleary and I can only see out of vague slits.

moral of the story = hiking shoes are overpriced and I hope to have better luck tomorrow
-Anne.

p.s. 6 daaaaaaaays :D

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Packing,etc

Posted by Anne , Friday, May 21, 2010 8:55 PM

(I don't know who this is but I've got to admire her creativity)


I've been getting all my things together and trying to figure out what to pack. Actually, I've mostly been avoiding the inevitable. aka pack. Then again, it would help if I had a suitcase (which I don't) and all of my items (which I also don't have) so...it's kiiiiind of pointless but not really. I also need to be putting my room back in order which is currently in shambles but it looks like that might be prolonged until the return from nordic-land-r-us (is Iceland technically nordic?) I suppose I'll learn that eventually.

Anyways, I'm trying to get myself into the habit of posting daily even if nothing has really gone on during the course of the day. Well...that's not exactly true. I worked today at the bakery and surprisingly the customers were happy with their cakes...usually there's at least one person who is like "I wanted a lighter shade of cream but not as dark as ivory but within the same color family as ecru...etc" so it was a feat of a day. Came home to the long-awaited-vacation-debate! Which entailed my parents discussing where we should go this year, the beach or the beach aka a new beach or the same we've been going to for about five or so years now. Anybody have any recommendations? We've been looking at a few in South Carolina since we haven't frequented there in a while.

Other than that I continued my constant efforts to fritter away my time on the internets so far Anne = 1,000 and life = 2.3 however, Iceland will for sure change this seeing as most of my time will be outdoors. Pros = I don't think they have a large mosquito population in Iceland and it won't be overwhelmingly humid/sweltering Cons = No sweet tea for a while.

Well that just about concludes my daily diatribe maybe one of these days i'll actually get creative and hypothesize a complex theory on this blog. Maybe not.

until tomorrow when I will most likely not stimulate your
brain cells and you'll be wondering why you spent your time
reading this blog before I leave for Iceland
-Anne.

btw, while writing this I had the song "99 problems" by Jay-Z in my head. I TOTALLY identify with it in a non-identifiable way.

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Next Friday

Posted by Anne , Thursday, May 20, 2010 8:47 AM


So as y'all may or may not know, I'm going to Iceland next friday May 28th. I'm equal parts terrified and excited mostly because i've never been on an airplane or outside of the country. I'm looking forward to experiencing something outside of myself and my carefully crafted environment. It's going to be strange that's for sure, mostly because my mind can't quite comprehend what to expect other than cold weather and sheep, and a volcano. oh and pale people, so to a certain extent I should fit in. that is a joke. Anywho, I've decided to make a mirror blog to the one i'll be posting for official reasons and keep you guys updated with what's going on and what I'll be up to if you care to know.


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