Page 48 - 2000 ICELAND

wanted us off the bus when he forded the river emerging from the lake as
we crossed over on a footbridge. We got to our cabins at 7 PM. Because of

our late arrival home, supper was set for 8 and all of us were able to get
showers before eating. That certainly made dinner more pleasant for

everyone.

There were after dinner speeches all around about how much we had
enjoyed the trip and each other’s company. Kay spoke for the “English-

speaking” quartet and thanked the French for their hospitality and Oskar for

his fluency!

The funny Frenchman who was always full of wise-cracks in both languages
(once he admitted to knowing English) thanked all his fellow travelers and

Oskar, Magnus and the cooking team. Stefan and Collette’s daughters,
Sarah and Mathilde, presented Oskar the gratuities we had all collected for

him, Magnus and the wonderful cook crew. We stayed for Racka’s special
pancakes at 10 and we all exchanged names and addresses, e-mail and snail

mail, and then it was off to bed because we must hike again tomorrow.

Footnote: We had learned by this time that many of the French folks belong

to an alpine hiking club which takes them regularly into the French Alps to
stay in shape. And it worked!

BEACH HIKE

Everything as usual again this AM except that we had to say goodbye to

Racka, Halli, and Selena. They were good company as well as good cooks
(see the Appendix on the evening meals). We left for the seacoast at 9 AM

and visited little fishing villages that have turned into bedroom suburbs for
Reykjavik in modern times. Also got a good look at Mt. Hekla in all its

unclouded glory; could even see the ever-present steam plume rising out of

its crater.

We drove to a lighthouse and then started our long hike along the most
peculiar Icelandic beaches. These shores are unlike any we have ever seen