Monday 9/5/16

Another beautiful day in paradise!  Today we went on a whale watch.  We drove close to the end of the fjord and almost immediately after leaving the dock, we saw dolphins.  The dolphins here are black and white.  Some of them came quite close to the boat.  When we got out a little farther we started seeing the spray from blowholes of the humpback whales.  We saw quite a few - some from a distance and some close to the boat.  It was a great day - blue skies, sunshine and the water was very smooth.  After, the boat stopped and we had a chance to fish.  My first catch was the line of the person standing next to me.  I think he came too close to me as he was reeling in his fish.  The second time, I caught a cod - 15 to 18 inches long.  One of the crew filleted the 15 fish that we caught and when we got back to shore, cooked in on the grill.  We had collectively caught pollock, haddock, mackerel and cod.  What a treat!  You couldn't ask for fresher fish - The samplers were delicious.  We then walked to a buffet, which was located in the library (very small).  The lunch was quite good, but I tried to eat sparingly as we have been having too many large meals.  The owner and chef of this restaurant has started a festival in the town.  All of the local fishermen and restaurants have one day in which they serve a sampling of free fish - soup, grilled, fried, etc.  It draws a huge crowd from the surrounding towns and everyone has a wonderful time - similar to the Taste of Mystic, but free!  When we got back to the hotel, we had to pack up our larger suitcases as the bus driver will be taking them back to the south of Iceland.  We will fly out tomorrow after breakfast to meet him.  Lana, John, and I took a walk (down a long steep hill) to the shopping area, while Dave took a nap and Kelly got ready for her special trip to go horseback riding on an Icelandic horse.  The four of us (minus Kelly - she will get dinner at the hotel when she returns) will walk down the hill again to go to dinner in an hour or so.  I have to say that the walk up the hill was not as bad as I envisioned it.  It is about the same steepness as Clift Street and ten times longer, but it does have a few curves in it so it doesn't seems so bad.  I hope everyone at home had a relaxing Labor Day.