ísland

One time we were looking at flights home and came across a Paris to Minneapolis with a stop in Reykjavik. Do people actually visit Iceland? Who seeks out winter temp vacations in the middle of summer? After a little research, instead of celebrating Bastille day in France, we opted for a long weekend in Iceland. At first we planned to base ourselves out of Reykjavik and take day tours to see what we wanted, then we watched The Secret Life of Walter Mitty illustrating what Iceland has to offer and decided renting a camper was a much better way to discover the country! Only six weeks out, we cancelled our Reykjavik accommodation and rented a camper-van from HAPPY CAMPERS...

Þingvellir was the first stop along the Golden Circle route. It's a national park where in AD 930 Vikings established the world's first democratic parliament. It was pouring rain when we arrived but we decided to get out anyway, mostly to check out the two continental plates (North America and Europe) that are drifting apart up to one inch a year.

Next on the list was Geysir, the original hot water spout that named all the other geysers in the world. Geysir hasn't actually erupted for a few years but Strokkur is just next to it, much smaller, and erupts frequently.

We took a very very muddy trip to the top of the hill... very muddy.

In between stops, we took in a lot of scenery and made a few snack stops. There are a lot of tales of trolls and elves throughout Iceland. We didn't really get into it, but there are complete trips dedicated to "troll hunting" for those interested. Mark made a buddy during one of the pit-stops!

As you can see, there was a lot of traffic...

Last on the "tour" list for Friday was Gulfoss, Iceland's most famous waterfall. The width of it was most impressive. We thought it was awesome but little did we know we'd be seeing more magnificent waterfalls throughout the whole trip. Still worth the stop though.

It's hard to understand the scale of most of the landscape but if you look very closely, you can see two itty bitty dots on top of the rock to the left of Mark's shoulder... those are two people!

We didn't have a concrete plan for the trip; just ideas of places to stop and things to see. It was nice not having a schedule and having to stick to it. After Gulfoss, we hopped in the car and started driving. We knew we wanted to make it to Sulfoss (another waterfall -  foss means waterfall) sometime on Saturday to hike part of a trail we'd read about. We ended up taking the road a little less traveled south and after two hours arrived in Sulfoss. Called it a night, set up camp, fired up the grill and enjoyed this view out our "back porch"...



deauville, trouville, honfleur

Last Monday, I dusted off the car with a few friends and headed north to the coast for a fingers crossed sunny couple of days on the beach. Well, the sun showed itself for one day but I should have known better from my experience last year that sunny days aren't always warm ones on the beach.

We spent Monday and Tuesday strolling through Deauville and Trouville, neighboring coastal villages. I ate as much fish as possible because again, through experience last year, the fish is the best on the coast!

On Wednesday, we took off for Honfleur before making our way back to a rainy Paris.

Is it possible after being in Paris for 6 months that I almost forgot how good a salty sea with a hint of fish smell is for the soul? It was good. I remembered quick. And the sunset wasn't too bad either!

fat bike tires

Last week I got to go on a night bike tour with Fat Tire. A friend of mine who previously worked there had some friends in town and suggested I tag along since I hadn't been yet. We pedaled through the city as a group of 20 stopping on Île Saint-Louis for some Berthillon ice cream (it's made on the island; supposed to be the best of the best; it was real tasty), briefly chatting about Cathedrale Notre Dame and the Palais de Justice before making our way to the Louvre for some photos and lastly a river boat cruise after dark.

^ Hôtel de Ville^

It was a good tour. I'd suggest it for travelers (or residents) just to have a leisure ride through the streets and learn a little bit about some of the buildings. It also gives you a good "lay of the land" while you're biking. Or maybe I'm just now learning how to get around better. I haven't been on their other tours but this one incorporates biking at dusk, sunset, and a river boat cruise... with wine! It's a win in my book!

 

HAPPY 4th of JULY! We were just saying last night that it's just not the same when we're away but we are going to try to make the most of it tonight by hosting another potluck sans the grill this year. But first, we are going to watch France battle Germany in the World Cup match... which seems like the most un-American activity but when in France, right? Bon week-end!

le grand bal masque

We took a step back in time last weekend and attended The Grand Masked Ball at the Palace of Versailles on Saturday evening... well into Sunday morning. The doors to the ball opened at 11:30pm and the lights turned on at 6:00am. We planned to meet friends at the Eiffel Tower and take some pictures before hopping the 40 minute train to Versailles, walk the grounds to see the fountain shows and find a prime spot for the firework show but unfortunately, the rain put a few hiccups in our plans. Instead we met at a friend's apartment and sipped champagne to start the night.

We arrived at the palace just in time to brave the rain for a few photos, watch the fireworks under an umbrella and eventually be paraded toward the Orangerie garden, where the party was!

As you entered the ball, it was like you walked into a merged world of the 1700s and a circus act. Classical music filled the room while bright, neon lights lit the ceiling and modern dancers greeted you.

The entertainment was great. Our group was pretty large so we designated a "home base" but really never left. It was right in front of one of the main stages so we got great shows. Some of it was music, dancing, laser light shows... a lot of everything.

I honestly wasn't sure we'd make it the whole night. But soon enough it was 10 'til 6:00 so we ventured outside and... the sun was up. We walked to the train with tired - and still wet from the rain - feet to arrive at our apartment after 7:00. The whole evening was truly a once in a lifetime sort of experience. If we were here next year, I doubt we'd attend again. Both of us were a bit skeptical to commit this year because we bought tickets with people we hardly knew in February. Now those people have become some of our best friends here and I'd say neither of us regret going!