#645 Iceland

Iceland is my new favorite.

We're lucky that we have 3 days to spend in this beautiful country, docking in Reykjavik, Isafjordur, and Akureyri.  Many folks on our month-long voyage are most looking forward to our time in Iceland and the weather gods are smiling on our enthusiasm!

Reykjavik, the capital and largest city, offers us sunny skies, an open air museum (Arbaejarsafn),

 and this beautiful lupine.  Though it is not native to Iceland, it's everywhere and I like it.

Isafjordur, a town of only 2600 inhabitants in the northwest of the country, doesn't see many cruise ships since most are too large for this small port.  The rewards for arriving by small ship are sunny skies, spectacular glacier views,

and the best fish in Iceland - perhaps in all the world.  The chef at Tjoruhusid asked us what we wanted and we asked him to give us a sample.  We feasted on cod cheeks, plaice, catfish and Viking beer (the local Iceland beer.)

Akureyri, the second largest town in Iceland with 17,754 citizens, is just the right size.   Just south of the Arctic Circle, Akureyri boasts the northernmost botanic garden, a stunning fjord, a beautiful harbor,

 

and kite flying!

Yours in loving Iceland,

Mary

#644 The Shetlands

Not a tree in sight and yet...

The Shetland Islands are breathtakingly beautiful!

We docked in Lerwick on the most beautiful day of the year (according to the locals) and made our way to the northwest edge of the mainland to see the Eshaness sea stacks near the Eshaness lighthouse.

 It's been a couple decades since we last visited Scotland and we are happy to see it again.   

 Some of our favorite things include kite-flying over the sea stacks,

the crofts,

 cutting peat,

 those intelligent, strong, adorable Shetland ponies,

 and the dry stone walls.  (I predict there will be a dry stone wall in my future.)

Yours in enjoying the spectacular beauty of this Scottish island,
Mary

#580 Lisbon exploration

Many Portuguese explorers left from Lisbon during the Age of Discovery.

To celebrate these expeditions, a Monument to the Discoveries stands at the edge of the Tagus River where ships sponsored by the Portuguese Prince Henry the Navigator departed Lisbon.  Steps away are two UNESCO World Heritage Sites: Belem Tower and Jeronimos Monastery.

See Prince Henry carved in stone standing in the prow of the ship?  See Kelly celebrating these expeditions by flying a kite?

See Kelly pretending to be Vasco de Gama and leaving from Portugal on the stone map?

Our expedition's ship, the MV Explorer, is docked nearby and preparing to continue the fall voyage to Spain, followed by 3 ports in Africa.  We won't be following the route of Vasco de Gama all the way to India, but we're thinking about his voyage as it "marked the beginning of the first wave of global multiculturalism."

Yours in continuing the Lisbon tradition of launching explorers on great adventures,
Mary

#575 Cliff walking in Howth

Dublin is my new favorite.  Sunny skies all four days.  Mild temperatures.  Beautiful city.  Lovely people.  And no internet service on the ship due to radio interference.  Heaven!

On the day when all of Dublin and many SAS students are consumed with the All-Ireland senior football championship between Dublin and County Mayo, we opt to enjoy some quiet time along the cliffs of Howth, a suburb of Dublin at the end of the DART rail system.  
    

On our way from the harbor up to the cliffs, we pass by the house where Yeats once lived and the beautiful gate protecting Bono's house.   

With our backpack full of kite and snacks, we set off on the cliff walk in hopes of finding stunning views of the coastline, a view of the city and the lighthouse, a breeze to lift the kite, and the ideal picnic spot.  We are not disappointed.  We spend hours walking the coast, flying the kite, and smiling back at the weather gods.

Yours in appreciating all things Irish,

Mary

#546 Vacation Virginia #7 - Shenandoah National Park

Driving the whole 20 miles to Shenandoah National Park can sometimes be too far.  So for Vacation Virginia #7, we opt to stay overnight in the park at Big Meadows Lodge during Memorial Day weekend.

Skyline Drive, the 105-mile scenic wonder that runs the length of Shenandoah National Park, is one of our favorites.

On what could be one of Virginia's most spectacular weekends of the year, our plan is to spend it outside - despite the lure of Arrested Development on Netflix!  The Milam Gap section of the Appalachian Trail is just the place for our meandering.  Thru-hikers heading north pass us like nobody's business because we're stopping to enjoy the day and also because they're just a whole lot faster than we are.  In Charlottesville, our ears have quickly grown accustomed to the consistent roar of the 17-year cicadas, but on the Milam Gap trail, we hear nothing but birds and the greetings from other hikers.

After a few hours on the trail, we replenish with lunch in a room with a view at the Skyland cafe.   And in an amazing display of technology, communications between Skyline Drive and the MV Explorer off the coast of Dover were handled with ease.  Though the cafe is busy on this holiday weekend, our veteran waitress tells us this is slow compared to October weekends. 

Kelly may have found his favorite kite flying spot - and that's saying something!  Kelly's kites have flown over the Puntarenas beach in Costa Rica, the mall in Washington DC, the citadel in Halifax, and off the back deck of the MV Explorer.  The big meadows at Big Meadows offer a consistent wind, an open space under blue skies, and a bunch of other kite-flying enthusiasts.

Just a stone's throw up the hill behind the Big Meadows Lodge, Blackrock Summit offers a stunning panorama view of the Shenandoah Valley. 

 

We eventually lose the light and head indoors to the comfort of the Big Meadows lobby and the music of the High Ground bluegrass band.

In Old Dominion, Eddie from Ohio got it right.  "When you're talking home, you mean the Old Dominion."

Yours in enjoying Sweet, Sweet, Virginia,

Mary

#438 A Day in San Juan

Hola,  Puerto Rico!

More than 500 years after Christopher Columbus arrived in Puerto Rico, so did we.

In Old San Juan, we walked to Fort San Felipe del Morro, a UNESCO world heritage site overlooking the sea, and watched families flying kites in 80-degree sunshine.

And we bellied up to La Bombonera lunch counter, where locals have been lunching since 1902.

Just after dark, the MV Explorer pulled away from the dock and the lights of Old San Juan faded away.

Yours in enjoying one day in the rich port,
Kelly

#386 Let's Go Fly a Kite!

The 4th Annual Quetzal Kite Festival was held in Palmyra, VA on Saturday, so I was not surprised to discover that the kiter in our family had every intention of dusting off his kite and driving over.

Despite Kelly's excellent kite flying on Saturday, he thinks he'll need to practice a little more before he's ready to enter the prestigious Old Dominion Sport Kite Championship in Richmond on June 20 and 21.

And I need to practice on the piano that great Mary Poppins classic...

Oh, oh, oh!
Let's go fly a kite
Up to the highest height!
Let's go fly a kite and send it soaring
Up through the atmosphere
Up where the air is clear
Oh, let's go fly a kite!

It turns out the quetzal is the national bird of Guatemala. Sam and Shannon, have you seen any quetzal (quetzals?) while you've been traveling around Guatemala and Central America?

Yours in wishing I could capture in photos the beauty of a kite festival,
Mary

#372 Carol and Spring

My dear friend Carol would have been 50 today.

Even though we lost her in 2000, I always remember her on the first day of spring - and every other day of the year.

I think about Carol

when I play the piano
when I listen to the music from the Phantom of the Opera
when I curl up under the music throw in front of the television
when I chat with Carol's mom
when I hear a good laugh

when I remember our first jobs at Phillips Petroleum Company and the annual Halloween parties

when I order a Coke with extra ice at Sonic

when I watch kites fly

when Spring comes

and when I think about the important things in my life.

Yours in remembering Carol,
Mary

#332 Carrying on at sea

Even though Kelly is on land, we continue to carry on his kite-flying tradition here at sea.

Summer and Aree, now avid kite flyers, are shown here preparing to launch some of the kites Kelly purchased in Alexandria for the exorbitant price of 50 cents each.

While Summer proudly flies her kite, Aree is despondent over her kite's inability to stay aloft, while Melissa, Amy, and Michelle stand amazed.

To commemorate the event, the ship's videographer interviews the kite flyers.

Yours in carrying on,
Mary

#311 Flying high

Kite flying from the decks of the MV Explorer. It doesn't get any better.

Two people brought kites on our voyage and I know you're shocked to learn that Kelly was one. ;-) Here our adopted family turns out to cheer on the kite flyer.

Yours in flying high into Denmark,
Mary

#294 Why we hate Halifax

After a few days in Halifax, here are a few reasons we hate Halifax:
1. Friendly locals: Everywhere we went...shops, restaurants, hotels... the locals were always friendly and helpful. We hate that.
2. Courteous drivers: Just step off a curb anywhere and listen to tires screech as drivers stop to yield the way to pedestrians. We hate that.
3. Pleasant grafitti: The only tagging we saw anywhere in Halifax was spray painted on an exposed concrete wall behind a cargo container near the harbor. It read "I love my Grandma." We hate that.

4. Knitting in public: On Saturday, the locals were encouraged to visit their public library as part of an organized "knit in public" effort. We hate that.

5. Food: Halifax is home to a wide variety of unique local restaurants, ethnic choices, fresh seafood, inviting pubs, and attentive service, especially at Bud the Spud. We hate that.

6. Harbor: Halifax harbor is lined with red-roofed lighthouses, tall sailing ships, grassy islands, and an inviting boardwalk. It's the second largest harbor in the world. We hate that.

7. Kites: The ocean breezes make for outstanding kite flying. We hate that.

8. The MV Explorer sails out of Halifax harbor at 5pm today. We're leaving. We hate that. For all these reasons, we intend to return to Halifax ASAP.

Yours in hating to leave Halifax,
Kelly

#292 Halifax Traditions

Our first day in Halifax we revived one tradition and started another. Mary continued her Semester At Sea ritual of visiting a library in every port with a productive visit to the Halifax Memorial Library.

Launching a kite into the gentle breeze above the Halifax Citadel was my first international kite flying experience, with the expectation of more to come in the weeks ahead.

Yours in old and new traditions,
Kelly

#285 Thirty thousand and two

Thirty thousand people congregated in Charlottesville this weekend for the UVa graduation. Sam and Shannon came to Charlottesville this weekend too and our focus was on competitions rather than commencements. ...who holds reference librarian contests? ...where's the Tribond championship? ...is Sam or Kelly better at keeping a kite airborne when the wind dies? ...how many people can fit in a cell phone booth?

After touring Monticello, lunching outside on the downtown mall, and walking the UVa grounds, we declare Sam and Shannon the winners of our inaugural "best graduation weekend visitors" competition.

Yours in enjoying an award-filled weekend,
Kelly