Jokulsarlon (Glacier Lagoon) - Iceland

More than five hours after we left Reykjavik (and after a much-needed sleep in the van), we finally made it to Jökulsárlón (Icelandic Glacier Lagoon), which has been featured in "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider" and "Die Another Day." The minute I saw powder blue icebergs in the brochure the day before, I scrapped all plans for wandering around Reykjavik and knew that I'd regret not visiting the Glacier Lagoon while I was in Iceland. Seeing it up-close did not disappoint.

I booked the Jokulsarlon tour with Bustravel Iceland for 17,500 Icelandic krona (about $145 USD), which also included stops at the waterfalls, Skogafoss and Seljalandsfoss. The Bustravel Iceland tour was one of the cheaper options to see the Glacier Lagoon because it didn't include the price of the boat ticket, which was an additional 3,500 ISK ($29 USD), but even adding in the boat ticket price, it still came out about $30 cheaper than other tour agencies. There are actually two kinds of boats that go into the lagoon, so that also works better if you want more flexibility in options. There's a discount if you book online in advance.

Pictures just didn't do this justice. Just imagine a huge lagoon with gargantuan bobbing powder blue icebergs. Luckily, I packed my winter coat because it was brrrrr, soooo cooooold! In August! The boats only go into the water from about April to November because the lagoon is too frozen the rest of the time. We easily booked our boat tickets and had about 20 minutes to take pictures while we waited until our departure time.

Icelandic Kea Skyr Drykkur Mango Astaraldin (Passionfruit)

After only a few scant hours of sleep, I was up early again for another tour. This one was nearly six hours away on the other side of the island, so my jetlag came in handy as I slept pretty much the whole time.

We stopped off at one point at a gas station where I bought this container of Kea Skyr Drykkur Mango Astaraldin for 170 Icelandic krona (about $1.41 USD). I didn't realize drykkur = drink, so instead of the thick Greek yogurt-like skyr I was expecting, it was drinkable yogurt (Well, technically drinkable cheese since skyr is cheese with a yogurt-like consistency).

Great Geysir and Strokkur - Haukadalur - Iceland

After leaving Gullfoss (Golden Falls), the last stop was Haukadalur, a geothermal valley that was home to several geysers. While hot springs are reported to exist in this area for 10,000 years, the Great Geysir wasn't first mentioned until the late 18th century. At times erupting more than 200 feet in the air, the unusual phenomenon caught the interest of people during the Age of Enlightenment. Henceforth, all spouting hot springs were named geysers.

These days though, the Great Geysir rarely erupts, sometimes going for years at a time with no movement. Still, it was worth a visit just to see the original Geysir.

Nearby is Strokkur geyser, which reliably erupts every five minutes or so.

After a few quick snaps of Geysir, I made my way over to Strokkur. I was chasing the clock at this point since it was 10 p.m. and daylight was waning fast.

Gullfoss (Golden Falls) - Iceland

After the Mid-Atlantic Ridge - Thingvellir National Park - Iceland, we visited Gullfoss (Icelandic Golden Falls). According to the sign at Gullfoss, some say the waterfall got its name because of the golden hue of the water at sunset. Another story is that a farmer named Gygur couldn't bear to lose his wealth when he died, so he buried his gold in a chest and threw it into the falls.

Gullfoss is big and mighty, reminding me of the power of Niagara Falls. But, as I come from waterfall country, after a few quick snaps I was ready to move on.

We were dropped off at the bottom of the hill and as I headed up a steep staircase to meet everyone at the souvenir shop at the top, I spotted this group of photographers. Big cameras and tripods. Unless they're carrying a big camera too, I usually ask people to take pictures of me with my point and shoot. These guys looked like they knew what they were doing, don't they?

Mid-Atlantic Ridge - Thingvellir National Park - Iceland

After checking out the Sun Voyager sculpture, I went back to Kex Hostel - Reykjavik - Iceland to wait for my tour bus. The most popular tour in Iceland is the Golden Circle, which includes visits to Thingvellir National Park, Gullfoss (Golden Waterfall), and the Great Geysir and nearby geysers.



The afternoon or day tours also included stops at a church and a geothermal plant, but honestly, all I really wanted to do was stand in the middle of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and see the original Geysir, from which all geysers got their name. I just happened to get into town on the very last day of the evening tour, which picked up at 6:30 p.m. and didn't end until midnight. Midnight! Because being that far north in the summer meant it didn't get dark until then. Cool, eh?

The evening tour, which cost 8,500 Icelandic krona ($71 USD), also worked out great because it allowed me to squeeze in a visit to the Blue Lagoon - Grindavik - Iceland in the morning and left my second day free. After being picked up from the hostel in a van, we were taken to the ticket office where I had to line up to get a ticket for the tour, then finally we were on our way.

We arrived at Thingvellir National Park a little before 8 p.m. Look how bright it still was. Actually, Thingvellir is written like this Þingvellir in Icelandic. Þing means fields, and the Alþingi (Icelandic all-assembly or parliament) was founded in the year 930 on this site and used until 1789. The park was formed in 1930 to preserve the historical area and also to protect the rift valley.

The Mid-Atlantic Ridge cuts right through Thingvellir National Park. The North American and Eurasian plates are separating at a rate of 2.5 centimeters or nearly an inch a year! Plate tectonics yo! I couldn't think of anything cooler than standing in the middle of two plates as they pulled each other apart year after year. The same forces that split South America and Africa apart hundreds of millions of years ago and I got to stand smack dab in the middle of it all!

Solfar (Sun Voyager) - Reykjavik - Iceland

After I left the Icelandic Phallological Museum - Reykjavik - Iceland and wandered along Laugavegur, I spotted the Sun Voyager sculpture down near the harbor and veered toward the sea. This stainless steel sculpture was designed by Jón Gunnar Árnason in 1986 as the winner of a competition to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the founding of Reykjavik.

Sólfar (Icelandic The Traveler/Voyager of the Sun) was envisioned as a dreamboat, an ode to the sun, which symbolizes light and hope.

Hmm. Looks like a Viking ship to me.

Icelandic Phallological Museum - Reykjavik - Iceland

I nodded off on the shuttle ride back from the Blue Lagoon - Grindavik - Iceland, when I was startled awake.

What was literally outside my window?

The Icelandic Phallological Museum.

The Icelandic Phallological Museum?!!!



Oh, I was so going there.

Especially since I got dropped off at Kex Hostel - Reykjavik - Iceland, only a block away.

I circled back to the museum and giggled at what I saw on the far right of the window. The "Member of the Month" is a giraffe's *ahem.*

There are 280 animal *ahems* and one human *ahem.* The whale *ahem* is taller than me! I know, because I took a picture standing next to it. It's natural history! Yeah! Natural history!

I would say it's the "wandering" part of "Wandering Chopsticks," except that there is a food component involving a horse's *ahem* covered in rosemary and other spices. Really! I can't make this stuff up!

At this point, I should give the big WARNING: NOT SUITABLE FOR WORK caution. Also, WARNING: NOT SUITABLE FOR THOSE WHO ARE EASILY OFFENDED. But, if you're a pruriently curious weirdo, like most of my Facebook readers seemed to be when I queried about whether I should blog this, then go right ahead and click below.

Lastly, before I continue, I'm not prudish, but I'm choosing not to use the actual terms on the blog so that my and your ads won't become inappropriate. Please refrain from using them in comments as well. So you can continue to procrastinate at work with safe images.

Blue Lagoon - Grindavik - Iceland

After breakfast at Kex Hostel, I grabbed a roundtrip shuttle to the Blue Lagoon for 2,500 Icelandic krona (ISK), about $21 USD. The Blue Lagoon, Bláa lónið in Icelandic (Ha! Yeah, right, like I could even attempt to say that.), is a man-made geothermal spa created as overfill for a nearby plant. The Eurasian and American tectonic plates literally meet at the lagoon. There's a scientific explanation about the geothermal seawater coming into contact with cooling magmatic intrusions, capturing minerals, silica, and algae that make it good for your skin, but really, all you need to know is eerie warm aqua water that you can laze about in because it's good for you.

It was also the first pit stop on the Amazing Race 6. :P

The Blue Lagoon is closer to the airport than Reykjavik, so a lot of people either stop off on their way in, or before their flight out. Since my flight landed so early, I'd be waiting around for hours for the spa to open so I couldn't do that, but keep in mind that it's an option if your flight times are more accommodating.

While chatting with my mom during my layover in Washington, D.C., she was surprised that the entire country only had 320,000 people. I told her since there's so few people, they still keep the old system of last names such as "son" or "dottir" to signify parentage. When we exited the shuttle, everyone asked the driver if we needed a receipt. He has our names and remembers our faces, he said. Huh!

I followed the crowd through the rock formations toward the spa.

Kex Hostel - Reykjavik - Iceland

Even though flying on Icelandair was the cheapest option to get to Norway, I didn't book it until I found an affordable hotel first. I had heard horror stories about how expensive Iceland was, especially so after the 2008 financial crisis. (A high school friend visited around that time and said he spent $50 on a pizza.) Since I was traveling alone, I figured hostels were my best bet. A bit of Googling turned up this Dwell article on Kex Hostel, a relatively new hostel that was hipster heaven with its mid-century modern furniture and other vintage fixtures that were sourced from America and Germany. The article mentioned that even locals visited to enjoy the restaurant and bar. Sounded pretty good to me.

There were a limited number of private rooms, so I ended up booking a bunk in a 10-bed mixed dorm room for 4,300 Icelandic krona (ISK) a night, roughly $36 USD. It was also another 1,000 ISK ($8 USD) for a comforter and towel for both nights. They did not charge a fee for not being a member of their hostel, which I had read other places do. I also booked my bus ticket from Keflavik airport to the hostel through them for 3,500 ISK roundtrip ($30 USD). There were some back and forth emails as I inquired about tours and whatnot, and every single person who responded to me was super, super nice. Also, even better, they did not charge my credit card until I actually arrived.

The back side of the hostel is located just a few blocks from Laugavegur, a popular shopping street. To the left of the hostel, the black glass building at the bottom of the picture is Harpa, a new concert hall and conference center. There are a bunch of restaurants located around there, so not too far away. The Embassy of India is across the street. Kex Hostel faces the water so there's a nice view of ships heading out to sea.

Saigon's Bakery and Sandwiches - San Gabriel

Ah well, you knew I couldn't keep up the real-time updates on the blog. So let's go back to the day before I left for vacation. I had a 5-hour flight to Washington, D.C., then several hours layover, and a 5 1/2-hour flight to my destination. Could you believe neither of those flights had free meal service?

So in between trying to get my house in order, I managed to run to Saigon's Bakery and Sandwiches in San Gabriel to grab some Vietnamese sandwiches for the road. This location is by the San Gabriel Superstore, so it's a convenient stop-in after grocery shopping. I've been going to Saigon's Bakery and Sandwiches for years now, and have to say it's my favorite Vietnamese French bread, light, airy and crispy. It also has the best Banh Mi Xiu Mai (Vietnamese Meatball Sandwich), seasoned and flavorful, not just steamed like at other places. The sandwiches also wear well for travel. The bread doesn't get hard and dry and the filling isn't all fatty, absolute musts when I buy them a day in advance before a flight.

Freshly toasted, I'm still partial to Banh Mi & Che Cali Restaurant - Alhambra's crunchy soft bread and the pate they use just does it for me. But for price point, Saigon's Bakery and Sandwiches is actually cheaper now. Banh Mi Che Cali charges tax, Saigon's Bakery already has the tax in the price. So it's a few cents cheaper, but hey, those pennies add up. The Vietnamese French bread sandwiches here are $2.25 each (The baguette sandwiches are $2.75 each.), and they're buy 2, get 1 free. They used to be buy 3, get 1 free baguette, and buy 6, get a free sandwich. But this summer, they lowered their price point to many a happy customer, namely me!

Guess Where I'm Wandering 5?

So you figured out I'm in Oslo, Norway. This is one of my favorite spots that my cousin took me to on my first visit 15 years ago.

Guess Where I'm Wandering 4?

Am I making these too hard? This one should be very easy? A major international award is presented each year at the city hall building here.



Today, my cousin and I went to a festival on the waterfront in front of city hall. Panjabi MC was performing on stage when we arrived so it was packed! I ate Pakistani Lahore fish (lovely spices) and chicken tikka and a chickpea kebab wrapped inside naan, finished off with a mango lassi.

Guess Where I'm Wandering 3?

After four visits to this country, I finally got to see this area.

The day after I got into town, my cousin suggested that we leave that very evening since the weather today isn't supposed to be as bad as it's forecast for the next few weeks. I saw tons of waterfalls and cute towns, and about 10 minutes before the boat was about to dock, rain gushed down. Just in time!

Guess where I am now?

Guess Where I'm Wandering 2?

By far, one of the coolest things I've ever done. After going out on a boat to see the powder blue icebergs closer, I got to touch them where they washed ashore downstream.

I topped off the day with the most amazing, and controversial, meal. And earlier had another first, the oldest thing I ever ate.

Guess Where I'm Wandering 1?

The night before I left, my brother's wife asked if I could blog in real-time because she didn't want to wait four years to read about my adventures.


But...

I'm still working on Portland March 2011 and need to backtrack to blog Portland Christmas 2009 too. There's still several other trips too.

It takes me forever to sort through photos, especially of big events or trips. So, in an effort to organize myself more, and because of repeated requests from friends and family to upload photos so they can see what I'm up to, I thought I'd let you guess where I'm wandering.

Monsieur Vuong - Berlin - Germany

One of the most fascinating aspects of traveling for me is seeing Asian restaurants abroad. I've shown you the burrito-sized egg rolls at a Chinese restaurant in Salzburg, Austria. So when I found out my friend intended to dine at a Vietnamese restaurant while she was in Berlin, Germany, I asked if she'd be willing to write a guest post for the blog.

With very minor edits for consistency, please welcome my friend Coffee Travails' account of her experience dining at Monsieur Vuong in Berlin. The fabulous photography is all hers, of course. And do check out her blog if you're interested in reading about coffee, academia, and Vietnam, or the intersection of all three.

*****

Whenever I travel abroad I like to seek out three things: 1) street food and 2) Southeast Asian food and 3) coffee. Sometimes they come in one package.

During a recent but brief trip to Berlin I found the former in Currywurst (pork sausage with ketchup and curry powder for 1 Euro) and my Southeast Asian fix in numerous Vietnamese and Thai restaurants scattered around the city.

Photo courtesy of Coffee Travails
Germany has a sizable Vietnamese diaspora and I saw plenty of restaurants, trendy and otherwise, that looked enticing and worthy of a future visit. I read about Monsieur Vuong (or Mr. Vuong as my friends in Berlin called it) in the New York Times “36 Hours in Berlin” feature from 2006.

The photo of, perhaps, Mr. Vuong on their website was too good to pass up and several of my friends said that it’s a hip place with a small but ever-changing menu. They don’t take reservations and the seating is communal, spread across low set wooden tables and small stools. That said, my party was still able to snag a table for five on a Thursday night at 8 p.m. with minimal wait.

Butrint and Saranda - Albania

Since Corfu, Greece is only 1.8 kilometers from the coast of Albania, it was easy enough to add another stamp to my passport. A ferry ride from Corfu to Saranda is about 90 minutes, then an hour's drive to Butrint.


Butrint, in modern day Albania, is located about an hour's drive from the port city of Saranda. According to Wikipedia, it is an ancient Greek city that dates back to the 10th or eighth centuries B.C. Its founder was Helenus, one of the sons of King Priam, who married Andromache and fled here after the fall of Troy. During the 1st century B.C., Julius Caesar used Butrint as a provisions depot for his troops. It has through the years been under Roman, Byzantine, and Venetian rule and is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The ruins lie on the edge of a hill with a watch tower high above.

Paleokastritsa, Corfu - Greece

My last Greek post and it's not even a full one. Just some shots of Paleokastritsa, where the bus stopped on the way to picking up more people before heading off to our day trip to the ruins of Butrint and Saranda - Albania.


Paleokastritsa is supposedly one of three possible locations where Odysseus' boat was petrified. He washed ashore and was found by Princess Nausicaa and her handmaidens, who were washing clothes at a nearby stream. She asked her father to build him a boat so Odysseus could return to Ithaca, but Poseidon was so angered that he turned the ship to stone.

Parga - Greece

After our brief trip to Gaios, Paxos, we headed 8 miles east toward the mainland town of Parga.

A Venetian fortress high above the harbor.


Another Venetian fortress, built in 1624.

Gaios, Paxos Island - Greece

Legend has it that the island of Paxos was created when Poseidon struck off the southern tip of Corfu with his trident to make a retreat for himself and his mistress, Amphitrite. Circe, the siren in Homer's Odyssey, who detained Ulysses and turned his men into pigs, also hailed from Paxos.


Located 10 miles south of Corfu, Paxos and the mainland city of Parga, can be easily combined into a one-day trip. Paxos, at 7 miles long and 3 miles wide, is the smallest of the Ionian Islands. The island is known for the quality of its olive oil, with fruity and honey notes. The sweetest, most glorious olive oil I've ever tasted. There are only 2,438 residents, but more than 300,000 olive trees.

It's a 1 1/2 hour boat trip from Corfu, which dropped us off in the town of Gaios.