Alex and Emil came for a visit last summer and we made a short trip around Snæfellsnes and Borgarfjörður to show them the glacier, Búðir and Hjalli's original playground.

We started off with a tour of Breiðafjörður islands.  Lots of wildlife and geological history - the Icelandic style.

These basalt columns are thousands of years old and they usually form in a hectagon shape.  These are special because they are pentagonal.  Pretty neat natural arcitecture.

Now if you're wondering why some of the pictures are gray and lack contrast let me introduce you to a typical Icelandic summers day.

Now you may think you've had fresh seafood but I can assure you you have not had it this fresh.  During the tour they swipe the bottom for shellfish goodies and they are served fresh in the shell with a glass of white wine.

Now the puffin is undoubtedly the cutest bird in Iceland and even in the whole world.  Did you know that they create holes in the ground where they lay their egg each year?  Each year they meet with their mate in spring to make babies. Then during the summer while the egg hatches the mom and pop take turns in hugging their egg deep inside the hole.

Do I hear an awwwwww?

When the tide rushes in or out of Breiðafjörður there are so many islands that slows it down that a current is born.  The hight difference at some points can be a few meters! 

There has been discussion about creating a powerplant using this force. Talk about renewable energy sources!

We drove around Snæfellsnes and Alex met up with a few horses. Slowly but surely I think she's coming to the conclusion that they're not such a bad species.

We stayed at Arnarstapi and enjoyed a pampered meal at Hótel Búðir, the wonderful hotel underneath the Snæfellsjökull glacier.  Many people think that Snæfellsjökull is one of the most powerful places on earth in some new-age sense.  Irrespective of that the glacier is stunningly beautiful.

The glacier is also an active volcano though it has not erupted in historical times.

Next stop was Paradís, a tranquil little lava lake close to Norðurá-river.   Not maybe the general idea people have of paradise.