Three Days In Southern Iceland

The incredibly beautiful island country of Iceland will be an amazing experience where ever you decide to visit, but if you only have three days and want to make the most of your time, south Iceland has a plethora of landmarks that will take your breath away, and activities to keep you challenged and inspired! You can do a self driving tour like us, or book tours and activities with sites like https://guidetoiceland.is.

Here's a recap of our three days in Iceland chasing waterfalls, exploring geysers, icebergs, hot springs, and black sand beaches:

Day 1
We flew out of BWI at 7pm and landed in Iceland at 5am local time. Surprisingly, everything was open and buzzing when we arrived. There's a big duty free shop that you'll walk through, grab some water and snacks before heading out. The supermarkets and restaurants wouldn't be open for several more hours. Our first order of business was to get to our car rental facility. We went with Sadcars because they offered the lowest rates. The first car they offered us had a gap at the door, so wind was seeping through even when it was closed. We returned it and they replaced it with a much better one without any hassle.

Once we got on the road, we started for the Golden Circle towards our first destination, Thinvellir National Park. We didn't make it very far before having to pull over to pet some hardy Icelandic ponies and admire a gorgeous church on a hill!

Standing in Thinvellir, you can just feel the history in the moss covered grounds. Here lies the site of the first parliament, continental rifts, and filming scenes of Game of Thrones.

Heading more west on the Golden Circle, you'll come to the Geysir Center where you can warm up with some great Icelandic dishes before walking over to watch Strokkur erupt, which will happen about every 15-20 minutes.

A little over 9 km further you'll find one of the most powerful waterfalls in Europe, Gullfoss, the Golden Waterfall! Legend has it that this beautiful waterfall was in danger of having it's power harnessed for electricity, but the daughter of the owner prevented this from happening by threatening to throw herself into the falls. It is now protected by the Icelandic government.

Day 2
We spent Day 2 exploring the southern route of the Ring Road as we made our way to the Glacier Lagoon. There were countless waterfalls and breathtaking views to take in, including the very popular, Seljalandsfoss. If you're here, don't miss the sister waterfalls located within walking distance to the west (grab your wellies and ponchos). We could have easily broken this route up into two days if we had more time.  

Having a four wheel drive enabled us to venture onto their F roads where we explored the Fjaðrárgljúfur canyons. Don't attempt these roads without the proper vehicle. 

Day 3
We started our third day at the Glacier Lagoon, watching blue ice float by on Jökulsárlón (literally glacier river lagoon). If you want to get between the icebergs, book a tour, but it is not necessary to be on the boat to see the ice. Many will float right by you. 

Across the street is Diamond Beach where we found large chunks of glacier ice resting on black sand. 

We headed back west after Diamond Beach to our next stop, the black sand beach at Vik. The beach is known for the black basalt columns that were formed from cooling lava. The waves can be dangerous here so approach with extreme caution. 

About 20 kilometers west of Vik is the DC-3 plane on Sólheimasandur. The US Navy plane crashed in November of 1973. All of the crew members survived, but they left behind the plane which has now become one of the top tourist attractions in south Iceland. The contrast of the shell of the plane sitting on black sand offers some great photo ops. The road to the site has been shut down to the public so if you're visiting on your own, you'll have to hike the 12 miles roundtrip. The road is flat, making it an easy walk. 

Our next stop was Skogafoss. After walking 12 miles to and from the DC-3 plane, we opted not to climb the 527 steps to view the waterfall from above. 

We flew out the next day at 3pm, which gave us a lot of time in the morning for more exploring. This would be a good time to visit the famous Blue Lagoon if that's on your list. Just be sure to book as far in advance as possible. We chose to seek out natural hot springs instead. 

 

This trip only scratched the surface of what Iceland has to offer. There is so much more to explore in other parts of Iceland, but this gave us a good idea of how incredibly beautiful this tiny island country is. The amazing landscape in just this region alone was unlike anything we have ever seen! We can't wait to go back and experience the rest of the country! 

~ Stephanie 

The Big Easy

We had an amazing time on our first trip to the Big Easy! I was contemplating on what to do for Tony’s big four-oh. A surprise party wasn't really his style, but the usual dinner out didn’t seem to fit the occasion. I thought a trip to one of the islands might be the trick, but he suggested New Orleans. Neither of us had been and I didn’t know much about the city, but he was convinced that we would both love it. He was absolutely right! We’ve done quite a bit of travelling recently, and although all of our trips were special and we’ve enjoyed each one, New Orleans was a different kind of fun! The kind we haven’t had in a long time. We were there during the Mardi Gras season, let's leave it at that. But the trip didn’t start out on such a high note.  

French Quarter

Tony worked till the very last minute on the day we were to fly out. His conference call ended at 4:30pm and we were on the road immediately after for our 7pm flight out of BWI. Tony was in a bit of a zone, probably still in work mode. I thought I’d give him until we reached the airport to snap out of it and get excited. 

A little over an hour later we pulled into the parking garage, spent some time finding a spot, then hopped on the shuttle to the terminal. We reached the self check out kiosk with about an hour to spare. All we had to do was print out tickets, go through security, and we would be on our way!! 

French Quarter

I grabbed the first available kiosk and pulled out my phone for my flight and confirmation info, but when I looked, I instantly felt sick to my stomach! Did I read that right? Did it say DCA, instead of BWI??? OMG!! We were at the wrong airport!!! We had an hour to catch our flight and DCA was OVER an hour away!! I didn’t even want to look at Tony, but somehow I sputtered out the words and told him our predicament.  And just as usual, he took the news like a champ and said, “Okay, let’s go to the counter and see what they can do for us.” So much for snapping out of it and getting excited. 

Entrance of Omni Royal Orleans

We approached the first available agent at the airline counter. He was in such a good mood, singing and dancing. As soon as I told him we were at the wrong airport, he abruptly stopped and frowned. Although we were the ones with the problem, I actually felt bad about killing his festive mood. He quickly went to work to help us find the next available flight out. The good news was that there was one available. The bad news was that it didn’t leave until 6am the next morning with a stop in Houston. We didn't have much of a choice. The agent booked our new flight without charging us any fees for our silly mistake. Thanks, Southwest! 

One of the oldest restaurants in New Orleans and home of the world famous beignets: Cafe du Monde

Luckily, my father-in-law lives 10 minutes from DCA and he was out of town (at our house with our daughter, in fact) so we were able to stay at his condo that night. We made the most of the night and went out for dinner and drinks and had a great time! We went to bed early and was up at 4am, ready for this adventure to begin! 

DCA is small and getting around is easy, especially at 5am on a Saturday. We printed our tickets at the kiosk and started for the security gates. A few moments later, Tony asked for his tickets. I look through the two in my hand and, OMG, what did I do now??? Both tickets were mine! Without saying a word, I dashed back to the kiosk, leaving Tony standing there completely baffled. Luckily, not too many people fly out of DCA that early on Saturdays and both of his tickets were still on the kiosk tray, untouched. I grabbed them and ran back to him, smiled sheepishly, and handed him his tickets. “Oh my god,” he said, and laughed at me. 

New Orleans Jazz band, Bon Bon Vivant

We proceeded to the security gate. At the front of the line, I approached the agent first and handed him my ticket and ID. He looked at the ID, then looked at the ticket, then at the ID again, then at me and finally asked, “Are you Anthony?” 

I thought, “is this whole trip going to be like this?” 

Thankfully, it wasn’t. That was the last of my fumbles. After exchanging tickets with Tony, we got through the security gate and made it to New Orleans!

Haunted real estate in the French Quarter

There’s so much to say about this amazing town that I’m not even sure where to start. I fell in love as soon as we turned onto Saint Louis and I saw my first double-gallery house with it’s balconies filled with gorgeous hanging flower pots. This blog is long enough, so I’ll just say this; if you love food, beautiful architecture, history, culture, live street music, and being surrounded by some of the friendliest people on earth, go to New Orleans. Read about the history of the town. Learn the difference between Creole and Cajun. And once you’re there talk to the locals and get the scoop on where to go and what to do to make the best of your time. 

Seafood gumbo at Pere Antoine Restaurant

And if you’re lucky enough to be able to go during the Mardi Gras season, well, that’ll take it to a whole new level. There's a reason Mark Twain said, "It has been said that a Scotchman has not seen the world until he has seen Edinburgh; and I think that I may say that an American has not seen the United States until he has seen Mardi Gras in New Orleans."

~ Stephanie

Lafayette Cemetery Number One

Joe Joe and Mo' Blues Band at Vaso 

Roasted Gulf Oysters at Brennan's Restaurant

Seafood Filé Gumbo at Brennan's Restaurant 

Boiled crawfish at The Original Cajun Seafood

Enjoying a beignet at Cafe du Monde

French Market

Lafayette Cemetery Number One

Coffee with chicory and bloodies at Brennan's Restaurant

Boiled crawfish and a po-boy The Original Cajun Seafood

French Quarter

French Quarter 

French Quarter

Double-Gallery house in the Garden District

French Quarter 

Blue grass band performing on Royal St in the French Quarter 

Crawfish étouffée at 801 Royal

Eggs Hussarde at Brennan's Restaurant

Turtle soup at Brennan's Restaurant

Oyster shooters at 801 Royal

Saint Louis Cathedral

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The Impact of a Small Act of Kindness

Garth Brooks is, by far, my favorite country artist of all time. In fact, he is the very reason why I started listening to country music. I was flipping through the stations while driving into my part time gig late one night and his "More Than a Memory" came on. Not only did I stop to listen to the whole song, but I left it on the country station.

Since then the country station is on in my car 99% of the time. I've come to love many more artists, but Garth has remained at the top for me. When he came out of his temporary retirement and started touring again, I held my breath waiting for him to come to my area. When tickets went on sale, I had three devices up and running and ready for ticket battle. I lost.

That was about a year ago. Fast forward to earlier this week when Garth announced a fourth show added to Philly. It would be about a two hour hike for me, but it was the closest it was going to get. Tickets went on sale yesterday at 10am. Tag teaming two devices, I was able to secure two tickets to floor seats!!! I thought I was going to die of happiness and excitement!! I had waited so long and I was finally going to see Garth Brooks in concert!! And not just Garth, but also his beautiful wife, Trisha Yearwood, TOGETHER!!! I was beside myself!!

I went to put the event on my calendar, and to my horror, my calendar revealed that I was out town. OUT. OF. TOWN. Not only was I out of town, but I wasn't even in the same country! In fact, not even on the same continent! I heard my heart shatter. I mean, I think I literally heard the cracks and tearing of my breaking heart.

In my haste and over-excitement, I completely forgot to confirm the date before purchasing the tickets. There was no way out of it. There was no way I could go unless I can figure out how to be on two continents at the same time. There was only one thing to do, I had to give up the tickets.

After drying my eyes, I started to peruse the comments under the concert post on Garth's page to see if there was someone who wasn't able to get tickets. I figured I'd reach out to them to see if they would be interested in purchasing the tickets from me. I would only charge the total price of what I paid.

While reading through some of the comments, one in particular stood out to me and tugged at my heart. It was from a woman named Cindi, who was also a big fan. I'd even confess that she's a bigger fan than me since she's loved him much longer. She talked about how she's always wanted to go to his concert but couldn't afford to before because of having to raise three boys on her own, and still can't afford to now because all of her finances were going towards her battle with cancer.

My heart reached out to her, so I clicked on her profile to see if her circumstances were real. Sure enough, there were her three boys, all grown up. And there's her diagnoses and struggle with stage 3 breast cancer. Immediately I knew I wanted to give her the tickets. I thought the tickets would make her smile, if only for a short time. So, I reached out to her under her comment.

Her response was more than I had expected. I knew she would be excited, but her utter disbelief and appreciation was just heartwarming. I knew right away I made the right choice and chose the perfect recipient.

We exchanged information through private message and I sent her the receipt of the ticket purchase, just to put her mind at ease that this was really happening and it wasn't a hoax. I assured her that I would send her the e-tickets as soon as I received them. She thanked me again and I thought that was that.

Several hours later I received a notification that she had tagged me in a post. I went to read it, and my heart just about exploded. I hardly knew how to respond.

I was just aiming to put a smile on her face. My brother-in-law fought and beat Hodgkin's Lymphoma twice, so I understood her financial struggles and a little bit of the emotional and psychological pain she must be going through. I thought the tickets would give her a chance to have a little fun and take her mind off things. I never expected the reaction that she had. After she opened up and talked about all that she has been through and how much the tickets meant to her, I knew I was meant to buy those tickets on the wrong day. I knew they were meant to be for her.

My husband returned home late that night from a business trip, kissed me in my half asleep state and said, "You made someone's dream come true."

I never thought of it that way. I just meant to make her smile. I never realized that such a small act of kindness would make such an incredible impact. It's humbling to say the least, and it will inspire me for the rest of my life. In the end, this simple act of kindness impacted me just as much as it did Cindi.

Update:
Cindi went to the Garth Brooks concert with one of her sons. The tickets I gave her were floor seats, 15 rows from the stage. She made a sign that read "An act of kindness brought me to you" and brought it to the concert. It must have caught the attention of some of the event staff, because by the end of the night, she was moved to the area where the staff were and was able to see Garth up close.