Over, around, through, up, & down...

That pretty much describes the roads we went on today. Only 11,000 people live in the villages and along the roads we travelled today. We started today in Hofn. That is pronounced "hup" while inhaling as though you were hiccuping quickly. The scenery is extraordinary, like driving through a photo essay National Geographic might have done, where each corner you turn is prettier than the last.

The road pictured above we just travelled from Hofn (you aren't still trying to pronounce that, are you?). Then we continued on around fjords, spotted sheep everywhere and flocks of wild swans, over mountain passes and under mountains via tunnels, up up up a switchbacked road on a mountain that thought it was an Alp, and down down down to Seydisfjordur described as the prettiest village in Eastern Iceland. To be honest, that wouldn't take much as the major architectural style seems to be silver metal with a few windows. This village is starting to jazz things up considerably by painting the metal on a lot of the buildings all sorts of lively colors. I suppose if I had to deal with winter in Iceland I wouldn't chose wood siding either. It just occurred to me, the siding is probably the reason for the big aluminum smelter we passed today.

The gallery above is one of my favorite paint jobs. (Leigh, I fully expect to come back to find you jazzing up the outside of your studio a bit and trying to convince Bruce to add some color to the driveway...). Should one feel faint at the thought of having to drive back over that mountain (you might appreciate this Judy) you can always catch the ferry to Denmark and fly home from there. 

Char (I agree with you Chris, I can't get enough of it) continues to be on every menu and John had sea wolf for lunch (tasted sort of like halibut). We tried to stop at a place known for its homemade turnip chips but they were closed for a wedding. And, Karol, I hate to tell you, but we passed on a chance to order haggis with sweet turnip mousse.