Barbara's travels continue 2018

It was a dramatic change when I arrived back to 30 degree temperatures and hundreds of emails, but I survived, just!  A fabulous cooler evening in Pfaeffikon after a scorcher in Zuerich. I haven't really spent any time at the lake so I was rather desperate to get back there. I realised how much I miss that gorgeous place with the tranquil lake and impressive backdrop of mountains,especially  its holiday feel. I have experienced so many exceptional sunsets there. I love it! At the same time though, I thought of Mark and David and so many friends on the other side of the world. I miss them so much too. The man who owns the rowing boats was probably the only person I never saw smile and yet I think he runs a pretty lucrative business.. He passed by me hundreds of times as he walked his beautiful dog and never once said 'hello'. The couple, man and dog, both seem to have aged! I had such a brilliant evening in Monika's garden, opposite my old home. It is so marvelous to kno

Yesterday we missed the tiny turning off the main road to the beach at Djupalon. Thankfully, we decided to retrace steps to another spot to try to see some puffins, so it was easy for us to stop here on the way. I am so pleased we did. The beach and the sirrounding cliffs were magical. On the beach were dozens of huge round stones. Apparently, in years gone by the fishermen of the region here would test their weightlifting skills using these stones.  Apart from the stones, there were also the remnants of a shipwreck from 1948. I sort of liked the rusty scattered fragments, which seemed right on this beach. Many lost their lives in that ship, so it was a kind of memorial to them. The beach reminded me very much of the West Coast beaches with their backdrop of cliffs and the rough sea with its beautifully coloured waves crashing in. No bathing here either! The one thing missing compared to the West Coast was, of course, the rainforest. Here there was not a tree in sight . The access roa

This was really an unforgettable last day for many different reasons. As we left the city to visit the Pingvellir national park, I thought we had struck a mini heatwave as temperatures reached 12.5 after a week in single figures more or less. It certainly did not last long. About 30 kilometres later, as we reached the beautiful lake Pingvellir, pronounced Thingvellir, Iceland's largest lake, the car was suddenly caught by violent wind gusts and the massive dark clouds made it clear that the heatwave would be short-lived. This idyllic scene below was spectacular, with phenomenal silvery streaks on the lake and its islands, but the wind chill was extreme as I took this picture, struggling to hold the ipad steady! Although I had walked along the incredible fissure, which is the junction between the American and Eurasian tectonic plates,  two years ago, I really wanted to see it again, despite the fear of being blown over! Actually, it was surprisingly well  protected so it was a supe