Akureyri to Reykjavík, Friday, February 22, 2019

[heroic_jawline]

We're heading allllll the way back to Reykjavík today, where the weather is warmer and misty, but first we get to see the stunning landscape of western Iceland, visit another waterfall, and most importantly, go whale watching!

Oh, hell yeah.

Someone put a leash on Beaker, okay? Juuuuuust in case.

Comments

Hotel

[heroic_jawline]

The wake-up call this morning is early because the whales aren't exactly right outside the hotel, but...but...whales! Up and at 'em, Fandom! The breakfast buffet is calling your name.

Rooms

[heroic_jawline]

Time to get up. Yes, even those of you sleeping off Beaker-induced schnapps headaches.

[OOC: In case you've forgotten your room number, it's here! NSFW goes not-here!]

Buffet!

[heroic_jawline]

Om nom nom skyr. And coffee. Sooooo much coffee.

Re: Buffet!

[sharp_man]

Hannibal was unimpressed by the tractors on the hotel lawn, but at least the coffee was good.

Minibuses!

[heroic_jawline]

It's the last day on the minibuses! Are you juuuuust about ready to set all of your classmates on fire?

Please don't.

Looking at you, Paris.

[ooc: Add which bus you're on in the subject line for interaction and remember that your conversations will be heard by everyone on that bus. Because bus. :D]

Minibus #4

[seriesofbaddecisions]

Sabine was maybe getting a little tired of the traveling by now, but she also didn't want to take for granted that she got to see all of this. So there was still a lot of staring out the window.

And if anyone was hungry, she still had snacks from the other day that she probably couldn't pack later!

Traveling

[heroic_jawline]

Don't go chasing waterfalls~~

Exploring Dalvík

[heroic_jawline]

Dalvík is a fishing village of roughly 1400 people, but we're not here to explore it very much. We're here to go on a whale watching expedition. Our whale watching guides will escort you on an amazing trip searching for the largest mammals alive. Humpback and minke whales are seen, together with dolphins, porpoises, a plethora of ocean birdlife, and sometimes seals. To see a whale in its own habitat is always so special! The largest mammal of all, the majestic blue whale, has even been sighted on these tours (Psst. We're totally seeing one. Because it's our fake vacation). If you want you can try sea angling and taste the freshest fish imaginable!

You also have time to go see the puffins on Grimsey Island.

See. See. Not take. We're watching you, Jack.

Re: Exploring Dalvík

[uncertain_dume]

Was Kanan spending his usual Friday training time on a whale watching tour?

You had better believe he was spending his usual Friday training time on a whale watching tour.

At least he was meditating between sightings. That made up for it a little bit, right? Maybe?

Look, just don't poke the guy sitting in the boat with his eyes closed. He wasn't sleeping and he'd come around if anything interesting came near without any help. He knew these things.

Re: Exploring Dalvík

[thatwaslucky]

Sorry, Kanan. It'd been tradition for months to get calls or texts on Friday, so here, have a picture of the view from her home at sunset, because her life had gotten boring again the last couple weeks and she didn't have much else.

Re: Exploring Dalvík

[in_sidon_we_trust]

Sidon had been a little on the fence (or, as it were, the railing...) about the whale watching expedition. His own rather extensive and restless voyages into the Atlantic back near the island had created a wealth of knowledge about these creatures (and let's just not even mention any particularly amorous dolphins that might have come into his acquaintence during that time) and it was always a bit...odd for him, especially with the whales, so resembling his own father but still so different! The longing to be out there, embracing the breath of the wild imsosorry and joining them was strong, but the expectation was for him to remain and simply watch and be expected to derive enjoyment out of that. It just riled up in him all the reminders that this was a world that didn't have much of a place for him, a world that seemed to draw a hard line between 'human' and 'everything else,' which left him feeling like he didn't belong, despite being expected to.

But he didn't want to miss it, either. He'd missed these magnificent creatures, and he only had to remind himself that he'd get to swim with them again, in conditions a bit more agreeable. They really were quite spectacular, even just to watch, and he truly could appreciate that.

And maybe it was a little nice to see others appreciate it, too. He wasn't of this world, no, and they were all quite different, but it was hard to not feel a very strong kinship and pride, nonetheless. These were every bit as much his Earth brothers and sisters as his classmates and peers.

(Sometimes, perhaps, even more so...)

Grimsey Island

[goldfishontherocks]

Well, Keyleth had gone to the island initially with the intention of just doing some bird watching, still working on that whole wings thing.

And she did do that!

. . . she just also happened to find herself near an oceanside cliff -- a low one, thank you, and one with a sheer drop straight into the water -- and decided on the spur of the moment that going for a swim sounded like fun.

Which was why someone might have spotted her running toward the edge of the cliff just before a polar bear did a cannonball into the ice cold water.

Back on the bus!

[heroic_jawline]

We'll stop for lunch in a bit, but for now, get your cameras ready for some spectacular scenery (and adorable Icelandic horses). Your journey continues around a peninsula linked to many Icelandic legends, Tröllaskagi (the Troll Peninsula). As well as the always stunning coastal views, you will see enchanting villages and farming communities as your guide tells you some fascinating stories. Horse farming is bigger in this area than any other part of Iceland, you will see many fields of ‘chubby’ Icelandic horses.

[OOC: Tell us what bus you're on! Last chance for a singalong!]

Lunch in Bifrost

[heroic_jawline]

Heh.

A small university town in Western Iceland, Bifrost gives us a good place to stop and stretch our legs a bit and grab some lunch. (They have a restaurant called the Rock and Troll Cafe. We couldn't not stop.) There's also a place to ride the Icelandic horses that we've made up so you can ride the Icelandic horses!

Re: Lunch in Bifrost

[furnaceface]

If anybody needed Jonothon ever again, he'd be over here, in the cafe, happily getting lost in the vinyl.

Because there was no way in hell anybody would ever get him onto a bloody horse.

Re: Lunch in Bifrost

[sharp_man]

"You do realize you can't take it all home with you?" Hannibal asked, sipping his coffee.

Re: Lunch in Bifrost

[heroic_jawline]

Were Steve and Tony posing in front of the cafe so they could take a picture and send it to Thor?

Um, of course they were. Because this was hilarious.

Re: Lunch in Bifrost

[special_rabbit]

Amaya was mostly just going to enjoy her lunch at that cafe, all the while thinking of how the only way a place like this would ever survive in Daventry was if the trolls were running it themselves, but then that'd mean half the food there would be inedible and the other half would be croissants.

Daventry (and parts all around) was a silly place, and this place (and parts all around) was doing an interesting job of almost making her miss it. Like someone'd gone and kept all the charm and the vistas and stories, but turned down the notches on the weather and the magic. Even the postcards sort of looked Daventry- and Llewdor-esque, and she might need to pick up a few for nostalgia's sake.

Re: Lunch in Bifrost

[throughaphase]

Kitty was not about to try riding a horse with Lexi, but she did ask if she could bring her around them. She even took Lexi's hand to help her pet one of the horses, and noticed her smiling.

"Sure, now you like something."

Re: Lunch in Bifrost

[hashtag_chocobro]

Well, they weren't chocobos, but these Icelandic horses were actually really super adorable and Prompto was absolutely not passing up the opportunity to ride them.

Especially since the only thing he could think of that were similar on Eos were spiracorns and mesmenirs and the like. And while he'd never actually seen any in real life before, he was pretty sure anyone trying to ride one of those bad boys was going to have a really, really bad time.

Deildartunguhver Thermal Spring

[heroic_jawline]

We couldn't finish our trip in Iceland without stopping to watch hot water escape from the ground, right? Deildartunguhver Thermal Spring is Europe's most powerful hot spring. It provides 180 l/sec of 212 F (100°C) hot water.

Do not ride on this water.

Beaker.

Most of the water used for central heating in the towns of Borgarnes and Akranes is taken from Deildartunguhver.

Hraunfossar Waterfalls

[heroic_jawline]

And let's end our trip with a series of breathtaking waterfalls! Hraunfossar is a very beautiful sweeping cascade made up of a multitude of small springs which emerge from the edge of the lava field. With refreshing and very pure glacial water gushing out of coal-black lava, this is a totally magical and compelling sight!

We'd tell you not to jump in them, but Anakin has given up on all of you at this point.

Re: Hraunfossar Waterfalls

[white_oleander]

Now that they were nearing the end of the trip and Astrid had tried to absorb and then regurgitate everything she'd been soaking up in her hotel room in the evenings, she decided this one was one she really needed to sit down and sketch as she sat there, especially with all the different ways the falls branched out like that. She wanted to capture this one exactly as it was, and not just as her memory seemed to think it was.

Plus, there was just something about sitting there and just sketching and enjoying being there that was really nice and, knowing it was almost over, she really needed to latch onto that while she still could.

Re: Hraunfossar Waterfalls

[meepmeepmeep]

For some reason (Beaker was blaming Anakin), they wouldn't let him bring his barrel onto the bus as totally necessary luggage.

So now he had his safety helmet and a different barrel! So many waterfalls! So much science!

"Meeeeeeep---"

OOC

[heroic_jawline]

And thus endeth the roadtrip portion of our Spring Break!