Golden Circle tour

This may be my last post unless something exciting happens tomorrow!

Last night the boat cruise to find the Northern Lights was disappointing but fun talking to other passengers,  an Irish couple and a woman from Dublin with a Scottish man. But the lights looked very unimpressive.  The woman on the loudspeaker said "human eyes were rubbish" (she was a Brit) but it wasn't until today that I found out they were only visible on your phone (especially using some setting on iPhones). 

Seems a cruel irony!

Today I was the last to get picked up for the full day tour called the Golden Circle tour of a waterfall, a volcanic crater, Icelandic horses, and, to end the day, the wonderful Blue Lagoon pools. Our guide was a woman named Maria (pronounced MAR-ia) who has a 27 year old child.

First, the sunrise

A visit to Thingvellir National Park which is a UNESCO site and a historic site AND where the tectonic plates for two continents, Europe and Eurasia, meet and has a waterfall and nearby is the largest lake in Iceland.

It was the site of the Alþing, the annual parliament of Iceland from the year 930 until the last session held at Þingvellir in 1798. Women were drowned there, perhaps similar to witch murders?

Next was Gesir, a geyser that erupted about every 6 minutes and was 80-100 C (176-212 Fahrenheit)!

And then we had a brief visit with 3 horses. (The girl is a 16 year old touring with her mother from near London)

Next was the Gullfoss, a quite amazing waterfall!

Next was the Kerid crater, formed about 6,500 years ago. People went down to the water (ice) and threw rocks at it which made a very interesting sound.

Next we went to the Blue Lagoon. People brought their phones and cameras in which was just stupid!

But I took this picture of the water on the way in to the buildings with the lockers, restaurant and gift shop.

This pic that I took from the Internet is what it looked like to me. You got a face mask and a drink for the entrance fee. What fun except for the eternal selfies.

When we were leaving there was a reappearance of the mysterious Northern Lights. Our guide, Maria, took this photo with her iPhone (I had to stand still for 7 seconds).

This is what I took with my phone and was what it looked like with my "rubbish eyes".

Last one picked up so first one dropped off!

P.S. If you want very much to see the Northern Lights,  do more research than I did (I think I did none)! Here is a good site and yes, it does involve some luck, too.

https://www.icelandtours.is/blog/best-time-to-see-northern-lights-iceland/