Aurora Borealis in Iceland. © Arnar Valdimarsson_flickr

When we make our return trip to Iceland, there are many things we don’t want to miss.

Within a week or less, you can explore  geysers, waterfalls, geothermal hot springs, boiling mud pools, bird sanctuaries and more!  We also want to have more time in Reykjavik, the world’s northernmost capital.

Fred in Reykjavik © Sharon Lundahl

Iceland is a very young country, geologically speaking.   Its creation, which continues today, began less than 20 million years ago.  Volcanic eruptions on the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean created a mountain extending above sea level, which is the island of Iceland.  That is why the volcanic character of Iceland results in so many unusual beautiful natural sites which you can visit and explore with a camera.  You can see volcanoes, mountains of pumice, fields of volcanic ash, lava fields and craters.

Icelandic Girls © Sharon Lundahl

As Iceland is far north, you can also see interaction between volcanic activity and water or ice.  Visit Kverkfjöll, where hot springs rising beneath the Vatnajökull glacier have made beautiful ice caves.  Ten per cent of Iceland is covered with glaciers, which are naturally white.  When volcanic ash has fallen you will see black or layers of white and black.  When the glaciers retreat, you can see fantastic lakes with floating icebergs such as the Jökulsárlón glacial lagoon.

Puffin on the Látrabjarg Cliffs. © Kendrickhang_flickr

As Iceland is very young, there are few insect species and only a small number of wild mammals, most of which were introduced by man.  Bird species are increasing, as the birds discover Iceland.  You can’t miss a visit to the northern birds such as the puffing and the ptarmigan.

The legendary first settler, Ingolfur Arnarson, in about 874 AD,named the settlement Reykjavik (“Smoky Bay”) because he saw misty geo-thermal steam rising from the ground.

Húsavík, for Whale Watching. © Pet_r_flickr

Today it is a major source of energy, as this pollution-free energy source heats homes and outdoor swimming pools throughout the city.

Visit Reykjavik in the spring for their Arts Festival or in the fall for the Airwaves Music festival.  We also want to see a performance in the new Reykjavik concert and Conference Center.  If you like to stay up late, summer brings 24-hour daylight.

Take a swim and a steam in the beautiful Blue Lagoon!

The Blue Lagoon. © Peter Nijenhuis_flickr

Kyrgyz Yurt or Trellis Tent. © Sharon Lundahl

The Lundahls love yurts.  Living in Central Asia, where the people have lived in these round portable tents for centuries, the owners of “Music for the Eyes” have slept in yurts, have eaten (mutton) in yurts and have drunk (fermented horse milk) in yurts.

Along the way, they have collected a large number of yurt bands, yurt rugs and yurt hangings of many kinds—all of which can be seen in their shop on Whidbey Island in Washington State.

Traditional Central Asian Yurts at Festival of Falconry © Angus Kirk_flickr

When the Lundahls lived in Kyrgyzstan, one of their best friends was Fikret Ozdin, whose business, “Asahi,” produced modern versions of Kyrgyz felt, weaving and embroidery.  Upon their departure, the girls in Ozdin’s workshops made the Lundahls a fantastic model yurt, complete with tiny rugs, wall embroideries, and little people and animals.

In 2007 another friend, Richard Isaacson, put on an exhibition “Architectural Textiles: Tent Bands of Central Asia “ at the Textile Museum in Washington DC and wrote a wonderful accompanying text.     He asked for the Lundahls’ model yurt to be used as an illustration of this home of nomadic Kyrgyz.  In fact, the model yurt traveled to Washington D.C. and, reportedly, was a star of the exhibition.

Model Kyrgyz Yurt or Trellis Tent

What we call a “yurt”… Isaacson says is better described as a trellis tent.    Because the wooden struts could be taken down from the roof wheel fairly easily and could be transported to and from high mountain pastures, the trellis tent facilitated the life of nomads in Central Asia for more than a thousand years.

What are yurt bands or  tent bands?  First, they are structural components which wrap around the wood poles and strengthen and hold them together with tension.

Kazakh in Yurt with Food for Guests © Engle & Smith_flickr

Second, the Kyrgyz wove decorative bands, sometimes with dangles, just for their beauty in the yurt.  If you visit our shop, or even our home, you will see that we have used these beautiful bands for that purpose.  They are often about a foot wide by 50 feet long and were woven on a narrow loom on the ground.   They could take as long as a rug to weave, even up to from one to three years.

Check out this link for a video on the exhibition of tent bands:

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