Iceland 2024
After coming back from a 2-week long vacation, work got really busy. It took me a long time to connect my daily notes from the trip with photos to make these daily posts. I have learned a lot from planning this trip and actually going through with it. If anyone wants tips or ideas for planning an Iceland trip, do reach out. I’ll be happy to share my experience.
Day 2 - Snæfellsness peninsula
Day 3 - Drive to Northern Iceland through rain
Day 4 - Siglufjordur, Akureyri, Goðafoss and Lake Myvatn
Day 6 - Dettifoss, Sellfoss, Studlagil canyon, Seydisfjordur
Day 7 - Drive through East fjords
Day 8 - Glacier kayaking and the lagoon
Day 9 - Vik, waterfalls and northern lights
A couple more photos of Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS from last night. Tonight it will be farther away from the horizon but we are expecting rain. 😒
My daughter and her roommate went to Acadia National Park on their Fall break. I am very happy for her and also a little sad. We have been to Acadia so many times as a family and have so many great memories. Wish we were all there together, making more memories.
Finished reading: Reykjavík by Ragnar Jónasson 📚
After the trip to Iceland, I wanted to read a story that is based in Iceland. This mystery was a perfect fit for that. ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Seeing some faint northern lights from my front yard. This year has been just insane for me to view this. It is going to go on for another year before subsiding. I am really enjoying it.
Ending the weekend with an hourlong ride. Now, Strava is using a new AI tool to provide commentary on the ride and my effort. It will be interesting to see how this develops.
I am not the kind of person who puts up political campaign signs in the front yard. But, if my neighbor puts up a trump sign, I’ll have to rush out and get a Harris/Walz sign for my yard.
Saw Paula Poundstone’s show last night. She had some set pieces but I like how she talks with the audience and continues to tell stories and make jokes based on their responses. It was fun and we had many hearty laughs.
It was good to be amongst my people - old, NPR listeners.
If you missed seeing Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS, don’t worry. It is just going around the Sun and will become an evening sky object next week. If the predictions hold true, it will be visible by naked eye and will be a sight to behold on Oct 10-12 in the western sky after sunset.
Wife was planning to buy a $30 lunch box. Then, we just happened to be at Costco yesterday and found 2 lunchboxes (same brand but different model) for $15. So, now I get a new lunchbox too. 😊
Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS this morning in Niantic, CT. I could spot it easily through binoculars but couldn’t see it with naked eye. A little bit of tail can be seen here.
This image is a 1 sec exposure at f/4 with a 70mm lens.
Sad to see the news that Kris Kristofferson passed away yesterday. Along with many other hits, he wrote one of my most favorite songs - “me and bobby mcgee”. Thank you, Kris and so long!
It is astonishing to see how many articles are popping up all over the internet about the temporary second moon. They are just clickbaits. Don’t go there. This second moon has a diameter of about 10m that is 1/350,000th size of our regular moon. No way to see it or photograph it for amateurs. It will not cause any perceptible change in any aspect of our daily lives.
One thing that I truly and sorely miss is listening to Cartalk on Saturday mornings. Feels like Tom and Ray Magliozzi were my good friends and I miss not having them in my life anymore.
For the Fall semester of her senior year, my daughter is taking these classes:
- Ecology
- Natural History of Maine
- Beethoven and the Invention of Western Music
- The Harlem Renaissance
The last one is an English class and it completes the requirements for her to get English minor added to her degree.