Latrabjarg Cliffs & Flatey

Every morning they wake us up with an announcement "Good morning, ladies and gentleman, good morning. Today is Thursday July 9th. 11 degrees C or 50 F..." I got ready quick enough to attend morning stretches in the lounge at 7am. It was about 6 of us ladies, 1 cute old man. We started really easy with breathing and neck stretches, but then we got into leg stretches and abdominal exercises. By the time we were done with our crunches and leg lifts my stomach was pretty tight. Breakfast was wonderful. The offered hot and cold cereal, omelets, fruit and yogurt, and a bunch of other things. At 8:30 they called us outside to see the Latrabjarg Cliffs. It's Europe's largest bird cliff, 14km long, and provides nesting sites for many birds, almost 40% of the world population of Razorbills. Lee taught me how to adjust the binoculars which was good since I was too far away to catch anything with my camera.

After lunch we had our first ride on Zodiacs to Flatey Island. They suggested we wear our rain gear so we didn't get wet from all the splashes. Us teacher all brought bogs boots, but for the first time they are using a dry-lander they are calling "Bridge-it," so we don't need the boots. I was on the photography tour, but there were a lot of us and I quickly found it was difficult to take pictures since there were so many of people in the frame. We went to a church built in 1926 with a wonderful mural on the ceiling by Baltasar. Beside it was a cute little library which was the first public library in Iceland built in the 1800s. "In town" there were some young girls selling Icelandic bird statues they had carved and painted. The family was vacationing in their summer house for 1 week and was very friendly. (This is typical of most families on the island.) I asked if I could record the girls playing a singing hand clapping game and they obliged. Continuing on down the path you could bird watch, but they told us to beware of the Arctic Terns. Luckily, I did not have any birds bother me. I was able to see a baby bird underneath its mama on a ledge, so that was pretty cool. I was told the last 15 minutes were the best because all other guests had gotten onboard so you can get pictures with minimal tourists. They were correct.

The day ended with the Captain's Cocktail Party where he introduced the ship's staff. And then another great dinner. Summary: Aha moment- I finally learned how to use binoculars. I had no clue their were so many adjustments that could be made. When I was a kid I thought it was just easier to see with my own eyes. When we were at Latrabjarg Cliffs I wanted to be able to see the birds, but even though we were kinda close to the cliffs, it was not close enough for my eyes to notice much detail. It was so much more interesting to use the binoculars and be able to see up close. Least favorite part of the day-the wind which makes it so cold! Human and nature interactions- Flatey Island is mostly a summer house location for Icelanders. There are only 5 people who live on the Island year round because of it's harsh winters. Sometimes the sea is so rough it is dangerous to try to get to mainland, but there are no grocery stores or anything on this island. It's interesting this was an important trading post in the Middle Ages. Teaching connections-Some of the Icelandic girls there for summer vacation were selling their wooden carvings of birds. After talking to them for a while I asked if they would play a hand clapping game for me to video. The song sounded very much like "Say say oh playmate." There are some things that are universal, and girls singing and playing hand clapping games seems to be something all over the world.