Fire, Ice, and Water

 

Strokkur showing off on a sunny day

Whoosh! Boiling water shoots up to 130 feet high into the sky every five to ten minutes, and subsides as quickly as it begins from the geyser known as Strokkur. In the amazing geothermal area in the southwest of Iceland geysers, boiling mud pits, and steam rise from the earth in multiple locations. The clever Icelandic people have harnessed nature's energy and geothermal energy heats 85% of Icelandic homes. 

After spending 10 days in The Netherlands in June, Tim and I met up with my sister and brother-in-law and boarded a cruise ship in Amsterdam. Destination: Iceland. The itinerary was to visit four ports around the island, but windy rainy weather reduced that to three ports. 

It's always a toss-up when being a tourist - do we explore entirely on our own, or do we take tours? Since our time in each port was short, we chose tours for two stops and wandered on our own in the third. Our first stop was Reykjavik, the capital city. We saw very little of the city, but plenty of the beautiful countryside with our knowledgeable and friendly guide. We chose to do tours through independent local companies rather than the ship tours. 

Lupins overlooking the fjord at Isafjordur, Iceland

Swaths of Nootka blue lupins, native to British Columbia and Alaska, carpet the hills. They are an introduced species and have spread to every corner of the country. Lupins grow in marginal soil and enrich it with nitrogen. It's a complicated issue and Icelanders are divided - some love the lupins, others hate them. An interesting article on the issue, written by the Hakai Institute that focuses on coastal research, provides more information. Our guide confessed to loving the lupins, as did I. 

Bunarfoss waterfall and lupins near Isafjordur

More lupins with a waterfall in the background. Iceland has an abundance of beautiful waterfalls. 

Oxarafoss waterfall in Thingvellir National Park

Thingvellir National Park lies on two tectonic plates - the North American plate and the Eurasian plate. These plates are ever-so-slowly moving apart, which means, according to our guide, that Iceland's land mass is growing! This spot also marks where the first parliament was held 930, chieftains gathering together to discuss matters. I have not watched Game of Thrones, but our guide told us that filming was done near here featuring the jagged stone cliff face forming a wall through the valley. 

Gullfoss waterfall. Part of the tour taken in Reykjavik.

Magnificent torrents of water thundered over Gullfoss - Golden Waterfall. How exhilarating to walk close to the lookout point edge and feel the spray from the falls. The rainbow was the icing on the cake!

Godafoss waterfall. Seen on the tour in Akureyri.

Around the year 1000, Norway's king was a Christian. Iceland, at the time, followed a pagan religion. Trade with Norway was crucial to Iceland's survival and the leaders deliberated whether or not to convert to Christianity. Thorgeir, a pagan priest, was to make the final decision. He decided that Iceland should become Christian and to show his resolve, took his gods and threw them into the waterfall -the Waterfall of the Gods, or Godafoss. 

Iceland is green and beautiful with well-kept farms, white buildings, and very friendly people. It would be wonderful to explore more of the country by car and not have to rely on the timetable of a cruise ship, but this was a lovely introduction to Iceland. 

We've had some most welcome rain here at home lately. The cooler weather is better for the forest fires and our gardens, and every little bit of moisture helps. 

Summer Sightings

 

Not really a sighting, but a look back. We celebrated our anniversary this past week. How young we were and how in love. Still very much in love, and not quite so young. 

We went out on the boat for a few days. Lovely sunshine, but a not so lovely wind until we were tucked away in our quiet anchorage. Chugging past the light on Sidney Spit I took a photo with Mount Baker in the background. The gull flew in to photo-bomb at the last second. 

We anchored in narrow Annette Inlet, sheltered from the wind. One of our favourite things to do is paddle around the shore in kayaks or the dinghy. I was so pleased to get close enough to a kingfisher for a good photo. They are notoriously skittish. Holding my camera steady on a tippy watercraft adds to the challenge. This little one flew off just after I clicked the shutter. I love their cheerful cry and the way they swoop up and down over the water.

Seals look so funny perched on rocky islets, head and tails out of the water. As our boat swings at anchor, the view is ever-changing. We look up from our books and discover something new every time. One hot afternoon we observed a buck deer resting near the shore in the shade behind a fallen log, almost imperceptible in colouring. He lay quietly for an hour or more then gracefully rose and walked off. 

A small heron rookery lies at the head of the inlet. Paddling by one evening one of the herons flew in front of us, dropping a large feather enroute. It wafted slowly downwards, back and forth, landing softly on the water right in front of our boat. Magical. 

Then a few days of camping on the island with my brother and his wife. Parksville is one of the few places here with a wide sandy beach (this is the rocky part). There are hundreds of little rock stacks on one corner of the beach. 

We've been following the news about the wildfires in Jasper. Have you ever visited the town and national park? It's such a beautiful spot, now partially destroyed. The fire continues and the full damage won't be known for some time. At home earlier in the week I awoke in the night to the strong smell of smoke. After wandering about the house I looked outside and saw the horizon blurred by wildfire smoke that burned my nose and throat. Fortunately, no humans have been injured in either fire. 

Temperatures have cooled, but winds and lightning are contributing to a difficult fire season. 

Time for another walk along the beach. 

If You Love Blue and White...

 

It's no secret to those who know me that blue is my favourite colour. Blues of many shades fill the rooms of my home. I've admired blue and white Delftware for many years, so the Dutch city of Delft with the one remaining porcelain factory was on my list of places to visit. We were able to tour the Royal Delft factory and see people at work creating the special pieces by hand.

The little village buildings I brought home were designed in Holland, but not made there. I chose a Klompen (shoe store), Rembrandt's house, a chocolate shop, and a florist shop. They sit on my kitchen windowsill and remind me of a rainy day visit to Delft. 

Delftware was inspired by Chinese porcelain and it took many years for Europeans to be able to replicate the porcelain successfully. The Royal Delft museum displays some beautiful examples of early porcelain. 

Rembrandt's Night Watch is an enormous painting (12 x 14 feet) and is replicated in the Royal Delft Museum in 480 hand-painted tiles. It's in shades of blue and white which my camera did not capture well. Two artists worked for two years to complete the piece. 

Nijntje is the name of a little bunny who is featured in picture books and toys in The Netherlands. We have one little book in Dutch here at home where Nijntje, known in English as Miffy, shows off her toys. The Royal Delft factory had some adorable pieces featuring the bunny. 

Outside, a porcelain Proud Mary figure gives homage to one of the greatest promoters of Delft porcelain during the Dutch Golden Age, Mary II, daughter of Charles I of England, became Princess of Orange when she married William of Orange. Mary loved the blue and white porcelain and her love of it increased its popularity. William and Mary were offered the throne of England after James II died, and Mary took along her collection of Delft pottery, some of which can still be seen at Hampton Court Palace. 

In the centre of Delft a very large square has hosted markets and public events since the 12th century. One of the oldest shops is an apothecary shop where you can choose from a dizzying array of licorice flavours in addition to regular drugstore items. Many of the buildings in Delft were destroyed by a gunpowder explosion in 1654. This building dates from 1759. 

At one end of the square is the New Church, whose tower stretches high into the sky. Completed in 1436, the church contains the crypt where members of the ruling House of Orange are interred. 

We took refuge from the rain and ate our lunch at a restaurant patio (tented) on the square. I ordered a Dutch tradition "bitterballen," croquettes filled with a meat paste. The outside crunch was delicious and the meat paste a wee bit overwhelming after eating one or two bitterballen. They were good with mustard and pickles. 

As we ate, the church bells began ringing out Wagner's Bridal Chorus, also known as "Here Comes the Bride." Sure enough a small party of people crossed the square, in the rain, to the City Hall at the opposite side of the square. 

A sign on the City Hall doors indicated that a wedding party would be happening there. The bride wore a beautiful white pantsuit in place of a dress. 

As we left the square we noticed this wedding car decorated with flowers waiting for the happy couple. I wonder what their connection with Italy was?

Shelves full of cheeses adorned many stores. I do love a good Gouda cheese, do you? Fortunately, authentic Gouda cheese is imported into Canada for our enjoyment. 

I'll leave you with one last photo of beautiful Royal Delft porcelain, this design featuring the interwoven W and M for William and Mary. 

Four Gardens

 

Who doesn't love a garden? Around the world, gardens nourish people; with food, with peace, with the loveliness of nurturing seeds and seedlings, and the delight of working hand in hand with nature. 

In The Morville Hours, gardener and writer Katherine Swift writes "Gardens are about people first and plants second. Like our multi-layered language, gardening is made up of different elements, bits and pieces from far and near, now and long ago..." 

The two of us visited all sorts of gardens during our three week trip - here's a glimpse of four of them.

Garden #1: The Hortus Botanicus at the University of Leiden is the oldest in the Netherlands and one of the oldest in the world. Those giant lily pads grow in one of the many glasshouses where hundreds of orchids fill shelf after shelf. We wandered inside and out for most of a day, stopping for a late lunch in the garden restaurant. 

Garden #2: Hidden behind tall houses fronting the canals in Amsterdam are lovely green gardens. During Open Garden Days, hosted once a year by the Museum Van Loon, about 30 private gardens are open to the public. Many are accessed only through the houses or businesses. Some were formal, such as the one shown above, with gravel paths, statues, and neatly organized beds. Others had children's play areas or a more casual atmosphere. Garden houses stood at the ends of several gardens. Lots of greenery and hydrangeas, along with tall trees providing shade. 

 

Participants are given a map with the addresses, and young volunteers mark the gardens visited upon entrance. We visited only a fraction of the 30 gardens, but thoroughly enjoyed those we did. I was so glad our visit coincided with Open Garden Days.

Garden #3: Isafjordur, Iceland lies just below the Arctic Circle, and is surrounded by tall snow-capped mountains that tumble steeply into the fjord below. We discovered there an abandoned sculpture garden, Simson's Garden (Simsonsgardur), built by a Danish artist who settled in this small northern town in 1916. We happened on it by accident while walking to another site. The gate was not locked and so I ventured in alone, my companions wondering if it was quite proper. No sign warned against entry and I found out later that visitors were welcome. Although not well-maintained, the garden structure was visible, with crumbling statues and lush overgrown shrubs. I'm glad I wandered into this small space where memories hung in the air. 

Garden #4: In Akureyri, Iceland another Hortus Botanicus, this one maintained by the town. We climbed from the port to the top of the town where neat paths lead in and around layered beds growing with wonderful views to the water far below. Seen in summer the garden is rich with plantings featuring hardy specimens, many of which are grown in less harsh environments and were very familiar - petunias, roses, poppies. To see them flourish here was lovely. 

In my own garden Icelandic Poppies similar to these grow. Ironically, they are not native to Iceland, but to subpolar regions of Asia and North America. 

How surprised I was to see this small clump of Henderson Shooting Stars, native to the west coast of the United States and in Canada, only found on southeast Vancouver Island. Plant collectors want a bit of everything, it seems. I know that in my own small garden I have a hard time choosing what to grow. 

Meconopsis, or Himalayan Blue Poppies looked at home in this northern setting. Notoriously hard to establish, there were great clouds of them in the garden. They like cool weather, so Akureyri is the perfect place for them to flourish. 

On the way out of the garden I noticed the peonies in full bloom. Since my own peony blooms were long over, I loved seeing these ruffled specimens smiling brightly in the morning sunshine. 

Thomas Moore wrote "The garden reconciles human art and wild nature, hard work and deep pleasure, spiritual practice and the material world. It is a magical place because it is not divided." 

I've been spending time in my own garden these days and I'm happy to see progress. Things are less overgrown and the weeds less populous. Dahlias are beginning to bloom and the roses continue. Tomatoes are setting fruit after a cold start to the season, and pole bean tendrils make their way slowly up the trellis. I love going out right after breakfast, in the cool mornings. 

Do you enjoy gardening or visiting gardens? 

On a Monday in July

 

A quick post on this sunny Monday morning. The air is fresh and cool in the shade, but the heat of the sun on my head tells me it will be another warm day. Roses and hydrangeas bloom and bloom. Tiny lizards race to escape the spray of the hose as I give potted plants an extra dose of moisture. 

I pick blueberries. They ping in the pail until a softer sound tells me the bottom is covered. I harvest lettuce, almost done now, but a new crop is growing nicely. Pole beans reach out their long tendrils to curl around the lattice. Squashes of various sorts sprawl into the paths between the beds, intent on taking over the garden. Tomatoes show lots of blossoms and a few fruits begin to form. 

Days are busy enough with gardens and household chores, and the presence of two little grand girlies. Their mother has two full courses to complete in one month, and we try to help as we can. It's good to let the days of July drift a little, taking a break from projects. 

I'll leave you with these words from Edna Jaques, a Canadian poet who published between the war years of the 20th century. 

"Go out, go out I beg of you

and taste the beauty of the wild.

Behold the miracle of the earth

with all the wonder of a child."

Living Alongside Medieval History

 

Several people have asked why we chose Leiden for our visit to the Netherlands. We've found it's easy to stay in the large cities with so much to see and do, but getting out of the main tourist areas offers a different glimpse of culture. Leiden is roughly equidistant from Amsterdam and Rotterdam, two large cities we did want to visit. Train travel was easy. I am drawn to history, and when I found lodging in the medieval quarter of Leiden, we decided that was it! 

Leiden was formed on an artificial hill at the confluence of the Old and New Rhine Rivers in the 11th century. It served as a center for trade (textiles) and science during the 17th century. Leiden's importance decreased with the loss of trade and the medieval city center was mostly preserved. 

We absolutely loved wandering along canals, narrow streets, and alleys, taking the time to lean across bridge railings and gaze at the water. Canals circle the city, flowing through it in a criss-cross pattern, and adding oodles of charm. The above canal is Kijfgracht (gracht means canal); we turned here every day on our way home. As I noticed the names of streets and canals, I wanted to know what they meant. Our landlady told me that this canal was named as "the place where women argue or fight." Doesn't that raise all sorts of interesting questions in your mind? 

A narrow alley led to our quirky two-story apartment. It was once the place where the potters lived. "Pot bakers way." I also found the Candlemakers Way and the Rope-makers way, among others. 

Tim demonstrates just how narrow the alley is. Even my elbows could touch each side. 

One gentleman told us that in the 1970s people began tearing down the medieval buildings and erected ugly (his word) new construction, until they realized what a treasure the old city was and now have preservation rules in place. 

Several windmills dot the city. The Molen de Put is a reconstruction of a flour mill that once stood here. It is thought that Rembrandt's father operated the mill at one time. 

Gallows once stood nearby the Molen de Put and this street sign - Short Gallows Water and underneath "to the gallows at Morsweg" - as if it were an important place to visit. 

And everywhere flowers bloomed; in pots along the canals, roses arching over doorways, and in small courtyards. Walking was pure pleasure, even on a rainy day, of which we had a couple. 

Most of the city is very flat, but the remnants of an old motte and bailey castle provides a view over the rooftops of the old city and the more modern one beyond. The park, de Burcht, is an oasis of quiet greenery with old trees and a stone tower with a walkway to circle for a 360 degree view. 

Here at home now, I'm in the garden in the mornings when it's cooler. We arrived home at the same time that summer heat appeared. After a cool spring, everything is blooming and I couldn't be happier. 

Wishing you a lovely weekend.

Settling In and Overcoming Jet Lag

 

Twenty-four hours in transit from Amsterdam to Victoria. We were more than exhausted and so very happy to fall into our own bed on Friday night. I only slept for five hours and dressed quietly, crept downstairs, drank a glass of water, and went out to the garden. Oh my! There's a lot of work to do. But how beautiful the flowers are - hydrangeas in full bloom, poppies, roses, and more. 

We had a wonderful time away, and it's equally wonderful to be home again. There will be stories of our trip when I get myself organized. 

Poppies seed themselves in many places. They are easy to pull out where not needed. I let them grow in the vegetable beds while the vegetables are small, then pull them out to make more space. Everyone seems to get along well. 

Although it was midnight when we arrived home, both of us went out to the garden in the dark. Tim wanted to check on the blueberries. The cool weather while we were away slowed their ripening and they are only just now ready to pick. 

There's a bit of a heat wave on now, not desperately hot, but enough that I am not working in the garden in the afternoons. Laundry, grocery shopping, unpacking - all the things that need doing after a trip - are done. And now it is summer.