Wow. Nearly five months later, I’m finally wrapping this up.
Our last day in Copenhagen was unassuming. John and I took a quick detour back to the Glyptotek to settle some unfinished business – our first visit we’d arrived too early, and had dealt with some accessibility issues while toting a stroller. Armed with the Ergo, and a sense of determination, we arrived (on time) for a second free tour.
Honestly, we didn’t fare much better. Abby was beside herself in the backpack, and it’s pretty distracting to have a child (unhappily) drumming on your back while reading painting placards. We saw a few things, and called it a wrap.
We biked around the city (I got us lost at one point) until lunch time, and had to snap of a pic of this electric car on the way home.
After a nap and some packing, we took one last bike tour. This time we left the city and headed up the coast, ending up at the town where we’d hopped on a train after our adventure at the Deer Park. It was nice to say we’d biked the whole stretch, and it was a gorgeous, albeit cool, evening.
Our wake-up call was early. So early, in fact, Abby hadn’t yet woken for her nightly serenade. 4:00 I think to be exact. I choked down some toast and poor Abby was completely disoriented (but quite content) with it all. We boarded a bus around 6 AM and Tim made sure we made our connection to the airport safely.
Then we were on our own. Before long we were off to Iceland. To save $200 (we are frugal you know), we had elected for a LONG layover in Iceland. Almost 10 hours to be exact. That $200 went right toward one last adventure. We’d vascillated between the Blue Lagoon (a tourist trap day-spa) and visiting Rejkavik. Honestly, we hadn’t quite made up our mind until we touched down.
We’re from Canada. We know cold. It was cold. About 4 degrees. Abby was in capri pants. Everyone else was wearing winter parkas and balaclava’s. The thought of walking around Reykjavik all day was less than appealing…
A 20-minute bus ride later and we arrived at the Blue Lagoon. The landscape is hard to describe. Like some foreign planet, the likes of which you’d expect to see on an episode of Star Wars. Large rocks and craters dotting the landscape. Desolate. Cold. Yet undeniably gorgeous.
It was cold. Bitterly cold. And a bit embarrassing to admit we were from Canada and should have known better.
After spending several tearful minutes trying to figure out the locker systems (seriously…so hard when trying to juggle a toddler), ripping absorbent liners out of a diaper (since in my Mommy oversight I packed neither a swim diaper OR a bathing suit for the little one), we made it into the water.
It was kinda miserable at first. The wind was cold, and poor Abby’s teeth were chattering nonstop.
But then we found this delightful little nook, where the water was soooo warm. Isolated from the wind, it was a little oasis (although the lifeguards walking around in down jackets were an ever present reminder of the outside temperature).
What a trooper dear Abby was – staying in the water for several hours, and loving it! Getting out was brutal, but a nice hot shower later, and we were good to go.
Once we were dressed, the temperatures (and extreme winds) really came as a shock.
The poor thing, who barely slept on the way to Iceland, dozed for a few minutes on the way back to the airport, but of course woke up once we arrived. We had three or four hours to kill, so she spent most of that time running around an abandoned part of the airport like she owned the place.
Her energy was waning by departure time, though. So we snuggled a bit, and were oh-so-ready for the last leg.
And yes, we were in the exact same outfits as our departure – not at all planned. Comfort beats fashion any day.
The return flight was definitely the most challenging. We were all exhausted. Abby had been awake for nearly 15 hours…she tossed and turned and cried…and I almost cried. And then we arrived home…and were one of the last to get into the Custom’s line. And because it was so late at night, there were only a handful of customs agents. And Abby was squirming and crying and it was just miserable. But how wonderful it was to emerge and see friends there to greet us (and chauffeur us home). Abby slept most of the way, and when I slipped her into her bed, she look so incredibly happy to be home and immediately fell asleep.
I, on the other hand, gorged on delicious chocolate cupcakes and milk (the food left in our fridge by friends)..
What an adventure. Easy with a toddler in tow…no. But we made some incredible memories and would do it again in a heartbeat. Although I know she’ll never remember details from the trip in years to come, she still does ask, on occasion, to go fly “airpwane” and see Uncle Tim!
Day 1&2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7, Day 8, Day 9, Day 10, Day 11, Day 12, Day 13, Day 14, Day 15&16
Optimisic Musings of a Pessimist 