My friend Josh and I didn't say much as we loaded our luggage into the rental car at Keflavik Airport. We'd just landed in Iceland, and already we were silenced by the landscape. "It looks even more amazing in person!," Josh said as we took it all in.
Since we met during at a gathering at an old friends' house, Josh and I had dreamed to traveled extensively through the world together, from the canals of Venice and Amsterdam to the mountains of Austria and Italy, but Iceland was our main place of excitement to visit.
The surrounding lava field resembled something you would only see you in your wildest dreams, with huge moss-covered rocks haphazardly compiled on the ground, and funnels of steam rising to meet low-lying gray clouds in the distance. It was a formidable and alien landscape with no trees, no grass and no shrubs. We'd heard that Iceland was nothing like the other landscapes God has provided for us, and now we could see why.
With the suspiciously simple verbal directions given by the rental car clerk, "Just follow the road to Reykjavik." The clerk wasn't kidding, there was literally one road out of the parking lot with a sign pointing to Reykjavik. Despite the barren landscape of volcanic rock that welcomed us, we were already warming to Iceland.
Iceland has the reputation of being a remote country, but it's actually North America's closest European neighbor, located relatively halfway between the U.K. and the U.S. There are many misconceptions about Iceland, and surely the name of the country doesn't help any. Far from freezing or being covered in ice, Iceland has a relatively medium climate, averaging 60 degrees in the summer and 32 in the winter. We were visiting in April, and the temperature during our stay was around 40 degrees, requiring a winter wear, but far from scarf and gloves-weather.
Jumping on the tourist bandwagon, our first trip was to Iceland's largest tourist attraction, the Blue Lagoon. The directions we received from our hotel's keeper sounded vaguely familiar, "Follow signs for The Blue Lagoon.'" We drove through grisly lava fields but were getting closer to the wisps of rising steam we had seen from the airport. Suddenly the Blue Lagoon appeared, providing a visual thrill of electric sky-blue water in dramatic contrast with the surrounding black craggy lava hills. If the moon had lakes, I imagine they would look like the Blue Lagoon.
When I stepped out of the hot, airless plane into the bright, dazzling sunlight beaming down across the burning concreate, I felt excited and nervous. Holding my beach bag in my hand and slipping my Ray Ban sunglasses on with my other, I flip-flopped down the airspace. Overhead I heard the screams of gulls and the chatter of the small fluffy birds. I suddenly realized I had arrived to Hawaii. This trip was such an unforgettable vacation for me because I got to witness the beauty of nature that Hawaii has to offer.
By noon they had begun to climb toward the gap in the mountains. Riding up through the lavender or soapweed, under the Animas peaks. The shadow of an eagle that had set forth from the line of riders below and they looked up to mark it where it rode in that brittle blue and faultless void. In the evening they came out to upon a mesa that overlooked all the country to the north... The crumpled butcher paper mountains lay in sharp shadowfold under the long blue dusk and in the middle distance the glazed bed of a dry lake lay shimmering like the mare imbrium. (168)
The drive to cross the Kentucky border had taken hours and hours of strenuous patience to finally arrive in another state. The view was by far country like as hints of cow manure could be smelled far from a distance. We drive through small towns, half the size of our hometown of Glen Ellyn had been the biggest town we've seen if not smaller. The scenery had overwhelmed us, as lumps of Earth from a great distance turned to perfectly molded hills, but as we got closer and closer to our destination the hills no longer were hills anymore, instead the hills had transformed to massive mountains of various sizes. These mountains surrounded our every view as if we had sunken into a great big deep hole of green pastures. Our path of direction was seen, as the trails of our road that had followed for numerous hours ended up winding up the mountainous mountains in a corkscrew dizzy-like matter.
We could hear a waterfall in the distance, with the sound of crashing water continuing around the clock. There were different types of moss everywhere, and it seemed to be covering almost everything. When we did some climbing, it was nice to have the moss there as a soft, spongy cushion for our hands. Later that first day, we decided to go swimming. We canoed into a little bay on the Canadian side of the lake, and I was the first to jump into the water. My body started to shiver instantly from in the cold, clear water, but after adjusting to it for some time I ended up feeling refreshed. The following day we went on a long hike to a spot with a beautiful view of the Canadian border. Lindsay pointed out a maroon, barnacle-like growth on a rock along the way. He explained that the fur-traders used to eat it, so I tried a piece. It had no flavor, but had the same texture as a potato chip. After a couple hours of difficult hiking, we reached the overlook and found a spectacular view of distant Canada. The orange sun was just beginning to set over the lakes, with trees covering the land like a blanket. It was the most beautiful view I have ever seen within Minnesota.
When we got out there we were all very impressed by the appearance of the city. This was obviously a tourist town. When we found the hotel we were impressed by the huge glass windows and cedar siding. It looked more like the Hilton than a Best Western. We checked in and were shown to our rooms. After bringing in all of our things, we went straight to bed knowing that we had a huge day ahead of us, not knowing how huge it was really going to be.
Boom! A once ice-capped mountain peak explodes as ash fills the air. “‘Vancouver, Vancouver, this is it!’”Those were the last words of expert geologist David Johnston (Gunn 561). In 1980, Mount Saint Helens of the state of Washington erupted, filling the air with ash and causing mudflows powerful enough to lift tons. It decimated everything in its path. The eruptions, mudflows, and ash caused great damage on the landscape, yet it gave us information on how catastrophes happen and how they affect society and the surrounding landscape. The data acquired can also help us understand the way the landscape was formed. Mount Saint Helens caused much damage, but also helped people understand the science behind it.
On through Alberta and into BC. Not long now. As we grew closer to the coast, the air grew warmer and there was a fine mist all around us. Driving through the fields of the Fraser Valley, I could see huge mountains in the distance. I was very excited and thrilled by all the sights and sounds around me. Soon we were in Vancouver and I could see the ocean. We drove to Kitsilano. There were people, sitting outside cafes, in sandals, in November! This was nirvana. Exactly where I wanted to be, for the rest of my
During the seventh and eighth centuries, the Swedes were merchant seamen well known for their trade. In the ninth century, Nordic Vikings raided and ravaged the European Continent as far as the Black and Caspian Seas. During the 11th and 12th centuries, Sweden slowly became a united Christian kingdom that later included Finland. Queen Margaret of Denmark united all the Nordic lands in the "Kalmar Union" in 1397. Frequent tension within the countries and within the union gradually led to open conflict between the Swedes and the Danes in the 15th century. The union's final disintegration in the early 16th century resulted in a long-lived rivalry between Norway and Denmark on one side and Sweden and Finland on the other.
Ecuador is located in South America, on the Equator it also extends out to sea to the Galapagos Islands. The people of Ecuador speak Spanish, Quechua, and now English is starting to be part of the curriculum for students. Ecuador is the home to all my family, and possible the retirement place for my parents. This is all possible since Ecuador branched out of the Gran Colombia. Going even further into the past Ecuador did not just have one start on being what/where they are now. The history of Ecuador is said be divided into five different phases or eras: Pre-Colombian, The Conquest, The Colonial Period, The War of Independence and the Republican Era. These eras needed to happen so the place I call home could be what it is now. It also has gone through changed within the flag, which is used as a representation – or a symbol to show off were one is from. The people of the city also are the heart of it all, and with time they learn to adapt to new life and customs without losing the traditional ones. Ecuador has gone through many changes to get where it is now. The struggle has been hard for most but at the end the nations is a strong nation.
Norway is one of the “three fingers” of Scandinavia, and is just larger than New Mexico. It covers 125,181 square miles. It is located in Northern Europe, bordering the North Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean. The coastline stretches 21,925 km. The population of Norway is 4.3 million and growing. The population is predominantly or Nordic (Scandinavian) decent. There is also a small minority (20,000) of native Sámis (Laplanders), who live mostly in the North. Many aspects of business and management in Norway are very similar to those of America including language and communication, power structures/politics, work ethics, food and eating habits, dress, and religious beliefs.
This war-torn land shows nothing but death and the dying. The ground is muddy from the rain, it’s dank and sodden. Up above the trench line is barbed wire and … nothing else. No birds, no animals … no people. A few dead bodies of the brave men going to assassinate the enemy by night fall, but stopped dead in their tracks, they got picked off by the sharpshooters. No! No one ever makes it! Never! There is a constant sound of gun blasts and the sound of explosions from the grenades. The dark is lit up by the flashes of the guns against the silver clouded sky. Nobody dares to look up for more than a few seconds otherwise they will be taken out.
Albania: The Development of a Developing Country Albania, a small country located in Southeastern Europe, is a nation that does not have a true identity – its people are Muslim and Christian, it is a country that is both poor and poor, it is as urban as it is rural, and has evolved from monarchy to socialism and now to fledgling democracy. In other words, Albania and its people have seen it all. The extremes of Albanian society are vivid, and underlying tensions are evident. But Albania is not “another Yugoslavia” – there is no doubt that the internal environment of Albania has been and somewhat continues to be tense, although the breaking point has never been fully reached. Albania is a country with a fervently tense past (especially during the Cold War era), yet many people do not know about it, and few would be able to find the country on the map.
The three volcanoes represent our problems. The active volcano is our current problems; the extinct, our past trials, and the dormant, the problems that we don't know if they are through or there are still to come. But as the rain stops pouring down, rainbow starts to form. Joy and pleasure must be earned-- not given or received -- like the joy the water from well gives to the little prince and the pilot. Its sweetness comes from the journey under the stars and the work of the pilot's arms making the pulley sing.
The flight to London felt like it took forever, we were all so tired and just wanted to take a shower and go to bed, but we had to get off that plane and get on another going to Scotland. When we finally landed in Scotland, I couldn’t believe I was actually in a foreign country, I was so excited. The first thing I did when we landed in Scotland was to look through the window, of course what I saw were other airplanes and men running around getting luggage and showing planes to the terminal. After we got all of our luggage and the rental car, we walked outside, as I looked around, I could see so much green in the distance; so many different colors of green. I had never seen so much beauty in one place.
The topic that I will be discussing is Thai culture. In this, it will include areas that influence this culture. First, I will give you the geographical information of the country of Thailand. The second area that I will look at will be language. Language is an extremely important part of culture and some say that one cannot be found without the other. After that I will inform you about customs, traditions and taboos in Thai culture. This is a very important part of culture and is what shows the differences between cultures. Then I briefly tell you about the government and some national symbols, such as the flag, the symbol, colors, anthem, dress, and national day. Next, I will explain about religion in Thailand. In most cultures there is religion, but in Thailand it is interwoven into its whole culture and it is hard to separate the two. One other thing that I will include in this paper is a link to a page with pictures from my trip to Thailand.