Whew! There’s been very little blogging activity in ThimbleannaLand — to include not reading your blogs and commenting. I do have a good excuse though, and I hope you can forgive me. If you follow me on Instagram, you know that we’ve had a fun little get-away.
Several months ago, we decided that we wanted to go somewhere to celebrate TheFirstChild’s graduation. During the weeks of conversation, TheFirstChild suggested Iceland.
Iceland?
Hmm, we hadn’t really given it much thought. (And happily, my first reaction wasn’t the same thing that we heard from most people — “Iceland? Why would you want to go to Iceland?) As I started to research a trip, I wondered if maybe TheFirstChild chose this location for ME— for two reasons — 1) Puffins, and 2) YARN!!! (Naturally, I kept this little yarn insight to myself — I didn’t want to scare the rest of the family away!) So, while you were happily reading quilt market reports across blogland, we were winging our way to the Land of Fire and Ice.
The hardest part about a trip to Iceland is getting there. There are limited flights into Reykjavik. We connected from Chicago through Toronto, and unbeknownst to me when I booked our flights, Toronto only has one flight into Reykjavik every other day. So, when our American flight from Chicago was two hours late, we missed our window to get to Iceland on time. Shortly after we landed and collected luggage for customs, they told us to hop on a shuttle and hustle over to the Air Canada terminal to catch a flight to London where we would connect to Reykjavik the next morning. Fine. We hustled.
When we got there, we were told that we were 5 minutes late (still 55 minutes before flight time) and couldn’t be checked in for the flight. We argued with Ms.PeaBrain and Ms.PeaBrainSupervisor for twenty minutes — until it really was too late to check us in. Even better, Ms.PeaBrain and her supervisor offered us no help or suggestions, except to suggest that we get back on the shuttle and go back over to the American terminal. So we did. And by now we were too late for any other options that night. The next best chance was to fly, on Air Canada again, to Frankfurt Germany, the next night. We made our reservations for the following night and went to a hotel around 1 a.m.
So, we lost 24 hours and played a lot of cards in Toronto. I was pretty darn upset at all the planned things that we were going to miss in Reykjavik — most notably, meeting an Icelandic blogger (more on that later).
The next day, while hanging around, TheFirstChild suggested that we extend our trip by a day (to try to make up for the two days that we lost), so we went back to the American counter and met the bright shining star of the whole fiasco — an American agent who gladly changed our return flights. Then, we got back on the shuttle (by now we were becoming fast friends with the shuttle) and arrived at the Air Canada terminal to check in four hours before our flight. And guess what Mr. AirCanada had to say? “There’s no way you guys are getting on this flight. It’s oversold by about 25 seats and we have to honor our Air Canada customers first.”
WHAT??? I looked over at SweetiePie, and this is what I saw:
Yep — THE Vanessa look for panic at the airport. We all looked like that. And, once again, Mr.AirCanada was NO help for options. If you are sensitive, avert your eyes.
Air Canada… YOU. SUCK.
Sorry and Thank You. That felt better. We were definitely NOT going to spend ANOTHER night in Toronto, so we hopped on the shuttle and went back to Ms.BrightShiningStar at American. She was fantastic and she found us a British Airways flight to London with a connection to Reykjavik the next day. (Which only goes to prove how unhelpful Air Canada was — they could have found the same solution. But then, you have to be a thinker.) We happily boarded the BA flight which went smoothly until an hour before landing at Heathrow. The pilot announced that there’d been a fire on one of the runways and we would be diverted to Stansted. The fun meter was pegged out! Luckily, just 20 minutes before landing, the pilot came back on to tell us that we’d been cleared for Heathrow. Shoot, I was really looking forward to the chaos of trying to figure out ground transportation for a 747 FULL of passengers to get them back to Heathrow. {Sarcasm}
Anyway, 36 hours after the original arrival time, we made it to Reykjavik. And we had a FAAAANTASTIC time. Iceland is amazing! When I was planning the trip, I found several blogs that did day-by-day reports of their trips and they were a great help in my planning. I’m going to do a similar report and post it here on the website. In the meantime, here’s a peek. We saw…
Sheep (all that lopi yarn doesn’t grow on trees)
Gorgeous Icelandic Horses
Whales (and we weren’t even on a whale watching trip!)
PUFFINS! (It took more than one attempt and a lot of driving, but we saw them. I love my little family for putting up with me!)
Fjords
Churches
Glaciers
Waterfalls
Yarn sold in grocery stores
Beaches
And Oh. So. Much. More.
That’s plenty for now, don’t you think? When I come back, I’ll tell you about meeting the most beautiful little Icelandic blogger and shopping with her. Have a good week!
XOXO,
Anna
P.S. In case you don’t know, Sherri is having a blog book tour this week. Be sure and visit each blog for chances to win her wonderful new book!
Oh Anna, you do have more adventures than the average bear, but you still end up having fun. That’s great, and greater still that your family could weather it all together without getting in trouble for bonking someone. Love the pictures.
Oh my gosh, what an ordeal for your to getting to Iceland! Oh well, it makes for a good story ;)! (and you should have stuck to your first plan and go to Switzerland lol)!!! Lovely pictures though. It brought back fond memories of our trip to Iceland many years ago. As there weren’t many hotels around at that time we camped and I don’t mind telling you that it was my first camping trip as well as my last! But the scenery was absolutely beautiful and we too loved Iceland. We even had a day trip to Greenland. Can’t wait for more lovely photos!
What a fantastic adventure Anna. Iceland is on my list of places to see – look forward to seeing more gorgeous photos from your holiday.
OH MY GOSH!!!! You should all get medals or something…You are resilient. Sounds like it might have finally been worth the unbelievable hassle. And I thought our family had bad vacation experiences. YOU WIN HANDS DOWN/ Can’t wait to hear all about it.
Wow! At least it looks like it was worth all the headaches to get there! Can’t wait to read more. I enjoyed your Instagram pics so I’m sure the rest will be amazing! (I.Love.Instagram.)
A couple we know spent their honeymoon in Iceland and had a wonderful time. Sounds as if you did too – despite the best efforts of the airline staff!
We have a couple of Icelandic horses living in our village – they’re like great big friendly dogs!
husband schmuzband. i’m planning a trip with you when i grow up.
What a wonderful way to celebrate your son’s graduation. It would have been so much fun if he had said, I want to go to Holland! But we don’t have fjords, whales, Puffins or waterfalls. We do have sheep, yarn, horses, beaches, quilt shops and Dutch bloggers. And from here it’s only a few hour flight to Reykjavik…
Just kidding!
I love to read your story and watch the photos. I would have gone ballistic by all the flight changes and uncooperative airport people though!
Oh my word, Anna. Whoever said that the travelling part is the best part of a holiday obviously wasn’t around in the days of airports and the ever-helpful (not) MsPeaBrain etc. I thought we had had bad airport experiences (also trying to get to Rekjavik!) but yours tops ours by a long way! I’m so glad you had a great time when you did get there. :o)
sheepies and puffins!!! glad they made up for the awful journey
(I had a truly terrible journey with AirCanada once, the hostess dropped a whole box of stuff from the over head locker on my head, and rather than apologise seemed to imply it was my fault for being in the way – IN my Seat!)
Oh what a to do!
I hate to say it but here in the UK, customer service is at best on par with Air Canada!
Thank goodness the helpful lady at American Airlines was, well….so helpful.
I would love to go to Iceland and your photos have wet my appetite even more.
So glad you had a wonderful trip and look forward to hearing more about it.
Sophie
If you’d have told me where you were headed, I wouldn’t have said why on earth do you want to go there. I would ahve said, what an adventure! Seems like it was and I can’t wait to read more. Sorry about the whole air dramas although you are funny.
OMG! It must have been maddening until you finally arrived. OOOOOO whales I love them. I remember watching a Martha show on Iceland it looked wonderful. Hope you guys had a great time. xox
I’m glad you finally made it…looks like memories were made! Love the puffin!
Yarn sold in grocery stores?!!! I’d have to send my husband to do the shopping!
Iceland is on my bucket list. Your photos really has me excited about going.
Oh Anna, your trip sounds fabulous, except for the awful time you had getting there. Air Canada is a huge source of national frustration and embarrassment. It’s a awful!
When I first saw your pictures coming up on Instagram, I wondered, “why Iceland?” but after seeing all you posted, I knew! What a gorgeous country. It looks like you’ve had such a wonderful adventure. Thank you for sharing it with us!
ICELAND?!? you LUCKY DAWG!!! there aren’t many places i would travel across the Atlantic to see, but Iceland is one of them – we just watched Journey to the Center of the Earth again and i thought, “gee! wouldn’t a journey to the land of fire and ice be INTERESTING?!?
it is good that things eventually worked out – but it must have been INCREDIBLY frustrating and disheartening while it was happening – so much for Customer Service, Air Canada.
Traveling…love it, hate it. I can only imagine. So glad you got there & were able to extend. It looks beautiful and amazing. Not many can say they’ve been to Iceland. Wow.
Well, frack air Canada for giving Canada a bad rep. glad you finally made it. bet you were tempted to shave that sheep??!!! ;p
I’m sorry you had all these troubles before you finally could put your feet on the Icelandic ground!
Love Iceland! Been there several times. I’m 1/4 icelandic and proud of it! My grandmother came from Iceland. My sister even married an icelandic man! :-)
I’m happy you had a great time when you finally got there! Looking forward to see more from your adventure!
I haven’t been on Instagram lately but what a wonderful trip! I’m sorry your start was so lousy. I can’t wait to hear more about it!
Such fabulous photos! And its nice to know other families travel with decks of cards, we have played in many airports let me tell! Can’t beat your trip story though…thank goodness. Its just so disheartening when you have planned and paid lots of $$ to be treated like that, I will be sure and take Air Canada off my list.
Holy smack-a-doodle chicky – that is some traveling adventure. I know what you saw was amazing tho and I hope it took the sting out of that part of your trip. – Can’t wait to see the wonderful photos I know you’ll be sharing. It’s a place I wouldn’t mind visiting some day. Glad your home safe and sound.
Hugs – Mrs. Farmhouse
Fabulous photos ….. and one day you will laugh about the trials and tribulations (but not for a long time yet!!) I’m looking forward to seeing more of your trip – I would love to go to Iceland!!
Oh! I’m so glad that you made it in the end! An unforgettable trip : )
My Teen Boy went to Iceland last year on a school trip (I know!!!) and loved it, apart from the food, which he declared AWFUL. It’s high on my places to go list and the wool thing is a big lure! Did you swim in the Blue Lagoon?
oh my what an ordeal…. but you’re not the first person saying how wonderful Iceland is… I really want to go!
Oh so glad you got there……..I would love to go to Iceland…..the puffins are so cute…..that’s for sharing the pics………
Anna! I Love Iceland and Icelanders! Been there 4 times, 3 for business, once for love (20th anniversary). Icelandair is the best out of one of the eastern Airports, but you’ve suffered enough for choosing otherwise. I loved the people, ponies, puffins (which are delicious BTW), hiking and would go back in a heart beat. I’m so happy your family got to visit!
PS Billy is reading the poems for Writers’ Almanac all Summer!
Iceland! That is cool. (What a debacle Air Canada must have been, though.) The puffins, sheep, horses, waterfalls and yarn in the grocery stores must have be wonderful to behold. I loved the photos, thanks for sharing!
We just got back from our vacation in California and all of our problems pale in compared to yours. The best time we had was our lovely drive down Hwy 89 in Utah!
Hey how bloody cool!
Icelandic is on my list, my dad and buddies fish there every year, just waiting for our girls to be a wee bit older, so they remember something perhaps (and so the other half is ok flying with his mueniers, he is flatly refusing right now)…..as to air canada – it is a joke at best. But it is also the devil you know…..I have had horrid experiences with British Air and Iberian and United…..they are all marginal at times I guess. But air canada does generally suck. It is all about expectations…..more importantly if you are ever stuck in toronto again tell me! Not too far from the airport…..can’t wait to hear more about the trip, I am itching to plan this one….
Iceland – that is so exciting! ( i cannot believe the drama you had getting there , though!. Wow) I think Iceland sounds really amazing- I’ve been wanting to go there ever since reading about it on Crazy Aunt Purl’s blog. When I met Stephen West last fall at a class he taught, he told me Iceland was his favorite place of any he’s visited. Can’t wait to hear more about your trip!
Wow, what an amazing trip you had! Sorry to hear about all the issues getting there (how frustrating that had to be!), but it looks like it was worth all the hassles. I loved seeing all your pictures, what a beautiful country!
Oh Anna, I told you that I spoke fluent mediaeval Icelandic and you still didn’t take me with you. Call yourself a friend?
Must get there one day. I’ve been wanting to go since university days, to meet Grettir the Stronge and Njal and all their pals. Meanwhile I suppose I’ll have to make do with reading your blog…
Stronge??????? No. Strong. Can’t type for the green mist in front of my eyes.
looks amazing anna…cant wait to hear more.
Wow…looking at the pictures, it would certainly seem that all of the travel hassle was well worth it. And good for you for going to such an adventurous destination. It looks beautiful!
What an adventure! Great pictures.
That sounds like some trip = from the getting there to the fun had once you did get there! I so want to go to Iceland and you’re only making me want to go even more. I’ve flown Icelandair a number of times to the States and once we got a free trip to the blue lagoon as we waited for our next flight. But that’s as far as I’ve got into Iceland!
Well I don’t snack while I sew. I really don’t eat between meals. Biggest reason? I can’t eat and sew! Would l?ve to win this book. Thanks for the opportunity.
OMG what a horror story the travel part was –
The trip though sounds like it was incredible.
I’ve heard it is gorgeous and the breach photo certainly looked that way.
What a fun family trip
Chocolate chip is my fav overall cookie. I try to avoid cookies these days, but I do munch when I have them.
thanks for the recipe
looks delicious!
I’m having trouble getting you on bloglovin – any chance you can add a button on your blog?
not sure it would make any difference, but I know reader is going away and I don’t want to miss your posts.
Hands down my favorite are chocolate chip cookies. Have always watch that I don’t get any on my fabric. Always, always have them with a diet coke. Love it…
Sugar cookies with smashed up toffee bits in them. I have a wee bit of a sweet tooth :-)
I love Oreo’s. Quilting & eating cookies, two of my favorite things.
hubby loves tea cakes and i have a 100 year old reciepe for them so that would be my snack
My current favorite is a turtle cookie I make…like a wonderful chocolate chip but with caramel bits and dark chocolate chips. Since they’re dark chocolate they’re healthy, right!
Thank you for your wonderful and yummy sounding recipe. Sounds very healthy! My favorite cookie is a good old chocolate chip. But anther favorite is an old fashioned chocolate drop cookie. It is a cake like cookie and is tasty with a bit of white icing. Thank you for the great review and for a chance to win.
Have a super great sewing and stitching day!
Peanut butter cookies are the best ….for any activity!
I am looking forward to your future posts on Icleland. We will be hosting a veterinary student from Iceland in late July. I know nothing about Iceland, but plan to learn more. Reading your blog about your travels there is very enlightening.
Sure looks like a fun place to visit… Maybe one day!
I actually have two favorites cookies, either chocolat chip cookies and or peanut butter cookies, but they are at their best, straight from the oven, mmmm
Just curious if you’ll share some of the blogs you used to research your trip. Iceland is on my list of places to visit as I am a big knitter!. Thanks
My favorite cookie is Peanut Butter cookies, the recipe on the butter flavored Crisco can! It’s the absolute best, and sometimes I will add a Hershey kiss on top :)
Anna ~ such an adventure! I lived in southern sub-Saharan Africa for three years – nearly every trip back to the US was another episode of “Planes, Trains & Automobiles”.
I cannot wait to hear more about your trip, I have Norway on my list (that would be the lefsa-loving Norwegian part of me speaking here), but I hadn’t given Iceland a great deal of thought…it sounds magical!
Thanks for the recipe. I try to stick to fruit breaks while quilting.
Chocolate chip of course!
I’m so sorry you had such a foul start to your trip, but boy, you sure made up for it at the other end!! What a fabulous place Iceland looks to be – thanks for sharing your great photos.
Holy Cow. Iceland!??? I’m amazed. Good for you. What a completely different experience. Including the air travel. I want to hear more. Loved the pics.
That sounds like hell getting there! Wow. I would have been freaking out. Glad you got there and had such a wonderful time. I have a couple of colleagues from Iceland. I would really like to go sometime. Thanks for sharing, and I would love to hear more about it.
I will eat any cookie, but my favs are good ol’ chocolate chip. Thanks for the giveaway.
I am diabetic and very rarely have cookies in the house. I find that sewing and quilting keeps me from snacking. Don’t want to get my fabric or latest project messy!!
OH NO! I can’t believe Air Canada could be so unhelpful!!! Canadians are suppose to be nice!! Shame you were delayed…but glad you sorted it out and had a good trip!
Sorry to hear about your ugly start to your trip. Air Canada…yep, they suck. I live in Toronto and I try to avoid using them. That’s the problem when there’s no real competition…they can do whatever they want or don’t want to do! They’ve got a bad reputation here and, it boggles my mind, that they don’t even try to clean up their act. Glad you finally made it on your trip and it sure looks like you had an amazing adventure. Off to make me some of those yummy looking cookies! Thanks for sharing.