The Golden Circle

In first two episodes of The Amazing Race 6 which aired in November 2004, teams descended upon Iceland for the first time. It certainly was nice to see the country again on the small screen, getting major attention in North America, and amusing to watch contestants struggling to ask for directions to Þorsmörk. I'm glad that I got the chance to go there first (as it turns out, just a month before filming started). We were certainly a lot quieter in our time, minding our thorns (Þ, þ) and eths (Ð, ð). I'm especially glad that I didn't stop by the (in)famous Blue Lagoon, before I left.

Flashback: Wednesday, July 28, 2004

Today is standard half-day bus tour of the so-called Golden Circle, the quick, family-friendly spin of the major tourist sights near Reykjavík. Small children abound. However, the guides are very informative. Some interesting food for thought - Iceland has experienced four mild winters in a row, where "mild" means only 10" of snow, and a bad ski season. They've also had 27 consecutive months of above normal temperatures.

Our first stop is the crater called Kerið, meaning "tub".

Kerið crater