RSS

Tag Archives: Iceland

How do you keep them down in Paree, after they’ve seen the farm?

30 Oct
Pat and Sharon in a bicycle taxi near the Eiffel Tower

Pat and Sharon in a bicycle taxi near the Eiffel Tower

Faithful blog readers may have noticed a lack of posts for the past few weeks. We have a good excuse–right in the middle of gathering, sorting, shipping, etc., Pat and I told Meghan and Eamon “Good luck!” and left for Iceland and France.

We met several of our old (meaning long-time, of course) friends for a reunion. Luckily, several speak French and know a lot about Paris. We also visited Julia and Benoit, who spent a few days on the ranch last spring. They live in the farming area near Laval, and gave us tours of both farms and a nearby medieval castle, and an abbey, which happened to be the fantastical Mont Saint Michel.

 

Our friend Bob hanging out with the locals in Reykjavik.

Our friend Bob hanging out with the locals in Reykjavik.

This is a sheep truck at a processing plant in Selfoss.

This is a sheep truck at a processing plant in Selfoss.

sheep near lava field

sheep by lava field, near Grindivik, Iceland

Julia's sheep near Laval

Benoit and Julia’s sheep near Laval, France

Pat with Julia in front of their 400-year-old farmhouse

Pat with Julia in front of their 400-year-old farmhouse

cows near Benoit and Julia's farm

cows near Benoit and Julia’s farm

Sharon with the "taxi" at Mont St. Michel

Sharon with the “taxi” at Mont St. Michel

working feet

working feet

Locks of love on a bridge over the Seine

Locks of love on a bridge over the Seine

Cows

 

 

 

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on October 30, 2015 in Animals, Cattle, Events, Folks, Friends, Sheep

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Iceland, the Northern Lights and Buckets

20 Feb
Sharon and Pat at the beach near Vic, Iceland

Sharon and Pat at the beach near Vic, Iceland

riders near Vic

riders near Vic

Icelandic horses near Selfoss

Icelandic horses near Selfoss, descended from Viking stock

It has been my dream (read Bucket List) to visit Iceland in the winter to see the Northern Lights.  When I have expressed this goal to friends, the usual reaction is something like,”Whadaya, nuts?!”  I recently turned 60, and at the end of a really wonderful party attended by family and friends, Pat handed me a book on Iceland.

“We leave on Wednesday,” he said.  This was a Saturday.

We did get to see the Northern Lights, which as it turns out, is not at all a sure thing.  We also stayed on two farms and were treated to tours and long discussions about livestock and farming in Iceland.  Almost all of Iceland’s many tourists visit in the summer months (go figure) so folks had time to spend with us.

We learned that not only are the horses, sheep and cows descended from the original animals that came from Scandanavia in the late 800’s, but most of the people are too.  Turns out the Vikings stopped by Ireland and Scotland to pick up “thralls” on their way to Iceland, so the people are of both Nordic and Celtic descent

Here are some photos of Iceland in winter..

farm with shelter belt to protect from rock slides

farm with shelter belt to protect from rock slides

Icelandic ewes, descended from Viking stock

Icelandic ewes, descended from Viking stock

Icelandic sheep in barn, where they spend most of the winter

Icelandic sheep in barn, where they spend most of the winter

Pat with our new-found farmer friends

Pat with our new-found farmer friends

Idelandic cat and cow

Icelandic cat and cow

Proud farmer. Each cow has a name, production records and lineage going back to the Vikings.

Proud farmer. Each cow has a name, production records and lineage going back to the Vikings.

Sharon visits with a farmer about his sheep

Sharon visits with a farmer about his sheep

church near Vic

church near Vic

Looking south to the sun overt the North Atlantic

Looking south to the sun over the North Atlantic

the mountains north of Vic

the mountains north of Vic

Two night trolls were pushing a ship when they were caught by the morning light and turned to stone

Two night trolls  were pushing a ship when they were caught by the morning light and turned to stone

sign on the beach--sadly I couldn't read it

sign on the beach–sadly I couldn’t read it

Sharon with waterfall

Sharon with waterfall

Pat and host, sheep

our host and Pat with Icelandic sheep

 

Blue Lagoon bathers

Blue Lagoon bathers

not the Northern Lights, but sunrise near Selfoss

not the Northern Lights, but sunrise near Selfoss

 
9 Comments

Posted by on February 20, 2013 in Animals, Cattle, Events, Folks, Issues, Nature and Wildlife, Sheep

 

Tags: , , , , , ,