“I have to be alone very often. I'd be quite happy if I spent from Saturday night until Monday morning alone in my apartment. That's how I refuel." ~ Audrey Hepburn 1953

Last Thursday I travelled to Reykjavik to farewell Ross, Olga and Henry as they left for their month's holiday in Australia.  Ross has not been back for 4 years and is really ready for some quality time down under.  Of course I will miss them and I will really notice the difference a month has on my grandson. So at the moment I am alone in Iceland, except for 2 dogs...however, being alone has never been an issue for me and I feel quite happy and content...most find this part of my personality hard to understand but I am really not perturbed, there definitely is a little hermit within me who relishes times like these...I feel very much sympatico with Audrey and her need for time on her own to refuel! 

Ross and Henry stretching their legs at a petrol station on the way to Reykjavik.

Whilst they are away I am caring for their dog Nina who is the younger sister to my Perla, fortunately they get on very well and are good company for each other.

Nina posing nicely for the camera!

The weather has been lovely, very little wind, mostly sunny with a few overcast days here and there, so I take the two dogs for long walks morning and each evening.  Last night we went to the beach....Nina likes to dig holes...

perhaps she is trying to dig her way to Oz

While Nina is digging Perla frolics in the water...she loves to paddle...winter or summer makes no difference to her.

The light in the evening softens, these were taken a bit after 7pm.

Last Sunday was National day and the flags were up all around town and sunny blue skies abounded.

Lupins cover the hills in a purple glow at this time of the year.

This morning was overcast but still warm and windless.

This photo below is a bit blurred...it is quite difficult taking photos with 2 dogs on leashes.  These horses were being moved to different paddocks and as they came out of the gates where the white car is, they headed the wrong way and came racing towards me and the dogs, I just stood stock still as they came within a couple of feet of us, Nina and Perla, were quite in awe of the moment as I was...others on horseback managed to turn them around and this photo shows them now heading in the right direction.

It was a magnificent sight...the photo does not do the experience justice.

There has been a slight delay with the finishing of the apartments as we have had trouble with the sealing of the cement floors and they had to be stripped and re sealed as we ended up with lap lines across the floor span.  A different sealer is now being rolled on this second time around and so far all is looking good.  Everything will be finished by the end of next week and I can start setting them up for holiday rental.

Spring is here and more Perla love!

The weather is very changeable at the moment each day is so different, but the warmer sunny days are becoming more common and daylight is with us pretty much from 3.30 am until nearly 11pm at night.  My body clock is adjusting and I go to sleep in broad daylight and wake up in the same.

We can tell spring is here and summer is nigh as the snow seems to have left us,  the trees are bursting into leaf (the few that there are)

 

and shrubs are full of buds,

 

the grassy areas are slowly becoming greener 

 

and the lambs are all a bleating.

 

Yesterday, although overcast with a light misty rain (called súld in Icelandic)

 

Perla and I went for a walk up the hill around the small farms, the farm animals (sheep and horses) are all very inquisitive and usually wander up to the fence to check you out.  I wanted to see how Perla would react when around other animals, I hoped she would remain calm and quiet, she did and passed this little test with flying colours. The sheep were very interested in her and came right up to the fence with their lambs in tow to give Perla a good sniff and to check her out.  Take a look in the video below.

 We continued on our way, passed a couple of riders on horses and then walked across to the hidden garden...you have seen plenty of this place when it is white with snow, however now it is looking a little different.  I haven't really walked through here for a while as it became very slippery and treacherous with the many layers of ice and snow.

I think it will only get greener, no doubt I will post more pictures as time goes on.

A Black Pearl

Firstly a birthday wish to my youngest, Jesse turned 24 on Thursday, we had a great chat via skype and I got to talk to his lovely girlfriend Michelle who he met not long after I left for Iceland...hopefully she will be able to visit here with him at Christmas and we get to meet in the flesh.

This is a gorgeous photo of Jesse and Michelle at the Premiere of Little Sparrows in Perth (not often I get to see Jesse in a suit). source

 

 I have a new friend, her name is Perla, (pronounced something like per-dla) Icelandic for pearl.
She is staying with me for the weekend to see if we are a good match together....so far it is looking good.  Perla is a black Labrador, has a very gentle nature, is friendly, well mannered and quiet...a good companion.  Her family are moving to the big smoke, Reykjavik, (which is as big as you get in Iceland, only about one eighth of the population of Perth, West Aust) they will be renting a house and sadly unable to take her with them and have asked me if I would like her.  She has grown up with babies and children, so will be fine when I get to babysit Henry (hint, hint Olga & Ross) and she gets on well with Nina (her sister, different litter), they play boisterously but nice and friendly together.

Perla

you can definitely see the family resemblance in her little sister Nina

Perla and I went for a walk to the beach yesterday, it was such a beautiful sunny day with just a few clouds here and there.

 

 Perla had a good run fetching a bit of driftwood as we walked along the shore.

I have pretty much always had a dog in my life.  From when I was about 4 years old I remember my dad's dog (Stumpy) a Blue Heeler cross, then the Corgies my mother had (Penny and Soxie), and once I left home and married I picked up a stray Rhodesian Ridgeback cross (Rupert) and then had 2 more Rhodesian Ridgebacks later on (Mica and Peggy) plus also throw in a couple of Jack Russell's along the way (Jack and Buster). Then add my very favourite of them all, my last dog Teresa, a Keeshond, she was from the pound and approx 5 years old, I initially got her for the children who were inconsolable after their Peggy died, but Teresa was really my dog from the start, there was a connection between us that was pretty special...when I collected her from the pound she just ran straight to me, jumped up and said, 'what took you so long'...that was about 1995...after she died in 2000 I could not bring myself to get another dog...it just would not be the same, so I decided that if I ever did end up with another, the dog would have had to find me.  Perhaps she has...