Trust is good, control is... unnecessary here

Finally Friday! After our first week of work, we were looking forward to the weekend, especially because the weather on Friday was a dream! Blue sky, pure sunshine, and a pleasant -1°C with a gentle breeze... In Germany, it was up to -20°C and windy (good old Petrus is currently more like Petra... a Petra going through menopause^^).

Since our task analysis with the university rector took a bit longer, we missed the "student shuttle" to the ski lift - but no problem when you get to work with such friendly people. When our boss asked us what we were planning to do today, we mentioned that we actually wanted to go skiing. In response, he simply offered us "the car parked in front of the university." When we realized that it was HIS private car, he smiled at our astonished faces. The highlight came when we asked him for the key:

"Where is the key?" - "In the car, in the driver's side door compartment." We both stared at him in disbelief. "Your key is INSIDE the car?!" His response: "Of course, where else would it be?"
We already knew before our stay abroad that the crime rate in Iceland is very low compared to other countries, but we weren't aware of what that really means. After talking to other students about our experience, we found out that almost everyone here does the same thing and that here, "you are always welcome to our house, the door is open" can be taken literally - apartments are not locked. Incredible, isn't it? As for us, we still can't quite believe it.

Back to the important things: We have never gotten ready for skiing so quickly... when we arrived at the ski area, which was less than a 10-minute drive away, we rented our equipment and hit the slopes. There is no better feeling than skiing down the hill during sunset, with great snow conditions and an empty slope! Unfortunately, time flew by too quickly and we had to return the car - but that was definitely not our last time on skis!

Afterwards, we went with a colleague to the hot pools in Bolungarvík (a 20-minute drive from Ísafjörður), the first time we've been out of our "city" since we arrived. During the drive, we could see the open sea and admire the ever-changing mountain scenery - a dream come true!

When we arrived at the pools, we were surrounded by snow-covered mountains, a clear starry sky, and even saw the northern lights from time to time (if anyone has been to the Kristall Therme in Füssen - it was kind of like that, except the mountains are much closer). After spending a few hours with fun and interesting conversations, attempting to learn Icelandic - well, okay, we tried - it was time to head back to Ísafjörður. On the way home, we made some stops to admire the northern lights, which were more intense and bigger than the last time, passing overhead - we will probably never tire of seeing them.

Back in our apartment, we jumped around to warm up our feet and hands, which had almost frozen while watching the northern lights, due to wearing too light boots and taking pictures (if our mothers are reading this - YES, Mom, next time we'll put on our winter shoes and gloves again). After this eventful day, we fell into bed exhausted but relaxed and slept in. I mean, really slept in. About 11 hours. Proper sleep, you know.

Unfortunately, because of sleeping in, we missed the ride to the ski area again on the next day - but instead, we walked to the beach in Bolungarvík - at least, that was the original plan. It was a nice walk with great views, footpaths covered in ice where you could (slip)slide very well, and sunshine. After 1 ½ hours, we realized that our destination was a bit too far and turned back, as our stomachs were growling and you know: Only a full Franzi is a happy Franzi!

When we got back, we had a hot dog - now that may not sound really spectacular, but believe us, the Icelandic hot dog is on a whole new level when it comes to taste.

In the evening, we went to Húsið, a restaurant with a bar recommended by the students, and had a super delicious (and super expensive) rib-eye steak burger, and of course, NOT free sparkling water. Yes, we could have known the translation of 'soda'. Oh well.

Afterwards, we spontaneously went to a student flat where 4 Brits live and spent the evening relaxing with some laughs and beers. We then spent the rest of the weekend in a cozy way, and to end the week, we were able to admire a beautiful sunset by the sea.

Our stories may create the impression that we live in a big city here - but Isafjördur is more like the exact opposite of that, at least when you consider the number of inhabitants. But we will go into more detail about that next time - until then:

Farewell!