bleungberg.com

Stansted Express - creaky old trains, ugly livery, dirty seats, it tops at Harlow and so bloody expensive (£16 one-way??!!).

Easily the worst airport shuttle I’ve ever seen in the world.

To be honest, there’ll only be a first and a second night in Reykjavik, as I’ve worked out that I’m only here for about 48 hours, and eight of them have gone by already. And to be honest, I haven’t really been able to do that much - it gets dark here at 5.30pm (now anyway) plus it’s been raining/sleeting quite heavily (and horizontally) which has made movements difficult. However, a bit of bad weather never deters me from venturing out and from what I can make out in the dark, Reykjavik is an immensely attractive city, but a little lifeless. I guess winters are like that here with tourists staying away and workers hurrying home from work as soon as possible. But I was amazed at how quiet the streets were - and that was supposedly the main shopping area. At least the restaurants and bars and cafes were buzzing, as it is right now here in Cafe Paris from where I am writing this. (My hotel is charging £10 for a 24-hour wi-fi pass in my own room…a pot of tea here in the cafe plus free wi-fi is definitely a better option!)

Anyway, first impressions are good - outstanding architecture, quirky little signs and pretty tranquil. Reminds me a little of Zurich, but a lot quieter. The road from the airport to Reykjavik coincided with some very heavy rain and the terrain just looked so bare but pretty in a weird kind of way. Back in the city, however, the lifelessness does get to me a little, and if I was to stay here for a week I might just go crazy. In my opinion, this is definitely one of those places where you have to/are encouraged to venture out and go beyond the capital for the volcanoes, blue lagoons and whale-watching - all of which are not so easy to do within 48 hours (as well as work!) or during the winter when the winds are howling and the mists and the rain set in. Twenty-four hour daylight in the summer though - imagine that! All night pub-crawl followed by a dip in the hot springs at 6am or 3am or whenever.

Must come back one day in the summer, and drive around the island on its ring road.

For now, I’ll try not to think about how expensive this place is….it makes Stockholm look cheap.

The Equator last week, the Arctic Circle this week.

Heading north to Iceland tomorrow for 56 hours of fun and games. It is THE one place that I’ve always wanted to visit and I’ll finally achieve that ambition in a few hours’ time. Can’t say I’m excited yet - I never am until I board the plane. Now, I hope I get a stamp in my passport….

By the way, just to clarify one thing. My blog entry dated 21st October mentioned that ‘even their currencies stank’ when I was moaning about Nicaragua.

Well, it’s true; their notes absolutely stank and reeked of sweat and BO. I’m just reporting what I could smell, and nothing racist there, i hope so don’t go complaining…I loved the place….honest!

Spotted….the least charismatic political contest of the century:

CHRIS HUHNE vs NICK CLEGG for the Lib Dem leadership.

Briefly saw their presentations this week. All I can say is…Yawn.

I actually got a letter from the party chairman urging me to vote/join the party TWICE on the same page. Hmm. A difficult choice. One which, thankfully, I won’t have to make.

Is it just me or has Barack Obama disappeared completely?

Has he been kidnapped by the Clintons? Has Hillary swallowed him? Why are her cheekbones so high? Is she going to be the first-ever US president to have had plastic surgery? Again - where’s Barack?

So, another Breeders’ Cup race-meeting is over, and yet another inglorious chapter for the European raiders. No winners, just four placed horses in eleven races, and the end of a racing career for one George Washington (the horse!) who broke down in the straight during the final race. Doesn’t exactly sound like a night of much joy.
For some reason, however, I love this night - nothing beats seeing a whole bunch of European raiders heading across the pond and spanking the drugged-up American horses in their own back-yard. Yet, I often get lost during the meeting as I have no idea what’s happening: for a start, I’d never heard of 80% of the horses taking part, so, who wins a race means little to me sometimes, especially if there are no European representatives in that particular contest.

It therefore baffles me as to why I would turn down invites to parties (mostly Hallowe’en-related) year-after-year, or even plan my holidays round it in order not to miss the event. (I even plan to attend the meeting held in the beautiful Santa Anita racetrack next year!) Why? I haven’t a clue. I guess I just like to see Americans getting beat in anything!

A week ago, I was being drenched by the rain in Guatemala City. You know what, that brings back happy memories for me - though it was a shame that I couldn’t stay in the very nice hotel for longer than seven hours (it was a bloody nice two-bedroom suite, and for just £50). Plus my durable umbrella got pinched. Nevermind, I miss the place. No, in fact, I miss the rice-and-beans. Arroz y frijoles. Yum. Oh, and the fried chicken, the jelly and ice-creams….hmm.

I see the relatives of General Augusto Pinochet have been let off corruption charges and other unsavoury crimes committed during his dictatorship in Chile because none of them - his widow, children etc were state-officials at the time, and were therefore technically not responsible for any of his actions or wrong-doing.

How much more can ordinary Chileans and survivors of his brutal regime tolerate this evil family for getting away with everything - from mass murder to kidnapping to siphoning off millions of dollars (thanks to the Yanks) which made Chile such a miserable place throughout the last quarter of the 20th century?

To borrow Pinochet’s great mate and ally, Maggie Thatcher’s famous phrase, “No, no, no!”, I think this latest verdict is a huge insult to the thousands of victims.

I am going to Iceland for less than two days this week, and I was initially quite excited that I could just take a bag and hand-carry it onto the plane with all my belongings, saving time on packing for a checked-in luggage or even risk losing it in transit.

But then I remembered that I can’t take my shampoo, shower-gel AND toothpaste on board with me, and I must therefore check them in beforehand, and that means I MUST now take two bags for a 36-hour trip.When I went from Costa Rica to Guatemala and Nicargaua last week, this was not necessary - one bag on my back was enough; nobody gave a shit how much liquid I carried, or what I carried. They scanned it, and didn’t bat an eyelid as long as I wasn’t flying to America. I therefore didn’t have to worry about people nicking my stuff, or losing it in transit, or even having to wait for it at the baggage carousel…..oh, the luxury of travelling between third world countries!!