A week has passed in the World Harmony Run, and we were gifted with some of the most beautiful weather so far, putting paid to Iceland’s undeserved reputation as a wet and frozen island. We have been on the north coast for the past two days, but aside from the chilly afternoon breezes, we have enjoyed the best of Iceland’s summer.

Nú hefur Friðarhlaupið lagt að baki eina viku á hlaupinu og á þeim tíma höfum við upplifað fátt eitt nema fallegt veður - sem gerir lítið til að styðja þann ósanngjarna málstað að Ísland sé blaut og köld eyja.  Síðustu tvo daga höfum við ferðast um norðanvert landið og höfum notið þess besta sem íslenskt sumar hefur upp á að bjóða, ef undanskilin er kvöldgolan. 

We started by saying goodbye to Reykjahlíð, and running past some of Iceland's best sights...

Við hlupum í vestur frá Reykjahlíð og lá leið okkar fram hjá nokkrum ægifögrum stöðum... 

One of the highlights of our journey was the astounding Goðafoss waterfall, currently blessed with a splendid rainbow following some of the greyer weather of previous days.

Einn af hápunktum dagsins var að hlaupa fram hjá Goðafossi, en þessi fallegi foss skrýddist fallegum regnboga sem kom í kjölfarið á rigningarskýjum fyrri daga. 

Though there are many waterfalls in Iceland, Goðafoss is a sight that can't help but energise and rejuvenate all those who cast their eyes upon it. (Note: This might not be the right photo.)

Þrátt fyrir að ekki skorti fossana á Íslandi, verður að segjast að Goðafoss er sjón sem gefur þeim augum sem á hann horfa orku og endurnæringu (ath: ef til vill er þetta ekki hentugasta myndin). 

Some of Iceland's rare wildlife... or this might be a visiting species.

Þetta hlýtur að vera meðal fágætari dýrategunda Íslands... eða er þetta kannski dýr frá öðru landi? 

Mukul is certain that this means "Warning: Vicious attack birds!" According to the local runners, it actually means something like "Do not attack the birds." But after his experience, Mukul is sticking to his story.

Mukul er á þeirri skoðun að þetta skilti segi:  "Varúð: Grimmir árásargjarnir fuglar!"  Heimamenn í Friðarhlaupsliðinu vilja reyndar meina að skiltið sé að vara ökumenn við því að gera fuglunum mein.  En Mukul situr fast við sinn keip eftir reynslu sína af kríunum. 

Some of the men made an advance trip to Akureyri, Iceland’s second-largest town (pop. 20,000), as Jóhanns’ jeep towed Spotty, the ailing World Harmony Run van, to a friendly garage. (Of course, this is not a photo of a garage, but the port looks much nicer). 

Nokkrir hlauparanna fóru á undan til Akureyrar, þar sem jeppinn hans Jóhanns dró Depil, hinn veikburða Friðarhlaupsbíl, að verkstæði.  (Við gerum okkur fulla grein fyrir því að þetta er ekki mynd af verkstæði - þessi mynd lítur bara betur út).

As we waited for Spotty's repair, we took in some sightseeing of a charming and friendly town.

 Á meðan við biðum eftir að gert væri við Depil, ákváðum við að skoða okkur um þennan vinalega bæ.

Late in the day, the teams met for a ceremony with staff of the Fjórðungssjúkrahúsið a Akureyri, the major hospital for northern Iceland.

 Í eftirmiðdaginn hlupum við inn á Akureyri og hittum starfsfólk Fjórðungssjúkrahússins.

The staff really entered into the spirit of the occasion, all linking hands for the ceremony.

Starfsmenn sjúkrahússins tóku höndum saman í athöfninni og áttu auðvelt með að samlaga sig anda hlaupsins. 

They even went for a (very) quick run with us around the hospital grounds.

Þau ákváðu meira að segja að hlaupa snöggt með okkur á sjúkrahússlóðinni. 

Víðir, one of the organisers, was interviewed for both television and radio.

Hér sést Víðir, einn af skipuleggjendum hlaupsins, í viðtali, en bæði sjónvarp og útvarp tóku viðtal við hann. 

After a visit to the lovely Botanic Gardens...

Eftir stutta heimsókn í Lystigarðinn... 

.... the runners ran to the Akureyrarkirkja Church...

...skunduðu hlaupararnir að Akureyrarkirkju... 

...for a meeting with Mayor Hermann Jón Tómasson and the Church priest, Sr. Jóna Lísa Þorsteinsdóttir.

...en þar tóku á móti okkur bæjarstjórinn Hermann Jón Tómasson og Sr. Jóna Lísa Þorsteinsdóttir. 

It was the Mayor’s second meeting with the World Harmony Run, which he also greeted last year. This time, the flame of world harmony was used to light the candles of faith.

Þetta var í annað sinn sem Hermann Jón tók þátt í Friðarhlaupinu, en hann var einnig með í fyrra.  Að þessu sinni var friðarkyndillinn notaður til að tendra á bænakerti. 

To some of us, however, no sight gave greater joy than Pranava driving to our accommodation in the revived Spotty. After a day in the garage, with new parts flown in from Reykjavík, Jóhann's mechanical brilliance had saved the day. Spotty now worked like a charm, ready to drive until the end of our journey.

Það var fátt sem gladdi sum augu meira en það að sjá Pranava gera nýlagaðan Depil að gististað okkar.  Eftir að hafa fengið varahluti með flugi frá Reykjavík gerði Jóhann sér lítið fyrir kom Depli í gang á ný.  Frábær frammistaða hjá honum og nú var Depill tilbúinn að keyra okkur til enda á ný.

After the excellent dinner, we had even more culinary joy coming our way. At the Hostelsbuid farm, five minutes’ drive from our accommodation, Guðmundur Jón Guðmundsson makes fine ice creams, using milk and eggs from his own farm, along with other natural ingredients. The award-winning ice creams are some of the best in a nation that (fittingly) makes excellent ice cream. It was already late when we visited (though of course, the sunlight suggested otherwise), but Jón and his daughters opened the ice creamery just for us.

The excitement was palpable as we came to the counter, crowding around it like a group of children. When you spend your day running, you are allowed certain joys – and ice cream is among them. Many of the runners suggested that it was some of the best ice cream they had ever tasted, and some even came back for more. The delights of port-wine, licorice, beer, Icelandic skyr, and many other flavours that seem unique to Iceland, were one of the World Harmony Run’s best rewards.

...and now a poem by Mukul

"Ode to Iceland Ice Cream"

Cows that graze in meadows of infinite expanse

Among majestic mountains and uninhibited by fence

These cows are so delighted to live in every cattle’s dream

and you would surely feel it if you got to taste their cream

Mix it with some lakrys, blueberries or skyr,

freeze it with some sugar and you have ice-cream without peer.

Sit outside and lick it while the cows so proudly moo

they are really gifted cows and they seem to know it too.

– Noivedya

Distance: 93 km

Team Members:
Salil Wilson (Australia), Dipavajan Renner (Austria), Apaguha Vesely (Czech Republic), Judit Elek (Hungary), Roos de Waart (Netherlands), Eila Buche (Switzerland), Sandra Aurenhammer (Austria), Noivedya Juddery (Australia), Lenka Chobodicka (Slovakia), Edward Silverton (UK), Bhoiravi Achenbach (Austria), Tatjana Chochlikova (Slovakia), Chahida Hammerl (Austria), Cecilia Husta (Slovakia), Edi Serban (Romania), Jiri Albrecht (Czech Republic), Víðir Sigurðsson (Iceland), Peter Solar (Slovakia), Mukul Fishman (Israel), Miroslava Husta (Slovakia), Maria Horvath (Hungary), Pranava Rúnar Gígja (Iceland), Haukur Helgason (Iceland), Dagur Hauksson (Iceland), Ágúst Örn Márusson (Iceland), Jóhann Fannberg (Iceland)

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