The last stop on the bus is Þingvellir National Park (pronounced "Thingvellir"), located in the Bláskógabyggð region (sorry, I didn't learn how to pronounce that). The Þ symbol sounds like "th" (so for example " Þór" is "Thor" here). This is a large park (with a large lake) that has historical, political and geological significance. We explore a bit and learn more from our tour guide before finishing up at the gift shop (below).
This might be a good time to mention that Iceland has something like 36 letters & symbols in their alphabet (approximately) -- and it seems they like to use them all (except the letter 'Z' which they removed from the alphabet in the 1970's for some reason). Reading street names or trying to ask for directions can be a bit of a tongue-twister here, but fortunately most locals speak excellent English (and often several other languages). Even knowing that the Þ sounds like "th" and so does the Ð (although pronounced slightly different), it was hard to understand how to say the words correctly, despite my best efforts -- but it was fun to try.
|
