MARYLAND TACOMAS

Especially when the back brake keeps you from flipping over

 

Afternoon y’all

 

Had a @RobP62 and pup sighting!

 

@$500TRD - what ever happened to your ideas about moving to Alaska?

 

Makes much sense.."say it, forget it..write it, regret it.."

Sad though that people do what happened to TC

 

Morning all!!

 

Good Morning!!

 

Morning everyone

 

Morning Maryland

 

Wife shot that idea down. I had her interested but after some research she decided against it. Here in WV we're only a 2hours drive from family, so visits & family functions are doable, that was a concern of hers too.

 

Well, I'm back! Was an exhausting few days - but Iceland was/is beautiful. I wasn't prepared for the lunar/desolate landscape being so completely wide-spread. The people were great; welcoming - tons of gorgeous people, too. The food was fine; I had a Fin Whale appetizer at one place - delicious! The lamb was good. The 'cured' shark was...uh...man I just don't know. Think of chewy tofu absolutely marinated in ammonia. In the hierarchy of awfulness, that shark rests near the top. Never again. I'd rather starve. There are some tech-rants below.

Some things I liked better about Iceland than the US of A: At the attractions, at most, they had a thin rope marking the edge of the path - and only about 2 feet high, then...maybe 5 feet of earth, then the effing cliff or attraction. No nanny-state protections at attractions. They allowed people to be self-aware of the danger. Many places in the US have too many fences, boundaries, or other things as if my personal safety was more their concern than my own. I liked the way people drive - never felt rushed or manic even as lines formed behind slower moving people on the few two-lane, two-way "highways" around the island. People would simply pass when they can pass and get on with their lives. One befit of two-lane roads, no left-lane campers...from personal experience driving in this region, drivers would lose their mind as they cannot speed across 4 lanes to set up shop in the left lane and just cruise there. The hotdogs were really good - we brought back their mustard and I'll home-make their hot dog sauce; googling tells me it's Mayonnaise, Capers, Mustard, Herbs. They lay down fried/crunchy onions, sauce, then the dog, then the mustard. Unusual taste for me, but I liked it. The lobster soup at Sea Baron in Reykjavik. Get there no later than 15 minutes before opening for your best chance of a small line. I tried Fin Whale as an hors d'oeuvre and it was delicious.


I didn't like: The Effing Jeep Effing Compass 4xE. I am bothered that enough people like things like this to make automakers create them. ENOUGH of electronics trying to protect me from myself. Enough having a computer decide when I want to turn the headlights on. Enough with a computer warning me about 'lane travel'. Enough with screaming tones at me when I want to get close to brush/bushes/whatever. Now, I was able to turn those things off, but I had to do-so every time I started the thing. Just. Stop. The electric portion: useless to me. It never self-generated enough juice to drive on; and the fuel tank held about 25 litres - barely more than a standard Jerry-can. That meant a fill-up every about 250 miles. Gas was about $9/gallon. It came with very low-profile tires - maybe 35 series, on bigger, probably 18" wheels. Ridiculous for a jeep. Seats were fine. Transmission was garbage. I couldn't open the fuel door unless the engine power was off. Again, stop trying to protect me. Auto-dimming mirrors are terrible. PLEASE bring back the little flip-switch thing on the older manual rear-views. Seats were fine. I don't understand why the people of iceland allow 24% tax on stuff. Restaurants are very expensive - our last meal there was a bowl of stew, bread with mashed-fish, rye-bread ice-cream (about 1/4 cup), a coffee and a tea. $65. I bought three maybe 50-page children's books about christmas, two 8" tall stuffed kids toy things. $135. I picked up a hand-made icelandic wool knit cap = $65. That last bit I feel better about knowing some body knitted that thing by hand. By far the Icelandic clothing store we saw was "Icewear" - their sweaters and shit are beautiful, but they aren't actually made in iceland. Nor are all the products icelandic wool. The label says 'designed in iceland' - I asked a clerk where it was made and he said "mostly Lithuania". Fine, but that makes it lose some exclusivity.

On the fence: Play Airlines. The flight there had the most uncomfy seats - no headrests to speak of on lightly padded seats. Luckily my ambien kept me asleep through most of the 5 1/2 hours from BWI. On the way back we had better seats with movable, foldable headrests. For somebody my size, the seats are awfully close to one-another. Was cramped at 6'1, 230lbs, 34-36" inseam for pants. My gf, at 4'10 1/2" could almost swing her little feet while seated - she had no issues.


All in all, I'm likely going back - and when I do, i'll rent a hilux and camper and take my son out for an adventure on the mountain roads.

8/10 recommend!

 

Great write up and sounds like a lot of fun. I’m surprised the flight was not longer… I’m not sure why that surprises me though.
Maybe I can convince my wife and son to take a trip there as well but that’s probably a stretch.


For tourists in US places, I always think about the saying the there is an overlap of intelligence between the smartest bear and the dumbest people

 

Awesome stuff, thanks for sharing!

That horse looks fake lol

 

All the horses look like boy-band members from the 1990s.

 

That’s an excellent analogy based on that picture haha

 

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CvazxJ7Lqdl/

 

Daren!

Great photos. Our daughter & son-in-law (SIL) were in Iceland last month before SIL started Architecture School at Drexel University.

Great people and beautiful countryside.

Glad you enjoyed it with all the challenges associated with travel.

 

Good morning everyone! Happy Friday!

 

Morning all