Kotona

At home. There are trees. There are freaking many trees. All around. They are green. And tall. And the sun is shining. And it's warm. And I can hear the sound of the wind in the trees just outside the kitchen window. I didn't know one could miss the sound of the wind in the trees so incredibly much.

It actually feels like arriving in a tropical holiday destination. You have to take off almost all of your clothes and the air is bright and there are happy alive sounds all around and a soft warm caress of the wind against your face and your arms as you walk to the store in your shirt and your sandals. We have been properly calibrated it seems.

Ja käytiin kaupassa ja kasattiin kärry täyteen suomalaista ruokaa: karjalanpiiirakoita, ruisleipää, viiliä, Fazerin raparperipiirakoita ja pätkiksiä ja siideriä ja varrasleipää. Ja radiossa soi Anssi Kelan Milla. Melkein rupes itkettään.




And to be fair I think I have to report also on the earthquake. Namely there was an earthquake not far from Reykjavík yesterday. The center of the quake was in Selfoss, about 50 km south-east from Reykjavík, which is a typical earthquake area.

We were at home packing. And suddenly it felt like the neighbours washing machine must have broken down and then the floor was trembling and there was a big rumble and we looked at each other and said: "It's an earthquake!" and then we looked out of the window and had just time to wonder if we should go down to the street or stay up and then it stopped. And after two seconds the whole house (we're at third floor) swayed a couple of times from side to side.

But as we went outside afterwards the life seemed completely normal. It was a sunny day and people were milling around and sitting in cafes. Somebody said that the phones had died for a while or was it electricity but that's about it.

My friend told me though that there was some damage all the way in Akranes as well, which is about 100 km from the center of the quake and that in the liquor store some bottles had fallen down from the shelves. So there must have been damage in Reykjavík too. And in Selfoss there really was a lot of damage and even some injuries and the people are now sleeping outside in tents in the fear of after quakes.

Our departure was timely as we could carry all our extra blankets and pillows and sheets and such to the nearby red cross this morning at 4am before heading for the bus to Keflavík.