We had an initial meeting with the people of the marathon immediatly when we came back to Reykjavík. Due to our arrival on Sunday and Bank Holiday the day after we didn't see anyone of them before our walks. As always it was very nice to see them again, I would really like to live here. For Monique the working starts now. I only have to assist with setting up a timing system in the exhibition hall that the participants can use to check wheather they have received the right championchip and that it works of course. We meet people we know all the time. Had dinner in Íslenski Barinn. Mainly a pub with pubfood but the food is getting more Icelandic and better every year. We sat outside in the sun. Last year the title of their menu was 'Nicesave, tasty difference'. When I told them I put my savings on an account there, the dry comment was that that wasn't a very good investment. I could take a menu however, it's standing on the hood in the kitchen at home now. This year they had even published a cookbook. Unfortunately already in reprint but after a long seach someone found a copy lying around somewhere that I could have.

Monique was picked up at ten, I could wander through the center until three o'clock. At home I hate shopping, abroad I like it. Usually come back with a whole new wardrobe.

My only task is help checking the systems and packing the van in which we will transport everything to the start-finish and all the point between. I always work with Kristján. He doesn't like driving or pretents so for me. I do like driving and are allowed to do all the driving.

Eaten at Saegreifinn, a tiny restaurant in one of the old fishing huts on the harbor. There is not much choise but there is fantastic lobster soup and they have sticks with all kinds of grilled fish. Walking back to Íslenski Barinn Annette came out of an Indian restaurant. They had just ordered so we stayed there a while as well. On Friday, the center is always packed so it was not very easy to find a nice pub that had space for four more people. Eventually found a very nice one, made me think of a squatters cafe, in Laugevegur. Sneafelsness was beautiful. Bit difficult to make a longer hike, they thought. For next year I must once again ask Marrit.

Marathon always means get out of bed early but again a little later than the year before. Organisation is getting more and more relaxed, starts to look like our own Seven Hills run in Nijmegen. We start building up all the systems for the start-finish area. Monique stays there throughout the day in her cabin, Kristján and I first drive the whole circuit to put up all the betwwen points and after a short break drive the same round to pick everything up again. Waiting for the last runner to pass gave us a lot of time talking to volunteers along the track or do some more shopping. Kristján knows everything about fish so I could shop like an expert despite all the only Icelandic descriptions on the products. We now have dried fish for a year of plokfiskur experiment. Bought some Hákarl too. Maybe I dear to eat it this time. It's in the freezer now, frozen in very small portions.

Na de marathon en het weer opruimen van alle spullen afgesproken op het terras van Café Paris. Allemaal iets te veel drank en lekker eten, in ieder geval wel een goed begin van de Cultural night vanavond. Hele stad vol live optredens, binnen en buiten, overal mensen en zo gauw het donker is een groot vuurwerk. After the marathon and the storing of all the equipment we met on the terrace of Cafe de Paris. All a little to much alcohol and good food, at least a good start of the Cultural night tonight. Whole city full of live performances, inside and outside, people everywhere and as soon as it gets dark a huge fireworks.

Svava had already told us a lot about their new country house they were constructing, today we went visiting Svavas palace. She picked us and another friend of hers up to drive back into the countryside. First in the direction of Selfoss to turn north-east just before the town. Near Skalholt, formerly an important religious center, was their new house. Totally build by her husband and son. Totally focussed on view, lots of space for their Icelandic horses, two rivers less than a five minutes walk for which they had the fishing rights as well, warm water from the earth that was used to heat the floor as well and a magnificent view of Mount Hekla, Icelands most active vulcano. Approximately every ten years an eruption and the last time that happened was in the year 2000 so it might happen any time now. Go fishing here with Kristján, when the vulcano is active, automatically became my ultimate dream. In the garden they had even build a kind of lounche ditch in the ground, completely covered with grass. Made us immediatly think of one of the most beautifull places we know in Iceland, in the north-east, near Bakkagerði.

There was family of Twigwy, Svavas husband, the owners of the Gamli Bakkerit In Isafjordur. We met the mother of Twigwy two years ago when on our trip to Hornstandir, these family members where new to us.

Drive back was even more beautifull than the drive to their summer house. The light and clouds made it very special.

In the evening we all met in Tri Frakkar, for us the best restaurant in Reykjavík. It's a bit sad because it's our last night here and we won't see the others for a year but still we had a very nice evening.