Hello everyone! I have now been in Paris for a few days. Since I switched over a hostel from a couchsurfing host, I don't have free internet use, so my posts will be limited until I get back from Karlsruhe, Germany.
He's a quick rundown of what I've been doing, and what my next few days will look like.
I've done quite a bit of sight seeing. I got to see Sam and her friend Alex, who is studying in Paris from Germany. I also met up with Frank for a bit. It's so weird seeing people from home in foreign countries! It's very nice to be able to hang out with people that I know.
Today, I met a very nice girl who is in my room at the hostel. She is originally from Poland and is a law student, but is taking a year off as an au pair in Zurich. Today we teamed up for a bit of sight seeing which was very nice. We went up to Montmarte and Sacre Couers, a famous cathedral. It was a nice walk and we ended up going through a farmer's market type thing on the way, which was really cool. Got some free samples of fruits and things. Then we headed down to Champs Elysee, and walked from the Louvre to the Arc de Triompe. It was a nice stroll and I got to take a lot of pictures. After that we stopped for some crepes, and then walked to La Fayette, which is basically a huge mall. Walked around there for a bit, and then headed back to the hostel for a break. Tonight we are going to Centre Georges Pompidou, which is named for the president of France of the early 70's. It is supposed to be beautiful at night, so I'm quite excited. I haven't done the Eiffel Tower yet, but I definitely would like to go when it is dark, so I have to see when would be best.
On Monday I leave for Soultz and will be talking with Albert Genter. Then I will spend the night in Karlsruhe (which, as I learned from Alex, is pronounced Carls-rooooooh, not Carls-roo-hey, which is how I said it). A last minute visit to Landau is going to work out I believe, so I will likely extend my stay there another night. Then it is back to Paris at which point I will be staying with Frank and his family and completing my time in Paris.
Well, my internet time is about to run out so I've got to go! Hope everyone is well!
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Paris!
Hello everyone. I have safely arrived in Paris and completed my first meeting. France is a bit interesting because people in the Ministry of Energy are very difficult to contact. But I was assured today by Dr. Ungermach, who is a senior engineer in a geothermal consulting business, that I am already set up to speak to the very best, Dr. Genter, who manages the project at Soultz and who is incidentally my very first contact. Dr. Ungermach was extremely nice. The company was a bit out of the way, but it was quite a nice train ride and Dr. Ungermach was kind enough to pick me up at the station.
We discussed about some of the challenges that EGS and geothermal in general faces in the EU. In particular, he expressed that more consistent policy needs to be formed throughout all the countries, and since geothermal heat is considered a mineral, the mining policies need to be amended. As it is, it is often difficult to obtain the licenses or permits for land for large-scale geothermal projects. We also discussed quite a bit about current geothermal utilization in France, as well as the current incentive market here. The feed-in tariff for geothermal is likely to rise to about $.20 per kW, which would make it much more competitive.
I got to see Sam yesterday, which is so funny because I haven't seen her in so long and when I finally did, it was in a foreign country! It was really good to catch up with her a bit. I haven't been able to see much of Paris yet, but will most likely do a bit of sight seeing tomorrow, and will hopefully meet up with Frank to tour me around a bit.
Other than that, I'm pretty tired. I think all this traveling and moving around is taking a lot out of me, but I want to take advantage of everywhere I go so I try to keep pretty busy. Well, I had better get going. Good night!
We discussed about some of the challenges that EGS and geothermal in general faces in the EU. In particular, he expressed that more consistent policy needs to be formed throughout all the countries, and since geothermal heat is considered a mineral, the mining policies need to be amended. As it is, it is often difficult to obtain the licenses or permits for land for large-scale geothermal projects. We also discussed quite a bit about current geothermal utilization in France, as well as the current incentive market here. The feed-in tariff for geothermal is likely to rise to about $.20 per kW, which would make it much more competitive.
I got to see Sam yesterday, which is so funny because I haven't seen her in so long and when I finally did, it was in a foreign country! It was really good to catch up with her a bit. I haven't been able to see much of Paris yet, but will most likely do a bit of sight seeing tomorrow, and will hopefully meet up with Frank to tour me around a bit.
Other than that, I'm pretty tired. I think all this traveling and moving around is taking a lot out of me, but I want to take advantage of everywhere I go so I try to keep pretty busy. Well, I had better get going. Good night!
Friday, May 21, 2010
Winding Down
Hi everyone. I know that my mom has been passing along this blog to a lot of people who aren't very familiar with the topic of my project, so just for reference, here are links to the proposal that won me the grant, as well as my honors thesis proposal. They are effectively the same, just include slightly different information on the methodology of my project and logisitical details. Also, here's a nifty little explanation of what enhanced geothermal systems are and how they work.
Yesterday I spoke with Mr. Sigurdsson, who works in the economic office at the embassy and under whose purview energy affairs falls. A lot of our discussion focused on Iceland's investment environment and how that has changed and how it might change in the future. We also discussed how the political atmosphere has affected the development of the energy sector, in particular with regards to the heavy industry (aka aluminum smelters) that buys the new installed capacity. **A tangential note: I don't think I mentioned this before, but it absolutely blows my mind! Iceland has all the energy it needs, and almost every last bit of it is renewable (AND CHEAP). All new development and installed capacity is purely for the use of heavy industries. Energy companies actually have to establish contracts with these industries to ensure themselves a market!** It will be interesting to observe if/how any attitudes or policies change following the upcoming elections.
Today I finished up my last meeting with Dr. Armannsson, who works with the Iceland Geosurvey (ISOR) and a mini-conference hosted by the Geothermal Research Group (GEORG).
My meeting with Dr. Armannsson was very interesting. We talked a lot about ISOR's work abroad, and a major theme that seemed to recur in our discussion was public education and acceptance of geothermal technology. Particularly in developing countries, this could be a big barrier to development. We also discussed a little more about ISOR, how it obtains its funding, and how it operates, all of which I think will be very useful in my research. It was very interesting to learn more about Iceland's relationship with the UN Unversity Geothermal Development Program (UNU-GDP), and the challenges to working abroad.
The afternoon meeting was very nice because I got to see Dr. Fridleifsson, who graciously toured me around the Reykjanes penninsula on Monday, and chat a bit with him. Mr. Ketilsson happened to be one of the presenters, and he spoke a bit about the International Geothermal Association's Geothermal Implementation Agreement. The meeting was quite informative on the structure and initiatives of GEORG, and included a discussion of how it should move forward. I happened to meet a woman while waiting in the lobby for the meeting to start, who was very nice and is incidentally from Virginia. She mentioned a few contacts for me back in the U.S. who I think will be very good to contact.
My time in Iceland is starting to wind down. I booked a tour of the Golden Circle tomorrow (a tour of Iceland's "greatest natural attractions" including waterfalls, geysers, etc.) so that should be very fun! I hope to go to the Blue Lagoon on Sunday or Monday and then it's off to Paris. Until then, I realized today, I have a lot to do! I've got to read up a bit more on French policy and want to refamiliarize myself with the details of the Soultz project (it's been a while since I've reviewed my materials). I also need to firm up my schedule for Germany, and work on preparing a short presentation for the officials at NEDO (in Japan) on geothermal trends in the U.S. Concurrently, I need to set up firm interviews with my Australian contacts (all of whom asked me to schedule appointments a little closer to my arrival date), talk a bit with Ms. Agapinan about my schedule in the Philippines, and plan my sightseeing agenda for Paris! So I should be quite busy until I leave.
I hope that everyone is doing well! Skype me soon!
Yesterday I spoke with Mr. Sigurdsson, who works in the economic office at the embassy and under whose purview energy affairs falls. A lot of our discussion focused on Iceland's investment environment and how that has changed and how it might change in the future. We also discussed how the political atmosphere has affected the development of the energy sector, in particular with regards to the heavy industry (aka aluminum smelters) that buys the new installed capacity. **A tangential note: I don't think I mentioned this before, but it absolutely blows my mind! Iceland has all the energy it needs, and almost every last bit of it is renewable (AND CHEAP). All new development and installed capacity is purely for the use of heavy industries. Energy companies actually have to establish contracts with these industries to ensure themselves a market!** It will be interesting to observe if/how any attitudes or policies change following the upcoming elections.
Today I finished up my last meeting with Dr. Armannsson, who works with the Iceland Geosurvey (ISOR) and a mini-conference hosted by the Geothermal Research Group (GEORG).
My meeting with Dr. Armannsson was very interesting. We talked a lot about ISOR's work abroad, and a major theme that seemed to recur in our discussion was public education and acceptance of geothermal technology. Particularly in developing countries, this could be a big barrier to development. We also discussed a little more about ISOR, how it obtains its funding, and how it operates, all of which I think will be very useful in my research. It was very interesting to learn more about Iceland's relationship with the UN Unversity Geothermal Development Program (UNU-GDP), and the challenges to working abroad.
The afternoon meeting was very nice because I got to see Dr. Fridleifsson, who graciously toured me around the Reykjanes penninsula on Monday, and chat a bit with him. Mr. Ketilsson happened to be one of the presenters, and he spoke a bit about the International Geothermal Association's Geothermal Implementation Agreement. The meeting was quite informative on the structure and initiatives of GEORG, and included a discussion of how it should move forward. I happened to meet a woman while waiting in the lobby for the meeting to start, who was very nice and is incidentally from Virginia. She mentioned a few contacts for me back in the U.S. who I think will be very good to contact.
My time in Iceland is starting to wind down. I booked a tour of the Golden Circle tomorrow (a tour of Iceland's "greatest natural attractions" including waterfalls, geysers, etc.) so that should be very fun! I hope to go to the Blue Lagoon on Sunday or Monday and then it's off to Paris. Until then, I realized today, I have a lot to do! I've got to read up a bit more on French policy and want to refamiliarize myself with the details of the Soultz project (it's been a while since I've reviewed my materials). I also need to firm up my schedule for Germany, and work on preparing a short presentation for the officials at NEDO (in Japan) on geothermal trends in the U.S. Concurrently, I need to set up firm interviews with my Australian contacts (all of whom asked me to schedule appointments a little closer to my arrival date), talk a bit with Ms. Agapinan about my schedule in the Philippines, and plan my sightseeing agenda for Paris! So I should be quite busy until I leave.
I hope that everyone is doing well! Skype me soon!
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Icelandic Adventures
Hello everyone! I've been pretty busy but I've got a spare moment since I'm waiting to meet a contact of mine with the economic department at the embassy. Here's a recap of what I've been up to.
Monday (May 17)
My first meeting with Dr. Fridleifsson, a scientist with HS Orka, the largest private energy production company in Iceland, came to pick me up at my hostel at 8:30 am. He drove me around to the Reykjanes and Svartsengi power plants and all around the geothermal fields there. I got to see the pipelines, the generators, a bunch of wells and reinjection wells, a lot of sights along the way. We talked a lot about how Iceland's geothermal industry developed and how it has become such an integral part of Iceland's energy economy. He took me to the Blue Lagoon, which is more or less a spa that uses the (get this) waste water from the Svartsengi plant! It's brine water that would otherwise need to be reinjected or evaporated. The water is considered to have healing properties for skin diseases like psoriasis.
We talked a lot about Iceland's unique geography, and how that has allowed the geothermal industry to develop so well. In particular, the lava rock formations are key. Not only does the porous rock allow for ideal flow rates during fluid extraction, but they also provide a great natural reservoir for storage. Iceland has an immense supply of clean natural water that rests above the hydrothermal fluids used in geothermal heating and power generation. Similar to Hawaii, the water is filtered through the volcanic rocks so it is some of the cleanest and purest water in the world.
What is particularly awesome about Iceland, or maybe just HS Orka, I'm not really sure, is that they are committed to extracting every last bit of use out of the resources they have. Most of the geothermal plants are CHP plants, which allows the water and steam extracted to be used for not only domestic space and water heating, but also for electricity generation as well. In addition, the Svartsengi plant recycles some of the affluent brine water with the Blue Lagoon (and an entire industry has popped up around it--a clinic, a research facility, and entire cosmetic line has formed around the affluent brine water!). AND, as if they couldn't be any more awesome, Dr. Fridleifsson explained that HS Orka's philosophy is to find ways to get even more out of it. For example, at the Reykjanes plant, which is the only plant that uses cold sea water in the heat exchange process, a lot of heated affluent water is released back to the ocean to be reused in the process. That heated water could be used for algae cultivation, which could then be used for both biofuels and as a food supply for the fish farm industry that has developed. (oh, and as another tangent, while visiting the Reykjanes wells, there was a strong fishy smell around. That's because the fish farms use geothermal water and steam for drying cod heads, which they then ship to Nigeria!). AND there is a lot of experimenting going on to capture CO2 that is released (which is only part of the natural biological cycle and doesn't contribute to anthropogenic emission calcuations), and then converting it to methanol, an alternative transportation fuel. 100% of Iceland's stationary energy is renewable and 82% of all primary energy is renewable. Essentially, Iceland is really awesome when it comes to energy.
Dr. Fridleifsson was so nice and even treated me to lunch! The "national dish," which is a hot dog, coke, and chocolate wafer for dessert. The hot dog has fried onions, ketchup, mustard, and some type of mayonaise sauce. It was very good and I have since seen little stands all over the place. As if he weren't nice enough, he even took me to his home to meet his wife and youngest son. I ate dinner with them and stayed to watch the news. HS Orka was very recently (like in the last two days) bought by a Canadian company, Magma Energy. Although Magma energy already controlled a large portion of the company's shares, it now controls something like 98% of the shares. There was a special on the news about the reaction to this, which has been largely negative. Foreign control of an energy company, despite the fact that the company only has utilization rights and does not actually own the resource, has been met with a lot of skepticism. It'll be interesting to see how this dynamic plays out.
Tuesday (May 18)
I met with Mr. Ketilsson, who works for Orkustofnun, the National Energy Authority of Iceland. This organization was formed by the government back in the 60's to handle licensing and monitoring of energy resources. It was a very interesting interview. One of the most interesting things I picked up is that geothermal heating is so cheap in Iceland, that people who don't have access to it and have to use oil for heating are actually subsidized by the government! Oil is way more expensive than geothermal here!
We also discussed the recent legislation that changed the structure of the energy industry here. Originally, there wasn't much regulation of the energy industry. But in accordance with an EEA policy, Iceland quite recently instituted a policy that accounting for heating and power generation must be kept separately. In addition, the production and distribution aspect of both electricity and hot water were separated. We also talked a bit about the licensing process and some of the legislation dictating environmental and management regulations.
After my meeting, I ventured into the city center for a few hours. I walked around a bit and ended up going to the Reykjavik Museum of Photography, which was really just a gallery above the library. After wandering for a few hours I made my way back to the hostel and, utterly exhausted, called it an early night.
Wednesday (May 19)
With no interviews scheduled, yesterday was my day for some sightseeing. I went back to the city center and walked up to the Hallgrimskirkja church, which sits on top of a hill in the city. It was beautiful! I paid the 500 kronur to take the lift up to the top floor, where there is a little lookout. You could see the entire city. It was a gorgeous view and since it was still pretty early, it was nice to the city before it started bustling. After the church I stopped off at a little cafe to reenergize and get out of the cold for a bit. I walked down Skolavordustigur, an avenue with a lot of little workshops, back to the main street. I walked down to a big lake and park area which is right near the current Reykjavik city hall. Did a bit of sight seeing along the way. Then went to the National Museum where I luckily received free admittance (since it was a Wednesday). It was really interesting! Iceland has a pretty rich history. Some fun facts: Iceland established a parliamenty in 930 at Thingvellir, and it lasted almost until the 1800s when it started being shuffled around between the Nordic and Danish crowns. It conducted the first ever national census in 1703. And it was one of the few places in the world that experienced a relatively peaceful transition to Christianity.
Wednesday night was spent corresponding with contacts in Germany and France and trying to iron out a few things. Some exciting news: I will now officially be going to Pisa, Italy for three days to attend a conference hosted by the European Geothermal Energy Council. I go there shortly after I arrive in Berlin and then return to Berlin to finish up my interviews there. It should be an incredible opportunity to get a wider EU-based perspective on geothermal, and almost an entire day of the conference is dedicated specifically to EGS development in europe.
Thursday (May 20)
Its around 1:00 pm now, and my contact at the embassy will be picking me up at around 2:30 to talk about Iceland's energy policy. This morning has been spent skyping, doing some readings, checking out my financial situation, and reviewing the information I've received so far. I think that things have been going quite well generally. It's been very interesting to observe a place where renewable energy is the best possible thing for economic stimulation, not a threat to it, and where public acceptance and support for geothermal technology is overwhelming positive.
Well I'm off to do a few last minute preparations for my meeting today. Hope everyone is doing well!
Monday (May 17)
My first meeting with Dr. Fridleifsson, a scientist with HS Orka, the largest private energy production company in Iceland, came to pick me up at my hostel at 8:30 am. He drove me around to the Reykjanes and Svartsengi power plants and all around the geothermal fields there. I got to see the pipelines, the generators, a bunch of wells and reinjection wells, a lot of sights along the way. We talked a lot about how Iceland's geothermal industry developed and how it has become such an integral part of Iceland's energy economy. He took me to the Blue Lagoon, which is more or less a spa that uses the (get this) waste water from the Svartsengi plant! It's brine water that would otherwise need to be reinjected or evaporated. The water is considered to have healing properties for skin diseases like psoriasis.
We talked a lot about Iceland's unique geography, and how that has allowed the geothermal industry to develop so well. In particular, the lava rock formations are key. Not only does the porous rock allow for ideal flow rates during fluid extraction, but they also provide a great natural reservoir for storage. Iceland has an immense supply of clean natural water that rests above the hydrothermal fluids used in geothermal heating and power generation. Similar to Hawaii, the water is filtered through the volcanic rocks so it is some of the cleanest and purest water in the world.
What is particularly awesome about Iceland, or maybe just HS Orka, I'm not really sure, is that they are committed to extracting every last bit of use out of the resources they have. Most of the geothermal plants are CHP plants, which allows the water and steam extracted to be used for not only domestic space and water heating, but also for electricity generation as well. In addition, the Svartsengi plant recycles some of the affluent brine water with the Blue Lagoon (and an entire industry has popped up around it--a clinic, a research facility, and entire cosmetic line has formed around the affluent brine water!). AND, as if they couldn't be any more awesome, Dr. Fridleifsson explained that HS Orka's philosophy is to find ways to get even more out of it. For example, at the Reykjanes plant, which is the only plant that uses cold sea water in the heat exchange process, a lot of heated affluent water is released back to the ocean to be reused in the process. That heated water could be used for algae cultivation, which could then be used for both biofuels and as a food supply for the fish farm industry that has developed. (oh, and as another tangent, while visiting the Reykjanes wells, there was a strong fishy smell around. That's because the fish farms use geothermal water and steam for drying cod heads, which they then ship to Nigeria!). AND there is a lot of experimenting going on to capture CO2 that is released (which is only part of the natural biological cycle and doesn't contribute to anthropogenic emission calcuations), and then converting it to methanol, an alternative transportation fuel. 100% of Iceland's stationary energy is renewable and 82% of all primary energy is renewable. Essentially, Iceland is really awesome when it comes to energy.
Dr. Fridleifsson was so nice and even treated me to lunch! The "national dish," which is a hot dog, coke, and chocolate wafer for dessert. The hot dog has fried onions, ketchup, mustard, and some type of mayonaise sauce. It was very good and I have since seen little stands all over the place. As if he weren't nice enough, he even took me to his home to meet his wife and youngest son. I ate dinner with them and stayed to watch the news. HS Orka was very recently (like in the last two days) bought by a Canadian company, Magma Energy. Although Magma energy already controlled a large portion of the company's shares, it now controls something like 98% of the shares. There was a special on the news about the reaction to this, which has been largely negative. Foreign control of an energy company, despite the fact that the company only has utilization rights and does not actually own the resource, has been met with a lot of skepticism. It'll be interesting to see how this dynamic plays out.
Tuesday (May 18)
I met with Mr. Ketilsson, who works for Orkustofnun, the National Energy Authority of Iceland. This organization was formed by the government back in the 60's to handle licensing and monitoring of energy resources. It was a very interesting interview. One of the most interesting things I picked up is that geothermal heating is so cheap in Iceland, that people who don't have access to it and have to use oil for heating are actually subsidized by the government! Oil is way more expensive than geothermal here!
We also discussed the recent legislation that changed the structure of the energy industry here. Originally, there wasn't much regulation of the energy industry. But in accordance with an EEA policy, Iceland quite recently instituted a policy that accounting for heating and power generation must be kept separately. In addition, the production and distribution aspect of both electricity and hot water were separated. We also talked a bit about the licensing process and some of the legislation dictating environmental and management regulations.
After my meeting, I ventured into the city center for a few hours. I walked around a bit and ended up going to the Reykjavik Museum of Photography, which was really just a gallery above the library. After wandering for a few hours I made my way back to the hostel and, utterly exhausted, called it an early night.
Wednesday (May 19)
With no interviews scheduled, yesterday was my day for some sightseeing. I went back to the city center and walked up to the Hallgrimskirkja church, which sits on top of a hill in the city. It was beautiful! I paid the 500 kronur to take the lift up to the top floor, where there is a little lookout. You could see the entire city. It was a gorgeous view and since it was still pretty early, it was nice to the city before it started bustling. After the church I stopped off at a little cafe to reenergize and get out of the cold for a bit. I walked down Skolavordustigur, an avenue with a lot of little workshops, back to the main street. I walked down to a big lake and park area which is right near the current Reykjavik city hall. Did a bit of sight seeing along the way. Then went to the National Museum where I luckily received free admittance (since it was a Wednesday). It was really interesting! Iceland has a pretty rich history. Some fun facts: Iceland established a parliamenty in 930 at Thingvellir, and it lasted almost until the 1800s when it started being shuffled around between the Nordic and Danish crowns. It conducted the first ever national census in 1703. And it was one of the few places in the world that experienced a relatively peaceful transition to Christianity.
Wednesday night was spent corresponding with contacts in Germany and France and trying to iron out a few things. Some exciting news: I will now officially be going to Pisa, Italy for three days to attend a conference hosted by the European Geothermal Energy Council. I go there shortly after I arrive in Berlin and then return to Berlin to finish up my interviews there. It should be an incredible opportunity to get a wider EU-based perspective on geothermal, and almost an entire day of the conference is dedicated specifically to EGS development in europe.
Thursday (May 20)
Its around 1:00 pm now, and my contact at the embassy will be picking me up at around 2:30 to talk about Iceland's energy policy. This morning has been spent skyping, doing some readings, checking out my financial situation, and reviewing the information I've received so far. I think that things have been going quite well generally. It's been very interesting to observe a place where renewable energy is the best possible thing for economic stimulation, not a threat to it, and where public acceptance and support for geothermal technology is overwhelming positive.
Well I'm off to do a few last minute preparations for my meeting today. Hope everyone is doing well!
Monday, May 17, 2010
Success!
I'm extremely tired right now, so I won't be able to do a long post. Today was great, my interview was actually an all day tour of several facilities and steam fields, a little sight-seeing, and even dinner with his wife at his home! It was very nice to see a little bit of Iceland and get a little history outside its involvement with geothermal.
It was really great and I'll post more tomorrow, but for right now I'm really tired and have an early interview tomorrow morning. So I'm off to bed! I'll post more tomorrow once I get through my second interview.
It was really great and I'll post more tomorrow, but for right now I'm really tired and have an early interview tomorrow morning. So I'm off to bed! I'll post more tomorrow once I get through my second interview.
Sunday, May 16, 2010
First Day in Iceland
The first day of my round-the-world adventures is starting to draw to a close. It's now nearly 9:00 pm, and it still looks like it's 5:00 outside...pretty strange to see the sun still fully in the sky. I arrived at the hostel today at around 11:30, and headed out for a stroll around noon. The cold weather wasn't too bad with the sun high in the sky and I had a pleasant walk through the camp ground and botanical gardens that are next to my hostel. The hostel is located on the edge of...I don't really know what to call it. Essentially it seems like a huge athletic center, with different gyms, the national football (soccer) stadium, a huge pool and spa facility, botanical gardens, and an open zoo. It was nice to stroll a bit and just take my time in the crisp air. The low-hanging clouds and surprisingly open spaces were very refreshing after spending months in a city. I didn't make it to the city centre today, but the people at the hostel told me that many shops wouldn't be open since it was Sunday, so I decided to take it easy instead. After my stroll, which probably took me about 3 miles in total, I came back to the hostel to drop off my things.
The next stop was Laugardalslaug, the largest pool in Iceland, which incidentally is right next door! There are outdoor and indoor pools, and all are heated primarily by geothermal heat. I spent about an hour in one of the jacuzzis, which was a wonderful relief after carting around my laptop and binder full of research materials on my little trek. I attracted a few stares, and the procedures of the pool were a bit confusing, but overall it was a nice way to relax.
Afterwards I headed to a small grocery/convenience store called 10-11 and bought some provisions for the week. Then I made myself some dinner and sat down to get some work done. I took a little nap but I'm still really tired. I didn't get much sleep on the plane so I've more or less been awake now for....well I have no clue with the time difference but it's been a long time. In any case I'm definitely getting to bed early tonight. Until then, I'll probably just be preparing for my interview tomorrow. I'm very nervous! Hopefully all this preparation will help things to go smoothly and will yield great results for my research. Night everyone!
The next stop was Laugardalslaug, the largest pool in Iceland, which incidentally is right next door! There are outdoor and indoor pools, and all are heated primarily by geothermal heat. I spent about an hour in one of the jacuzzis, which was a wonderful relief after carting around my laptop and binder full of research materials on my little trek. I attracted a few stares, and the procedures of the pool were a bit confusing, but overall it was a nice way to relax.
Afterwards I headed to a small grocery/convenience store called 10-11 and bought some provisions for the week. Then I made myself some dinner and sat down to get some work done. I took a little nap but I'm still really tired. I didn't get much sleep on the plane so I've more or less been awake now for....well I have no clue with the time difference but it's been a long time. In any case I'm definitely getting to bed early tonight. Until then, I'll probably just be preparing for my interview tomorrow. I'm very nervous! Hopefully all this preparation will help things to go smoothly and will yield great results for my research. Night everyone!
Saturday, May 15, 2010
Officially En Route
Well, the very first leg of my journey has been completed...that is....the first leg of the first leg. I'm now sitting at JFK waiting for my connecting flight to Iceland, already a 3 hour layover, now delayed another three for a total of 6 hours. At least now I'll arrive in Reykjavik at a more reasonable hour (originally I arrived at 6:30 am). The journey so far has been pleasant, despite struggling with a rolly suitcase and heavy messenger bag. I think in the end the decision to not check any baggage was a good one though, especially seeing how likely it will be that I encounter travel complications along the way.
For the time being, I'll be doing some reading to prep for my very first interview! I arrive at Reykjavik on Sunday morning and will head straight to the hostel that I'm staying at. I'll probably walk around a bit, get a bite to eat, take some pictures, do a little of the touristy thing, and then return to the hostel to prepare. I'm extremely excited for my first interview, which is with the project manager and chief scientist of the high temperature deep drilling project at Reykjanes. He was one of the first contacts I made, way back in November when I first began researching my proposal. It will be exciting to finally meet one of my contacts in person!
I better get to doing some reading!
For the time being, I'll be doing some reading to prep for my very first interview! I arrive at Reykjavik on Sunday morning and will head straight to the hostel that I'm staying at. I'll probably walk around a bit, get a bite to eat, take some pictures, do a little of the touristy thing, and then return to the hostel to prepare. I'm extremely excited for my first interview, which is with the project manager and chief scientist of the high temperature deep drilling project at Reykjanes. He was one of the first contacts I made, way back in November when I first began researching my proposal. It will be exciting to finally meet one of my contacts in person!
I better get to doing some reading!
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