June 20th. Iceland and “Stendhal Syndrome”.

During his 1817 visit to Florence Italy Marie-Henri Beyle, using the pseudonym “Stendhal”, described the sense of being overwhelmed by the magnitude and beauty of what he beheld. His experience was not unique. We learned while touring Florence many years ago that there are a handful of susceptible individuals each year who actually require hospitalization to overcome the effects of seeing too much good art. The condition has come to be known as “Stendhal Syndrome”.

I wonder if the same holds true in Iceland where there is so much incredible scenery? Apparently we are not susceptible individuals as the only treatment that we require is the 8 hours of airplane therapy that will return us to Kansas City. That treatment is scheduled for Friday.

I am hard pressed to think of a time or place where I have seen such an endless exhibition of natural beauty. Today it was presented to us in the form of black sand beaches, basalt rock formations, and receding glaciers that are being strangled by climate change. Here are selected images of the day. Enjoy!

Peace Everyone. Pete

PS. 8 years ago the glacier filled this valley up to the location of this sign.