the land of fire + ice

back in july 2000, derek moved to iceland to work with a couple friends of his from school [animation school; now he works as a concept artist]. 

we had been dating for about a year and a half. he was gone for 6 months. what was a heart-wrenching and incredibly difficult separation turned into a real blessing. our relationship was forced to evolve strictly through telephone and email communication, and we grew closer than ever. it was while he was away that i think we truly realized we were meant to be. 

i had the amazing pleasure of visiting iceland for 10 days towards the end of derek's time there. i went in late november, and the country's incredible beauty about bowled me over. stunning landscapes, breathtaking views. 

i thought i'd share a few of my favourite shots here. they're over on my flickr if you'd like to take a closer look.

grindavik, iceland :: the blue lagoon

iceland's interior :: gulfoss [waterfall] + a large lake

my wedding gift to derek was a blurb book filled with the emails he wrote me while in iceland. phone calls were ridiculously expensive, and the time difference made it rather difficult to find a good time to chat, so we communicated mainly via email and msn. i got an email every day for six months, sometimes more than one, and i printed and kept them all. 

i transcribed each and every one into this book. then i had our photos digitized, and dotted them throughout. it turned out great. it is a fantastic memento of our trip, and our bittersweet separation. i think of that time often, and looking at the pictures brings it all flooding back. 

i'd like to go back again someday, it is truly a beautiful country.