The Icelandic Canadian - 01.02.2007, Side 19

Vol. 60 #4
THE ICELANDIC CANADIAN
145
Warm Memories of Iceland
by Cheryl MacMillan
Dave & Cheryl MacMillan at Gullfoss
Let me preface my thoughts with a lit-
tle background information on how our
big trip to Iceland came about.
I have known Dan Johnson for over 30
years in different capacities, first as my
boss and friend Joanne’s older brother,
then as friend and coach of my daughter
Kate’s high school hockey team. I truly
believe that Dan epitomizes the phrase,
“Where there’s a will, there’s a way”, so
when Dan first mentioned to me that it
would be neat to take our Kelvin Women’s
Hockey team to Iceland. I knew he wasn’t
just talking out of his warm Icelandic wool
hat that he proudly wears all winter. As I
am always up for an adventure, I thought a
hockey trip to Iceland might just be an
excellent one. Since I am writing this arti-
cle, the trip did indeed come to pass but it
was a few years after Dan initially put the
bee in my bonnet and after much discus-
sion with Icelanders both in Canada and
Iceland. We not only convinced our
team’s players and parents of this once in
a lifetime opportunity, but also Hockey
Manitoba and our school principal. It did
help that our principal Glen Eliasson and
his wife Cathy (Appleby) are both of
Icelandic heritage and wanted to come
along for the fun.
We feverishly fundraised and pre-
pared for five months prior to our depar-
ture on March 26, 2006. As manager of the
team I had some extra responsibilities,
including ensuring that everyone in our
party got on the flight. I had checked and
rechecked all the tickets prior to arriving
at the airport so expected everything to go
smoothly. However when one of our par-
ents (and team doctor) presented his tick-
et to the NWA ticket agent he was told he
wasn’t in their computer system. I tried to
remain calm and after being allowed to
look at their list, it was revealed that
another parent was listed twice. We
cleared security in the nick of time and
were at last on our way, although I think
there were a few luggage issues. Our con-
necting flight from Minneapolis to Iceland
was an overnight one, so we arrived tired
and stiff. My first impression of Iceland
was that the Keflavik airport runway ran
straight into the ocean, as I didn’t remem-
ber seeing much land before we touched
down. I also remember noting the almost
desolate surroundings and rocky terrain
that was reminiscent of pictures I have
seen of the moon. It was almost surreal!
Now I am going from memory in
terms of names of people and places, and
that is not always a good thing. I apolo-
gize if I make any mistakes as everyone
and every place was wonderful. Upon our
arrival in Keflavik we were met by Carol,
a fellow Canadian, who is living in Iceland
with her Canadian husband who coaches