For the rest of the flight, we were mainly silent except to exude awe over the amazing crater below us. It was remarkable, a deep hole in the ground with a pristine lake at the center. I’d seen images of lakes like this before, but this one took my breath when I saw it in person. It felt magical with the steep sides and the reddish vegetation growing amongst swaths of green leaves. Somehow, just seeing it made me feel calmer, maybe because it reminded me that there were forces beyond the control of human beings.
My sense of peace was fleeting, however, when Alex left the crater, flew east, and set down in a field where a single car was waiting with Inga, Gunnar, and Officer Jonsdottir beside it. I was frustrated and disappointed because, once again, my tourism plans were thwarted by this
